Competitive Edge was founded by Mary Jo Tomasini in 1993 and has evolved into one of the largest full-
service promotional product distributors in the U.S., proudly ranked by PPAI (Promotional Products
Association International) as one of the top 1% of distributors nationwide. With a dedicated team of 27
industry professionals Competitive Edge has been consistently recognized for commitment to
excellence, innovation, and employee satisfaction.

Originally based in Stevensville, and moving to St. Joseph, MI in 2025, Competitive Edge has expanded to
include offices in Grand Rapids, Detroit, and Charleston, South Carolina, allowing them to effectively
serve clients throughout the United States, and internationally, with personalized service. Competitive
Edge’s award portfolio includes the Michigan Outstanding Women Owned Business of the Year,
Cornerstone Chamber Small Business of the Year, the PPAI Gold Pyramid Award's Best Place to Work; by
ASI Counselor Magazine, & Greatest Company to Work For; by PPB Magazine.

To learn more about what Competitive Edge has to offer, visit cepromo.net.

The Herald-Palladium has held its current name only since 1975, but it can trace its genealogy back to 1868.

And the Twin Cities of Benton Harbor and St. Joseph can boast of a journalistic tradition that goes back even further. St. Joseph, the older of the two cities, had a weekly newspaper in operation as early as 1836.

Leonard G. Merchant started the Benton Harbor Palladium as a weekly in 1868, and sold it the following year to J.P. Thresher. The Palladium went through several other ownerships until being acquired by Frank Gibson, who in 1886 converted it into the Daily Palladium.

Merchant left Benton Harbor for St. Joseph in 1877. He bought a weekly, The Traveler and Herald in that year and renamed it the St. Joseph Herald.

Shortly after the turn of the century, Merchant and his son, Leonard E., sold their property to Ephriam W. Moore who published the paper as The Evening Herald.

Competing dailies moved into both cities around the turn of the century.

John Nellis Klock, J. Stanley Morton and Humphrey S. Gray established The Evening News in Benton Harbor in 1895.

In 1905 Willard Brewer, a nephew of Moore, bought The St. Joseph Press, a weekly created in 1888, and changed it to a daily publication under the same name.

By 1904 The Evening News had displaced The Daily Palladium as the dominant paper in Benton Harbor. Gibson that year sold his publication to Klock and his associates, who consolidated the two publications into The News-Palladium.

Klock and Gray in 1910 sold the newspaper to Moore. In 1916, Brewer and Moore merged their St. Joseph publications into The Herald-Press.

In 1919 Moore retired and sold The News-Palladium to the Palladium Publishing Co. incorporated that year by Klock, Stanley R. Banyon and Willard J. Banyon Sr. In 1928 the company bought out The Herald-Press Co. The companies eventually merged in 1970.

However, the two companies after 1928 continued to publish The Herald-Press and The News-Palladiums in their own plants, under distinctive formats and with separate staffs and circulation promotion. A new plant for The News-Palladium was built in Benton Harbor in 1955.

In 1965, the company shifted production of The Herald-Press into The News-Palladium's plant and adopted a common advertising rate schedule. The papers kept their own mastheads but the content was the same. That changed in 1975, when The Herald-Press and The News-Palladium became The Herald-Palladium.

In 1970, a wing was added to the Benton Harbor plant to house engraving and circulation. In 1972, the paper changed over from the old hot metal system to the cold or photo printing type.

But printing problems remained. The printing speed of the press in Benton Harbor could not be increased and spare parts for its electrical control panel were no longer being made. The solution was to build a new plant in St. Joseph Township, just off Interstate 94, to house the entire newspaper operation. The new plant opened in 1978.

In February 1985, Palladium Publishing sold the newspaper to Thomson Inc., a newspaper chain. Thomson operated the paper until December 1996, when it sold The Herald-Palladium to the Community Newspapers Division of Hollinger International. Hollinger sold the newspaper in 2000 to its current owner, Paxton Media Group Inc. of Paducah, Ky.

Paxton Media Group traces it roots to 1896, when a group of investors headed by W.P. Paxton launched The Paducah Sun. Today, Paxton Media Group is a diversified media company with interests in newspapers, printing and broadcasting and is still owned and managed by third and fourth generation members of the Paxton family.

Holt Bosse is a smalll, full-service agency with more than 100 years of combined experience in marketing. We are early adapters of new technology and marketing tactics, are proactive in giving ideas to clients, and don’t sleep well unless our clients look good. By blending traditional strategies with experiential marketing, we can increase engagement and enchant customers, turning them into your best salesmen through word-of-mouth. We exceed customer’s expectations because we have a personal connection to our clients and always act on their behalf.

Why this matters to you?

We’re a full-service agency, so we can manage all facets of your brand – on and offline – with a unified strategy. This consolidated approach ensures consistency ... consistency that boosts trust and encourages loyalty in your brands. Plus, you’ll save time in dealing with a list of vendors.

Elevate Your Brand with Jenyse Danielle Creative Studios!

At Jenyse Danielle Creative Studios, we specialize in helping small businesses thrive with strategic, results-driven design that captivates and builds lasting connections. From brand identity to website design, we craft solutions that inspire growth, engagement, and business success.

Learn more at jenysedanielle.com

JLN Studio LLC opened its doors September 1, 2011. First starting out in a small studio in downtown New Buffalo, MI then to a larger studio in Three Oaks, MI and now in a new 1400 square foot Art Studio in downtown Stevensville.

Founder/owner Julie Lawrenz Nitz…a mother, wife, artist, graphic designer and photographer. Julie’s experience includes an Associates Degree in Graphic Design from Southwestern Michigan College, a Bachelors Degree in Fine Arts, with a Minor in Photography from Western Michigan University.

JLN Studio LLC offers Art & Canvas classes, graphic design and branding services, and more. 

King Media is a full-service marketing, advertising, public relations and digital media agency founded in 1999 by Coleen King. King Media provides strategic, research-based services to clients across Michigan and beyond. We work in nearly every industry, from governments and municipalities to healthcare, education, manufacturing, retail and more. We specialize in strategic brand development, graphic design, website development, digital marketing, event marketing, public/media relations, multimedia advertising, brochure design, and production support services such as print management, promotional products, copywriting, photography and radio and TV production.

Though our client portfolio is intentionally diverse, they all share one key characteristic: they want to move the needle, and we are relentless in our pursuit of their success.

Little Red Fern is a video media company focused on storytelling to drive engagement towards building brands.  For more information, check out www.littleredfern.com.

MailMax is a weekly direct mail publication covering 37,014 homes along the coast of Lake Michigan from Coloma down to Sawyer...ten zip codes in all.  It features good news and good deals. It is also published online at www.MailMaxOnline.com

Graphic Design

Mid-West Family Broadcasting is one of America’s oldest and most respected Broadcast Groups. The Group isn’t owned and operated by Wall Street.

The entrepreneurial spirit that drives our clients drives us. If they succeed, we succeed. All decisions are made locally in order to appropriately address market changes, producing the best results for local business.

Mid-West Family Broadcasting is NOT just radio. We help clients be consistent with their brand promise through all platforms of delivery including digital, events, promotions, and social media.

Premier Promotions was established in 1938. We are Company that specializes in Embroidery, Screen Printing, Engraving, Sign Making, Plaques, Awards, Name Plate, Clothing, Advertising Specialties, and anything else that has your logo or name marked on it.

Design, project management, sign manufacturing and installation. More than just signs, we're Building Impressions.