Podcasts about affiliated distributors

What happens when wholesale distribution meets a shifting global economy, AI-driven technology, and a full-court press on organic growth? In this extended episode of Around the Horn in Wholesale Distribution, co-hosts Kevin Brown and Tom Burton are joined by industry leader Paul Kennedy, President & CEO of DSG and Chair of NAED. Together, they dive into the economic, geopolitical, and operational dynamics shaking up manufacturing and distribution in 2024.

As a business owner or marketer, have you ever taken your own customer journey? Have you gone down the path your company developed from sale to fulfillment and beyond? In this episode, Kevin and Tom are joined by Marty McLaughlin, CMO of Affiliated Distributors, to discuss the importance of a smooth, enjoyable customer experience. What are the essential elements of a successful customer journey, and what does your company jeopardize without one? It's a fascinating conversation, and one you won't want to miss!Join the conversation each week on LinkedIn Live.Want even more insight to the stories we discuss each week? Subscribe to the Around The Horn Newsletter.You can also hear the podcast and other excellent content on our YouTube Channel.Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, or TikTok.

Our team has been on the fall conference tour. MDM's Tom Gale and IRCG's Mike Marks compare notes from conversations at Affiliated Distributors, NetPlus, ISSA, MDM's own SHIFT event, and the latest Baird-MDM quarterly MarketPulse survey. Most distributors report double-digit growth, few signs of slowdown.

“I learned early on just being nice and kind to the customer can go a long way.” ~Dale Hahs Dale Hahs has initiated dozens of innovations throughout his career at AIS Industrial & Construction Supply in Denver - from system upgrades to expanded product lines. And while technology has allowed him to implement cool features such as 360º virtual warehouse views, Dale attributes his company’s success to strong customer relationships and peer networks. Jason chats with Dale about responding to the marketplace during COVID-19 and collaborating with Affiliated Distributors. “It's nice because we are so diverse and we sell into so many different marketplaces that when one thing is down, we can look at other avenues where we can sell that same product to a different vertical.” That’s the case with AIS’ foray into eBay, a marketplace that has served the company well, especially during the pandemic. With eBay, AIS has found a way to move closeout items, overstock, and niche products. The endeavor allows AIS to gather instant feedback which doesn’t happen on their general eComm site. That line of communication sits well with Dale, who believes that customer kindness promotes customer loyalty. To that end, when his customers began clamoring for hard hats, gloves, and vests AIS responded quickly, adding safety supplies to their extensive inventory of industrial and construction goods. “It’s probably the fastest-growing category of anything that we sell.” *** Distribution Talk is produced by The Distribution Team, a consulting services firm dedicated to helping wholesale distribution clients remove barriers to profitability, generate wealth and achieve personal goals.    http://www.distributionteam.com This episode was edited & mixed by The Creative Impostor Studios.  Connect with Jason Bader on LinkedIn. Connect with Dale Hahs on LinkedIn. *** Pivoting to new product lines or managing sales expectations are daunting tasks even without a pandemic adding pressure to every decision. In times like these, Dale’s grateful for the camaraderie and peer knowledge he’s benefited from as a member of Affiliated Distributors. He credits the network for creating an arena where peers can support and challenge each other, where they can innovate and educate together. Dale urges others to get off the sidelines to reap maximum rewards of membership in groups like AD. “The best way that I learned was being able to be part of the executive committee,” Dale says of his stint as chairman of the network. These days, Dale’s excited to watch his son work his way through the ranks at AIS. Eventually, he says, things will open up enough for father and son to attend AD events, reestablishing in real life those peer relationships that make a career in distribution so rewarding. 

