Support theJeff VegaFund

As reported in our Industry News section, theindependent dealer community suffered aheavy blow last month, with the death ofBPGI executive director Jeff Vega following atragic motorcycle accident.

Over the past nine years at BPGI, Jeff made amajor contribution to the strength and pros-perity of literally thousands of independentsworldwide. His dedication and professionalismearned the respect of all who he met and hisenthusiasm and love of life made him just afine guy to be around.

Now his family needs our help.

Even though BPGI has a solid insurance pro-gram for its employees, the Vegas face theprospect of extremely high medical expensesin the months ahead, not to mention ongoingout of pocket expenses. Jeff’s mother neededto be flown in from Columbia and his hospitalis over three hours from their home so familymembers are forced to stay in hotels. They arenot people of means.

In addition, one of Jeff’s children has just en-tered college and his second child will be at-tending university herself in just two years.

As the remarkable record of support for theCity of Hope over the past 25-plus yearsdemonstrates, our industry has never failed toanswer the call of those in need. Now, one ofour own is calling and it’s time once again toanswer that call.

Please visit www.bpgi-llc.com/jeffvega.htmland give generously.

Milton Morris,Washington, DC Area

Dealer, ReceivesHonorary Degree

In Washington, DC, Milton Mor-ris, president and CEO of Stan-dard Office Supply is the proudrecipient of a very special addi-tion to what is already an impressive list ofhonors, after not only receiving an Hon-orary Doctor of Laws degree from NorthernCaribbean University (NCU) in Jamaica,but also delivering the commencement ad-dress at the university’s graduation cere-monies.

Morris and his wife Merrillie, who serves assenior vice president and general managerat Standard, are both NCU graduates andactive supporters of the university. Its Mor-ris Entrepreneurship Centre, named intheir honor, is their gift to the university.

In his commencement address, Morris,who also holds a PhD from the Universityof Maryland, reminisced about his years asa working student on the campus and thenurged the 1,100 graduates to seek oppor-tunities to improve the well-being of thosein need, to be “visionaries who see thingsto be done, who aspire to achieving greatgoals, and who are imbued with the driveto get them done.”

He encouraged them to embrace a spiritof entrepreneurship as “the fastest way tore-energize flagging economies andachieve a competitive posture in a rapidlychanging world.”

He said entrepreneurs are characterizedby self-reliance, innovativeness, and dar-ing. When those attitudes are brought to-gether,” Morris contended, “you findleaders who are willing to take risks, who

are unwilling to accept the status quo, andwho reject fear of failure.”

Morris, who is especially passionate about“social entrepreneurship,” told the stu-dents, “If you are willing to roll yoursleeves up, go to work to get your visionsrealized, you can change your country, youcan change the world.”

South Dakota Dealer Brown & Saenger Celebrates120th Anniversary

The year was 1889. Grover Cleveland wasin the White House and presiding over acountry that stood on the verge of becom-ing the world’s most powerful economy.An explosion of new discoveries and in-ventions—the telephone, the typewriter,the light bulb among others—were trans-forming the country, ushering in whatcame to be known as a Second IndustrialRevolution.

And in what was known back then asDakota Territory and still waiting to be ad-

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THE

WINNERS’Circle

Standard Office Supply’s Milton Morris urged students atNorthern Caribbean University to embrace a spirit of entre-preneurship when he delivered the commencement ad-dress at the university’s graduation ceremonies.

mitted to the Union as a U.S. state, two budding entrepreneurs,Thomas Henderson Brown and Eugene Saenger, teamed up tosell printing and office supplies.

Fast forward 120 years and the dealership that bears their namesis still going strong, despite all the challenges of a down economy.

“We’re right on plan,” reports president Lyle Dabbert, the dealer-ship’s fifth owner, who joined the company 35 years ago straightout of high school. Lyle’s first job back then was in the warehouse,where he served as a clerk and made deliveries on his bike be-cause in those days, he was still too young for a driver’s license!

After rising through the ranks and working in virtually every aspectof the business, Lyele became president and CEO in 1989. Today,he heads up a thriving dealership with operations in Bismarck,Fargo and Minot, ND, in addition to its Sioux Falls headquarters.

And even though the current market is challenging to say theleast, Lyle and his team still have plenty to celebrate. “We havean outstanding group of people here who have taken an aggres-sive one-stop strategy to the market and made it work,” he sayshappily.

Currently, Brown & Saenger operates four separate profit cen-ters—business products, office furniture, printing and ad special-ties—and all four were on display earlier this month at thedealership’s annual Product Show.

This year’s anniversary celebrations gave the show a special di-mension, and the excitement was heightened still further by aspecial Office Makeover contest that awarded one lucky winnerwith a new workspace worth over $5,000!, with the help of leadsponsor The HON Company and Nukote International, Avery,Sanford, Dixon, Tops, Pentel and Smead.

In addition, the dealership has also garnered plenty of local pub-licity on the anniversary that highlights its deep roots in the stateand tradition of giving back to the community.

Our congratulations to Lyle and his team … and here’s to the next120 years!

Greenville Office Supply, SC Dealer, Earns Small Business of the Month Award from Local ChamberThese are busy times for Charles Scales and his team atGreenville, South Carolina-based Greenville Office Supplies (GOS).

Last month, we reported on Charles’ efforts to build a potentiallyvery attractive new business with his Easy Spot lighting invention.Now comes word of special honors for his dealership, as his localChamber of Commerce made it their Small Business of the Monthfor August.

The Chamber selects a local small business each month to re-ceive the award, in recognition of their outstanding business op-erations and demonstrated concern for the Greenville community.

Last year, GOS won the local Business and Arts PartnershipAward for business in the “Less Than 100 Employees” categoryand the dealership is an enthusiastic supporter of Greenville’sPeace Performing Arts Center and its Greenville Little Theatre.

As a winner of the Small Business of the Month Award, GOS nowbecomes eligible for the Small Business of the Year Award, whichwill be selected at the end of the year, so there could well be evenmore good news coming later this year. Stay tuned!

Garrigan’s Office Plus, Springfield, OH Dealer, on the Move

In Springfield, Ohio, about 45 miles west of Columbus, Joe andJulie Garrigan, third-generation owners of the dealership thatbears their family name, are just about finished unpacking the lastof the boxes after marking its 70th anniversary by moving to anew location.

Since opening for business back in 1939, the dealership hasmaintained a location in downtown Springfield and its new home,a former Chrysler auto dealership, continues that tradition.

“This is a great time to be downtown,” says president Joe Garri-gan. “A new hospital has just opened practically next door to usand another 40-acre healthcare complex will be going in over thenext few years,” he reports.

The move takes Joe, Julie and their team out of the retail busi-ness—their previous location had a 4,000 sq. ft. store—and givesthem a lot more space for the warehouse and an employee train-ing and conference room.

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http://www.sprichards.com/

The Garrigans are also using the move to make a strong state-ment about their commitment to the environment. “As a formercar dealership, there’s plenty of glass and natural light and justabout everyone has a window office,” Joe points out.

In addition, they took part of the parking lot and converted it intoa green space to provide what they hope will become a mini-oasisfor downtown visitors.

Along the way, Joe and Julie used the move to generate somevery positive PR. Said one happy customer in a local newspaperstory on the move, “I’ve dealt with other office supply companiesand ... Garrigan’s customer service is unmatched.”

Consumer Show Generates Excitement andNew Business for Old Colony Stationery, MADealerThere was plenty of energy and excitement in Whitinsville, Mas-sachusetts last month, as Dale and Randy Bloem and their teamat Old Colony Stationery held their annual consumer show.

The event, which took as its theme “Energize 2009,” drew over350 attendees to Old Colony’s showroom and warehouse, with40 manufacturers on display and highlighting both new and sus-tainable products.

“We’ve been hosting a consumer show for the past eight yearsnow and this one was our best yet,” reports Dale. “Our staff didan excellent job entertaining customers and prospects and feed-back both from attendees and exhibitors has been excellent. Ourmanufacturers did a terrific job with show specials and new prod-ucts and the whole event was a great morale booster for our en-tire team. And we even picked up some new accounts!” You can’tsay better than that and the brothers Bloem are already planningto make next year’s show even bigger and better!

VIP Office Furniture & Supply, Hinesville, GADealer, Awarded GSA Packaged OfficeContractIn Hinesville, Georgia, about 40 miles southwest of Savannah,Barbara Pilkinton and her team at VIP Office Furniture & Supplyare looking forward to a nice boost to their government business,after being awarded a Packaged Office Contract from the GeneralServices Administration.

The contract, explains Barbara, makes it possible for governmentcustomers to place all their furniture orders with VIP on just onepurchase order, instead of having to cut multiple POs for differentmanufacturers.

With several major military bases nearby, the government is animportant customer for VIP, accounting for about 30% of totalbusiness at the dealership.

“We worked on getting the award for more than a year,” says Bar-bara, who pays generous tribute to vice president BarbaraMeador and marketing administrative assistant Felicia Boatwrightfor their hard work on the effort.

After putting in the hours to secure the award, the focus now ison getting word out to current customers and prospects and oneway Barbara and her team are doing that is through a series ofMilitary Appreciation Lunches that draw up to 50 key governmentcontracting officers and other influencers to the VIP showroomeach week.

