What Second Story Promotions does

Second Story Promotions is a privately-held US custom promotional products distributor headquartered in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, founded in 2004 and operating with an estimated 11-50 employees. The company sells branded merchandise across twelve product categories — including apparel, bags, drinkware, lip balm, personal care, office supplies, outdoor/leisure, technology, and food & candy — to small and mid-sized businesses across multiple verticals, with a notable specialty concentration in dental and orthodontic practices. Orders are placed primarily through its e-commerce storefront at secondstorypromotions.com, which is supported by an in-house phone sales team (866-519-8400) operating central-time business hours.

Its core technology is a direct-to-customer e-commerce platform integrated with Swag Studio, a proprietary online design tool that enables real-time logo upload, text and color customization, and product preview across the catalog. The company also operates Custom Company Stores, a dedicated branded storefront product for enterprise clients seeking centralized employee merchandise management, and a Direct Ship Gifts drop-ship program that allows personalized items to be mailed directly to recipients. The product mix combines third-party sourced SKUs (e.g., Coleman coolers, Wilson golf balls) with proprietary/private-label items, most prominently the Broad Spectrum SPF 15 lip balm offered in 23 flavors.

The business model is transactional B2B with volume-based tiered unit pricing (e.g., $0.94-$1.10 per lip balm unit at 250-5,000 quantities; approximately 10% discount at 5,000+ units). Revenue is generated through one-time promotional product sales rather than subscriptions or licensing, supported by a hybrid go-to-market combining self-serve product-led growth (Swag Studio, Idea Center), inside sales for SMB quote-driven orders, and sales-led enterprise motion via Custom Company Stores. Distribution is US-domestic only, and marketing relies on SEO, blog content, and email rather than paid acquisition at scale.

Name

Second Story Promotions

Legal name

Second Story Promotions

Website

https://secondstorypromotions.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2004

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Second Story Promotions is a US-based online distributor of custom promotional products — branded merchandise across categories such as lip balm, apparel, drinkware, bags, and tech — serving small and mid-sized businesses with a specialty focus on dental practices, via its e-commerce site, proprietary Swag Studio design tool, and enterprise company-store platform.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Promotional Products Distribution

NAICS

Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Retailers (45942)

SIC

Retail-Catalog & Mail-Order Houses (5961)

akta.pro primary industry

Trade Show Giveaways & Event Premiums (BPAFAMAG)

akta.pro secondary industry

Premiums, On-Pack & Pack-In Promotions (BPAFAMAJ)

Keywords

• Promotional products
• Custom merchandise
• Branded apparel
• Corporate gifts
• Custom swag

Headquarters

HQ city

Cedar Rapids

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Supply Chain, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Custom Promotional Products Sales: Sale of customized promotional products including apparel, bags, drinkware, office supplies, tech accessories, and personal care items. Customers place orders for branded merchandise with volume-based pricing tiers.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Second Story Promotions distributes custom-branded promotional merchandise to business clients, supplying decorated apparel, bags, drinkware, office supplies, and custom lip balm with logos and personalized artwork. Orders are supported by an in-house Swag Studio design and preview tool, fulfillment by production partners, and recurring-order programs via client-specific company stores and direct-ship gifting. Customers include health practices, mid-to-large company marketing and HR teams, and event organizers.

