Every year the Advertising Specialty Institute(R) , announces the winners of the 2008 Counselor Awards, as selected by Counselor magazine.

The annual awards recognize outstanding individuals and companies in nine categories, celebrating some of the brightest talent and business achievements in the promotional product industry.

"We were very excited to present this year's winners," said Melinda Ligos, editor-in-chief for ASI®. "The Counselor Awards honor individuals who serve their communities through their volunteer efforts or who have impacted the industry by contributing new revenue-generating ideas and best practices. They range from leaders at large companies, to owners of family-owned businesses." In the category of Distributor Entrepreneur the award recognizes individuals who reflect the true entrepreneurial nature of the industry.There are over 21,000 distributor members.

The winners this year were made up of a team, the founders of Oregon company promopeddler.com , Lewis Amicone and Monte Baumgartner. They first met in 1997 at a real estate conference. Two years later their company Bagpeddler.com was born, the precursor to Promopeddler.com. After moving from Gresham and McMinnville, the corporate office is now located in Sherwood, Oregon. The two have grown their company with a $400 investment start-up, to being considered one of the top online promotional product websites in the country; both were self taught in web marketing and business.

"The key to our ongoing success is meeting challenges head on. In 2001 we headed in a new direction when we figured out selling 3000 bags to 1 person was a better business model then selling 3000 bags to 3000 people on eBay," commented Lewis Amicone.

Revenues for the promotional items industry just reached $19.6 billion in 2007 - up 5.4 percent from 2006 and a new record. Most forms of advertising are highly perishable, with newspapers having a 24 hour shelf life. In contrast, promotional products at Promopeddler.com deliver high levels of repeat exposure because recipients keep and re-use them. Branding has become big business and Promopeddler.com has positioned themselves front and center on the web.

To learn more about the winners of the 2008 Counselor Awards, and see photos from the awards event, visit www.asicentral.com/counselorawards .

About Promopeddler.com
Promopeddler.com, features one of the largest online promotional products catalog, maintains an extensive, quality product line, along with fast shipping and a focus on personalized, customer service. In June 2006 Promopeddler.com received the Spirit award for the 4th fastest growing ASI distributor in the industry. The company was awarded for the second year in a row, placement in the 100 Fastest Growing Privately held companies in Oregon by the Portland Business Journal. Promopeddler.com can be contacted through its website at promopeddler.com , or toll free at 1-800-455-1350.