Rosa’s Office Plus Hits the Acquisition Trail in IndianaIn Richmond, Indiana, John Hauptstueck and his team at Rosa’sOffice Plus are getting ready to spread their wings and then some,following their acquisition of three other independents in EastCentral Indiana: Muncie Office Supply in Muncie; Office King inRushville and Indiana Office Supply in Greensburg.

Technically, John is president of Office Ventures Incorporated, theparent company of Rosa’s Office Plus, a long-time Indiana deal-ership which is celebrating its 62nd anniversary this year.

“Our entire team is very excited to see the growth,” he says. “Wehave hired two new staff members here in Richmond and hirednine staff members from the acquired companies bringing ouremployee total to 27. The increase in our marketplace and vol-umes will result in greater efficiencies in our operations and sig-nificantly increase our buying power.”

The acquisitions expand Rosa’s market coverage from its originalnine counties two years ago to 23 counties today in East CentralIndiana and West Central Ohio.

Rosa’s also unveiled their new logo which highlights the corefocus of the organization: “Office Plus”. “Everything for your office, plus, competitive prices, flexibility, service, employees that

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http://www.bmiuse.com

care about your town and your needs”, said John.

Complete Office, Seattle Dealer, Aquires Olympic Office SupplySince its founding in 2003, Seattle-based Complete Office hasbeen on an aggressive growth curve that has garnered recogni-tion this year and last by INC magazine as one of the Top 500fastest growing private businesses in the country.

That growth continued last month with Complete’s acquisition ofOlympic Office Supply in nearby Bellevue, Washington.

Complete said the deal makes it the largest independent businessproducts distributor in the Northwest, with annual sales of ap-proximately $50 million. The dealership also has locations in LosAngeles, San Diego and Milwaukee.

“We welcome Olympic Office Supply to the Complete Office family”, said CEO Rick Israel, who described the acquisition as“another step towards Complete Office’s goal of becoming thelargest and fastest growing office products distributor in the Western U.S.”

Missouri Dealer Racks Up the Miles for MS FundraiserIn Bridgeton, Missouri, just outside of St. Louis, Greg Schoen ofSCR, Inc. is a little saddle sore but very satisfied after taking partin the annual Missouri MS Bike Tour last month.

Greg rode over 200 miles in just two days and raised some $5,000to help support the fight against multiple sclerosis (MS), with thepromise of more to come before the contribution deadline at theend of this month.

“I like cycling and that’s primarily why I got involved but I was re-ally overwhelmed by the support from the MS Society and peoplewith the disease the first time I took part and I’ve been a regularparticipant ever since,” says Greg.

And with over 3,300 riders hitting the trail this year, he’s certainlynot alone. If you’d like to add a little something to help Greg reachhis goal, you can go online to:

http://main.nationalmssociety.org/site/TR/Bike/MOSBi-keEvents?px=5893017&pg=personal&fr_id=9605

Or just send a check, payable to NMSS, to Greg Schoen, SCR,Inc., 3353 Hollenberg Drive, Bridgeton, MO 63044.

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In June of 1968, Frank N. Fera started abusiness in the basement of his Pittsburghhome selling forms, mostly to automobiledealers. As he and his wife Yvonne workedto make a go of their new business, theyhad no idea that it would grow to becomea $20 million enterprise, with branches inColumbus and Cleveland, Ohio, and thattheir five children and spouses would allbe working in the business.

What started out as a forms business soonbecame an office supply business, as cus-tomers asked Fera for a wider variety ofitems, and Bulldog Office Products cameinto being.

That was in1979 and the business hasgrown steadily over the years since then,thanks in no small part to the Feras’ fivechildren and their spouses, all of whomwork in the business today.

Son Frank L. Fera explains, “Our parentsnever pressured us to join the company.Although they let us work in the businessas kids to earn some money, they onlywanted us to get a college education andbe successful in whatever field we chose.However, finally, one by one, we joined thecompany.”

Frank L. is director of sales. His sisterMarisa Stevenson, an attorney, handlesaccounts receivables and collections,

brother Mark runs the IT department andhis wife Christine heads up customer serv-ice and accounts payable. Brother Mikeand his wife Jodi handle the purchasingdepartment. Sister Michele Liberatore ispresident and their mother Yvonne stillworks part time.

Father Frank N. Fera no longer works inthe business, but not because he’s retired.He started a new business four years ago,at the age of 72. It’s called AAA BusinessSolutions, and while it began as a customprinting operation for legal firms, it hassince morphed into a specialized furnituremarketing firm.

And now, daughter Michele’s husband,A.J. Liberatore, has also joined her father’scompany.

I believe that all adds up to ten familymembers now working together!

What’s the secret of their success? SonFrank L. responds: “It’s our parents—they’re the most loving and giving peopleyou’ll ever meet. They not only know howto run a successful business, but havepassed those skills on to their children.More importantly, they have shown us howto work together.

“In addition,” he continues, “there are twogroups that have helped us be success-ful—AOPD and DPCG (Direct Purchasing

Catalog Group). Also, many dealersaround the country have been helpful to usover the years, and particularly JimmyGodwin and his Forms & Supply dealer-ship in Charlotte, North Carolina.”

The Fera family and the Fera businessesare well-known for their generous supportof many charitable organizations in thePittsburgh area and most particularly withAuberle, a home for troubled children, andthe YWCA.

When Frank N. Fera selected the name forhis company, he was most likely thinkingof the bulldog’s character—loyalty,courage and spunkiness—attributes thatcertainly have helped the business hefounded be so successful. But probablynot even he and Yvonne realized thosebulldogs would turn out to be quite sofamily-oriented!

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Secrets of Success

Ten Family Members Make One Highly Successful Businessby Jim Rapp

n Bulldog Office ProductsPittsburgh, Pennsylvania

n Christine Fera, CEOMichele Fera Liberatore, President

n Supplies, Furniture, Printing, Promotional, Food & Beverage

n Founded: 1968n Sales: $20 millionn Employees: 75n Partners: AOPD, DPCG, S.P. Richardsn Online Sales: 65%n Web: www.bulldogop.com

The office products industry may be facingsome of the most challenging businessconditions in years, but they haven’t hadtoo much impact on the industry’s remark-able tradition of support for deservingcauses, if last month’s 2009 Spirit of LifeGala for the City of Hope in Chicago of-fered any indication.

This year’s honoree was Dr. Jack G.Truong, vice president of 3M, and industrymembers supported the campaign in hishonor with exceptional generosity, raisingover $7.2 million to help fund treatment

and research on cancer and other life-threatening diseases.

Since its founding in 1983, the NationalOffice Products Industry Council, organiz-ers of the annual campaigns, have raisedover $75 million and helped make its an-nual Spirit of Life Gala the largest industrydinner for City of Hope.

Attendees at this year’s event learned first-hand about the importance of the City ofHope’s work, as honoree Jack Truongspoke movingly of his wife’s own success-ful struggle with cancer and former Spirit

of Life Award recipient James Fellowes re-counted his own personal experience withthe disease earlier this year.

Adding an extra dimension to the eventthis year, the National Office Products In-dustry Council recognized outgoing chair-man Ron Shaw of Pilot Pen Corp. ofAmerica, who is stepping down as chair-man after 24 years of continuous serviceto the organization.

Succeeding Shaw as NOPI chairman is S.P.Richards chairman and CEO Wayne

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If you have news to share - email it toSimon@IDealerCentral.com

2009 City of Hope Campaign Raises$7.2 Million for Cancer Research

Left to right: 2009 Spirit of Life Honoree Jack Truong, City of Hope’s Kathleen Kane, Dinner Chair David Williamson of MWV and outgoing National Office ProductsCouncil Chair Ron Shaw of Pilot Pen celebrate another outstanding year of support for City of Hope.

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Beacham, also a former Spirit of Life honoree.

Next year's honoree will be DavidWilliamson, executive vice and generalmanager of MeadWestvaco’s Office Prod-ucts Group. For more information, visitwww.cityofhope.org.

BPGI Executive Director Jeff Vega DiesFollowing Motorcycle Accident

Following the death of its executive directorJeff Vega, Business Products Group Interna-tional (BPGI) has set up a special fund to assisthis widow Ginger and their two children. Vegadied October 6, following a motorcycle acci-dent.

Over the past nine years, Jeff Vega hasplayed a key role at BPGI in helping inde-pendent dealers worldwide secure a morecompetitive position in the marketplace.

He began his industry career in the furni-ture department at Allied Office Productsin Hasbrouck Heights, New Jersey and by1994, he was the operations manager forthe furniture department.

In late 1995, Jeff and his family moved tothe Washington, D.C. area to join AndrewsOffice Products, one of the founding com-panies in U.S. Office Products and twoyears later, he became associate buyer forUSOP and was appointed senior buyerthere in 1998.

In mid-2000, BPGI’s leadership reachedout to Jeff and asked him to join their teamas director of program development. Hehad an immediate and positive effect onthe organization, coordinating events, fo-cusing negotiations and maintaining theglobal organization’s massive data base.

In March of 2001, Jeff was promoted toexecutive director, and in that position, hehas worked closely with the CEO to buildthe organization from 10 to 21 members,with responsibility for global negotiations.

With the BPGI merger with Euroburo, Jefffocused his significant skills on improvingthe programs and viability of the inde-pendent dealers in North America andAustralia. He also led the BPGI global ini-tiative to establish a direct import program.

