Event managers have a tough job. They are responsible for every trade show, seminar and conference in which your company will participate. That’s a lot to handle.

It’s even more impressive when you consider that each of the events these managers oversee are composed of multiple components and moving parts. There are promotional items, signage, displays, demos, printed collateral, and much more. Add staffing to the equation, including arranging accommodations and both short- and long-distance travel to and from the events for potentially dozens of people, and it’s easy to see just how overwhelming and stressful it can all become. Simply put, event managers must be exceptionally skilled at juggling multiple tasks simultaneously in order to pull it all off successfully.

Back in 2020 and 2021, when the world was in the throes of the COVID-19 lockdown, many companies scaled back their operations and revisited their business goals and objectives while adjusting to a new remote workforce.

Not OnFulfillment.

Rather than lose momentum, we viewed the slowdown as an opportunity to enhance our capabilities, expand our business, and introduce changes that were otherwise difficult if not impossible during busier times. While many of our competitors sat around waiting for the pandemic to end and business to return to normal, we took advantage of the downtime to implement improvements that allowed us to hit the ground running once the restrictions were lifted.

You’ve heard us say it before, and we’ll continue to say it: events are making a huge comeback.

Pent-up demand following the COVID-inspired shutdowns has driven companies back into events, primarily in-person gatherings. In fact, most of our new customers over the past year originated as a request for assistance with their event management responsibilities.

To capitalize on this trend, many of our competitors have started advertising themselves as event fulfillment and management providers. Never mind that, up to this point, these gifting platforms have focused almost exclusively on producing and mailing branded merchandise. When they see a business opportunity, they jump on it.

When OnFulfillment welcomes a new client, they don’t just hand them the keys to the site and wish them luck. Actually, it’s just the beginning of a much more involved process designed to help the customer extract maximum value out of the new partnership and help their business thrive.

“Buy locally, distribute globally” is a sound business strategy. It provides a level of control that allows you to maintain consistency across products or materials, manage the brand, and take advantage of bulk pricing.

That’s the theory, anyway. In practice, however, it’s not quite that simple or straightforward.

Most countries, and many manufacturers, have customs rules and other regulations designed to prevent materials produced in a foreign country from being imported and distributed in different locations. Generally, these rules are designed to protect local businesses from unfair labor practices, and the penalties can be harsh, both economically and in terms of wasted time and resources.