Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/72524
Industry Insights What if There Were No Dealers? Editor's Note: At the 2012 meeting in Tucson,Convention Chair Mason Greene delivered a key message on the value of dealer-based distribution and the power of channel partnerships. Below is an excerpt from his speech, which received great feedback from the membership. L FEDA 2012 Convention Chair, Mason Greene Hotel & Restaurant Supply mgreene@hnrsupply.com ast year, one of the questions I thought about a good bit was, "Is our company (Hotel and Restaurant Supply) needed in this industry?"Or for the sake of this context, does the traditional dealer-based distribution model add value and/or reduce costs in the channel? Or asked another way, is dealer- based distribution the most effective and effi- cientway to get products fromtheman- ufacturer to the end user? It led me to consider again the myriad of essential services that we perform in our supply channel to get the right quantity of the right product into the end user's hands: • We provide everything for a cus- tomer to work with one company for their equipment and supply needs. •We take title to merchandise. •We inventory the right quantities of thousands of products to distribute to the end user when they need it. •We keep our showrooms stocked for customers to touch and feel products and for immediate purchase. •We have salesmeetings and trainings and work hard to keep a staff of profes- sional salespeople that are able to rep- resent a number of quality products,and it takes investment to keep that sales force and products in front of the cus- tomer. • We do research, provide samples and produce quotations on all types of 6 FEDA News & Views equipment and supply items to help end users with the atmosphere they desire and the functionality they need. • We offer layout, design and engi- neering support. • We distribute product by various third-party shippingmethods,and deliv- er it on our trucks and vans and in our personal vehicles. •We provide extensive project man- It's important we understand our value when we are interacting with our customers and selling to them. agement and job site coordination func- tions (purchasing, drawing approvals, job site visits to check MEP rough-ins, debris removal, equip- ment start ups and han- dle limitless small details to ensure a successful project). • We invest in tech- nologies to make it as easy as possible for the customer to do business with us and receive products. •We handle financial transactions and creditmanagement formany customers. • We provide extensive service after the sale and respond quickly to end users'needs to keep themsatisfied with the quality products they have pur- chased. Thinking of this list, and the question that prompted it, makes me frustrated when I think of all the times we have performed services and given so much of our time,knowledge,and experience, only to lose business or take it at unsus- tainable margins (which we all well knowhappens for a number of reasons.) As I consider all of these things, it pushesme (and I imagine it pushes all of us as dealers) to want to make sure our company is providing excellent service so that the end user can't find a reason to buy somewhere else. It's important we understand our valuewhenwe are inter- actingwith our customers and selling to them.We knowthat it is ultimately up to continued on page 32