“Jeff’s long experience and keen insightinto the office products industry, coupledwith his strong relationship-building skillsand negotiating expertise, have built asolid industry career and literally thou-sands of independent dealers from aroundthe world have benefited from his contri-butions,” commented BPGI CEO Jim Pre-ston, who will administer the fund withJeff’s brother, Lou Vega.

The fund will be used to help pay for med-ical bills for Jeff’s widow Ginger, who ear-lier this year suffered a stroke herself,cover the family’s out of pocket costs dur-ing this difficult time and help with for ed-ucation costs for the Vegas’ children. Theirson, Christian, has just entered the Univer-sity of Miami and daughter Nicole is a jun-ior in high school.

For more information or to contribute,please visit www.bpgi-llc.com/jeffvega.html.

Risk of Fall Hazard Leads to ChairRecall at OfficeMaxLast month, the U.S. Consumer ProductSafety Commission (CPSC), in cooperationwith OfficeMax, announced a voluntary re-call of about 216,000 OfficeMax taskchairs and said consumers should stopusing the recalled products immediatelyunless otherwise instructed.

The CPSC said the chairs represented a fallhazard to users because the back and thebase post of the chair can break while in use.

OfficeMax has received about 35 reportsof the chair backs or posts breaking, in-cluding 15 reports of injuries involving lac-erations, muscle strains, contusions andconcussions, according to the CPSC.

The chairs now being recalled were sold atOfficeMax stores nationwide, on the firm’sweb site, www.officemax.com, in Office-Max catalogs, and through direct commer-cial sales to businesses from September2003 through July 2008 for between $40and $65.

CPSC said it is still interested in receivingincident or injury reports that are either di-rectly related to this product recall or in-volve a different hazard with the sameproduct. Reports of problems can be filedthrough the CPSC web site by visitinghttps://www.cpsc.gov/cgibin/incident.aspx.

TriMega Takes Indianapolis TV Stationto Task for Office Supplies ReportTriMega EVP Grady Taylor and severalTriMega dealers had sharp words lastmonth for the Indianapolis affiliate of NBC-TV, following a report that claimed local In-diana government buyers are savingthousands of dollars on office suppliesthrough the state’s OneIndiana procure-ment program.

According to the report, government buy-ers can benefit from up to 84% savings ontheir office supplies through the program,which has a relationship with Staples sim-ilar to the one enjoyed by Office Depotunder the U.S. Communities program.

In a letter to reporter Jennie Runevitch,Taylor said he was “personally and profes-sionally deeply disturbed” by the story andcharged it was “based on anecdotal andinaccurate assumptions, and put positivespin on a program with limited benefitsand many concerns.”

Taylor said no office products resellercould charge prices that were overall 84%above market and stay in business andcontended that “good competition keepsall of the players within a few percentagepoints of each other.”

He also said the program has no regard forsupporting Indiana state-owned and oper-ated businesses and showed how use of

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private label substitutions and Staples’ own list prices as the starting point for the applied discounts give Staples “near total controlover pricing and product substitutions to manage margins.”

Echoing Taylor, TriMega dealer Diane Griffin of California member Radston Office Supply blasted the report for suggesting that Indianacommunities use the Office Depot contract offered through U.S. Communities.

Griffin, who was instrumental in helping the City of Berkeley recover some $289,000 in overcharges from Office Depot earlier this year,pointed to current investigations of Office Depot by four federal agencies (DOD, DOE, DOJ, and the GSA) as well as by Attorney Gen-erals in no less than six states.

“It is simply irresponsible that your report seemingly endorses this program while such AG investigations are ongoing,” said Griffin.

“Our industry sells many, many thousands of items and no one vendor (independent or big box) has the lowest price on every item,every day,” Griffin contended. “Dollars spent with multi-billion dollar, out-of-state, big box office supply companies flow out of Indiana(to MA, FL and IL) right after they are spent,” she added.

OfficeBiz 2009 Draws West CoastDealers for Industry Education, NewProduct Intros

“One of those ‘Home Run’ ideas that comesabout every once in a blue moon and a hugesuccess!”

That’s how Esselte regional manager MikeAustin described “OfficeBiz2009,” an eventwhich last month drew over 120 attendeesfrom 28 dealerships and their business part-ners to Pleasanton, California, for two daysof industry education, new product presen-tations and networking.

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Now in its fourth year, OfficeBiz was origi-nally the brainchild of Sanford’s MikeToibin and Rich Scogin, (then with Esseltebut now also with Sanford) and Gary Trow-bridge of Palace Art & Office Supply inSanta Cruz.

Their goal: to put together a locally-basedevent for dealers and their business part-ners that would provide an opportunity tonetwork and learn new ways to grow theirbusiness. If attendee feedback offers anyindication, they succeeded brilliantly!

This year’s meeting was the largest everand included dealer attendees drawn fromall aspects of the business — manage-ment, purchasing, customer service, mar-keting and IT.

Commented Warden’s Geraldine Archibeque,“Office Biz 2009 provided independentdealers with the tools not only to be on theforefront of new product, but also with in-novative ways to grow the business andmore importantly, enhance gross profit."

Added Dana McAdams of School Spe-cialty, “With the economy in such difficulty,

all of us are having to do more with less.This year’s OfficeBiz gave us new toolsand techniques to be more effective part-ners for our customers and help themmaximize the value of their office suppliesdollar. It was a very successful event.”

Remarkably, total attendance exceededlast year’s OfficeBiz, despite the currentdownturn. “Not only were the usual dealerattendees present, but there were so manynew people who didn't attend the previousevents—some dealers were representedby nearly their entire sales staff!” Austin re-ported.

“When we organized the first OfficeBizevent in 2006, there were just four partici-pating manufacturers and 20 dealers in at-tendance,” Toibin recalled. “The energyand enthusiasm among attendees thisyear testify to the demand among dealersfor education and networking opportuni-ties at the local level. From that first meet-ing back in 2006, OfficeBiz has become anannual event for West Coast dealers and itcan only get better as we go forward!”

TriMega Q2 Rebates Reach $7.4Million; Annual Convention Attendanceon Track for New RecordThe TriMega dealer group announced lastmonth that its rebate distribution to mem-bers for the second quarter of 2009 totaled$7.4 million, an increase of $1.6 millionover the $5.8 million paid out for the sameperiod last year.

The Q2 rebate distribution covered April 1–June 30 purchasing activity, including Q2rebates from the TriMega’s TriSupply pro-gram with United Stationers and S.P.Richards.

TriMega said its most recent payout bringsthe total rebates paid-to-date in 2009 toover $30 million, while total rebates paidout in all of 2008 totaled a record $34.1million.

With one more rebate distribution sched-uled this December, TriMega anticipatesanother record rebate year for the groupand its members.

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"It is absolutely outstanding to have theopportunity to make this contribution toour independent dealer members during ayear like this,” remarked TriMega presidentCharlie Cleary.

“With a growing membership over 585dealers strong, and new additions everyweek, now more than ever, we are able toimpact that many more dealers busi-nesses in a very real and meaningful way,”said Cleary. “This recent distribution rep-resents an infusion of capital into the inde-pendent dealer community that is criticalto their ongoing competitiveness and ulti-mate success.”

TriMega’s next cash rebate distribution isset for December 15, for Q3 2009 pur-chases.

Separately, TriMega announced its up-coming “Focus 2009” National Convention& Tradeshow is also expected to set a newrecord.

The event is scheduled for October 28-30at the Westin Diplomat Resort & Spa inHollywood, Florida. TriMega last monthsaid dealer registrations are tracking 13%ahead of last year’s then record-settingpace and the association is projecting an-other record-setting turnout out this year.

“We are thrilled to see such a strong re-sponse from members for our Focus 2009event,” commented TriMega VP of market-ing Michael Morris. “This tremendous reg-istration activity is very encouraging,especially in light of the general economicchallenges 2009 has presented. It certainlyspeaks to the incredible can-do attitude,resiliency and drive of our independentdealer members.”

is.group Announces National AccountsProgram With BizUnite and NationalCoop Business Assn.The is.group dealer cooperative has an-nounced an agreement with BizUnite, asmall business buying group that bringssavings to its members on a variety ofproducts and services.

In addition, is.group said it will also be-come a Preferred Vendor Partner and sup-plier to the National Cooperative BusinessAssociation (NCBA), an organization mem-ber of BizUnite.

is.group said its members, through this na-tional account, will sell directly to 400NCBA members nationwide.

Also, as a part of the new partnership withBizUnite, all is.group members will haveaccess to over 20 pre-negotiated servicesfrom other BizUnite Preferred Vendorswhich include payment processing, ship-ping services, internet and telephone serv-ices, insurance, training, HR, businessconsulting, marketing and more.

“This relationship is the next in our contin-uing effort to bring value in the form of ad-ditional programs and sales opportunitiesto our membership,” said is.group VPCharles Forman. “The Independent Sta-tioners national account for NCBA throughBizUnite brings top line revenue opportu-nities to our membership through our no-fee national account program that alreadyconnects hundreds of thousands of inde-pendent businesses with is.group dealers.

“We are also extremely excited that theBizUnite Marketplace offers innovativeaffinity programs to create significant sav-ings opportunities for our members.”

