News May 13, 2026
Stran Swings to Q1 Profit as Sales Rise 8.9%
After reporting operating losses for the past three fiscal years, Stran reported a net profit of $0.7 million for Q1 2026, thanks to increased sales and slimmed down operational expenses.
Key Takeaways
• Stran Promotional Solutions (asi/337725) grew Q1 2026 sales 8.9% year over year to $31.2 million.
• The revenue jump was driven by an 11.9% increase in its legacy Stran segment while the company swung to a $700,000 net profit.
• The distributor also reported improved operational expenses and profit margins for the quarter.
Counselor Top 40 distributor Stran Promotional Solutions (asi/337725) posted sales of $31.2 million in the first quarter of 2026, an 8.9% jump from Q1 2025, according to recently released financial statements for the publicly traded company.
The increased sales caused a swing in the company’s net profitability. Stran reported net income on the quarter of $700,000 – or $0.04 per diluted share – compared to a net loss of $400,000 in the same three-month period last year.
“We are seeing our enterprise clients engage with us more deeply than ever – not just for individual products or one-off campaigns, but across our full platform of promotional products, loyalty and incentive programs, e-commerce solutions, and fulfillment services,” said CEO Andy Shape, a member of Counselor’s Power 50 list of the most influential people in promo. “As clients adopt more of our capabilities, we become more embedded in their operations, which drives higher retention and more durable revenue.”
Stran’s Q1 sales increase was primarily driven by sales in the company’s legacy Stran segment, which noted an 11.9% revenue jump to $23.4 million in the quarter.
Q1 sales were flat for the Stran Loyalty Solutions (SLS) segment – formerly The Gander Group, which Stran acquired in 2024. However, the company reported that SLS significantly improved its gross profit margin from 21.8% in Q1 2025 to 28.7% in the first quarter of 2026, citing a “more favorable customer mix and disciplined cost management,” according to the financial release. The sector’s net income also improved to $500,000, compared to a loss of the same magnitude in Q1 2025.
Shape noted that Stran also continued to grow its client base in the first quarter, with new contracts with a major nonprofit running organization, top gaming company and two Global 100 law firms.
“These wins reflect the breadth of our capabilities and the increasing demand for Stran’s integrated marketing and branded merchandise solutions across a diverse range of industries,” Shape said, adding that he’s optimistic about the rest of the year.
Shape first took Stran public in late 2021, bucking an industry trend of seeking private equity investment to obtain additional funding. With reported North American promotional products sales of $114.1 million, the company ranked 23rd on Counselor’s most recent list of the largest distributors in the industry. New figures are due out in July.