In the words of his nominator, Paul Kiewiet, MAS+, 2025 PPAI Hall of Fame inductee Jonathan Isaacson has been a “bright light” for the promotional products industry.
His reputation, and the traits that have earned him Hall of Fame honors, are not just as an entrepreneurial visionary. Isaacson is the architect of the award-winning culture at Gemline (PPAI 113948, Platinum) – the No. 11 supplier in the PPAI 100 – a philanthropist and a connector. He’s rallied fellow leaders to important causes facing the industry, championed capitalism with compassion and forged friendships along the way.
PPAI Media: First off, Jonathan, congratulations on The PPAI Hall of Fame. For every honoree, it is the result of an incredible reputation of service to the industry. What does the recognition mean to you?
Isaacson: This is an incredible honor. I was surprised and incredibly grateful.
We all go to work every day trying to do the best we can. We have run the company in a way that we hope is going to make the people who work there proud and, equally importantly, a company that’s going to make our family proud. To see that recognized is just incredible. There are few things better than a recognition from your peers that you have done something well. The work we do for our customers, the industry, the company, and for our community is being recognized.
PPAI Media: The award can only be given in retrospection of a job well done. But take us back to the beginning of your career in the industry. What did you imagine it would be like?
Isaacson: I thought we could do better.
In the early 1990s, we had this large set of orders going to retail. It was very early in my career, and through some good luck, and a bit of stupidity, I had landed the account, which was very complicated from a production standpoint. So, we decided I would move to Asia to oversee production and work to improve our supply chain. I was young and, in retrospect, I didn’t know very much about anything. But I had the ability and willingness to work crazy hours, get my fingernails dirty and do what it took to deliver the orders. And I did.
This was very early on in terms of China’s development and there were not a lot of other companies doing what we were. In fact, there was only one other company working in our main factory at the time, which was High Sierra. Ironically, they are now a part of Samsonite, and one of our brand partners. At the time, when I saw the quality of products they were making, I turned to our team and said, “This stuff’s incredible; why can’t we do this?”
Jonathan Isaacson
Executive Chair, Gemline
Simultaneously, I came to realize that the promotional market was changing. At the time, the quality in the market was not what it is today. With that, I felt that there were a lot of customers who would want a quality product that elevated their brand and reflected what they saw at retail. So, I don’t know that I knew we were going where we are today, but I had this idea that we could sell great products supported by a superior customer experience. We just needed to work at it.
It was really hard. We tripped a bunch of times. I could give you 30 or 50 different mistakes that we made along the way. But by and large, with a lot of effort from a lot of people, it worked. And I think that from what I can see, and the ratings that we get, the market is quite pleased with the product and the service that we’re putting out there today.
PPAI Media: We can leave those 30 or 50 different mistakes out. What are your best memories from these past 30-plus years?
Isaacson: There are a lot of good memories over the past number of years, so it is hard to distill it down to just a few. By the way, it does go fast.
In this industry, the best memories will always be people and relationships. It has been a real honor, and great fun, to work with the team at Gemline. I’ve had the privilege to work with terrific people who have been engaged, smart, caring, and thoughtful colleagues. Outside of Gemline, I’ve interacted with people who were incredibly community-oriented, giving, thoughtful, and fun. There have been lasting relationships.
I also have to say that the work we did on the product and our delivery systems has been fun and gratifying. We are always focused on improvement, both in the industry and the company, and it has been hard at times, but rewarding.
And, in this industry, the product is incredibly fun. The improvement in the quality of the product and design over the years is just spectacular. I am amazed at how far we have come from when I started. We are putting out great product, made in a compliant and increasingly sustainable way.
At Gem, we talk about “pride in people, pride in product.” I have had the privilege of being a part of the development of our company, our people and our product. I am proud of what the team has accomplished. That is a great memory.
PPAI Media: One of the ways you’ve helped the industry is through connection and cooperation. The Gemline dinners, bringing business leaders together during The PPAI Expo, are legendary. This industry is unique in that it’s often collegial rather than cutthroat competition. Do you think you’ve played a role in creating that environment?
Isaacson: I hope so.
I agree that this is a collegial industry, but very competitive as well. Many of the biggest and best companies from when I started no longer exist. And these were great companies at the time.
The landscape has changed a lot from when I started, from the demands of the customers to the regulatory environment. While all of the changes impact individual companies, a failure in some areas, such as compliance, has the potential to impact the entire industry. As a market leader, we feel we have a responsibility to be a part of the solution, and the ability to be a convener.