S.P. Richards Launches SpanishLanguage Version of iteminfo.com Web SiteWholesaler S.P. Richards has launched aSpanish language version of its iteminfo.comproduct information web site. The newversion can be accessed from the “es-pañol” link on the home page or by goingdirectly to http://espanol.iteminfo.com/.

“It’s estimated that 12.3% of the total U.S.Internet population is Hispanic and thepercentage growth of this demographic’suse of the Internet is outpacing all othersegments of the population”, said PaulGatens, S.P. Richards’ director of market-ing information.

“We believe there are a large number ofcurrent users who will prefer to use theSpanish version, in addition to a largegroup of people for whom this enhance-ment opens up a new opportunity to utilizethe site. We’re making the information thatpopulates iteminfo español available tosystem providers and dealers with propri-etary systems, enabling bilingual capabili-ties on their web sites as well.”

Supplies Network Appoints MonteWhite Director of Product Marketing

IT consumable sup-plies veteran MonteWhite has joinedwholesaler SuppliesNetwork as director ofproduct marketing, re-sponsible for market-ing plans, product

management, vendor programs and cre-ative services. The position reports to Sup-plies Network president Greg Welchans.

“We are delighted to add Monte to oursenior management team as Supplies Net-work continues to grow as a leadingwholesaler of IT consumables”, saysWelchans. “Monte’s intimate knowledgeof our industry will add great dimensionand experience to our organization. “

White comes to Supplies Network withover 20 years’ experience in the wholesaleIT consumables industry with senior levelroles at Ingram Micro and Tech Data. Mostrecently, White was responsible for saleswith Beta Business Products, a distributorof office equipment and supplies in NewYork City.

White succeeds Steve Tomasi, who hasassumed business development responsi-bilities with the company.

United Stationers Rolls Out NewPrograms to Address H1N1 Threat

With the ongoing threat of an H1N1 viruspandemic, wholesaler United Stationerssays it has worked with its manufacturers toidentify more than 200 items that are in highdemand during the cold and flu season.

United said that while it cannot guaranteeit will have available inventory since manysuppliers are anticipating demand will sur-pass their production capability, it hastaken proactive steps to increase its inven-tory on items such as soaps, hand clean-ers, surface disinfectants and tissues.

“United Stationers is working to minimizesome of the uncertainty and concern

OCTOBER 2009 INDEPENDENT DEALER Page 17

Industry News: continued from page 16

continued on page 18

going into this year’s flu season, which hasbeen exacerbated by the threat of anH1N1 virus pandemic,” said Laura Gale,vice president of marketing. “As a distrib-utor of some of the key products designedto help prevent the spread of germs thatcause respiratory illnesses like influenza,United Stationers is working to ensurecustomers have the products they need.”

United said it is also implementing proce-dures to help employees prevent thespread of H1N1 within its own facilities.For example, the company is working toeducate its employees about the Centerfor Disease Control recommendations onpreventative actions to help avoid spread-ing the virus that causes influenza.

For more information about the productsavailable, visit United Stationers’ OfficeJanResource Center at www.OfficeJan.comor email United Stationers’ JanSan cate-gory team at jansan@ussco.com.

Tadd Gruenewald Joins ECi SoftwareSolutions as VP of North AmericanTransactional Business

Dealer technology provider ECi SoftwareSolutions has announced that Tadd Grue-newald has joined the company as VP ofNorth American Transactional Business.He will direct all transactional sales effortsfor ECi’s office equipment, furniture, lum-ber/building materials/hardlines (LBMH)and office products business systems. Inaddition, Gruenewald will also head upnew systems sales for the RockSolid busi-ness unit.

Gruenewald, brother of ECi senior vicepresident Trevor Gruenewald, brings over20 years of sales and sales managementexperience to his position at ECi.

He spent eight years at Avaya, a Fortune500 company and leader in the communi-cations industry. He also has 14 years’ ex-perience in the LBMH industry where hespent a number of years in sales and gen-

eral management roles for a manufac-turer/distributor.

For 10 years, Gruenewald headed his owncompany, which represented numerousLBMH manufacturers, including compa-nies like Sherwin-Williams. 

“Tadd’s experience and leadership will notonly help us raise our level of sales resultsbut also provide additional input and asounding board as we continue drivinggrowth for our Advantage and RockSolidproducts in the LBMH industry,” says MikeGibson, senior vice president, worldwidesales and marketing for ECi. “We are ex-cited to have him on our team.”

BMI Named to President’s Club for Microsoft DynamicsDealer technology provider Business Man-agement International (BMI) has beennamed to the 2009 Presidents Club for Mi-crosoft Dynamics. The President’s Clubrepresents the top 5% of worldwide part-

OCTOBR 2009 INDEPENDENT DEALER Page 18

Industry News: continued from page 17

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ners who reach key business milestonesfor Microsoft Dynamics, while maintaining“a constant dedication to achieving highlevels of customer satisfaction and an ac-tive pursuit of product and technologicaladvancement.”

“BMI has achieved quite an accomplish-ment to earn its way into this prestigiousgroup, and demonstrated the ability to drivesuccess even in challenging economictimes,” commented Doug Kennedy, vicepresident – Dynamics partners for Microsoft.

Added BMI president Larry Schiff, “We arevery pleased to be the only Microsoft Dy-namics Reseller with a comprehensivesoftware solution for the office products in-dustry to be invited into the President’sClub this year. No doubt the economy ischallenging everyone but opportunity re-mains for companies dedicated to growingtheir business and improving efficiencythrough the use of Microsoft technologies.”

GOPD Names Donna Snyder President,Boosts OP24-7 Web Store Capabilitieswith United Smart SearchDealer technology provider GOPD has an-nounced that Donna Snyder has beennamed president.

An office products veteran with more than20 years’ industry experience, Snyderbegan her career with an independentdealer in Atlanta in 1988. Since then, shehas held increasingly senior sales andmanagement positions with industry firms,before co-founding GOPD with Jack Dun-can and Rick Marlette in 2004.

“It’s been our mission at GOPD over thepast five years to provide independentdealers with technology tools that are justas good—if not better—than any of theirbig box competitors,” Snyder commented.“We’ve got a great team of people whoknow the industry and who are just as com-mitted to service excellence as our dealerclients. I’m looking forward to working withthem and continuing to help strengthen the

independent’s position in the market withinnovative technology tools.”

Separately, GOPD announced an upgradein capabilities for its OP24-7 web store forresellers by integrating with United SmartSearch technology from United Stationers.

“We are pleased to offer United SmartSearch as an enhanced capability to ourUnited Stationers dealers”, said Snyder.“United Smart Search has become a pre-ferred solution for independent dealers todeliver their customers a broad productmix, richly-detailed content, and helpfulsolutions for comparing products, match-ing supplies with equipment, and findingcompanion products on Web storefronts.”

“GOPD is an important partner for UnitedStationers in offering innovative eCom-merce solutions to independent resellers,”said Laura Gale, vice president of market-ing for United Stationers. “We believe thatUnited Smart Search will help generateadditional sales and customer satisfactionfor OP24-7 dealers.”

OCTOBR 2009 INDEPENDENT DEALER Page 19

Industry News: continued from page 18

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Thalerus Adds Customer Rewards Program to Vendere SystemDealer technology provider Thalerus Group has announced thedebut of Rewards Points, a new marketing tool intended to helpdealers influence online purchasing behavior and reward cus-tomer loyalty.

Lillian Yeh, president of Thalerus Group, said, “Rewards Pointsprovides Thalerus dealers the opportunity to strengthen their on-line marketing presence against major e-commerce competitors.”

Thalerus dealers can use Rewards Points to drive customers to-ward specific products and brands or reward Vendere webstoreusers based on the amount of dollars spent online.

“Thalerus wants to do our part to ensure that our dealers can havecontinued opportunities to be market savvy when it comes to theire-commerce strategy,” said Yeh. “We are entirely focused on con-tinuing to provide a number of solutions that support and enhanceour dealers’ marketing strategies.”

Smead Receives ‘Outstanding Web Site’ Award

Filing and organizational products manufacturer Smead has re-ceived an “Outstanding Website WebAward in the ManufacturingCategory from the Web Marketing Association for its smead.comweb site. The site received the high marks for its overall designand interactivity.

“Receiving an Outstanding Website Award is a great honor.Smead makes it a priority to understand how people work, andwe are continually creating new ways to get things done—faster,easier and smarter,” says Jim Riesterer, Smead vice president ofmarketing.

"We think our web site should reflect that priority as well. Webased our entire web site design philosophy on it, and it's whywe developed Smead Organomics, a section of our web site thathelps individuals find personalized organizing solutions suited totheir unique styles and types of work. It's an online organizing toolfor real people."

Nominated web sites were evaluated by expert judges on sevencriteria using a ten point scale, including Design, Innovation, Con-tent, Technology, Interactivity, Copywriting and Ease of Use.

While smead.com received especially high scores for Interactivity(a perfect 10!) and Copywriting (9.5) and Design (9.0), it alsoscored above both the Industry Average and WebAward Averagescore in every category.

