Fully emerged from the pandemic but still living through its lingering after effects on the global economy, not to mention rapidly evolving technology, it would seem fair to say that the promotional products industry and its companies are at a crossroads.
But when has that not been the case?
The industry has evolved and changed over the decades, adapting with the demands of new generations of end buyers and end users. And it has also experienced disruptions from its own ranks and outside of the historic supply chain.
In this business, nothing stays the same for long. Change is certain, for better or worse.
As a new year dawns and the back half of this decade nears, it becomes all the more important to stop and assess the lay of the land. To understand the present and near future awaiting the industry – the shape of things over the next three to five years – PPAI Research conducted a poll of distributor and supplier professionals this fall.
The questions were simple, aimed at creating a SWOT analysis for the industry: What are the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats facing promotional products and your company?
A SWOT analysis is a common tool useful for any organization assessing its strategy. At this scale, it works to highlight the value of group intelligence. If so many of us working in this industry every day recognize the same things, the results create a reliable qualitative measure of the playing field.
This is the outlook for promotional products in 2024 and beyond.
