These days, with people using social media platforms to share everything they do, experiences have become as prized as possessions. Incentive conference planners can give attendees both when they offer on-site customized gift programs. The concept isn't new: It started when an insurance conference planner approached a Maui Jim rep at a trade show asking for 300 pairs of sunglasses as room gifts. At the time, the rep—Brett Hatch, now Maui Jim’s senior director, corporate gifts—had never heard of a meeting planner or a pillow gift. He said no. Faces are different, he told her. If she wanted her folks to get Maui Jims as a gift, he’d have to join her on site at her Mexican incentive conference and fit the people personally. She agreed, her people loved it, and the rest is history.
And as our gallery shoes, the concept has gone way beyond glasses—to jeans, watches, luggage, even steaks!