For example, most people today take compliance for granted, meaning that we have to do these things. However, when it started to be an issue for the industry, everybody was looking at it saying ‘what is this and what do we do about it?’ We all were surprised by how fast things moved partly because the Association and the industry didn’t really have a seat at the table as legislation was being crafted in Washington.
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Once we realized what was happening, it was important for suppliers to be able to talk and to share knowledge with one another, because the whole industry was going to get punished if we didn’t make improvements. So, we got suppliers together to learn from each other and it worked quite well. It benefited everyone, including the consumer.
Of course, one of the more well-known meetings that we have done has been the Expo dinners. That started small and eventually took on a life of its own. With that, there are plenty of other examples of where we felt we had the ability to do something for our customers and the industry, so we did. During and after Covid, we had webinars to educate the industry. We pioneered trend forecasts and spoke about what we thought were the most important trends at just about every type of industry event.
Today, we are increasingly talking about sustainability. We view this as critical to our future. And, as we talk about this, and raise awareness, the reality is that it’s good for everybody, at the end of the day.
PPAI Media: What about the wins along the way that you’ve really celebrated personally?
Isaacson: When I originally bought Gemline, it was not a product I was terribly proud of and the service was not exceptionally good. Today, we have an amazing product line supported by exceptional service. It has been a very gratifying transition.
We have been really early on a lot of trends, whether introducing relevant consumer brands or embracing compliance. Today, we are working really hard on sustainability, having committed to eliminate PVC and no PFAS in our product. These are really big lifts supported by our global team.
And, as I have mentioned, we have an amazing team. It is a real joy to work with them every day.
PPAI Media: You’ve mentioned the team and the people a few times now. What are you proud of about the group and the culture you’ve created?
Isaacson: I have mentioned how impressive I have found my colleagues. With that, one of our critical success factors has been the fact that, at Gem, we operate as a team. In fact, we tell prospective candidates who are coming to work at Gemline, if you’re coming here to be the superstar, you’re coming to the wrong place, because this is a team sport.
I like the way we support each other. We are focused on everybody having a voice, having the ability to grow and do well, no matter where they are in the organization. I very much enjoy walking people through the organization. You can feel the culture as we walk through the plant. You see people look up, smile, greet you and engage. People feel seen and heard and have agency to improve processes.
A long time ago I realized that happy people make happy products. And our goal in part is to give associates the opportunity to get ahead, because that’s how a company and community works better.
PPAI Media: One of the ways Gemline is renowned for going to market is through give-back programs, not to mention your own charitable contributions. What has prompted that passion?
Isaacson: I am not sure what prompted it, outside of the fact that we have always felt it our responsibility to give back given how fortunate we have been. It started by my getting involved in our local community, which has a lot of need. We found that we had the ability to make a difference and it just continued.
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Personally, I think this country works better when corporations engage in the community and try to be a part of the solution. And, there’s a lot of ways to do that. Some of it is simply providing financial resources. Some of it is providing expertise or volunteer hours. There are a lot of ways to give back. And, frankly, giving back is extraordinarily rewarding for our people and for me personally. I like that this is a part of the corporate ethos.
PPAI Media: Speaking of another community, one of the areas that is often an attribute of PPAI Hall of Fame members is board service to the Association. That wasn’t your path, although you volunteered time and talents in other ways, through committee work and especially speaking. Why were you drawn to that?
Isaacson: So, No. 1, I’m incredibly grateful to the Association for this honor given that I have a nontraditional background for it. With that, I feel very connected, engaged, and grateful to the industry. That is why we have done so much to try to give back.
I used to joke that I’ve spoken at just about every venue from under bridges to large ballrooms, and everything in between, and there are a number of reasons I’ve done it.
PPAI Media: Such as?
Isaacson: I like the industry. I like the people in the industry. I like what the industry does. I’m grateful to the industry for supporting me and the company.
It’s fun and intellectually stimulating. I learn something by going and talking to people. I get out of it as much as I put into it, just in terms of thinking about what the challenge is and what the opportunities might be. That’s been one of the important messages in engaging with the industry, whether it’s the webinars or the talks or the work that I’ve done on committees, it’s being able to say, ‘Here are the challenges that we might face, and here’s where that creates an opportunity.’ Almost every challenge invariably creates an opportunity, which is a message that occasionally gets lost.
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I also think we all do well when the industry does well. If the industry is better at compliance, if the industry is offering better products, more sustainable products, if the industry is seen in a better light by the consumer and by industry in general, then we all do better.
The rising tide lifts all boats, and if that’s going to happen, it’s incumbent upon the players that are involved, especially the bigger ones, to engage with the Association and try to make things better.