“Any organization that wants to create a sustainable future, if they’re not spending a lot of energy and time as leaders on culture - defining it, refining it, enhancing it - in my book, they’re missing the mark.” ~John Wiborg John Wiborg, president and founder of Stellar Industrial Supply, believes there’s only one thing separating your distributorship from the competition. It isn’t price or fulfillment time or service. It’s your company’s culture.  John and I discuss the intangible qualities that are the bedrock of his business. “Every team has a culture. But how do you really get intentional about institutionalizing it?” That’s the question John posed to his management team several years ago during one of Stallar’s multi-day management advances. He’s resolute in his use of the word advance when describing these sessions over the ubiquitous retreat. “We don’t retreat so we’re not going to go on a retreat,” he says.  Stellar took advantage of a program offered through Affiliated Distributors to help them identify elements of culture already present at the company and outline practices they wanted to adopt.  The coursework eventually became the framework for The Stellar Way, a booklet of twenty-six fundamentals that help his employees live successfully within the company’s culture. John ran with the list and shared his insights with followers on LinkedIn in once-weekly posts entitled Fundamental of the Week until he’d addressed all twenty-six. Then he went further, minimizing any potential fade in enthusiasm by instituting a simple practice.  “In the middle of the week, we’d have a little quiz around it and then every single meeting, whether its with outside parties or not...when we have two or more Stellar people in the meeting, we start the meeting in the Stellar Way. We read the fundamental of the week and we talk about it. It’s really been powerful for us.”  John’s ability to foster the company’s culture inside and out has strengthened Stellar’s relationships and its bottom line. “What I’m finding is, the execution of these fundamentals and the conversations we’re having around them really are greasing the skids in many ways where things would get stuck before,” he says.  Beyond that, by institutionalizing the culture, he’s able to take big steps back from the day-to-day operations and focus on scaling the business, secure in the knowledge that his team is living and promoting The Stellar Way.  For John, that’s the mark of a good servant-leader -- someone who stays focused on the essentials and advances the organization so the team can succeed and thrive in their roles. “I’m not there to play big boss and bark out orders,” he says. Nor is he in business to promote his ego. “I decided I wanted to be part of a team, building something that’s a good thing.” With Stellar, he’s done just that. For an episode clocking in at just thirty minutes, John and I go deep into company mindset! It’s a fascinating topic with some surprisingly simple principles you can implement now. Listen in for some of The Stellar Way fundamentals and another book recommendation for your management ed bookshelf.   *** Distribution Talk is produced by The Distribution Team, a consulting services firm dedicated to helping wholesale distribution clients remove barriers to profitability, generate wealth and achieve personal goals.     Edited & mixed by The Creative Impostor Studios. Connect with Jason on LinkedIn. Connect with John on LinkedIn. Follow Stellar Industrial Supply on LinkedIn.  

Hear from Jack Templin, President and Chief Programs Officer at Affiliated Distributors on how AD drives culture through their 34 fundamental values. (Yes, 34!)

Is your company ready for a digital transformation? Learn how VP of Marketing Michael Evanko of Fromm Electric Supply is navigating the challenges of this transition and helping his electrical distributor through the transition.

Is your company ready for a digital transformation? Learn how VP of Marketing Michael Evanko of Fromm Electric Supply is navigating the challenges of this transition and helping his electrical distributor through the transition.

Learn how to orchestrate a progressive product launch, build customer loyalty with Mower's Brand As Friend philosophy, and survive the Amazon tsunami and more in electrical manufacturing and distribution, or any B2B organization. Shout outs to Legrand, Pass & Seymour, NAED, Bain & Company, and of course, Mower.

Join me with Steve Miller, marketing consultant and author of the 2017 Amazon #1 Best Seller Uncopyable: How To Create An Unfair Advantage Over Your Competition. And if you stay tuned until the end, Steve offers you and ethical bribe to buy his book, Uncopyable It's a bonus worth $197 — in addition to all the great stuff you'll learn from this podcast and in his best-selling book.

Join Werner Electric's April Braun and F.D. Lawrence's Scott Lepsky for a hands-on, nuts and bolts discussion of distributor marketing, past present and future. Find out what they're working on and what it's really like to work in this rapidly changing and challenging industry.

In the coming years, marketing will be more important than ever for electrical distributors as they face increasing competition from online competitors like Amazon. Distributors will need highly skilled teams guided by a strategic plan based on company goals. Learn how two experienced marketers, Director of Marketing April Braun of Werner Electric of Minnesota and Marketing Manager Scott Lepsky of the F.D. Lawrence Company of Ohio are building their teams and plans for 2018 and beyond.

Solar energy is experiencing a burst of growth in Illinois and throughout the Midwest thanks in part to current state and federal incentives which reduce up-front costs by as much as 90%. Tim Montague, commercial solar developer with Continental Electrical Construction Company of Oakbrook, Illinois discusses the benefits and incentives associated with solar energy.

Join me with my guest, Ted Simpson, Vice President of Marketing for the Electrical Division of AD or Affiliated Distributors as we discuss trends, technology and teams in marketing for electrical distributors and manufacturers.

We come to you from two separate locations (Dallas & Chicago) on this remote episode of MakingChips. Today we talk about establishing and exploring your manufacturing company’s niche. Jim and Jason share their idea of what niche means to them in their respective companies. In Manufacturing News we discuss Five Vital Steps to Set Up a Successful Manufacturing Business. We also recap the TMA’s 90th annual meeting, and introduce a new MakingChips partnership. Episode Outline: [00:07] - Episode Preview [01:45] - Dallas Airport [02:40] - Affiliated Distributors [03:40] - Manufacturing News [06:40] - Finding the Right Factory [07:30] - A Great Team [08:55] - Business Model [09:55] - TMA Board [12:20] - Riches in the Niches [14:00] - ZENGERS Industrial Supply’s Niche [16:45] - ZENGERS Original Business Model [18:48] - CARR Machine’s Niche [22:52] - Picking the Right Jobs [25:05] - Evaluate, Experiment, Evolve [26:15] - IMTS Workshop [27:25] - Sandvik Partnership [30:12] - Conclusion of Episode Mentioned in Episode: Article From 'Manufacturing News' Adhq Ryan's Computer We Want to Hear From You: Email jim@makingchips.com jason@makingchips.com ryan@makingchips.com Telephone (312) 725-0245