Nukote Files Suit Against Office Depot, Charges ‘Misrepresentations and Breaches of Contract’ Forced BankruptcyImaging products manufacturer Nukote International has filed a$217-million lawsuit against Office Depot, alleging that a seriesof “egregious fraudulent misrepresentations and breaches of con-tract” by the Florida big box caused Nukote “devastating dam-age” and forced it to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

In its complaint, Nukote charges Office Depot was motivated byits own financial problems to engage in “a cynical effort to defrauda long-time, loyal vendor through a pattern of deception that ex-tended to the highest levels of [the company].”

According to Nukote, from late 2008 through May 2009, OfficeDepot “concocted a scheme to fraudulently obtain from [Nukote]its most profitable product, private brand imaging supplies, withthe smallest possible cash outlay.”

The complaint continues: “Through a series of fraudulent misrep-resentations and omissions, OD maintained a front of ‘businessas usual’ with the Debtor, thus inducing the debtor to continueshipping product for which OD had no plans to pay, while at thesame time OD was preparing to breach its contracts with thedebtor. Also during this time, OD was secretly negotiating withthe debtor’s largest competitor to replace the debtor as its pri-mary vendor for the same or similar products.”

Nukote said Office Depot’s decision to move its business to an-other vendor “abruptly and without notice,” resulted in Nukote’santicipated cash flow and borrowing capacity dropping dramati-cally, and said it was unable to survive without Chapter 11 pro-tection as a result.

“OD’s actions were intentional, malicious and taken without re-gard for the devastating damage they caused the Debtor,”Nukote’s complaint charged.

Nukote, which filed for Chapter 11 in June, said it and OfficeDepot previously had engaged in a “mutually productive businessrelationship” for 20 years, and noted its performance earned mul-tiple honors in recent years, including being named Office Depot’s“Supplies Vendor of the Year.”

New VP of Sales and Marketing at GUSSCOFiling and organization products maker Gussco Manufacturinghas appointed David G. Swanz as its new vice president of salesand marketing. Swanz will be responsible for the growth and sustainability of the core segment of Gussco's business while de-veloping new product platforms such as Vision by Gussco.

Swanz joins Gussco from Blueline-Rediform where he was direc-tor of national accounts. Previously, he held senior sales, market-

OCTOBER 2009 INDEPENDENT DEALER Page 20

Industry News: continued from page 19

continued on page 21

ing and business development positionswith Cardinal Brands, Avery Dennison andBoise Cascade (OfficeMax).

Former United Stationers ExecutivesRoll Out SmartXpress as New Way toEnter Office Products Business

Two former senior executives with UnitedStationers have launched SmartXpress, analmost totally virtual company that’s de-signed to make it easy for B2B resellersand other organizations outside the officeproducts space already serving small andmedium-size businesses to add officeproducts to their mix.

Former United Sr. VP Mark Hampton andformer United Stationers Supply presidentSteve Schwarz are co-founders of thecompany, which is already processing or-ders and shipping product, according toHampton.

SmartXpress, Hampton explained, is de-signed to operate under what he termedan “overhead-light” business model, with

functions such as marketing, fulfillmentand delivery being outsourced to a net-work of third-party service providers andbusiness partners that includes UnitedStationers for supply chain services andMBS Dev for e-commerce and back-officetechnology.

While office products represents the initialcategory targeted by the start-up, Hamp-ton indicated SmartXpress is already look-ing at adding a number of additionalproduct categories that can be supportedby wholesale distribution, as well as serv-ices that would appeal to medium andsmall-sized businesses such as credit cardprocessing, leasing products and market-ing solutions to name just a few.

Clover Introduces Eco-Friendly TonerCartridgesClover Technologies Group has launcheda new line of remanufactured laser tonercartridges containing bio-based toner. Thenew line will be marketed under Clover’s

Responsible brand and uses the com-pany’s patent-pending BioBlack toner.

Clover says toner-based printer cartridgesmade with BioBlack have the highest ‘bio’content of any printer cartridge currentlyon the market, according to independentthird-party testing and their use helps re-duce the consumption of petroleum-based fuels and promotes environmentalsustainability.

Clover claims it is the largest collector andremanufacturer of empty cartridges in theaftermarket industry, with over 5 millionempties collected every month.

OCTOBR 2009 INDEPENDENT DEALER Page 21

Industry News: continued from page 20

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“We are very excited to be one of the firstcompanies to market with a bio-basedtoner cartridge. This is the logical nextstep in demonstrating Clover’s steadfastcommitment to preserving natural re-sources and protecting the environment,”said Clover Holdings CEO Jim Cerkleski.

Clover’s Responsible BioBlack cartridgesare remanufactured in the company’sNorth American ISO 9001:2000-certifiedfacilities and are backed with a 100% sat-isfaction guarantee warranty.

C-Line Introduces Reusable Dry Erase PocketsC-Line Products has introduced a new lineof Reusable Dry Erase Pockets targeted atthe back to school market.

C-Line said the new pockets help studentsimprove skills by solving

math prob-lems, writingthe alphabet,practicing cur-

sive lettersand more. In

addition, C-Line said they

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sheets over and overagain.

The pockets are made from super heavy-weight vinyl for extra durability and have aconvenient eyelet for hanging. They are

available in Red, (Retail $2.25 each), As-sorted 10 per pack (Retail $21.58/pk) orAssorted 25 per Box (Retail $49.65/bx).Assorted colors include Neon Red, Or-ange, Green, Pink and Yellow.

Bretford Introduces AntimicrobialFinishes on Training Tables and CartsBretford Manufacturing has introducedwhat it claims are the industry’s first multi-surface antimicrobial finishes forclassroom furnishings.

The company has given more than 50 dif-ferent tables and carts for learning andtraining environments its new MicrobeBarrier Technologies™ antimicrobial sur-face protection. The treatment, says Bret-ford, reduces the growth of bacteria, mold,mildew and fungi by 99.99% for the life ofthe product.

Bretford says research at the University ofArizona has found that classrooms aresome of the most germ-filled publicplaces. Teachers’ workspaces are morebacteria-laden than workspaces of otherprofessions because of the constant con-tact with children.

This research also showed that every 60seconds, a working adult touches as manyas 30 objects, and that surfaces play a rolein the transmission of viruses and bacteriathat cause illness.

If these surfaces are not effectivelycleaned, and then are touched by individ-uals, the transfer of disease-causing mi-crobes can begin, resulting incross-contamination, Bretford points out.

NOPA Retracts U.S. Communities‘Kickbacks’ Statement The National Office Products Alliance(NOPA) has retracted a statement it issuedin a July 21 press release in which it refer-enced an allegation it made to the CaliforniaAttorney General of “kickbacks” NOPAclaimed were made to U.S. Communitiesrelative to the contract the organizationholds with Office Depot for office supplies.In its July press release, NOPA called uponthe Office of the Attorney General of Califor-nia “to include in its investigation of OfficeDepot a thorough examination of the roleplayed by the Walnut Creek, CA-based U.S.Communities organization which has al-legedly received as much as $20 million in‘kickback’ payments from Office Depot forsponsoring the national contract now underinvestigation in six states.”In a statement issued by NOPA last month,the association said it acknowledges it has“no knowledge of ‘kickbacks’ being paid toU.S. Communities nor does NOPA haveknowledge of any investigation of U.S. Com-munities as an organization.”

OCTOBER 2009 INDEPENDENT DEALER Page 22

Industry News: continued from page 21

In Memoriam: Art WilliamsonArt Williamson, a former NOPA staff member from 1978 to 1988, a successful industry managementconsultant and generous and respected industry friend, died August 29. He was 73.

An industry veteran whose career included 14 years with the Shaw-Walker Co. and seniormanagement roles with several dealerships in addition to his service with NOPA and OFDA, Artwas widely known, admired and appreciated in our industry for his humor, personal warmth andforthright approach toward everything.

He was always generous with his thoughtful counsel and assistance to anyone who sought themand was an active participant in industry meetings for several decades. He will be greatly missedby everyone in our industry and beyond who knew him.

He is survived by his wife of many years, Joan, son David, daughters Patty and Debbie and threegrandchildren.

New Jersey has become a new battle-ground for independents seeking to pre-serve or recapture state and localgovernment and public school and institu-tional business. The current situation in thestate also raises the profile of the NationalJoint Power Alliance (NJPA), a cooperativebuying organization offering national con-tracts in a variety of commodity areas—in-cluding office supplies, toner and paper.

Last month, NOPA highlighted New Jer-sey’s decision to shift its purchasing of of-fice supplies from independent dealers toStaples by piggy backing on the NJPAcontract. The state contract is widely usedby local governments, school districts andother public entities and as of September1 has now been awarded without compet-itive bidding to Staples Advantage.

In the process, the state—with less thantwo weeks’ warning and without a newcompetitive bid process—shifted its busi-ness away from the 15 or more New Jer-sey certified small, women andminority-owned businesses that havebeen servicing the contract for five years.

Through aggressive legal action and leg-islative advocacy last month before deal-ers’ contracts expired, NOPA and itsmembers were able to obtain a 90-day ex-tension of sales opportunities with localgovernments, school districts and otherlocal public entities.

However, all state agency business mustnow be handled using the new Staples/NJPA contract, contrary to recent defensivestatements made by state officials.

On September 25, attorneys representingNOPA and its members in New Jersey fileda notice of appeal with the Appellate Divi-sion of the New Jersey Superior Court.

The notice outlines NOPA’s intention to filean appeal brief that will seek an acceler-ated court review of its petition for a stayof implementation of the state’s new officesupplies contract with Staples.

