PPAI’s board election has closed, with the Association membership approving Andrew Spellman, senior vice president and general manager at supplier The Magnet Group. He joins the previously announced Noah Lapine, president and owner of distributor Lapine Associates, Inc., in beginning their four-year terms in January 2021.
Spellman started his promotional products career at The Magnet Group in 1992 as its sixth sales representative and returned to the supplier in early 2017 in his current position. During his 28-years in the industry, Spellman also spent more than 14 years as the vice president of corporate markets for Victorinox Swiss Army. He has served on the board of directors of Guardian Angel Settlement Association, a group providing childcare and social services in the city of St. Louis for more than 150 years, serving in several different roles which included chairman of their golf committee, vice chairman, and then as chairman of the board. In addition, he served on the board of directors of the St. Vincent De Paul Mission of Waterbury during his brief time in Connecticut.
“I’m looking forward to working on the board through the many challenges that will be facing us today as well as the days forward,” says Spellman. “We have an amazingly diverse membership, and I know there will be varying needs for many of them, but our industry is strong, our leadership is strong, and our board is diverse with dedicated and smart people. I can’t wait to get started.”
Lapine heads up a 58-year-old third-generation family business, which he joined in 1996, and has been involved in all phases of its development. Before joining the business, he served as a corps member for Teach for America, where he taught seventh-grade English to students in rural Georgia. In 2017, he co-founded Effectus Partners, which architects and implements process efficiencies and solutions for major corporations. He also serves on the boards of early childhood education provider Children’s Learning Centers and the Mill River Park Collaborative.
“I am honored to join the PPAI board,” says Lapine. “I am looking forward to working alongside the talented members of the board, learn from them and share my perspective on issues. Joining during what may be the most challenging and uncertain business and social environment of our lives, I am eager to help chart the organization’s next chapter in its 117-year history.”
The board of directors is the governing body for PPAI and plays a major role in directing its strategic activities, adopting policies and approving budgets to carry out the work of the Association. PPAI’s incoming board members bring diverse backgrounds and experiences to the Association’s volunteer leadership.
