Companies Continue Relief Efforts
More companies are coming forward to help victims of Hurricane Katrina as recovery efforts on the Gulf Coast continue.

Gail O'Roke, CDC, CEO of Independent Business Group (IBG), said, "At IBG, we are offering to match any Red Cross donations that our employees make. Perhaps the fastest way the DMIA can get money raised is to make this sort of suggestion to its members. Individually it doesn't sound like much, but if enough local efforts are made it could add up."

TST/Impreso Inc., which operates a water bottling plant in Mt. Ida, Ark., announced that it's sending bottled water to the affected areas. Companies interested in donating water can send their orders to the manufacturer. For details, contact Marshall Sorokwasz, CEO, at (972) 839-4237.

FormStore Incorporated and Response Builders said they were organizing their sales, administrative and manufacturing teams to assemble a large quantity of kits to send to victims in Mississippi, Louisiana, Alabama, Florida and Texas. Paul R. Edwards, CDC, president of FormStore Incorporated, sought input from DMIA members to create a list of names, email addresses and phone numbers of organizations, churches and agencies in the areas impacted by the hurricane evacuees. He also asked manufacturers and distributors if they could accept shipments of relief kits for redistribution. For details, call (800) 325-9583.

Specialized Office Systems Inc. said it would help distributors who need to service clients in Arizona. Call Bruce Goldberg, president, at (602) 485-0900. The Tully-Wihr Company, also offered assistance to companies to work with their clients on the West Coast. Call George W. Smith, CDC, vice president of sales and partner, at (800) 789-6594, ext. 1772.

Meanwhile, Champion Industries Inc. said Tuesday that its New Orleans printing plant is closed and it hasn't been able to determine the extent of damage to the facility, which is without power or communication capability. The company said its Baton Rouge printing and warehousing facility sustained some wind and water damage, but is fully functional and operating.

Office Depot announced that its cash and in-kind donations have topped $18 million. The Deluxe Corporation Foundation announced a $100,000 challenge match to encourage employees and retirees of Deluxe Corporation to contribute funds.

American’s Happy Days
Larry Zavadil, president and CEO of American Solutions for Business, rolled into the company’s Summer Sales Conference Kick-Off Session on a classic motorcycle. He zoomed around the balcony in the dark, then appeared on stage through a haze of smoke and lights. When he was done rolling, hundreds of American’s sales associates were ready to rock at the “Happy Days at American”-themed event, held Aug. 24-28 at Cragun’s Resort in Brainerd, Minn.

These truly are happy days at the company, which is approaching its 25th year in business. Its sales associates account for more than $235 million in annual sales of promotional products, wearables, packaging, office supplies, computer supplies, janitorial/warehousing supplies and other products. And the share price of American’s employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) has climbed from $2.70 in 2001 to about $15 this year, announced Craig McLain, American’s COO. Approximately 75 percent of the firm’s sales associates participate in the ESOP, which is an employee-benefit plan operating through a trust that accepts tax-deductible contributions from the company to accumulate company stock. The stock is allocated to accounts for individual participants. Zavadil created American's ESOP in July 2000 to provide orderly transition of the company's ownership from himself to the people who make it happen and elect to participate.

The company also is pleased with its progress in the medical industry. Irving, Texas-based Novation, the country’s largest group purchasing organization (GPO) for the health care industry, recently named American as a primary vendor to provide key business and promotional products to Novation facilities. The distributorship network has a 3-year contact to sell goods and services in 15 categories. Organizations receive discounted pricing for products and services purchased through Novation-endorsed vendors.

One obstacle some American sales associates have faced when targeting hospitals is explaining the company’s abilities to hospital purchasing managers and others with ordering responsibility. A well-attended workshop session during the Summer Sales Conference addressed that issue. Paul Frazier, senior director of sales at Dallas-based Healthcare Purchasing Partners International (HPPI), and Doris Frazier explained how reimbursement fuels GPOs and how their organization is promoting American to its members. HPPI is responsible for negotiating costs with suppliers to home health, hospice and other community medical facilities. “We’re working with American because we know it’s taking a long-term approach to delivering value to the health care industry,” Paul Frazier said. Also during the session, Danny Hawkins, director of sales and training at the National Association of Community Health Centers, Alexandria, Va., explained that group’s Value in Purchasing Program (VIP) for medical, dental and office supplies. He said American sales associates can tout themselves as new vendors of VIP, which would “resonate with buyers.”

In other workshop session, attendees learned the benefits of AmeraLink, proprietary software that enables American sales associates to process orders, view complete sales histories and more; how to increase profits when selling promotional products; how to benefit from forms automation; how to use American’s new printed and online marketing tools; and how to maximize results from American’s e-commerce system, ACES. Enthusiastic guest speaker George Ludwig talked about psychological patterns of success and how sales success requires boldness, not just technique and knowledge.

The Summer Sales Conference ended with a vendor showcase featuring 218 exhibitors, many of which participated in the event’s “Happy Days at American” theme. View conference photos.