That process, however, will take severalmonths to proceed, although NOPA isseeking an accelerated court review.

Meanwhile, at a Trenton Statehouse newsconference on September 29, New Jerseymembers of NOPA released an extensiveside-by-side cost comparison of their con-tract pricing versus pricing in the new Sta-ples contract.

Dealer prices lowerThe analysis—based on the discounts of-fered by one of the New Jersey dealers—shows on an item-by-item basis that thestate, local governments and school dis-tricts will pay an average of 20% higher on3,018 branded products under the newcontract.

The dealers’ analysis covers specific prod-ucts that New Jersey Treasury Dept. offi-cials included in their internal comparisonof prices that reportedly was used as thebasis for this decision.

The NOPA analysis further shows that allof the New Jersey dealers selling to thestate under the prior contracts are at leastas competitive as Staples on those 3,000+matched items, with most significantlymore competitive.

For this reason, NOPA maintains that itsmembers have provided and would con-tinue to provide better value for taxpayers,while employing more New Jerseyans andpaying more taxes to the state throughpayroll and sales taxes.

In addition, because the state has allowed

Staples to substitute its own private-labelitems for manufacturer branded productsunder the new contract—an opportunitythat none of the dealers had when they bidon the prior contracts—dealers attendingthe press conference emphasized that it isnot possible to make an accurate compar-ison of such items.

Thus, there is no valid price comparisonpossible under current market conditionsfor any of those items, which would requireallowing dealers to compare their privatelabel products against the Staples equiv-alent—where they exist.

Overall, the dealers’ study clearly high-lights the serious errors and uncertaintiesassociated with the state’s decision toshift from a multiple source contract withongoing competition among a dozen ormore New Jersey-based independentdealers, to a sole-source contract with asingle, out of state vendor where no suchcompetition exists.

Virtually every state has legal authority tomake use of regional or national piggyback contracts, so long as there has beensome degree of competitive bidding asso-ciated with their negotiation.

In the case of New Jersey, the state hassigned on through July 2010, since that iswhen the current NJPA national contractwith Staples expires, unless otherwise re-newed.

Independent dealers who have or seekstate or local government, public school orother public institution business are en-couraged to contact NOPA to share theirmarket situation, so that independentsmay become more fully informed on de-velopments in government contractingaround the country.

OCTOBER 2009 INDEPENDENT DEALER Page 24

NOPAnewsNOPA and NJ Dealer Members File Notice of Appeal of State Purchasing Decision

Help Shachihata’s Paul Ventimiglia and Marty Clemente raise funds tobuy musical instruments and art materials to make life easier for thechildren and adults who come to the City of Hope for cancer treatmenteach year.

True healing is not only about the harsh reality of chemotherapy,radiation, bone marrow transplants and similar treatments. It alsoinvolves the healing of the spirit and the miracle of art and musictherapy.

Now through August 31, Paul and Marty are seeking yourfinancial support with a minimum goal of $30,000 to purchasemuch-needed musical instruments and art supplies.

Please see the link below for the Sheri and Les Biller Patientand Family Resource Center where the music therapy andart therapy rooms will be housed.

Any dollar amount is welcomed. All checks should be madeout to:

City of Hope c/o Art and Music Therapy

Send to: Chris WiederkehrShachihata Inc.1661 240th StreetHarbor City, CA 90710

“There is no profit in curing the body if in the process we destroy the soul.”

www.cityofhope.org/patient_care/Biller-Center/Pages/default.aspx

You can become part of the healing process by supporting this year’s Music & Art Therapy Fundraising Effort.

Thank you for yourgenerous donations tothis worthwhile cause.Every dollar earnedwill help heal thespirits and minds ofCity of Hope patientsat a time when theyneed it most.

City of Hope

Change always offersopportunity. That’s true

whether the economy isgood or bad. For the independentdealer, the current downturn pro-vides a golden opportunity to takebusiness away from the big boxes.

Why? Because, like you, just aboutevery business is looking for new waysto reduce their operating expenses. It’sa one-time opportunity to get your foot

in the door and if you can make a soldcase for overall savings, you’ll gain anew customer.

So says Ed Stephens, Stephens Of-fice Supply, Houston. “We cancompete on price while giving farbetter service than the boxes, but

the perception that they have thelowest prices is not easy toovercome,” he says.

“Prospective customers todayare more willing to listen to ourstory, because they’re lookingmore closely at all their costs.

We’ve found that if we do a goodjob of presenting our total story andtalk about value, not just price, weget the business.”

According to Stephens, some reps can give uptoo easily. “A prospect’s situation changes allthe time—they may have a new buyer, the bigbox service may have declined, any number ofreasons may have them receptive to change butyou have to be persistent and maintain con-tact.”

These thoughts are echoed by Jennifer Smith,Innovative Office Solutions (IOS), Burnsville,Minnesota. “You have to sit down with the prin-cipals and make your case, but not every repcan do it. When that happens, you go with therep but you lead the discussion.”

“What do we say to prospects? We don’t talkabout the price of a pen. We discuss soft costs,we talk about getting everything with just oneorder, one delivery, one invoice. We use the‘time is money’ approach. We explain that wemonitor every order to prevent mistakes beforethey happen; we are proactive.”

Battling the Big Boxes—

Bad Economy Offers New Opportunities

How Some Dealers Are UsingOld Ideas and New Tools toTake Customers Away Fromthe Big Guys

By Jim Rapp

continued on page 27

MONTH 2009 INDEPENDENT DEALER Page 26

Smith says that talking about the problemsthat the big boys are having does littlegood, unless you know they’re affecting aparticular prospect.

Playing On Your Strengths“Our approach is similar,” states JohnGivens, Source Management, Inc., Denver.“We talk about strong local service andsupport, playing on our strengths. We’revery careful not to knock our competitors,regardless of who they are. Instead we talkabout all the things we offer, including on-site inventory control, desktop delivery,our much broader product selection, evendown to specific breakroom supplies. Wedon’t mention it, but we’ve learned thatthis is a weak area for the big boxes.”

Givens continues, “We call it ‘BusinessPartnering.’ We sit down with theprospects and listen to what they see asan ideal vendor relationship—what theywould like and need. This is not a cookie-cutter presentation. Then, if at all possible,we agree to do what they ask. In this kindof a situation, it’s hard for them to turn usaway.”

“What we learned from all of this,” he con-cludes, “is that we can be a lot more flex-ible and accommodating than we everthought we could be.”

“Staples is our biggest competitor,” saysNorman White, Newtown Office Supply,Newtown, Pennsylvania, “so when you’recalling on a Staples customer, you need toknow which particular pricing systemthey’re using. We don’t compete with them

at Staples.com, but at Stapleslink, whichused to be called Staples Advantage.”

“Half the battle is to get in to see the keydecision-maker, and then getting that per-son to believe that we can compete onprice. To accomplish this we need to knowexactly what the prospective customer ispaying, regardless of who they’re buyingfrom.”

White says they’ve been pretty successfulin getting copies of invoices, which is theonly way to know for sure what they’repaying.

Independents can compete with the bigboxes, White says, but he stresses the im-portance of knowing what each prospectis paying before you can talk intelligentlyabout price. Then, he contends, your su-perior service, combined with your abilityto buy right, can get you a profitable newcustomer.

OCTOBER 2009 INDEPENDENT DEALER Page 27

Cover Story: continued from page 26

continued on page 28

Fighting the Lowest Price PerceptionWhen I asked Ray Seefeld at SuperiorBusiness Products in Schenectady, NewYork how they approach their big boxcompetitors, he said that no matter howwell known you are in your marketing areaand no matter how long you’ve been inbusiness, you must constantly fight theperception problem. “It’s something youface every day,” Seefeld said. “Price-wise,we can compete with anyone, but the‘they’re always cheaper’ belief persists.

“Our most effective approach is a one-on-one discussion with prospects. We try tocome up with creative solutions that arespecific to that customer.

“An interesting sidelight is that we find noteveryone is enamored of doing businessonline, including those who use it for mostof their purchases. That’s where we shine,because if there’s a problem, we fix it rightaway. The boxes don’t always respond.Also, we still have many customers whowant to order the old-fashioned way—theywant to talk to someone once in a while.”

Superior plays the “buy local” card withtop management. “We make the case thatwe’re all in this together, we’re trying tostimulate the local economy, and then wetalk about what this means in jobs andmoney,” Seefeld explains.

“Our drivers wear shirts that say, ‘Make itCount, Keep it Local.’”

Always Something New“We always have something new to talk toour customers about,” says Tom Smith,The Phillips Group, Middletown, Pennsyl-vania. “It might be new items or a new cat-

egory of products, something to savetime, or make the buyer’s job easier suchas faster delivery, fewer back orders, re-duced damage, etc.”

Smith points out that prospects currentlybuying from the big boxes don’t all do sofor the same reasons, so to go in with thesame pitch is not a good idea. “Anyprospect who gives us the opportunity todo a full analysis of their purchases in ex-change for a proposal, which includes aprice quote, almost always ends in a sale,”he explains.

“We regularly add new product lines,which are not always available from theboxes. We’re trying to be more of a singlesource dealer, and that helps with all ourcustomers. Some of our additions include

OCTOBER 2009 INDEPENDENT DEALER Page 28

Cover Story: continued from page 27

continued on page 29

promotional products, breakroom sup-plies, posters and artwork, coffee and cof-fee service, water filtration systems, softdrinks and an expanded jan/san line.”

