The Wholesale Change Show

In this episode of Wholesale Change, host Ian Heller has a frank conversation with Kevin Short, President and CEO of master wholesaler ORS Nasco. He shares his take on the importance of trust in the distribution channel as it relates to better serving the end-customer. He also shares an update on ORS Nasco’s focus from 2023 onward, as they look to refine their value proposition to better support d...

ConEquip Parts & Equipment is a rapidly growing B2B marketplace. They offer 500,000 parts, represent 3,000 suppliers and $52B in inventory – but you can’t order a thing online! How is this possible and why do they do it? We talked with Ryan Loos, Chief Financial Officer of ConEquip Parts & Equipment, about the construction equipment parts distributor’s go-to-market strategy – including a decision...

Watch on-demand as we’re joined by the CEO of COE Distributing, J.D. Ewing. J.D. grew the company to $100M+ in 13 years by building a company that creates terrific customer experiences. Most of this growth has been organic. J.D. described COE’s culture as “inclusive, open door, good at listening and gathering feedback from across the organization,” and “adept at implementing ideas and suggestions...

In only three years, CEO Eric Chernik has grown Building Controls & Solutions by 700% while retaining the entrepreneurial culture of each company BC&S has acquired. Eric knows that employee engagement drives customer engagement, so he enrolls his team in the company’s goals and strategy with transparency and a healthy culture. He embraces great internal communication and employee recognition. In t...

Tony Harris, founder of THINC B2B, brought his energy and passion for growth to the Wholesale Change Show. He held nothing back in his conversation with hosts Ian Heller and Jonathan Bein on how and why distributors need to realign business intelligence, sales and marketing, finance and IT to drive growth in 2023. He’s a highly regarded CEO coach, senior executive mentor and thought leader. He’s a...

Some inside sales programs produce marginal results, while others are veritable home runs. What is different in the execution of these home run programs? The superior performance happens in their day-to-day activities as inside sales reps contact customers and prospects, understand their needs, position your products against those needs, close sales and ultimately build strong long-term customer r...

When done properly, proactive inside sales should: Grow midsize accounts 15% to 20% Increase gross profit through revenue in higher margin accounts Reduce sales comp for midsize accounts 30% to 40% Increase retention In our experience creating proactive inside sales programs, we have seen the best – and worst - practices for achieving these results. In this episode we look at six keys in creating...

Ed Gerber, CEO of Summit Electric Supply, joins us on this episode of Wholesale Change. Before joining Summit Electric, Ed was the CEO of the Industrial Supply Association (ISA) after holding a number of senior executive roles for industrial distributors. We ask Ed what it was like to switch from the industrial industry to electrical. During our conversation, we explore topics like sales force opt...

Every distributor does an annual budget – but that’s not the same thing as formulating a strategy. The budget process is very tactical, focused on current operations and does not typically account for broad industry trends, disruptors or major technology changes. If you don’t want to get blindsided, you need a strategic plan. A strategic planning process will allow you to think about the positioni...

In this episode of Wholesale Change we are joined by Alex Tomey, the Senior Vice President of Merchandising for Global Industrial. Global Industrial is a billion-dollar value-added industrial distributor. Global Industrial offers customers more than a million products — from material handling to packaging and supplies — including its own proprietary brands. Alex was previously the Co-Chief Merchan...

Most distributors we talk to are disappointed in the ROI of their ecommerce investments. When we dig into their complaints, we find that while they know their expenses, the sales attributed to their websites are way off because they only look at shopping-cart revenue. But the shopping cart is usually the smallest part of the direct revenue generated by your website. Customers must use purchase ord...

Conventional thinking claims that only distributors larger than a billion dollars can build successful marketplaces. Bay Supply is much smaller than that, but its fastener marketplace is taking off. Like most wholesalers, Bay Supply is facing new marketplace entrants supported by tech startups, national distributors, manufacturers and even software providers that are fighting to reach the buyer di...

