Eskimo Joe’s Promotional Products Group (EJPPG; asi/189402) is celebrating its 20th year in business on Sept. 1. “I am extremely proud of EJPPG and the work of this amazing team that continues to delight our clients each and every day,” said Stan Clark, CEO and founder. Headquartered in Stillwater, OK, its production facility features three automatic screen-printing presses, more than 30 embroidery heads, an ink room for mixing custom colors, a full-service art department, sales offices, and a showroom. In addition to its Stillwater location, EJPPG has a showroom in Tulsa and sales offices in Edmond, OK; Joplin, MO; and Dallas, TX.

Sonoma Promotional Solutions (asi/88188) has appointed Ed Van Waes as sales manager. Previously, Van Waes worked as director of sales for a multimillion-dollar audio equipment brand.

PowerStick.com (asi/51566) has hired Alex Symms as national account manager. Most recently, he was the national account manager/digital marketing manager for Chameleon Like (asi/44558). Previously, he was the Southwest regional manager at Admints & Zagabor, acquired by Top 40 supplier Hit Promotional Products (asi/61125) in 2015, and Southeast regional sales manager for KTI Networks (asi/63776). “Alex is a tremendous and well-respected resource with the skillsets I really wanted on our team,” says PowerStick.com CEO Nigel Harris. “His nearly 20 years of experience will greatly benefit this company and help us continue our leadership role in the areas of tech and custom packaging.”

PromoPulse, a sales and marketing platform for the promotional products industry, has raised $150,000 from TinySeed, a remote accelerator program designed specifically for B2B software-as-a-service (SaaS) companies. “Within the first few months of the TinySeed program, I’ve already learned a great deal about how to better run the company and formed tight connections in mastermind groups,” said Jason Nokes, PromoPulse founder.

Top 40 distributor 4imprint (asi/197045) gave out more than 600 one by one grants to charitable organizations across Canada and the U.S. in Q2. Each grant is comprised of $500 worth of promotional products for the recipients to use in marketing efforts. Among the Canadian grantees are the Betty Huff Theatre Company in Surrey, BC; the Canadian Deafblind Association in Saskatoon, SK; and United Way of Colchester County in Truro, NS.

Canada Sportswear (asi/43682) has promoted Scott Pearce to the position of director of sales in the company’s apparel division. He joined the company in 2021. “Scott is committed to developing strong customer relations and has been an asset since joining our team,” said CEO Ralph Goldfinger. “Our industry is experiencing challenging times and we see opportunities to help our customers by accelerating our investment in stock depth, technology and people.”

Spector & Co. (asi/88660) has promoted Juan Martinez to the position of vice president of branding and manufacturing growth for North America. Martinez joined the company 22 years ago, and most recently led the Innovation Team for seven years, where he played a leading role in the launches of the Ashbury, Scribl and Ora house brands. Previously, he was manager of research & development and manager of production. “Juan was pivotal in setting up our factory, helping us invest in new forms of branding machinery, and our operations and processes, all of which have furthered Spector & Co.’s growth,” said President & CEO Robert Spector.

Optamark (asi/288067), a provider of brand management services, has hired Andrew Lell as executive vice president and partner. In this role, he will lead the company’s sales organization and manage day-to-day operations. Lell has more than 20 years of experience in the print, promotional and apparel industries. The company has also appointed Michael Conaty as chief growth officer, responsible for leading the growth of Optamark and its distributor network as well as curating offerings on its business-to-consumer website. Conaty has four years of experience in promo and eight in corporate America.

iPromo (asi/229471), a Chicago-based distributor, announced that it has been recognized on the Inc. 5000 list for the second year in a row with three-year revenue growth of 256%, placing No. 2281 on Inc's. annual ranking of the fastest-growing private companies in America.

STAHLS’ (asi/88984) recently released PVC Patches, another custom transfer option in its Emblems & Patches product line. PVC Patches are dimensional patches that STAHLS’ says appeal to a wide range of markets. Featuring a rubber-like look and bright on-trend color options, these custom patches are available as heat-applied or pressure-sensitive transfers. Learn more at stahls.com/pvc-patches.