MeadWestvaco Division Secures Funding for RFID Development
Vue Technology, formerly Intelligent Systems, a division of MeadWestvaco's New Ventures Group, announced that venture capital firms Partech International and Canaan Partners have acquired the company to further its item-level RFID solution development. The company's RFID solution streamlines inventory management for retailers and manufacturers, reducing the financial impact of shrink and out-of-stock merchandise, it said. Vue Technology also will be able to extend its sales and distribution capabilities.

Corporate Express Acquires Office Products Firms
Corporate Express Inc. said that it has acquired the Peerless/Perdue office products companies located in Little Rock and Pine Bluff, Ark. Corporate Express is a supplier of office and computer products and services with 2004 sales of approximately $4.5 billion in North America.

Reilly Joins Compass Capital Partners
Paul Reilly, former CEO, president and chairman of the board of Cenveo Inc., joined Compass Capital Partners Ltd. as partner. The Radnor, Pa., company offers investment banking, valuation services, financial advisory services and management consulting.

R.R. Donnelley Completes Tender Offer
R.R. Donnelley & Sons Company announced that it has completed its previously announced tender offer for the outstanding shares of Poligrafia S.A., a Polish printer of magazines, catalogs, retail inserts and books. R.R. Donnelley has acquired 99.5 percent of the approximately 5.3 million outstanding shares of Poligrafia.

Tech Firm Gets ‘i’-Catching Promotion
Hank Frisch helps United Computer Group Inc. (UCG) catch the eye of prospects with "i"s. UCG is a technology solutions company and an IBM Advanced Business Partner. When the company asked Frisch to provide a high-impact promotional product to mail to prospects, he studied UCG's web site for ideas. "I learned they were all about 'i,'" says Frisch, president of Cleveland-based Team Promotions. "Their focus is on iSeries IBM products." Full story.

Have a solution? Click here to be featured in Solution of the Week

TOP TEN

Here are this week's top unusual source requests received by DMIA:

1. Classic linen natural white envelope; self-seal flap; QTY=1M
2. Letterhead with an integrated business card and key tag; QTY=500-2500
3. Edge-glued form printed in braille; QTY=1M
4. Brass with a full magnetic back; half coated with adhesive; QTY=unspecified
5. CD-ROM; printed with logo; blank CDs with logo imprint: QTY=1M
6. Bubble packaging; used in candy machine dispensers; hard plastic bubbles that hold toys or stickers; two pieces (top and bottom); QTY=5M
7. Clear vinyl envelope; thumb notch; 8 3/4 x 11 5/16; QTY=5M-20M
8. Bath sponges; QTY=20M
9. Shelf Talker; material: 12pt with dull laminate; scored 1/2" from the bottom; removable double-sided adhesive to affix to shelf; prints 2/0; Size: 2" x 3"; printed area is 2" x 2.5"; QTY=5400
10. Polyprop. material; no adhesive; 7 mil-10mil thickness; affixed to measuring device; QTY=unknown

If you have a source request—for anything—call the Hotline at (800) 333-2828 between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. Eastern Time, or use the Source Hotline Database online. For new sales ideas every day, try our 1,000 Sales Ideas Database. Manufacturers, if you produce any of these items and would like to check your listing with the Source Hotline, please email Cheryl Rush.

E-Commerce Spotlight
The Importance of Inbound Links
Placing your web site link on other relevant sites is essential to increase overall reach, popularity and traffic. Full story.

What's New at DMIA?
Excess Inventory Depot

DMIA's Excess Inventory Depot enables members to sell items such as excess inventories, blank forms and labels, pre-converted material, paper stock, converted material, new or used equipment and other business-related items. Take advantage of this introductory offer and post your items for free. Find out what's for sale. DMIA members can view postings 24/7 at no charge.

Webcast on Nonqualified Deferred Compensation Plans
William L. MacDonald, CEO of Retirement Capital Group, will present a webcast on nonqualified deferred compensation plans from noon to 1 p.m. (EST) on Sept. 15. MacDonald will discuss how companies are creating the best possible plans with minimal cost to shareholders. He will cover the seven qualities that can make a plan stand apart from the rest. For more information, click here.

Product of the Week
2003 Distributor Sales & Trends Survey
The 75-page report allows distributors to benchmark the productivity of their companies. Manufacturers and suppliers can find out what's selling now and what end users are looking for. The report also offers numbers on distributor product mix, sales by product category, distributor production operations, number of employees by job category, distributor relations with vendors, distributor production operations, order size and profitability trends by product. Code: DITREND. Member Price: $149. To order, click here.

Hot Sites
Gasbuddy
This site helps you find cheap gas prices in your city. It contains 170 gas price information web sites that help you find low gas prices. Visit the site.

Lifehacker
This site offers the latest in personal productivity technology and reveals the millions of ways hardware and software can improve our busy lives. Visit the site.

Print Education & Research Foundation
DMIA and the former International Association for Document Technologies Foundation joined forces in 2003 and formed the Print Education & Research Foundation (PERF). Headquartered with DMIA, PERF's mission is to provide research and education that promote long-term growth and profitability of the industry's organizations that embrace supply-chain options. PERF initiatives include developing research reports on emerging products and markets; educational and training programs; and finding ways to improve the industry's profitability and functionality. Its staff is directed by a Board of Trustees. For more information, call
(800) 336-4641.

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