👋 Welcome back to This Week in Print-on-Demand Episode #67, where swag meets culture.

NEWS & NUGGETS: A DASH OF INDUSTRY INSIGHTS

📦 From 40 Hours to 4 Minutes: Traditional swag requests for golf tournaments can eat up entire workweeks. With a company store, employees can self-serve everything they need: signage, polos, and Bluetooth speakers. No back and forth required. Watch the video below to learn more.

🌴 Alpaca Your Bags: Three days. Countless ideas. Unlimited swag talk. Catch Ross and Madison in West Palm Beach, February 16-18. Be sure to let us know if you’re attending! More details about the event here.

🎉 Mark Your Calendars, HR Heroes: Employee Appreciation Day is March 6, Admin Professionals Day lands on April 22, and National Nurses Week kicks off May 6. Translation: three golden chances to celebrate the people who keep everything running.

📉 January Layoffs Spike to 17-Year High: U.S. employers announced over 108,000 layoffs last month, a 205% jump from December and the worst January since 2009. It’s a sharp reminder that even in a strong job market, turbulence is always on the table. Source.

💸 MrBeast Super Bowl Pregame: During a live Whatnot stream this Sunday before the Super Bowl, MrBeast is giving away more than $1M in prizes. Source.

🏈 Super Bowl by the Numbers: Super Bowl LX ads are hitting $8M per 30 seconds, a 48% jump over the past decade. Once you add production and star power, total spend can reach $20M, proving the Super Bowl remains marketing’s biggest stage.

🎉 Giveaway Winner Alert: Shout-out to the winners from last week, Pam Peterson and Michelle Lester, who scored the Sonora Wireless Speaker with Camping Lantern from Cavatina Elite. We’ve got another giveaway below!

BEHIND THE SCENES

Interesting ways to use a company store

Most companies think about swag once or twice a year. The best ones treat it like a year-round cultural tool.

Because appreciation isn’t seasonal, and your team’s impact isn’t limited to onboarding or holidays. The savviest teams are tying swag to real, under-the-radar moments that actually mean something.

Here are a few worth bookmarking:

• Admin Professionals Day (April 22): Your team’s secret weapon deserves more

• System Administrator Appreciation Day (July 31): Because if you’re reading this email, it’s probably thanks to them.

• HR Professional Appreciation Day (September 26): Criminially under-celebrated.

• Customer Service Week (Oct 5–9): Frontline folks field the chaos. Swag helps say, “We see you.”

• International Volunteer Day (December 5): Recognize your do-gooders with something that gives back.

How it works:

• Launch a landing page with 3, 6, or 9 curated items

• Employees pick what they actually want

• No spreadsheets, no vendor wrangling, no stress

Reply and tell us which moment you’re thinking about. Or book a time to chat. We’ll make it easy.

WEEKLY POLL + GIVEAWAY

Giveaway Alert: Massage Gun Lite

Treat your sore muscles and stiff neck – the Massage Gun Lite is our pick for wellness swag that actually works. It’s compact, rechargeable, and perfect for easing tension between meetings.

Details:

• Several lucky readers will score a Massage Gun Lite custom-branded with their company logo.

• Winner announced in next week’s newsletter.

👉 To enter, just answer this week’s poll below.

CLIENT SPOTLIGHT

🤝 Meet Janux Therapeutics

Janux Therapeutics is a clinical-stage biotech on a mission to reinvent cancer treatment. They’re pioneering precision-engineered T-cell therapies targeting solid tumors – basically, next-gen immunotherapies to address hard-to-treat cancers and autoimmune diseases. Janux describes its culture as highly collaborative and creative: a place where “scientific creativity” meets data-driven rigor. Employees are inspired by Janux’s patient-first purpose and supported to maintain work-life balance – the leadership team knows happy, healthy scientists do their best work.

📣 Our Collaboration

When Janux wanted to spread that mission-driven culture through swag, they turned to Brand Sauce. We built them a private, on-demand store stocked with branded apparel and tech gear that fit their innovative vibe.

Brand Sauce handles all the printing, inventory, and logistics behind the scenes, freeing Janux’s team from any of the nitty-gritty.

The result?

Every gift reinforces Janux’s brand and unites their far-flung team under one patient-focused mission (plus, it gives everyone something cool to wear to lab meetings).

