Corporate swag for the pandemic

Masks may be a political statement in some circles, said Jena McGregor in The Washington Post, but in corporate America they could “become the new fleece vest.” With more offices reopening, promotional supply firms are seeing a noticeable uptick in demand for branded masks, along with “branded cozy socks, clip-on Zoom vanity light rings, and webcam privacy covers.” Businesses such as Nasdaq, which will have

“1,800 masks with its logo and the phrase ‘NasdaqStrong’” for its returning workers, see coronavirus-related swag as, at the very least, a way to “maintain professional dress codes.” The CEO of one promotionalproducts company says that a month ago buyers just wanted any medical masks. Now 75 percent of the orders include branding—though not too prominently, because “you don’t want to be a walking billboard on the face.”