Episode 73: Think Outside the Catalog, Importing Tips with Russ Mogell
Russ Mogell is the founder of Seven Sourcing, a factory-direct import company that assists promotional product distributors with the development, manufacture, and importation of custom, branded merchandise for leading brands including Pepsi, Budweiser, Verizon, Disney, and the NFL.
Before Seven Sourcing, Russ was the 3rd generation owner of supplier, Toppers. Sold in 1999, Toppers was the 5th largest supplier in the industry.
Russ has been featured in several leading industry publications highlighting his experience with importing and product safety, including PPB, Counselor and Identity Marketing magazines and was recognized in 2010 as a PPAI Rising Star.Russ has also served on PPAI’s North American Leadership committee and currently serves as a chef and past mentor chair at Promo Kitchen, a non-profit community, focused on education and mentorship in the promotional products industry.
In this episode, we talk with Russ about some of the keys to success importing projects, including:
- How to move beyond the catalog to make creativity the commodity killer
- The best ways to work with your importers and supplier partners
- What a distributor should be concerned about when importing
- Trends that the leading importers watch to help create experiences through product
- Tips on handling the financing conversation with your customer
- And more!