Stran Promotional Solutions (asi/337725), a publicly traded Counselor Top 40 distributor, experienced a $4.14 million loss in 2024 but increased sales 8.8% on a reported basis to $82.7 million.

That’s according to final audited results the Quincy, MA-based firm released on April 14 regarding its performance for the 2024 calendar year.

Being in the red $4 million translated to losses of $0.22 per share for Stran shareholders. The loss, according to the company, was primarily the result of operating expenses rising 17.6% year over year to $30.7 million.

About $3.1 million in new costs tied to Stran Loyalty Solutions, a business segment Stran Promo launched last year to serve clients with casino continuity and loyalty initiatives, was a main factor in operating expenses increasing.

Still, Stran noted that its sales increase was also tied to the SLS segment. The firm formed the division as it acquired Gander Group, a California-based provider of casino continuity and loyalty programs. Post acquisition, Gander Group became foundational to the SLS segment, which reportedly generated about $9.9 million in the closing months of 2024 following its formation.

Meanwhile, sales in Stran Promo’s larger core segment, known simply as Stran, decreased about 4.3% on a reported basis to about $72.7 million. “The decrease in sales was primarily due to lower spending from new and existing clients,” Stran said in a statement. Collectively, promo distributors increased sales, on average, by just 1.8% year over year in 2024 to $26.6 billion.

“2024 was a transitional year of operational discipline and long-term investment.” Andy Shape, Stran Promotional Solutions (asi/337725)

It should be noted: Stran’s reportable full-year figures don’t tell the complete story of its financial performance in 2024, as they exclude almost $32 million in revenue from Gander Group.

Due to rules on how publicly traded firms can report revenue, Stran couldn’t include nearly $32 million from Gander that was generated prior to closing the acquisition, said Stran CEO Andy Shape, a member of Counselor’s Power 50 list of the promotional products industry’s most influential people.

In reporting revenue for consideration for Counselor’s annual Top 40 rankings of the industry’s largest distributors, Stran isn’t bound by as strict a standard and plans to include the almost $32 million from Gander, as it has done in years past regarding the top-line numbers from other companies it has acquired.

By including Gander Group’s almost $32 million, Stran’s 2024 revenue tallies up to nearly $114.1 million – a rise of about 39% on the apples-to-apples $82.1 million figure for 2023 that Stran reported to Counselor, which likewise included the full-year revenue of acquired companies for that year, Shape told ASI Media.

“2024 was a transitional year of operational discipline and long-term investment,” said Shape. “While a re-audit of our financial statements for the 2023 and 2022 fiscal years required significant time and internal focus, we believe it was a critical step in aligning with a premier audit partner and reinforce trust with our investors.”

Stran had to do the re-audit after the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) slapped its prior auditor, the defunct and disgraced BF Borgers, with a $14 million settlement for far-reaching compliance failures. Companies that had relied on the firm for audits, like Stran, needed to have new audits performed. Stran wasn’t accused of any wrongdoing.