In nearly 20 years with Specialty Building Products, Jeff has served as CFO, President and COO, and now CEO. Throughout his long career, which has included many acquisitions, a company name change (SBP was formerly known as U.S. LUMBER) and most recently, new ownership, Jeff has focused on building great teams. Jeff knows this means recruiting great new talent to go along with the experienced vete...

Eric Hoplin, CEO of the National Association of Wholesaler-Distributors (NAW), joined us on this episode of Wholesale Change. He shared his take on key concerns and trends – including labor, supply chain disruption, digital transformation and more – based on his ongoing conversations with dozens of senior distribution company leaders. He also provided an update on NAW, including the work they are...

Alex Moazed shared his unmatched experience working with major distributors, technology startups, venture capital firms and manufacturers as they formulate their marketplace strategies. He updated us on the latest trends in B2B marketplaces and share some key lessons distributors need to know as they choose how to compete in the fast-changing competitive landscape.

Monte Salsman, President of the Winsupply Acquisitions Group shared principles he has used to foster a successful entrepreneurial culture at WinSupply including: Take ownership. Adopt an expertise habit. Become a professional at developing relationships … especially with people who are difficult for you. Get paid what you are worth (not more and not less). Communication … beginning with mastering...

Inflation and supply chain disruption are wreaking havoc on distributors’ ability to drive profitability. But the time has passed for stopgap fixes. Companies need a plan to mitigate the impact. Leaders’ most urgent task is to secure their companies’ long-term profitability by managing the effect of inflation and supply chain disruption on their customers. In this episode, our hosts spoke with pro...

Tune in now to hear Erik Gershwind, President and CEO of MSC Industrial Supply Co., talk about how the company has reimagined its value proposition, driven digital transformation and learned to build its culture and retain talent in a virtual world. In 2021, MSC rolled out a three-year plan called “Mission Critical” to accelerate market-share gains and earn a higher return on invested capital. The...

The very nature of leadership has changed because of COVID, supply chain uncertainty and other disruptive forces. And distributors know this. In his research, Dirk Beveridge, Founder of We Supply America and UnleashWD, found that most distributors recognize that the ground underneath them has shifted – and that leadership must shift their perspective, as well. In this episode of Wholesale Change,...

Profitability expert Dr. Al Bates joined us on the Wholesale Change show to talk about why distributors are stuck in a profitability “rut” and how they can escape. Al identified the three action steps distributors can take to improve profitability and explained why sales compensation practices, supplier “special deals” and ongoing price increases are contributing to the problem. Unlike some consul...

Randy Eddy, President and CEO of US Electrical Services (USESI), holds his leaders accountable for financial results, of course, but has equally high standards when it comes to building a great culture. Lots of leaders say that, but at this electrical distributor, it’s not just about a mission statement or company values – the company uses a series of analytical tools to select the right candidate...

Dakota Supply Group grew more than 20% in 2021 – not counting inflation. Of this, the biggest driver was organic, same-store sales growth. During the pandemic, the company implemented, “DSG Let’s Grow!” where sales teams proactively helped customers solve problems on the phone when they couldn’t be in shops or jobsites. Dakota Supply Group differs from many other distributors because they focus on...

Most distributors know that losing customers costs them money. Despite this, few have specific plans for reducing defection – and even fewer have someone in charge of this important task. But losing customers costs more than you think for one very important reason: Customers that defect can only drop to zero sales dollars. Customers you retain tend to grow over time. That means when you improve re...

In a Distribution Strategy Group survey, 88% of distributors’ customers reported buying from at least one B2B marketplace, and 33% bought from five or more. It’s clear many distributors’ customers are making simple purchases regularly from marketplaces, and this trend is likely to accelerate over time. Our research shows that Zoro is the most common marketplace these companies sell on, with Amazon...

Brent Grover is one of the leading experts on mergers and acquisitions in the wholesale distribution industry. One of only four NAW Fellows, Brent has offered insight and expert counsel on hundreds of deals involving distributors. In this episode we had an entertaining and informative discussion with Brent about trends and best practices in M&A in the distribution industry.