Specialty Incentives Acquires L.W. Barrett
Completing its first ever acquisition, Denver-based Specialty Incentives, Inc. (asi/331870) has purchased selected assets of distributor L.W. Barrett (asi/133000), including customer records and intellectual property. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed, but Specialty Incentives will not be assuming any liabilities as part of the agreement. “We had been discussing a deal for an extended period of time,” said Bob Davis, CEO of Specialty Incentives, in an interview yesterday with Counselor. “In this economy, we felt it would be mutually beneficial to combine our teams. We believe their brand to be valuable.”

According to Davis, all 31 of L.W. Barrett’s salespeople will join Specialty Incentives, many continuing to work as independent contractors from their homes. Some additional support staff will join Specialty Incentives in its Colorado office. Twice named to Counselor's Best Places to Work list, L.W. Barrett generated 2009 revenues of around $3.5 million, according to company executives. “We were definitely down last year, but we had budgeted to weather the storm,” said Tina Montgomery, L.W. Barrett’s president. “Because of the economy, the industry will be getting smaller. We felt this was a good time for a transition and we’re excited.” 

Video Report: Industry News Of The Week
In a new feature, Counselor PromoGram is offering a video news report that will highlight the top stories every week. Called Industry Update, each episode details the most important trends and news items impacting the ad specialty market.

In this episode, we discuss two distributor acquisitions and share some important economic data. Plus, the use of social networking is on the rise. Click here to check out the trends and to watch Counselor PromoGram’s Industry Update.

If you have any news you’d like to see covered on Industry Update or in Counselor PromoGram, please send it to newsdesk@asicentral.com.

Blue Moon Advertising Acquires Ad Spec
Continuing its expansion plans, Blue Moon Advertising and Promotional Products (asi/141834) has acquired Advertising Specialty Company (asi/114100), creating the largest distributor in northern Nevada. Per the deal, the combined companies will operate as Blue Moon Promotions, headquartered in Reno. Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed. “We had been talking about a deal for a while and finally closed at the end of February,” said Klaus Grimm, owner of Blue Moon. “We’ve now doubled our staff and we’re going to stay aggressive.”

According to Grimm, Blue Moon’s sales increased 12% last year to roughly $2.5 million. “We made some choices in cutting costs that allowed our profits to double and that gave us a war chest we could use for an acquisition,” said Grimm. “We have plans to expand into Las Vegas and California. We eventually want to have five or six offices.”

Founded 60 years ago, Ad Spec has recently generated annual revenues of more than $3 million. The company’s president, Jake Heckman, has joined Blue Moon and will work closely with Grimm. “I want to focus more on the big picture, so I’d like to groom Jake to be our president.” Grimm said.

Podcast: Get More Business From Current Clients
On Tuesday’s ASI Internet Radio Show, the hosts took calls from audience members looking for ideas on how to expand their relationships with current clients and gain more incremental business. Looking for ways to upsell existing customers? Listen to this interactive podcast.

Click here to listen to the segment from Tuesday’s show on getting more revenue from current clients.

If you’d like to check out a recording of the whole online radio show, go to www.asicentral.com/radio. And, don’t forget to join us next Tuesday, March 9, for our next broadcast. Log on to www.asicentral.com/radio at 10:30 am eastern time and give us a call at 215-953-4979 or e-mail us at radio@asicentral.com to participate on the show. We want to hear from you.

Take The State Of The Industry Survey
Counselor is currently polling professionals in the industry – both distributors and suppliers – to see how the market did in 2009 and to get impressions on where the industry is headed in 2010. We need your input. Please take some time to click the appropriate link below and complete the annual State of the Industry survey. Your responses will remain anonymous and you'll be helping to create Counselor's annual State of the Industry report.

Distributors click here to take the distributor State of the Industry survey.

ASICentral: Is Green Losing Steam?
Some experts say eco-friendly marketing is dying. Others say it's just hibernating and is poised for a comeback. What do you think? Read more and take the poll by clicking here.

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Free Webinar: How To Follow Up On Trade Show Leads
Next Tuesday, March 9, from 2pm – 3pm eastern time, we'll be hosting a free webinar for suppliers focused on how to follow up with trade show leads to get the sale. Suppliers say their top self-promotion method is exhibiting at national trade shows, according to the latest Counselor State of the Industry report. And, suppliers generate more than 1,000 leads, along with an average of $209,022 in new business, from attending trade shows. What's key, though, is to follow up with all your leads after a trade show.

New Course Available On ASI Education's OnlineLearning Center 
Be sure to register at http://www.asicentral.com/asionlinelearning for some exciting new courses available exclusively to ASI members. Brought to you by ASI Education, Online Learning is the newest and most convenient way for distributors to get educated.

NEW: Social Networking Tactics That Get Results
Social networking for business? Lots of businesses are using social networking sites such as Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn; creating videos and podcasts; and using blogs to connect with prospects and clients. We'll cover all of these cool, social media tools in this course, so when you're done, you'll have an overview of which ones might be right for promoting your business. Register now! {http://www.asicentral.com/asionlinelearning}

Coming Soon:

In The News
Gold Bond (asi/57653) has introduced an Elite Rewards Program for selected distributors, providing discounted pricing, free spec samples and free custom flyers.

Heritage Sportswear Inc. (asi/60582) has launched a new 144-page team-oriented apparel catalog called The Playbook.

Imprints Wholesale (asi/62486) has added Bayside USA apparel and accessories to its 2010 collection.

Proforma (asi/300094) has announced the addition of 11 new members to its Million Dollar Club and four new members to its Multi-Million Dollar Club, based on generated sales in 2009.

People On The Move
ePromos (asi/188515) announced that it has hired Sheila Johnshoy to serve as vice president of marketing.