There are close to five hundred thousand different gifts you could give to your favorite client or employee this year that can have your logo decorated. All but a few of those are the same old tired retreads from brands that become ever more dominate as the calendar turns the page. One of the lasting effects of the economic calamity of the last few years is aggressive pricing of quality brand goods.
One of the first to the market with internationally recognized brands was the Wenger Writing Pad which is made by the same people responsible for making high quality Swiss Army goods. That does two things for you as the person giving the gift, it provides instant recognition and credibility and also should put your mind at ease that the product you are gifting will stand the test of time. Wenger has almost always been known for their knives but in the last year they have made a move into producing stationary items. It appears they are poised for a much more aggressive move with a bunch of new offerings.
If you have ever received a leather watch or wallet you will know the C&B name and the quality that comes with that brand. The Cutter & Buck Performance Writing Pad is made from the finest leather and includes all of the bells and whistles like a gift box that you would expect to get from Bloomingdale's. C&B has always been known as a producer of premium leather products and now they to are making a significant move to the promotional products market. Up until this year they had produced products without style but the entire performance series is stunning. Nicely both of these products have a significant amount of money behind them and therefore are well inventoried for the holidays.
One of the major challenges facing advertisers this fall is the continued decline in confidence. Business and employment are not rebounding and until they do we will not see a recovery that produces large and consistent increases in growth. Suppliers are running very lean and inventory will be wide but not deep which presents challenges to you as a distributor. We will discuss how you can blunt this potential obstacle in coming articles.
We also wanted to mention how important customer service is on top of it all. It does not matter what product you are offering if the service getting that product into your customers hands is inadequate.
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