Every intense decision and debate regarding the pandemic has been reflected in the education market. Schools this year swapped back and forth between virtual and in-person learning while regularly changing quarantine rules and masking guidelines. In a way, it made things even more difficult when everyone was comfortable with being remote and learned how to successfully pivot their promo.

Now, though, students are fimly on campus and buying is on the upswing. “I have definitely had an increase in orders for schools across the board. They are all finally returning to in-person events and are wanting items for events and activities,” says Kaylee Shields, business development specialist at Image Masters (asi/230071).

Scott Carr, vice president of Sunline Products (asi/339392), is in Texas, where most schools have been open throughout the school year. His business is booming with uniforms and event shirts. “Being an approved vendor,” he says, “is paying off well for me.”

Ethix Merch (asi/189731) too has found that the market has largely recovered. “Schools can be intensely bureaucratic,” says CEO Daniel Cardozo, which is why Ethix relies on internal advocates who can connect them with decision-makers. “It’s better,” he says, “to nibble around the edges rather than endeavoring to win the majority of a school’s business in one meeting.”