Jonathan Isaacson

Elise Hacking Carr is senior production editor for Print & Promo Marketing magazine, and managing editor for PRINTING United Journal.

If "The Boss" tells you to meet him in Atlantic City, you better listen. While Bruce Springsteen may not be strolling the boardwalk this June, there are still plenty of reasons to visit New Jersey.

Promo Marketing, a sister publication of Print Professional, has compiled a new Top 50 Suppliers ranking. Despite stricter regulations on the safety and sales of promotional products, 2010 and the first half of 2011 have shown a sales resurgence in the industry. The returning fiscal strength of the industry is evident from the list, which is based on revenue numbers from 2010. Overall, the top 50 suppliers raked in more than $500 million more than they did in 2009. These companies have increased their margins, upped the interest in their products and committed themselves to making it through the financial crises stronger than before, and they are being rewarded for it.

To dabble a bit in the philosophical realm, the term "golden mean" is often applied to the discussion of ethics for the greater good of society. It is said to be the ideal middle ground between two extreme points of view and many of the world's greatest thinkers—from Aristotle to Confucius—have touched upon it in their teachings.

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