Phillips uses a little levity to help make thesale. They recently did a “Staples Re-mover” promotion, giving away a plasticstaple remover with those imprintedwords, along with the Phillips logo. “Thisgets a laugh from everyone, even Staplescustomers,” Smith says.

They have also had great success givingaway bottles of hot sauce, which they call“Phillips Secret Sauce.” When they makea call, they place a bottle of the sauce infront of the prospect or customer, andwhen asked, “What’s in it?” they point tofive ingredients: 1) local ownership; 2) ded-icated personal attention; 3) flexible serv-ice requests; 4) helpful delivery staff; 5)responsiveness.

Then they say, “These are five things thatStaples (or any of the other big boxes) doesnot offer. “Everyone loves it, remembers itand continues to mention it long after thepresentation,” Smith reports happily.

Their newest promotion is “Healthy OfficeMonth,” giving bottles of their own brand ofhand sanitizer to every customer and everycontact. “Put one on every desk in your of-fice,” they say, and “How many desks doyou have, so I’ll know how much to send?”

Buy Local Gaining Ground“I don’t know about the rest of the country,but here in California, with high unemploy-ment, businesses struggling, and the stateneeding every tax dollar they can get, eventhe legislators are starting to realize thatthere’s a multiplier effect of 40-50% fordoing business locally.”

So says Bob Mairena, president of OfficeSolutions, Inc. in Yorba Linda, California.“It’s a strong selling point, and along with

all the big box problems and our muchhigher level of customer service, it hashelped us take some of the business awayfrom the giants.”

But it’s not easy. “It’s difficult just to getrecognized because the boxes are sostrong in our market,” he says. “It’s anever-ending job. It doesn’t matter thatwe’ve been in business a long time, be-cause just about everything else keepschanging: new buyers, new online com-petitors and the growing strength ofCostco, Sam’s Club, Wal-Mart, and similarbusinesses.”

“The ‘buy local’ idea gets a lot of play inDetroit because every business is suffer-ing,” states Mike Eberle, The Office Con-nection. “Unemployment in the city is at38%, so everyone is adversely affected,including the big boxes.”

Eberle described a variety of things they’vedone to not only battle the boxes, but tomake sure his dealership will be ahead ofthe pack when the economy improves.

“What’s important right now is not to leavethe door open for the boxes to take ourown customers. We sit down with cus-tomers every six months, some quarterly.We discuss their buying behavior, what’simportant to them, talk about the improve-ments we’ve made and discuss new prod-uct lines, including cleaning andbreakroom supplies, green products,printing and promotional products.”

Eberle also said that they’ve made a num-ber of changes this past year that areshowing positive results. “We’ve re-branded ourselves, improved our image,upgraded our logo, redesigned our web-site, installed the latest online orderingsoftware and taken greater advantage ofTriMega and United’s programs.”

They’re also trying something new thatshows promise. They call on a prospect

and say that they’re a printing company, ora promotional product company, not men-tioning office products. This sometimesgives them entry that they would not oth-erwise get.

Persistence Pays OffBattling the big boxes is a never-endingjob, and right now, the ability to stave offtheir efforts to lure away your own cus-tomers may be more important than tryingto take sales from them.

Every business, every school, every gov-ernment agency is looking for ways to cutcosts in these tough economic times. Thisis both a problem and an opportunity. It’sa problem because the big boxes can talkprice and expect to get a more receptivehearing than ever before. And even if theuser never hears a word from Staples, Of-fice Depot or OfficeMax, the perceptionthat they have the lowest prices works totheir advantage.

Opportunities exist, as some dealers pointout in this article, because prospects arenow more willing to listen to our story, andsome are not happy with the boxes for anumber of reasons, including consolida-tions, poor service or general lack of atten-tion. There are also new opportunities forlocal and state government business insome areas because of the Office Depotsituation.

What seems to work best in getting the bigbox business is sitting down with the keydecision-makers and showing them thatyou can compete on price and give themfar better service. It helps if you can lookat their invoices and make direct pricecomparisons.

Buying locally has greater appeal thanever before and is a major selling point.

It may sound trite, but in these difficulttimes, you have to keep going back andtelling your story over and over again tothe big box customers. Now more thanever, it seems, persistence pays off.

OCTOBER 2009 INDEPENDENT DEALER Page 29

Cover Story: continued from page 28

Although some economic forecasts con-tend that the worst days of this current eco-nomic downturn are behind us, mostresellers have yet to see their businessesturnaround significantly. Historically, whenhard times hit most businesses just circlethe wagons; reduce expenses, watch thebudget and hope they can survive until theeconomy improves.

When there is bad economic news outthere, more determined businesses look foropportunities in the malaise. Increasingmarketing expenditures in a downturn is aproven success strategy. Another is grow-ing your business by expanding efforts insupport of new product lines.

While some resellers would contend thattheir plates are already full, and they don’thave the resources to sell additional prod-uct lines, they might be selling themselvesshort. Can existing sales resources—out-side sales reps, telemarketing or customercare reps—be assigned different or addi-tional duties? Might it actually help chal-lenge them, especially in a climate wherethere is considerable “wheel spinning?”

Chances are you’re already selling non-tra-ditional products out of a primary officeproducts catalog. By default, this puts youinto virtually every product category butonly in a passive sort of way. To becomemore active requires a little more effort onyour part but such efforts are not insur-mountable.

One place to start might be an effort to ex-pand furniture sales. Furniture can be amore specialized type of sell, and you maynot already have someone on staff with therequisite knowledge.

Regardless, your wholesaler’s marketing pro-gram offers tools to help you grow furnituresales.

The easiest opportunity with the employeesyou already have is to go after sales of jan-itorial and break room products. The salesprocess for these items isn’t overly com-

plex and virtually all of your existing cus-tomers have a need for these products.They all have bathrooms and break rooms,so why not service those areas as part of asingle-sourcing approach?

They’re already buying these products andprobably don’t know that you can offerthem the full depth and breadth of janitorialand break room products.

An All Out EffortAn all out sales and marketing effort to alertyour customers to these product offeringsstarts simply by letting your customersknow that you have these products for sale.

Start by requiring your sales staff to con-duct business reviews with your best cus-tomers—the 20% of your customers thatprovide 80% of your business.

Sit down with your customer and thankthem for the business they’ve given youover the past six months. Point out the ex-ceptional efforts you made on their behalf—including how you’ve saved them moneyby consolidating orders and letting thempurchase online. Also point out how you al-ways provide next-day delivery.

No matter what products are involved, keepin mind that people buy from people. Sittingdown with your customers on their prem-ises gives your salespeople the opportunityto remind them of the services you provideand all the benefits they accrue by doingbusiness with an independent reseller.

Remind them that they get return authori-zations and credits on the same day andpoint out how this never happens with yourbig box competitors.

Ask where and how they currently obtaintheir jan/san supplies and breakroom prod-ucts. If they’re running out at lunch or pick-ing them up over the weekend, let themknow you can save them time and moneyby adding these products to their next pur-chase order.

As the local branch of a major national dis-tribution company let them know that youalso can provide janitorial and sanitationsupplies such as toilet tissue, hand soapand green floor cleaner along with coffeeservice, cups, and cream along with all theirother break room needs.

Remind them that you can add these prod-ucts to their existing orders and deliverthem in the same box, on the same invoiceand with the same next-day service thatyou already provide.

Resellers doing business with United Sta-tioners also have the opportunity to provideindustrial supplies—MRO equipment:maintenance, repair and operations—totheir customer base, which are availablethrough our ORS Nasco subsidiary.

This isn’t an opportunity for all resellers. Itwill depend on the demographics of yourcustomer base and whether you have anyaccounts that already have a need for theseproducts.

One way to break down your accounts anddetermine if there’s an opportunity here isby determining whether your customershave “carpet employees” or “concrete em-ployees”.

Carpet employees typically use the normalassortment of business supplies, whereasconcrete employees—think of warehousesand manufacturing plants—have a need forMRO supplies.

Car dealers represent a perfect example ofbusiness with employees on both carpetand concrete and offer a great opportunityfor any reseller wanting to get into the in-dustrial supplies market.

Selling additional product lines will not onlyincrease volume and profitability but alsoestablish your dealership as a more impor-tant resource for customers. You have moreto lose by not attempting to sell additionalproducts than you do by making the effort.

OCTOBER 2009 INDEPENDENT DEALER Page 30

Expanded Product Offering Equals Expanded Sales Opportunities

When it’s difficult to sell ‘more of the same,’ try selling something differentBy Kenneth Smith, Director Field Marketing, United Stationers Supply Company

We’ve all heard the buying power claims by now,but is buying power the end-all-be-all holy grailof office products? That’s what the chains telltheir customers: “The reason our prices are ‘solow’ is because of our enormous buying power.”

The chains have done such a good job of con-vincing customers that buying power is integralto their so-called low prices that many independ-ent dealers have also become convinced. “If wecould only buy as good as Staples, we wouldhave it made.” That seems to be the consensusamong many independents.

There is no doubt that the chains do get betterrebates—on some items and lines—as much as10%-15% more than the typical independentdealer.

