STRAN (PPAI 161542, Platinum) released its public business update, which revealed that the Massachusetts-based distributor achieved $31.2 million in first quarter sales for 2026.
- That number represents an 8.9% year-over-year increase compared to Q1 of 2025.
- STRAN is PPAI 100’s No. 12 distributor.
“This quarter marks a meaningful inflection point for Stran,” says Andy Shape, CEO of STRAN. “We delivered $31.2 million in revenue, up 8.9% year-over-year, alongside a gross margin of 30.9% – more than 100 basis points above the prior year period – and EBITDA of $1.0 million compared to EBITDA of $(0.2) million for Q1 2025.”
Andy Shape
CEO, Stran
Shape mentioned that, in addition to STRAN’s core promotional business, the company’s Stran Loyalty Solutions have grown to a profitable part of the company’s bottom line, signaling a potential new chapter for the distributor.
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“What gives us particular confidence is that this profitability was driven by both segments of our business,” says Shape. “Our core Stran segment grew revenue nearly 12% while our SLS segment, which represents the integrated former Gander Group business, achieved a dramatic improvement in operating profitability, swinging from a loss from operations of $0.5 million in Q1 2025 to income from operations of $0.5 million this quarter. We believe Q1 2026 represents a turning point, and we are genuinely optimistic about the balance of the year.”
- STRAN’s total revenue for 2025 was $116.2 million, so its 2026 Q1 sales of $31.2 million puts the distributor on a similar track with potential to grow past that number.
At the end of last quarter, STRAN made a key move to its leadership team, hiring Jack Audibert to the dual roles of chief strategy officer and chief compliance officer.
Shape says the company anticipates similar stability and success throughout the rest of the year, as modeled by Q1.
“Looking ahead, we believe 2026 is shaping up to be a year of sustained, profitable growth for STRAN,” says Shape. “We are seeing our enterprise clients engage with us more deeply than ever — not just for individual products or one-off campaigns, but across our full platform of promotional products, loyalty and incentive programs, e-commerce solutions and fulfillment services.”