Product overview

Second Story Promotions is a custom promotional products distributor offering a wide range of branded merchandise across 12 product categories: Apparel & Accessories, Bags (backpacks, totes, die cut bags), Drinkware (mugs, tumblers, stadium cups, can coolers), Events, Food & Candy, Home, Lip Balm (Broad Spectrum SPF, All Natural, SPF varieties), Office (notebooks, pens, calendars), Outdoor & Leisure (coolers, hammocks, camping gear), Pens & Writing, Personal Care (Hydra Stick, hand sanitizer), and Technology (speakers, phone accessories). Their flagship personal care product is the Broad Spectrum Lip Balm with 23 flavors. They also offer a Custom Company Store platform for enterprise clients to manage employee merchandise ordering. Products can be customized with company logos through their in-house Swag Studio design tool.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Custom Branded Apparel Decorated apparel items (e.g., shirts, polos) carrying the customer's logo or custom artwork, sold to business customers for employee, event, and client use.
• Custom Branded Bags Custom-branded bags and totes for use as giveaways, conference swag, or retail-style merch, ordered by business clients.
• Custom Branded Drinkware Branded drinkware items (e.g., mugs, water bottles, tumblers) carrying customer artwork, sold to business buyers.
• Custom Branded Office Supplies Decorated office-supply items (e.g., pens, notebooks, journals) with customer branding, sold as giveaway merchandise to businesses.
• Custom Branded Lip Balm Custom-branded lip balm offered as a small-quantity promotional giveaway product for business and practice buyers.
• Custom Company Stores Client-branded online store program that lets an organization's employees or members order approved promotional merchandise on a recurring basis.
• Direct-Ship Gifting Service that ships custom-branded gifts directly to individually specified recipients (e.g., clients, employees, event attendees) on behalf of the buyer.

Quantifiable outcome

• Bulk ordering can save approximately 10% on orders of 5,000+ units

Named customers5 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• ePromos Promotional Products: ePromos is an online promotional products retailer offering custom-branded merchandise across categories including apparel, drinkware, and tech with an online design studio. Its e-commerce-led, SMB-focused model and direct customization tooling closely mirror Second Story Promotions' GTM.
• Quality Logo Products: Quality Logo Products is an online promotional products distributor specializing in custom pens, drinkware, bags, and apparel at volume-based pricing. Its e-commerce catalog, category coverage, and SMB target market squarely align with Second Story's offerings.
• Crestline Promotional Products: Crestline is a longstanding online promotional products distributor offering custom-branded merchandise across apparel, drinkware, office supplies, and gifts with in-house decoration services. Its catalog breadth, online customization tools, and target audience of SMB and corporate buyers directly overlap with Second Story's e-commerce positioning.
• Boundless (formerly Brand Marketing): Boundless is an end-to-end branded merchandise and corporate gifting platform offering custom product sourcing, company stores, and direct-to-recipient fulfillment. Its enterprise gifting and company store offerings directly compete with Second Story's Custom Company Stores and Direct Ship Gifts programs.
• Discount Mugs: Discount Mugs is an online promotional products retailer offering custom-printed drinkware, bags, apparel, and gifts with online design tools. The product catalog mix and self-serve online customization experience are highly comparable to Second Story's Swag Studio model.
• 4imprint: 4imprint is one of the largest direct-to-customer promotional products distributors in North America, operating an e-commerce model with an in-house online design tool analogous to Second Story's Swag Studio. It sells custom-branded merchandise across categories including drinkware, apparel, bags, and tech accessories to SMB and enterprise buyers, making it the closest direct competitor.
• HALO Branded Solutions (HALO): HALO is a large promotional products and corporate gifting company offering custom merchandise, company stores, and recognition programs to enterprise clients. Its Custom Company Store platform and Direct Ship offerings are directly analogous to Second Story's enterprise and Direct Ship Gifts channels.
• Burgon Promotional Products: Burgon is a US promotional products distributor offering custom-branded merchandise across multiple categories with dedicated client services. Its mid-sized, relationship-driven model and product breadth position it as a comparable mid-tier competitor to Second Story in the custom merchandise space.

Broad incumbents

• National Pen (PCNA): PCNA, parent of National Pen, is a large established distributor of promotional products and writing instruments offering pens, drinkware, bags, and apparel with custom decoration services. It serves a broader product portfolio across enterprise customers and overlaps with Second Story's writing instruments and custom merchandise categories.

Emerging players

• Swag.com: Swag.com is a digitally native custom merchandise and corporate gifting platform offering online design, company stores, and direct-to-recipient fulfillment. Its tech-first, self-serve customization experience and enterprise gifting focus closely parallel Second Story's Swag Studio and Custom Company Store capabilities.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/2ndstorypromos
• Facebookfacebook.com/SecondStoryPromotions
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/second-story-promotions-inc

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Second Story Promotions