The Most Intriguing Findings From the Counselor 2025 State of the Industry Report
ASI Media’s editors discuss tariffs, Q2 sales and the top markets and products featured in our industry-defining survey.
To produce the annual Counselor State of the Industry report, ASI Research surveys hundreds of distributors and suppliers to gather a detailed picture of their sales and business performance. While the report is usually based on a single comprehensive survey, 2025 required a nearly unprecedented approach: issuing several additional surveys throughout the year.
Why? “If things change dramatically between the time we field the study and when we report it,” explains Nate Kucsma, ASI’s senior executive research director, “we feel a need to update it. Fun fact: This year things changed dramatically.”
Kucsma is referring to the significant impact tariffs have had on the branded merchandise marketplace in 2025. The last time ASI Research had to take such extraordinary measures? COVID.
The result is a robust, up-to-the-minute set of insights that power this year’s Counselor State of the Industry package.
In this episode of Promo Insiders, Kucsma and Editor-in-Chief C.J. Mittica break down the most compelling findings from the report. They explore the top markets and products driving sales, analyze how tariffs are reshaping the industry, discuss the growing challenges of meeting demand for faster fulfillment and review Q2 industry sales while offering a look ahead at what the rest of the year could bring.
Key Takeaways
• Tariffs became a major disruptor in 2025, especially for hard goods sourced heavily from China. Still, initial panic has softened as businesses adapted and gained certainty about tariff levels, though cost increases and price pressures are still mounting.
• Wearables continued their upward trajectory, now making up about 45% of total promo sales, compared to the low 30s a decade ago.
• The top products and markets remained mostly consistent in 2024 from the prior year. It remains to be seen if tariffs will impact these categories next year.
• Distributor margins hit recent highs in 2024 and supplier margins increased too, though cost pressure from tariff increases may eat into those gains in 2025.
• Supply chain diversification is increasing, particularly as suppliers actively explore alternatives to China. There’s also been a bump in interest in Made-in-USA options that could sustain thanks to upcoming events like the World Cup, Olympics and the 250th anniversary of the founding of America.
• Industry sales dipped in Q1 and Q2, marking the first consecutive negative quarters since 2021. Confidence levels are subdued, signaling caution for the remainder of 2025, though optimism exists for a moderate rebound in the second half of the year.