Spector & Co. (asi/88660) has promoted Juan Martinez to the position of vice president of branding and manufacturing growth for North America. Martinez joined the company 22 years ago, and most recently led the Innovation Team for seven years, where he played a leading role in the launches of the Ashbury, Scribl and Ora house brands. Previously, he was manager of Research & Development and manager of Production. “Juan was pivotal in setting up our factory, helping us invest in new forms of branding machinery, and our operations and processes, all of which have furthered Spector & Co.’s growth,” said President & CEO Robert Spector. “Juan’s dedication to providing our staff with the tools and processes for their success over the years has simply been remarkable.”

Ad Bands Plus (asi/34345) in Hot Springs, AR, celebrates 36 years in business in 2022. The supplier, which created the Pepsi Challenge wristband in 1987, expanded its presence with imprinted rubber bands and customized packaging solutions for the produce, floral, seafood and grocery industries. Today, they also provide bands for applications such as hat and T-shirt combinations, yoga mats, health & beauty multi-packs, and promo samples.

Spector & Co. (asi/88660) welcomes Roberto Trenard as director of operations, where he will lead efforts to streamline processes in the company’s production department, and Patricia Keays as a strategic accounts manager for clients on the West Coast.

ACS Affiliate Services, a division of Altitude Group, LLC and a subsidiary of AIM Smarter, welcomed three new affiliate partners in July: E2E Branding in Tulsa, OK; PRO2 Group, LLC (asi/556072) in Abingdon, MD; and Purple Snow Promotional, LLC (asi/522833) in Billings, MT. “We are excited about the future of ACS with the addition of these new affiliate partners,” said Kirk Ross, executive vice president of ACS Affiliate Services.

Facilisgroup, a partnering community and software-as-a-service company for the promo industry with locations in St. Louis and Ottawa, ON, added five new distributor members in Q2: Add Impact (asi/106606) in Woodbridge, ON; Create It Promotions in Brampton, ON; Kurieo Media (asi/174235) in Fremont, CA; SEP Communications (asi/524713) in Boca Raton, FL; and Delta Marketing Group (asi/300429) in South Burlington, VT. “True success is when two like-minded people join forces, and it’s even more powerful when it’s a network of more than 210 distributors, over 80 Preferred Suppliers and all our teams,” said Ashley McCune, president of Facilisgroup. “Our close-knit community continues to grow.”

American Solutions for Business (ASB, asi/120075), a Top 40 distributorship, has announced that its senior leadership team members have earned a Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DEI) certification from Stanford University. Through a six-module course, members of ASB’s highest level of management committed more than 10 hours per week to create a better understanding of DEI in the workplace. “Not only did we have the opportunity to understand what diversity meant to us individually, but we were also given the opportunity to analyze how it fit into the structure of our organization,” said ASB President Justin Zavadil.

Delegate CX, a Texas-based firm that provides outsourcing services for promo companies, has partnered with Facilisgroup. Delegate will provide offshore hiring solutions to Facilisgroup’s growing network of distributors. Facilisgroup is a partnering community and software-as-a-service company for the promo industry.

Logomark (asi/67866), a Top 40 supplier, has hired Cecilia Chicone as regional manager for the Ohio and Mid-Atlantic territory. Cichone has more than 20 years of sales experience, having led sales teams for retail companies, marketing organizations and promotional product suppliers. She has worked on product launches and marketing campaigns for retailers that include Bed Bath & Beyond and Victoria’s Secret.

Pop! Promos (asi/45657) says it has a new offering just in time for the holiday season: fulfillment kits – a turnkey customer unboxing experience featuring Pop! Promos’ products and third-party items packaged in full color boxes with printed materials, mailed to recipients across the United States. “Our team has been hard at work over the past several months fine-tuning our fulfillment offerings in time for the busy holiday season,” said Pop! CEO Erin Reilly.  “We’re eager to start fulfilling orders and filling stockings with beautiful branded merchandise.”

Top 40 supplier NC Custom (asi/44900) is expanding its sales and customer service team with the addition of Shane Allen of Allen Golf Inc., who will be representing British Columbia. Allen gained five years of promo industry experience with Top 40 supplier Cutter & Buck (asi/47965) before starting his own agency, Allen Golf, in 2021. Previously, he worked in logistics for the oil and gas industry.