🤝 Connect With Janux Therapeutics

Shoot me a note at [email protected] to get connected with the team.

WEEKEND UPDATE

Around the Water Cooler With Ross AKA The P.O.D. Guy

It Takes a Village

There’s a saying that it takes a village, and the older I get, the more I understand just how true that is.

Growing up, I was incredibly lucky to have adults in my life who cared about me as if I were their own. People who showed up, offered guidance, and quietly shaped the person I would become. Howard and Shirley First are two of those people, and their impact on my life is impossible to put into words, but I’ll try.

I grew up in Minnesota, and during the second semester of my junior year of high school, I moved to San Diego so I could play more tennis. Minnesota isn’t exactly known for producing elite tennis players. After that semester, I returned home, graduated high school a semester early, thanks to Normandale Community College for helping me finish my credits, and then went back to San Diego for the second half of what would have been my senior year. With no credits left to earn, that time was spent training, competing, and preparing for the next chapter at the University of Florida.

During those months, Howard and Shirley opened their home to me. I lived with them and their daughter, Lindy, who’s my age and an incredible tennis player herself. What they gave me during that time went far beyond a place to sleep.

I was an 18-year-old kid, far from home, trying to figure out who I was and who I wanted to be. I wasn’t the easiest or cleanest houseguest, and I’m sure I tested their patience more than once. But they never made me feel like a burden. They fed me, supported me, and made me feel safe and cared for at a moment in my life when I needed it more than I realized.

Through them, I also learned what love and partnership really look like. They showed me, simply by the way they lived, what a happy marriage is: mutual respect, kindness, and a deep commitment to taking care of each other. Their home was always filled with friends, family, laughter, and warmth. That example stayed with me.

I truly don’t think I’d be where I am today without their generosity.

Years later, in a twist of fate that still makes me smile, I introduced Lindy to one of my childhood best friends, Matt Rinkey. They’ve now been married for 15 years and have two beautiful children together. I’m not sure if that fully repays Howard and Shirley for everything they gave me, but I hope they know how deeply grateful I am.

Whenever I hear the phrase “it takes a village,” I don’t just understand it.

I feel it.

👥 Connect on Social Media

Not following Ross & Brand Sauce on social media yet? Let’s change that. Click the links below to stay connected for fresh ideas, behind-the-scenes content, and exclusive updates 👇

• Ross’s LinkedIn

• BrandSauce LinkedIn

• BrandSauce YouTube Channel

⏪ Previous Episodes

 In Print-on-Demand | EP #66, we explored how brands are showing appreciation, scaling swag smartly, and leaning into culture-building moments. From Employee Appreciation Day prep and the NFL’s crossover merch drop to mega indoor golf news and global hiring trends, this edition covered what’s making noise (and impact). Plus: a peek into our Swag Masterclass, the latest from PPAI, and how Anika Systems is leveling up with their own branded store.

In Print-on-Demand | EP #65, we zoomed in on what’s quietly shifting across merch, HR, and macro trends. From U.S. trade programs and 4imprint’s latest numbers to the hidden costs of hybrid work and what Gen Z actually wants from recognition, we broke down the data behind the swag. Plus, we spotlighted Kniesels’ values-driven company culture and gave away a recycled backpack that’s as functional as it is ocean-friendly.

In Print-on-Demand | EP #64, we unpacked how change is showing up across HR, hiring, and swag. From AI-generated candidates and tariff ripple effects to eco-forward merch and standout moments from the PPAI show floor, this episode focused on what’s shifting and why it matters. We also spotlighted how brands like CareerPlug are using thoughtful swag to build culture, and asked where sustainability really fits in.

In Print-on-Demand | EP#63, we explored how meaning beats materials, from Trader Joe’s totes turning into global merch flexes to Costco proving that staying true while adapting locally wins long term. We unpacked real shifts in work and culture, including rising wage expectations, AI’s growing role in HR, and what’s top of mind across the promo industry right now. Along the way, we spotlighted on-demand thinking, celebrated an employee moment at the edge of the world, and reminded ourselves why great swag shows up when it matters most. It’s an episode rooted in relevance, recognition, and the small details that build lasting connections.

THAT’S A WRAP

That’s everything worth knowing this week in promo land.

Until next time, stay saucy! 👋

– Ross & the Brand Sauce Team

© 2025 On Demand Global, LLC, DBA Brand Sauce