About Sourcing City
Sourcing City is the leading platform and industry hub serving the £1.33 billion UK & Ireland promotional merchandise industry.
Founded in 2002, Sourcing City connects distributors, suppliers and industry professionals through a powerful ecosystem of technology platforms, real-time data infrastructure, industry events and market intelligence. Today, companies representing around 60% of the entire UK & Ireland promotional merchandise market spend rely on Sourcing City’s platforms and services to source products, manage their businesses and connect with industry partners.
Under the leadership of CEO Ella Long, Sourcing City continues to expand its role as the industry’s central hub, helping distributors and suppliers operate more efficiently, collaborate more effectively and access the tools needed to grow in a rapidly evolving market.
The Industry Platform
Over more than two decades, Sourcing City has built an integrated ecosystem of services designed specifically for the professional promotional merchandise trade.
These services include:
- Industry sourcing platforms
- Distributor websites and Skin Sites
- Business management software
- Trade exhibitions and networking events
- Industry news and market intelligence
- Data sharing and integration platforms
- Purple Club professional membership
Together these services create a connected environment where distributors and suppliers can discover products, manage orders, access market insight, build relationships and grow their businesses.
Sourcing City is widely recognised for launching many of the industry’s first digital services and for consistently setting new standards for innovation, collaboration and professionalism within the sector.
Dynamic Highway – Industry Data Infrastructure
In 2025 Sourcing City launched Dynamic Highway, the industry’s first real-time data sharing platform designed specifically for the promotional merchandise supply chain.
Dynamic Highway connects directly with manufacturers and wholesalers across the UK and Europe, delivering live product data, pricing and stock availability directly into distributor systems and websites.
This infrastructure allows distributors to access both standard supplier pricing and their individual negotiated prices, alongside live stock information, creating a single trusted source of product data across the industry.
Dynamic Highway now powers multiple Sourcing City services including:
- Sourcing City Platinum
- Skin Sites distributor websites
- Promotional Office business management software
- Distributor ecommerce platforms
By creating a shared data infrastructure, Dynamic Highway helps distributors automate processes, reduce administration and respond faster to client demand.
Merchandise World & Industry Events
Sourcing City is also the co-owner and organiser of Merchandise World, the UK’s largest professional trade exhibition for the promotional merchandise industry.
Held twice each year, the event brings together leading suppliers and hundreds of professional distributors from across the UK, Ireland and Europe to discover new products, strengthen relationships and explore industry developments.
The January event remains strictly trade-only for professional distributors, while the September edition, Sustainable Merchandise World, also allows distributors to invite selected clients to experience the professionalism and innovation of the industry.
Merchandise World is jointly owned by Sourcing City and the British Promotional Merchandise Association (BPMA).
Technology & Connected Services
Sourcing City’s platforms integrate to create a seamless digital ecosystem for the industry.
These include:
Sourcing City Platinum
An advanced sourcing platform powered by Dynamic Highway, delivering real-time product pricing, stock and supplier data.
Promotional Office
The industry’s most widely used specialist business management software for promotional merchandise distributors.
Skin Sites
Trade-ready distributor websites powered by the Sourcing City database, enabling companies to launch fully branded promotional merchandise websites quickly and efficiently.
Eco Skin Sites
A specialist website solution focusing exclusively on environmentally responsible promotional products.
Together these services allow distributors to source products, manage orders, publish websites and access industry data within a connected environment, increasing efficiency and reducing administration.
Market Intelligence & Industry Voice
Since 2007, Sourcing City has published the UK & Ireland Promotional Merchandise Market Report, the most comprehensive independent analysis of the sector.
The report provides detailed insights into:
- Market value and industry growth
- Distributor and supplier market profiles
- Economic trends affecting the industry
- Strategic insight for industry leaders
Alongside the report, Sourcing City News provides ongoing industry coverage and commentary, helping professionals stay informed about developments across the market.
These initiatives position Sourcing City as one of the most trusted sources of market intelligence within the promotional merchandise industry.
Global Industry Partnership
Sourcing City is a founding member of PromoAlliance, the international partnership connecting the leading promotional merchandise industry organisations across the world.
PromoAlliance brings together:
- ASI (Advertising Specialty Institute) – United States
- PSI (Promotional Product Service Institute) – Europe
- Sourcing City – United Kingdom & Ireland
Together these organisations support tens of thousands of distributors and suppliers globally and help connect international innovation, market intelligence and best practice across the promotional merchandise industry.
Our Founder’s Legacy
Sourcing City was founded by David Long, a highly respected leader within the promotional merchandise industry.
Prior to establishing Sourcing City, David served as Managing Director of Dowlis Group, where he grew the business from £2.4 million to £12.5 million turnover, establishing it as one of the UK’s largest independent promotional merchandise distributors.
He also served as Chairman of the industry trade association Promota, helping grow membership to over 1,000 companies and leading the creation of one of the industry’s most influential trade exhibitions.
Recognising the potential of the emerging internet in the early 2000s, David founded Sourcing City in 2002 with a vision of creating a central hub that would connect the entire industry through digital platforms, market intelligence and collaboration.
Over the following two decades, that vision evolved into the market-leading ecosystem of services that today supports a majority of the UK and Ireland promotional merchandise market.
David’s contribution to the industry was recognised with numerous honours, including the British Promotional Merchandise Association (BPMA) Lifetime Achievement Award.
Following his passing in December 2025, his vision continues through the Sourcing City team, who remain committed to innovation, collaboration and supporting the continued growth of the promotional merchandise industry.
The Company Today
Today Sourcing City stands as the central platform and industry hub for the professional promotional merchandise industry in the UK and Ireland.
Through its connected technology platforms, real-time data infrastructure, industry events and market intelligence, Sourcing City helps distributors and suppliers operate more efficiently, build stronger partnerships and identify new opportunities for growth.
Sourcing City operates from The Hub in Farnborough and is owned by Dynamic Image Ltd, trading as Sourcing City.
For more than two decades the company has been recognised for its commitment to innovation, integrity and industry leadership, and continues to invest in the technology, connectivity and collaboration that will shape the future of the promotional merchandise industry.
