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ASI's Counselor Magazine Reveals Promo Industry's Most Powerful People of 2017

Brand Addition U.S. and Facilisgroup CEO Chuck Fandos rockets to Number One

REVOSE, PA – October 24, 2017 – – The Advertising Specialty Institute® (ASI) today named the 50 most influential business leaders in the $23 billion promotional products industry, topped this year by Chuck Fandos, CEO of Facilisgroup and Brand Addition’s U.S. operations.

“The talented leaders on the prestigious Counselor® Power 50 list are embracing change during a time of great transformation in our industry, knowing that constructive change is the best way to compete, innovate and grow their company,” said Timothy M. Andrews, ASI’s president and chief executive officer (@Tim_Andrews_ASI). “I’m also heartened that so many of these forward-thinking entrepreneurs and business owners genuinely care about this industry, their employees and their customers.”

According to a Power 50 story in Counselor magazine’s November issue, Fandos rocketed from number 20 in 2016 to the top of the 2017 list for three main reasons: high ratings, continued leadership of Facilisgroup – representing companies with half a billion dollars in annual promo sales – and mentorship of rising leaders throughout the industry.

At Brand Addition (asi/202515), Fandos leads a U.S. operation that annually generates more than $20 million in promo product sales.

The rankings are determined by surveys of the general industry, last year’s Power 50 and ASI magazine editors. The 2017 list includes 13 newcomers.

The top-ranked executives on the 2017 Counselor Power 50 list are:

  1. Chuck Fandos, Brand Addition U.S. & Facilis Group
  2. CJ Schmidt, Hit Promotional Products (asi/61125)
  3. Marty Lott and Jeremy Lott, SanMar (asi/84863)
  4. Kevin Lyons-Tarr, 4imprint (asi/197045)
  5. Norm Hullinger, alphabroder (asi/34063)
  6. Marc Simon, HALO Branded Solutions (asi/356000)  
  7. Gene Geiger and Jo-an Lantz, Geiger (asi/202900)
  8. Greg Muzzillo and Vera Muzzillo, Proforma (asi/300094)
  9. Jeff Lederer, Prime Line (asi/79530)
  10. Ross Silverstein, iPROMOTEu (asi/232119)

Click here to review the entire Power 50 list, along with profiles of each executive.

“Our 2017 rankings make up the definitive list of the market’s biggest players, whose individual and collective decisions chart a course for everyone else,” said Dave Vagnoni (@VagnoniASI)‏, editor-in-chief of Counselor. “These powerful leaders mostly head-up large industry companies – but they’re more than just figureheads. They’re the ones developing and executing ideas, they’re the ones others turn to when they need advice, and they’re the ones people go to when they want to make deals.”

The high-ranking executives on the 2017 Power 50 list were recognized at a celebratory dinner during the 11th annual ASI Power Summit, held October 22-24 at the Rancho Bernardo Inn in San Diego, CA, and attended by entrepreneurs, multinational CEOs and small-business owners. Speakers included Shinola President Jacques Panis, national storytelling expert Kindra Hall and Chris Gomez, a decorated former U.S. Navy SEAL and Afterburner Inc. business trainer.

Learn more about the Power 50 in the November online and print editions of Counselor magazine. Published 13 times a year by ASI, the Jesse H. Neal award-winning Counselormagazine has served as the voice of the promotional products industry for over 60 years. The magazine has recognized the industry’s Power 50 every year since 2006.

For more info about the CounselorPower 50 list contact Dave Vagnoni at dvagnoni@asicentral.com.

About ASI
The Advertising Specialty Institute (ASI®) serves a network of 23,500 suppliers, distributors and decorators in the $23 billion promotional products industry. ASI’s flagship product, the technology platform ESP®, manages the industry’s entire supply and marketing chain. ASI also produces award-winning digital and print content, live events and educational programs that enable companies in 62 countries to be more efficient, productive and profitable. ASI’s Counselor® magazine provides the most authoritative business content in the industry, and the ASI Certification Program features 500+ live and online education courses for over 40,000 professionals. The company, family owned and operated since 1962, is proud to have been consistently ranked among the “Best Places to Work” in Philadelphia and Bucks County, PA. For more info: www.asicentral.com.

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