Promo Insiders: Obsess Over Creating a Better Customer Experience
In this episode of Promo Insiders, Overture Promotions CEO and Counselor Power 50 member Tej Shah discusses the ingredients for successful M&A, the power of collaboration and what he’s thinking about for the year ahead.
Tej Shah was going to be a doctor.
In undergrad, he studied premed biology with the intention of attending medical school. “I’m a nerd at heart, a math and science guy,” he says. “I joke that having Indian parents, you can do anything you want in life, as long as it’s [being] a doctor or an engineer. So, I chose medicine and I loved every second of it.”
But plans can change. Shah, now the CEO of Counselor Top 40 distributor Overture Promotions (asi/288473), took a gap year after college, which is where his journey into the business world began. During his time away from academia, Shah co-founded a tech startup with a friend – a venture he calls his “biggest failure yet.”
“I always say that tech startup was my MBA before I actually went out and got an MBA,” he says. “I ended up learning a lot about marketing and e-commerce specifically.”
And it’s exactly those skills and experiences that brought him to Overture in 2010, where he was hired to lead the distributor’s e-commerce division.
Now the company’s CEO and a member of the Counselor Power 50 list of the most influential people in the industry, Shah has been pivotal to Overture’s growth, which has increased sales by 22% year over year.
On this week’s episode of Promo Insiders, Shah sits down with ASI Media’s Digital News Editor Tara Lerman to share his tips for executing successful mergers and acquisitions, why he’s focused on making Overture a place employees want to work and how obsessing over creating a better customer experience can foster sustainable growth.
Key Takeaways
• Originally a premed student, Tej Shah pivoted into entrepreneurship, launching a tech startup that became his “MBA” in e-commerce and marketing. That experience led him to Overture Promotions (asi/288473), where he built the distributor’s e-commerce presence and eventually became CEO.
• Overture started 2026 with the acquisition of Pride Products (asi/299307), and Shah says Overture was drawn to Pride’s strong culture, long-standing client relationships – particularly with major law firms – and its stellar service reputation. Shah believes combining Pride’s vertical expertise with Overture’s global, tech-forward, vertically integrated capabilities will unlock new value for clients.
• Shah describes the transition into CEO as smooth thanks to Overture’s strong existing leadership team and new senior hires. Their expertise has enabled a seamless handoff and allowed him to focus on strategic growth.
• With 22% year-over-year sales growth, Shah attributes success to an obsession with customer experience – being easier to work with, faster and more differentiated than competitors. Clients increasingly want fewer partners who can do more, which Overture supports through vertical integration and heavy investments in data and automation.
• Shah’s favorite part of the promo world is its unusually collaborative culture. Despite competing with thousands of distributors, he’s formed close relationships with industry leaders who openly share best practices and support one another – something he finds unique and energizing.