Between 2 Brands Podcast

It’s crossover time on Ep. 164 of the Promo UPFront #podcast! That’s right, Mark Graham and Bobby Lehew from commonsku join regular hosts Kirby Hasseman and Bill Petrie to discuss the value of the new position of Director of Sustainability and Responsibility at PPAI, take a deep dive into the power of merchandise to identify beliefs – and whether distributors have a moral obligation regarding what...

Heck yes, it’s time for Ep. 163 of the Promo UPFront #podcast! In this white-hot episode, hosts Kirby Hasseman and Bill Petrie discuss how to properly celebrate PPAI’s Promotional Products Work Day on August 24, say goodbye to a retiring industry legend in Mike Szymczak, debate whether Facebook intentionally creates divisiveness with their algorithms, go off on the trend of posting anonymously, an...

It’s “back to podcast” time as we drop Ep. 162 of the Promo UPFront #podcast! This week co-hosts Kirby Hasseman and Bill Petrie debate if distributors should be concerned about suppliers raising prices, whether the investment in the United States by Canadian supplier Spector & Co. makes sense, how they each prepare to create consistent content, the delicious irony of Zoom (and other tech companies...

Oh yes, it’s Friday which means one thing and one thing only: time to drop ep. 161 of the Promo UPFront #podcast! This week hosts Kirby Hasseman and Bill Petrie discuss the ASI Counselor Awards, the importance of branded merchandise when launching a new sports league in the United States, share products that have made them more productive, odd brand collaborations and why some work where others fa...

It’s Friday and time for ep. 160 of the Promo UPFront #podcast! Today hosts Kirby Hasseman & Bill Petrie share some quick-hit industry news items from the week, give kudos to the suppliers who communicated plans if the UPS strike had happened, laugh at the ridiculous rebranding of Twitter, marvel and the unique marketing of “Barbenheimer,” debate the direct marketing of Prime Energy drink to kids,...

It’s Friday and time for ep. 159 of the Promo UPFront #podcast! This week hosts Kirby Hasseman and Bill Petrie discuss whether there is a need for a summer industry trade show, SAG-AFTRA asking creators to not cross the picket lines, staffing realignment at PPAI, whether body art is good for business, share their top three/bottom three virtual meeting platforms, and so much more! A HUGE thanks to...

It’s Friday and most assuredly time for ep. 158 of the Promo UPFront #podcast! Today hosts Kirby Hasseman and Bill Petrie talk about the branding phenomenon that is Amazon Prime Day, chat about the game-changing events from Promocations and what’s in store for the future, ponder whether advertising in a video game makes sense, debate the efficacy of a company mission statement, and so much more! A...

It’s Friday and time for ep. 157 of the Promo UPFront #podcast! Today hosts Bill Petrie and Kirby Hasseman talk about Kanye West and Dov Charney teaming up to save the Yeezy brand, debate whether Threads will finally kill Twitter, the efficacy of the flying car that was recently approved by the FAA, ponder whether renting clothes when traveling will help the environment, laugh at the proposed “enh...

It’s Friday and time for a piping hot episode of the Promo UPFront #podcast with Kirby Hasseman and Bill Petrie! For episode 156, the List Lieutenants take a deep dive into the inaugural PPAI 100 list and share their takeaways, debate the relative merits of a new hot dog condiment from Pepsi, share preparations for the first PromoQue, ponder whether habitual napping stimulates brain activity, and...

It’s Friday morning, which means it’s time to drop ep. 155 of the Promo UPFront #podcast with Kirby Hasseman and Bill Petrie! Today the Field Marshalls of Fair Labor discuss the business lessons gleaned from Bud Light losing their “top dog” designation in domestic beer sales, share thoughts on what to think about the potential Teamsters strike at UPS, tips on handling clients when a supplier sudde...

Ka-BOOM! Time for Ep. 154 of the Promo UPFront #podcast with Kirby Hasseman and Bill Petrie! This week the Emperors of Embroidery talk about the possible death of the NFT as a promotional product, discuss how the long-distance commute has been redefined, discuss the retail brands arms race among suppliers, share ideas how to maximize marketing budget, Kirby teases a topic for next week, and much m...

Bang! Pow! Wow! It’s time for a fiery ep. 153 of the Promo UPFront #podcast with Kirby Hasseman and Bill Petrie! This week the promo pair talks about the importance of PPAI Legislative Education and Action Day (L.E.A.D.), dive deep into how branded merchandise can be used for good, discuss whether the giving a company a rating on the 5-star system means anything, Bill goes on a rant about the evol...

