At 83, he's still a 'sultan of swag'
Norman Cohn's wife, Suzanne, keeps a tight rein on her husband, once dubbed the "sultan of swag" by the Wall Street Journal.
Norman Cohn's wife, Suzanne, keeps a tight rein on her husband, once dubbed the "sultan of swag" by the Wall Street Journal.
Otherwise, Cohn, 83, chairman of Advertising Specialty Institute, would pack their homes in Radnor and Center City with the best of the promotional cups, T-shirts, pens - i.e., swag - that ASI's members manufacture, imprint, and distribute.
"It would be full of a lot more stuff if it weren't for my wife," Cohn said. "She does not like clutter. We don't have as many things in our home as I personally would bring in. I'd need to buy another building."
The name may suggest that the Trevose-based institute is a nonprofit, but it is not.
ASI is a family-owned and privately held firm that - through trade shows, magazines, and a monstrous database - links manufacturers and printers of logoed promotional items with distributors who sell the caps and bags to schools, companies, and teams.
Cohn was 19 when he started selling promotional items.
How's business?
It's been going up for most years for quite a while, except when we had the depression a few years ago. Sales dropped slightly, but they're now the highest they've ever been. We [the entire industry] have a $22 billion business. People find that unbelievable. "You mean ballpoint pens and mugs that people give out are $22 billion?" Yes. True it is.
Why is that?
We have a lot of statistics that show that the cost per impression vs. TV, vs. radio, billboards, all the other advertising mediums, is lowest in using an ad specialty item because people keep them.
A billboard, you drive by it. But if I give you something that has my name on it, and you had any use for it, a calendar, let's say, you would probably put it up and be reminded of my company.
Cups, calendars, T-shirts, pens. Do you have a favorite category of items?
I like light-up items. That's just a personal thing. You ever see drink glasses that have at the bottom a light-up battery, that lights up the drink glass? If it was up to me, I'd have a whole room full of all the stuff that lights up. There are hundreds of items that are battery-lit.
Calendars were the top promotional item when you began. These days, I notice a lot more computer gear, such as thumb drives, among the freebies.
It's a very big item in our industry. Ten years ago, it wasn't even known. I'm constantly amazed at the items that come up. One of the reasons our industry keeps growing is there are so many new items. People create an item and then they figure out, "Gee, if we put the logo of the Inquirer, or whomever you want to name, on it," we could sell more of them than we can selling them to Macy's.
Not to be impolite, but isn't it just a lot of junk?
You don't have to ask politely. I'm not easily offended. But just because somebody puts a logo on an item and gives it to you does not mean you love it, does not mean you are going to use it, does not mean you are going to keep it. However, if you went into a building or into offices and asked the first 10 people you met, "Would you empty your pockets or your briefcases?" you'd be amazed by how many items they are carrying with them that have logos on them.
Like pens. I bet we all have at least one pen with somebody's name on it.
You asked me what surprised me. Pens . . . I'd think there's only a certain number of different styles. It surprises me because every show I walk, and I go to several a year, I see new ballpoint pens, an unbelievable number of styles, shapes, things that make a ballpoint pen. You'd think there'd be a limit, but there isn't.
What has changed?
Speed is a major, major change. You'd order something and you'd get it in 30 days with your logo on it. Now people are expecting something in less than seven days, and three days is much more normal. There are starting to be items that if you order by 9 a.m., they'll be delivered to you tomorrow.
Any business advice?
Don't believe your press clippings. You cannot walk on water. Do the best you can and strive for excellence. Hire people that are smarter than you because then you'll do well. If you hire people that are dumber than you, things aren't likely to work out well.
Interview questions and answers have been edited for space.
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