ASI Announces Winners of 2018 Counselor Awards

CHICAGO, July 26, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- The Advertising Specialty Institute^® (ASI), which serves a network of 23,500 suppliers, distributors and decorators in the $23.6 billion promotional products industry, today announced the winners of the 2018 Counselor^® Awards, including ETS Express CEO Sharon Eyal as Person of the Year and president and CEO of Cimpress-owned National Pen, Peter Kelly, as International Person of the Year.

The awards, nominated by industry peers and chosen by the editors of ASI's Counselor magazine, recognize outstanding individuals and companies in the promotional products industry.

Click here for Facebook livestreams from the ceremony Wednesday at The Geraghty, where Counselor also unveiled the Top 40 Distributor and Top 40 Supplier rankings – the largest companies in the industry based on 2017 revenue.

Among suppliers, SanMar was number one, setting an industry record with $1.4 billion in sales, with alphabroder and Polyconcept North America rounding out the top three spots.

Among distributors, 4imprint was number one, with a record-setting $608 million in North American promotional products sales, with Staples Promotional Products and HALO Branded Solutions numbers two and three.

"The acclaimed Counselor award recognizes the hardworking companies and creative individuals who are always moving forward, helping to grow our industry," said Timothy M. Andrews, ASI president and CEO.

The winners are:

• Person of the Year: Sharon Eyal, CEO of ETS Express 
• International Person of the Year: Peter Kelly, president and CEO of Cimpress-owned National Pen
• Supplier Entrepreneurs of the Year: Erin Reilly and Sterling Wilson, founder/CEO and founder/president of Pop! Promos
• Distributor Entrepreneur of the Year: Mitch Mounger, CEO of Sunrise Identity
• Family Business of the Year: Scarborough Specialties
• Technology Executive of the Year: Jonas Temple, CIO at The Magnet Group
• Distributor Woman of Distinction: Faride Jarufe, owner of Grupo Fama
• Supplier Woman of Distinction: Kellie Claudio, senior vice president of sales/marketing at Sweda
• Marvin Spike Lifetime Achievement Award: Gene Geiger, owner/CEO of the Geiger Group
• Bess Cohn Humanitarian Award: Peter Hirsch, president of Hirsch Gift

Oxnard, CA-based ETS Express is the market leader in the industry's drinkware category, setting the standard for customer service and production with a five-year overall growth rate of 97% and nearing $100 million in annual sales.

For winner profiles, visit www.asicentral.com/news.

About ASI
The Advertising Specialty Institute (ASI^®) serves a network of 23,500 suppliers, distributors and decorators in the $23.6 billion promotional products industry

SOURCE Advertising Specialty Institute