Dawn Olds, MAS, immediate past chair of the PPAI Board of Directors and senior vice president of industry relations and DEI at HALO (PPAI 106462, D16) – ranked the No. 2 distributor in this year’s PPAI 100 – is retiring.

“Dawn’s legacy at HALO is one of leadership innovation, and an unyielding commitment to excellence,” says Marc Simon, CEO of HALO. “She has been a driving force within our company. And her impact extends far beyond the walls of HALO, as she has also been a trailblazer in our industry, dedicating her time and expertise to promote the value of promotional products to the marketplace.”

Olds plans on staying with HALO through the end of the year and will end her tenure at The PPAI Expo 2024 in Las Vegas.

“It has been an honor to contribute to our company’s success and to witness the incredible growth and innovation that has taken place over the years”, Olds says. “I’m grateful for the friendships, the challenges and the countless opportunities to make a difference.”

‘Serial Entrepreneur’

A 35-year veteran of the promotional products industry, Olds has spent her entire career at the Sterling, Illinois-based distributor. Starting in accounting, she moved to a software development manager position in IT before transitioning to a more operational role. She’s been in management for more than two decades, overseeing accounting, IT and general operations functions, and prior to her current role, served as HALO’s senior vice president of operations.

  • Olds is credited with developing and managing project integration plans for dozens of successful acquisitions, and she has been the executive sponsor for several Lean Six Sigma projects.
  • Her career highlights also include mentoring dozens of professionals within the HALO organization.


“I’ve been a bit of a serial entrepreneur here,” Olds says. “I’ve had the opportunity to do a lot of different things and build a lot of great foundations. I’m glad to trust it to the next generation.”

Meanwhile, Olds has been part of a generation of women who have made the traditionally male-dominated industry more inclusive, paving the way for more women to have a seat at the table.

  • In fact, women outnumbered men 3 to 1 in the 2023 PPAI Rising Stars, the latest in a three-year trend of women occupying more spots on the list than their male counterparts.


“I love that my daughter and granddaughter will never have to encounter the things that my mother and grandmother encountered in a professional space,” Olds says. “Being able to talk about pay equity as just being expected is a huge change that’s so terrific and sets a great foundation.”

“But I stress that it’s only a foundation,” she adds. “Yes, women have come a long way, but there are still pockets where there are things that just aren’t right. Historically underrepresented groups are still underrepresented. There’s still a lot of work to be done.”

A Natural Leader

She has volunteered in the industry for several years and joined the PPAI Board of Directors immediately following the The PPAI Expo 2020. Her tenure in the Association’s leadership tracked along considerable changes and challenges in the organization and industry at large.

  • Olds joined the PPAI Board as the coronavirus took hold and was a vital part of the Association’s leadership as it navigated the pandemic, weighing in on decisions on scheduling and staffing changes and the move to virtual Direct-2-You events.
  • She helped guide the Association through a change in executive leadership, with Dale Denham, MAS+, coming on in August 2021 as PPAI’s new president and CEO.
  • As board chair in 2022, Olds was instrumental in the revitalization of The PPAI Expo and several new initiatives at the Association.


“It’s been truly a gift – and a learning experience – to work alongside Dawn on the PPAI Board,” says Kevin Walsh, CAS, current board chair for PPAI and president of Showdown Displays. “She and I were the inaugural class of the Board’s ‘slate’ process and together we’ve weathered the Association challenges of COVID, emerging stronger as an Association and as leaders for that experience.

“I’ll be forever grateful for our experience together and the opportunity to witness and learn from her leadership. Dawn relentlessly demonstrates the leadership attributes that we all aspire to and does so with objective compassion for our members and our Association.”

Giving Back

Olds fondly recalls being part of a benchmarking committee at HALO that met with “friendly competitors,” such as AIA, The Vernon Company and Geiger, once a year.

“I loved having that connection at a friendly competitor that I could call and ask how they were handling a problem,” she says. “I could have a phone-a-friend, which was super valuable. Volunteering with the Association allowed me to build my phone-a-friend bank even more.”

Olds has an extensive track record of volunteerism in the promo industry. Along with her service on the PPAI Board, she’s been an instrumental part of numerous PPAI volunteer committees and a member of the Promotional Products Education Foundation (PPEF) board. 

  • As a board member, she served as its liaison on the Leadership Advisory Committee; the Distributor Foresight Committee; the Public Relations Advisory Group; the Government Relations Action Council; the Public Relations Task Force and the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Task Force.
  • Olds has also served on the Association’s Professional Development Committee, the Membership Task Force and the Awards Work Group.
  • She participated in PPAI’s Legislative Education and Action Day in 2017-2019 and in 2023.


Taking great joy in learning new things, solving problems and seeing results, Olds says she could do that within the Association through her volunteer work. “I’ve really enjoyed my time volunteering and encourage others in the industry to consider volunteer service for the Association,” she says. “It’s a great way to grow professionally and help an industry that’s been good to all of us.”

What’s Next?

Outside the industry, she has volunteered for Junior Achievement, provides mentoring for a high school entrepreneur program and is an active member of the Women’s Professional Network.

After taking some time to smell the roses and enjoy the company of her husband and latest grandchild, she plans to continue giving back to the community by working for some local charities and pursuing board service in other organizations.

“I’ve been blessed with a lot of different experiences, and it would be unfair for me to sit on them and not share,” Olds says. “It’s my intent to keep doing something, but something different.”