PromoStandards is on a mission to make the branded merchandise industry collectively better.

Leaders at the nonprofit said the organization’s third annual PromoStandards Tech Summit 2025 helped advance the effort.

The event brought together merch industry leaders, technology providers and distributors to discuss the latest trends, challenges and opportunities facing the promo space.

The summit featured keynote presentations, panel discussions and roundtable sessions on artificial intelligence (AI), integration strategies, data security and emerging technologies.

“The PromoStandards Tech Summit 2025 was a fantastic opportunity to connect with industry peers and discuss the latest advancements in promotional technology,” said Amy Rabideau, the Tech Summit’s board vice chair and vice president of product at Counselor Top 40 supplier Hit Promotional Products (asi/61125).

Rabideau continued: “I’m excited to see the continued growth and adoption of PromoStandards, which is crucial for streamlining our industry’s supply chain and improving efficiency for everyone.”

As part of the event, Dr. Tom Stablein, founder and CEO of Stablein Solutions, gave a keynote on unlocking the power of AI. Meanwhile, Hit’s Chief Strategy Officer Jon Norris presented on the state of technology in promo.

PromoStandards also presented its People of the Year Awards, which recognize outstanding contributions to technology efforts within the merch space. Those honored were:

• Distributor Person of the Year: Kate Alavez, president of Counselor Top 40 distributor PromoShop (asi/300446), for her leadership in promoting technology adoption and integration. Alavez is a member of Counselor’s Power 50 list of the most influential people in the promo industry.
  
  
• Supplier Person of the Year: Dan Erdman, information technology integrations manager at Top 40 supplier Koozie Group (asi/40480), for his dedication to advancing PromoStandards and data quality initiatives.
  
  
• Service Provider Person of the Year: Steve Luisser, vice president of research at Essent, for his commitment to developing and improving PromoStandards integrations.

PromoStandards works to improve supply chain efficiency in the promotional products industry through technology. This centers on advancing efforts that enable seamless integration between suppliers, distributors and service providers through the development and promotion of open standards.