It’s Friday and time for ep. 152 of the Promo UPFront #podcast with Kirby Hasseman and Bill Petrie! This week, the Doctors of Decoration talk about the branding nightmare that is MAX (previously HBO MAX), discuss the class-action lawsuit against Delta Airlines for “greenwashing,” applaud the recipients of PPAI 2023 Women of Achievement and share some awards they would like to see, marvel at the sa...

It’s Friday and time for ep. 151 of the Promo UPFront #podcast with Kirby Hasseman and Bill Petrie! This week the power pair of promo talk about the ASI investigative report on a large apparel supplier’s response to using banned fabric and the concerns of importing, Adobe’s entry into the emerging power of AI, how the space you work in influences creativity, the return of a “Party in the Back” gam...

It’s Friday and time for ep. 150 of the Promo UPFront Podcast with Kirby Hasseman and Bill Petrie! In this sesquicentennial broadcast, the courage boys talk about Tesla beginning to advertise, the battle over who owns “Taco Tuesday,” disagree over the relative merits of the upcoming PPAI 100 list, struggle to understand the point behind Apple’s digital version of your own voice, and so much more!...

It’s Friday and time for episode 149 of the Promo UPFront Podcast with Kirby Hasseman and Bill Petrie! This week the admirals of artificial intelligence talk about the value of being named one of the “best places to work” by PPAI, take a deep dive into two AI programs (ChatGPT and MidJourney) and how they are impacting marketing and branded merchandise, debate the relative merits online reviews an...

It’s Friday and time for ep. 148 of the Promo UPFront Podcast with Kirby Hasseman and Bill Petrie. This week the Staff Sergeants of Swag share some final thoughts on the PromoCruise, review some authorized and unauthorized merch surrounding the coronation of King Charles III, dive deep into the arresting statistic that being isolated is as harmful to your health as smoking 15 cigarettes a day, and...

It’s Friday and time for a special edition of the Promo UPFront #podcast with Kirby Hasseman and Bill Petrie! If you’re wondering why this episode is special, it’s because they recorded it on a cruise ship in the middle of the Caribbean while on the inaugural PromoCruise. Not surprisingly, they discuss the networking aspects of the event, chat about how to work remotely while at a networking event...

It’s Friday which means it’s time to drop episode 146 of the Promo UPFront Podcast with Kirby Hasseman and Bill Petrie! This week, the Earls of Earth Day talk about the importance of sustainability and how to make it matter for clients, discuss why it’s critical to hire to buy your time back, debate whether podcasts are great sources for news, share why a creative voice in your organization is a m...

It’s Friday and time for ep. 145 of the Promo UPFront Podcast with Kirby Hasseman and Bill Petrie. This week the Captains of Cash Flow talk about some lessons learned planning a game-changing industry networking event, share strategies to grow sales even when clients are cutting budgets, discuss both NPR and PBS leaving Twitter over being labeled “State Controlled Media,” debate the current value...

It’s a VERY Good Friday when you drop ep. 144 of the Promo UPFront #podcast with Kirby Hasseman & Bill Petrie on the promo world! This week the original good-time player-men talk about how Swifties aren’t happy with Taylor Swift’s the quality of Taylor Swift’s tour t-shirts, the marketing of underwear subscriptions from Shinesty, the value (and challenges) of brands celebrating Pride Month, the ri...

It’s the last Friday of March and time to drop ep. 143 of the Promo UPFront #podcast with Kirby Hasseman and Bill Petrie! This week the Defenders of Design & Decoration talk about branded pothole repair in South Africa, whether stability in corporate branding equates to being a market leader, making “meat” out of the DNA of an extinct species and how to brand it, debate the value of Japan regulati...

It’s the first Friday of spring which means it’s time to drop ep. 142 of the Promo UPFront #podcast with Kirby Hasseman and Bill Petrie! This week the Earls of Embroidery debate whether it matters that Patagonia returned to promo, discuss a VERY confusing visitor campaign from Regina in Saskatchewan, Canada, muse on the merits of a class action lawsuit against a large sports-themed restaurant for...

It’s Friday AND St. Patrick’s Day which can only mean it’s time to drop ep. 141 of the Promo UPFront #podcast with Kirby Hasseman and Bill Petrie! This week the warriors of women’s empowerment dedicate the entire episode to the women in the promotional products industry that inspire them with their business savvy, creativity, and overall badassery! A HUGE thanks to our friends at Hirsch for sponso...

It’s Friday which means it’s time for ep. 140 of the Promo UPFront #podcast with Kirby Hasseman and Bill Petrie! This week the promo pair take a deep dive into the #Online18 from PPAI, debate four influencer marketing trend predictions for 2023, share why Toblerone isn’t so Swiss any longer and how it relates to their branding, and so much more! A HUGE thanks to our friends at Evans Manufacturing...