#45 David Schneiderman & Todd Schneiderman

Something Inked (asi/329822)

2022 Rank: N/A

David Schneiderman – Chief Procurement Officer

Industry Experience: 30 Years

Previous Appearances on Power 50: 0

Todd Schneiderman – Vice President of Sales

Industry Experience: 26 years

Previous Appearances on Power 50: 0

Let’s start with the obvious: they don’t look like typical distributors, they don’t act like typical distributors, they sure as hell don’t talk like typical distributors, and wowza, they definitely don’t throw events like typical distributors. From the way they dress – David, for example, always with a well-worn baseball hat and clothes like he couldn’t care less who designed them, let alone making sure they get ironed – to the way they go to business, the Schneidermans are industry originals. This father-and-son powerhouse duo is Frank Sinatra’s “My Way” come to life.

But once you get past their sizzle, the substance is undeniable: Their company, Something Inked, had the largest year-over-year growth on this year’s Counselor Top 40 list at 84%, and has multi-pronged promo revenue streams – like the souvenir market (about $3 million-$5 million each year) and a $2 million e-commerce arm (“with record profits last year”). But unquestionably, one market dominates the bulk of its promo business: live music and sports. For example, if Something Inked does merch for the hottest act with a summer tour and promo apparel for the best player in the NBA finals, it’s going to be a very, very good year for the company. In 2022, the firm did extremely well with this business channel. “We took part in over 300 U.S. music tours, and also in XFL, USFL, Monster Jam, Disney on Ice and WWE WrestleMania,” says Todd, the company’s vice president of sales. “We also took part in a bunch of NBA/NHL playoff giveaways, including all four rounds of both the NBA and NHL, and sold over 300,000 Gold Tees to the Golden State Warriors, the 2022 NBA Champions.” Also, in conjunction with Bravado – which is owned by Universal Music Group – Something Inked helped produce merch for tours such as Imagine Dragons, Justin Bieber, The Weeknd and Lady Gaga. Not surprisingly, the company was named Bravado’s Vendor of the Year for 2022.

Not bad for David and Todd, who’s been in the industry since he was in college in 1997. “I sold pizza boxes in Chattanooga, TN, under my dad’s company to get my start,” he says. Todd also has the distinction of being the de facto Master of Ceremonies at Something Inked’s legendary annual Vegas client show/Bacchus-level blow-out party to which customers and suppliers clamor for an invite, along with Bill Feldberg, the company’s vice president of business development. Not to put too fine of a point on how different they are, but earlier this year, for a large portion of the Vegas event, Feldberg was draped in a white, calf-length, fluffy fur coat – looking like the opening act for Bad Bunny. “We’ve been doing our event for 10 years now,” Todd says. “This year – including the Something Inked team, clients and vendors – we had 300 people attend the show, which is so important to us because it goes with our culture and how we operate. We’re famous for knowing how to have an amazing time and still be up at 5 a.m. to handle clients’ orders for them. Everyone says we’re a breath of fresh air in the business, so this event basically starts this time of year off with the bang.”

“David, Todd and the whole Something Inked crew really focus on making memories and giving their clients and suppliers an unforgettable experience that strengthens relationships from all sides.”Kenny Ved, Goldstar (asi/73295)

As someone who’s worked with Something Inked for years, gotten to know the Schneidermans and attended their Studio-54-in-its-heydey events, Kenny Ved, director of global sales for Top 40 supplier Goldstar (asi/73295) – and, like the Schneidermans, a new member of Counselor’s Power 50 this year – breaks it down: “Look, anyone can sell product or hold an event for end-users and vendors; David, Todd and the whole Something Inked crew really focus on making memories and giving their clients and suppliers an unforgettable experience that strengthens relationships from all sides, ensuring that everyone leaves the event energized and focused on new products and ideas – and they do it with style.”

And then, of course, there’s David – who’s more of an enigma compared to his outgoing son – preferring to stay back, under the radar, and observe everything from the sidelines, donning his ubiquitous baseball hat. And that’s not a euphemism; he’s the quieter of the two but doesn’t miss a trick and is the savvy strategist making deals behind the scenes to grow the company. “You asked about our business, so here are our numbers and plans so you understand more about us,” David says with refreshing candor. “The year before COVID and our last year being industry-financed, we did $45 million in sales. Obviously, if COVID hadn’t happened our numbers would be significantly different. So then came COVID, and with Something Inked not being industry-financed for the first time, we were down to $27 million. But in 2021, the year after COVID, we came back strong at $38 million, and last year exploded at over $70 million. When we evaluate numbers and make predictions for the future, we look at a 5-year plan and so our 2024 prediction is that we’ll be way over $80 million.”

As live music and sports events are the lifeblood of Something Inked, David says last year was epic for music tours, and he and his colleagues at the company were fortunate to have most of the major ones, no doubt contributing to the company’s 84% growth from 2021 to 2022. “This year we’ve taken on more tours, have gone after more sports business, and spent a great deal of time and money to build our destination marketing business for the travel industry,” he notes.

As tricky as it is to predict how the industry will fare in the next 3-5 years, David is pragmatic. “It’s tough to say for the entire industry, but we’re aggressive in our thinking. Of course, our world is live events, so as long as there’s no halt to live music and sporting events, and people keep traveling, we are good.”