Barry Hults, MAS, president of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania-based Hults Consulting, passed away on October 27, 2019. He was 81.

Hults worked as a distributor in the promotional products industry for 17 years, running Toronto, Ontario-based Images for Industry from 1978 to 1995. He launched The School for Promotional Marketing in 1994 and for 21 years offered education, CEO coaching and management consulting to industry practitioners. And in 1995, he established Hults Consulting, offering a range of coaching and consulting services in the industry.

“I credit Barry for my love for education in this industry as he was one the first people I ever heard speak in the industry,” says Mark Graham, president and chief brand officer at commonsku. “I was literally months into the industry as a 20-something-old. As he was in Toronto at the time, I joined his Promotional School where he taught all sorts of classes. Even though he was from a different era, I learned a ton from him. I remember laying out my internet strategy with him back in 2001! A good reason for young people to listen to their elders!”

Preceded by his son Arthur B. Hults Jr., Hults is survived by his wife Virginia, daughter Monica Henderson and son Christopher Wilson. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the American Cancer Society.