It all began in a basement. Back in 1934, amid the throes of the Great Depression, an enterprising hard worker named Forest P. Gill started silk screen-printing canvas products by hand in his basement. Fast-forward 84 years, and the company he founded is a powerhouse in the promotional products industry – a perennial Top 40 supplier generating more than $50 million in annual revenue and setting, according to many distributors, the standard for outstanding service and top-notch products in categories that include decals, labels, bumper stickers and more. That company, Gill Studios (asi/56950), still bears Forest’s last name. Perhaps even more significantly, it remains fueled by the same entrepreneurial ethos that fueled Forest Gill’s successful efforts to grow his business: Strive to innovate and improve every day to better serve clients. “From our earliest days, our goal has always been to provide our customers everything they need to be successful,” says Chairman Mark Gilman.