Does that automatically translate to lower pricesto customers? Does that mean if you buy at thesame price as Staples you will magically get thebusiness Staples has?

The head man at Staples scoffed at the TriMega-SPR buying power deal, which is being toutedas a huge buying power advantage for inde-pendent dealers.

Some close to the TriMega-SPR deal claim it willeven put independents on the same level as Sta-ples. So what’s the real story over at Staples?Why does their leader chuckle at the prospect ofa level buying power field while telling customersthat buying power is the reason for Staples’ low

prices?

The reason Staples’ Ron Sargent is chuckling isbecause buying power is not the reason for Sta-ples’ success. Buying power is not the reasonfor Staples’ continued growth. Buying power haslittle or nothing to do with Staples’ pricing to itscustomers.

Selling power is the reason Staples is successful.Selling power is the reason Staples continues togrow. Selling power is the major influence onStaples’ pricing to its customers.

Before the “buying is everything” crowd calls formy head, let me make it clear that I am not say-ing that buying power doesn’t matter. I am say-ing that selling power is exponentially moreimportant than buying power for growth and suc-cess.

Staples didn’t do $20 billion out of the chute.Staples was small once too, so it’s not buyingpower that made Staples and keeps it growing.

Buying has a big problem. Buying has a floor.There is always a cost. Nothing is free and themanufacturers can only go so low. Squeezing anextra 1% from a few manufacturers puts far lessmoney in your pocket than raising all your sellingprices by 1%. And it’s a lot easier!

Selling doesn’t have a ceiling either. You can sellthe product for whatever you can get away with.Forget list price, it is meaningless. The joke that

OCTOBER 2009 INDEPENDENT DEALER Page 31

Buying Power: Magic or Myth?

By Rick Marlette

continued on page 32

list price has become is a topic of its own,one I’ll address in a future column.

One well known chain inflated the list priceon their re-man toners and then dis-counted them to a price just above the listprice of the OEM cartridges. Did you catchthat? Re-man toners are being sold by theboatload above the list price of the OEMcartridges. That’s selling power.

One recent story revealed that a customerwas proudly receiving a 50% discountfrom a chain—a blended discount. Ninetyfive percent (95%) discount on a $.19 itemand 5% discount on a $100 item is all ittakes to equal a 50% blended discount.That’s selling power!

Buy in bulk and save money! The chainsconsistently price larger pack sizes (dozenpens) at triple and quadruple the price oftheir each counterpart. The chains under-stand the buyer mentality and they takeadvantage of it. That’s selling power!

More often, you will see big discounts on

the items the customer does not buy, withvery low (5% or smaller) discounts on theitems the customer does buy. When thechains quote a low price on a popularitem, you can bet they will be making it upin spades somewhere else. That’s sellingpower!

Once a chain acquires an account, GP ad-justments start with the first order. Movethe customer to re-man. Move the cus-tomer to house brand. Start raising theprices. Yes, always raising the prices.That’s selling power!

As independents, we need to learn how tosell if we are going to compete with thechains. You can get the best cost on earth,but if you don’t know how to sell in thischain-driven world, you’re just spinningyour wheels.

You are not going to learn how to sellagainst the chains from other independentdealers. We have to accept the fact thatpractically all independents have fallen

short when it comes to the selling powerof the chains. Mimicking how other inde-pendent dealers price their products is arecipe for the status quo.

If we are going to win the selling powerbattle, we must learn from the chains andstart playing some of the games thechains play. No matter what you mightthink of their tactics, this is the reality ofcompeting with the chains. You can con-tinue to sit on the sidelines pointing fingersand crying sour grapes (with a warehousefull of cheap products), or you can get inthe game and start feeling what they feel—selling power!

Rick Marlette is co-owner and director ofprogramming for GOPD, LLC. Prior toGOPD, he worked independently in vari-ous facets of the office products industrywhere he developed specialized programsand databases for OP Dealers; Prop Solu-tions, POE Systems and OPSoftware. Forover a decade, he has analyzed the chainpricing games and created the GOPN

database, which claims to be the most comprehensive itemcross reference database in the world. Because of his uniqueknowledge, experience and skills he was enlisted by a groupof Georgia dealers to analyze the State of Georgia contract.

OCTOBR 2009 INDEPENDENT DEALER Page 32

Buying Power: continued from page 31

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Of all the objections an office supply salesperson—or anysalesperson, for that matter—is likely to hear, one of the

most dreaded is the “You’re too small” block, aprotest that comes in many guises. “A

company the size of yours can’tserve a company the size of oursas we’d prefer,” they’ll say. Or,“You don’t provide the kind ofchoice we’re used to seeing.” Orworse yet, “We’d like to deal withyou, but you’re just too expen-sive.”

Ouch. Chalk up another one forthe mega retailers and upstart

e-tailers, right?

Just a minute, there. Holdyour horses, as we liked tosay when I was growing up in

North Dakota. EveryAchilles has his heel.

And every one ofthose objections—

and dozens of oth-ers in the “You’retoo small” fam-ily—is an opportu-

nity, if you take thecustomer’s protestand turn it on itshead.

I call this “flipsideselling,” a way to re-

frame the perceivedstrengths of the big box

boys as the fatal, deeplyengrained weaknesses theyreally are and a means of

turning your small business’ssupposed downsides into sell-

ing points that are hard toargue.

To get started, grab a sheet ofpaper and draw a line vertically

down the center. On the left side of the line, listthe various ways customers have of sayingyou’re too small.

As you work the list, ask yourself if there’s aparticular class of products, such as officeseating, that tends to bring up a distinctform of the “too small” objection. Also, besure to note if a certain type of customertends to raise the objection in question.

Once you’ve corralled all the specific,detailed objections you can think of,you can begin to flip them. On theright side of your paper, restate the

objection, turning weakness into strength. Then, turn yournew strength into questions you can ask prospective cus-tomers when they raise the corresponding objection.

Let’s say you’re having trouble selling task chairs. Whenyou approach new customers, you get shot down right outof the gate with objections like, “I’d rather deal with OfficeMonster—they’ve got a bigger selection than you.” Or youmight hear, “Why would I buy from you when I can getchairs that are fine for my needs for x dollars less at Nec-essaries?”

Put those objections on the left side of your sheet. On theright, state the flipside of the objection. Take the first one.You might write, “Office Monster does indeed offer a widerselection than we do, but ours is deeper. They carry a fewtask chairs from many manufacturers, and they stick to theunits they can sell cheapest. We, on the other hand, stockthe chairs that are going to last more than a few monthsand increase comfort and productivity into the bargain.”And so on.

With the flipside on paper, you devise questions to get thecustomer talking and ultimately bust the objection wideopen. In the above example, you might ask, “How com-fortable are you buying task chairs built for the lowest com-mon denominator, chairs which practically guarantee lowerback problems and absenteeism?” Or how about this one:“Did you see the recent $49 task chair recall by the CPSC?The one where the chairs dumped unsuspecting users ontothe floor? Are the savings from cheap chairs like that worththe hassles or potential legal bills?”

If you do it right, your prospect will begin to see that theperceived strengths of your competitors—unrealisticallylow prices, wide selection, etc.—are not so strong after all.

Now that you’ve got your customer’s objections on theropes and they’ve begun to question their assumptions, it’stime to move in for the knockout by pointing out some ofyour other strong points.

Here, you can mention that your buying group gives youthe power to offer prices similar to—and often betterthan—the competition.

What about the wholesaler distribution network that letsyou deliver next day anywhere in the country? You mighteven mention that buying from you supports the local taxbase and helps to ensure that a great place to live and workremains that way for a long time to come.

Once you get the hang of flipside selling, you’ll come to re-alize that even the mightiest big box warrior out there hasa bad heel or two. So turn Achilles on his head. Find theweaknesses masquerading as strengths. Question them,hit them with all the arrows you can, and knock the legsout from under your competition.

Danita Bye, founder of Sales Growth Specialists, works with company leadersto strengthen their sales management processes and sales systems, so thattheir sales teams surpass revenue targets, grow margins, and increase mar-ketshare even when facing economic or competitive challenges. To contactDanita or for more information, visit her web site at www.salesgrowthspecial-ists.com.

OCTOBER 2009 INDEPENDENT DEALER Page 33

Beat the ‘Too Small’Objection

withFlipsideSelling

By Danita Bye

Recently, I was asked to attend a golftournament and dinner dedicated to the

memory of a man who started one of thefirst manufacturer reps groups in the UnitedStates. Each year, reps and industry veter-ans come together in Ojai, California, to re-member John Schutzman and to celebratethe service of rep groups and manufactur-ers to the office products industry.

Attending the event caused me to reflect onmy own experiences with vendor reps andhow they have supported me throughoutthe years.

I recalled how when I was an independentdealer and Jack Roland from Smead

went out with me to sell a majorfiling prospect, he added

something special.

A few years later, asvice president of

sales for the Col-orado division of

Corporate Express,I watched as ven-dor reps as-

sisted my

team by finding new opportunities within ourcurrent accounts and closed large deals on ourbehalf.

As I reminisced, I realized how vital these menand women were to my business success, dur-ing every stage of my career.

It also occurred to me that their value is notoften recognized, in spite of the fact that in ourcurrent economy they are more important todealers than ever before.

During the past few months I have been high-lighting various changes that can help yourdealership become one that thrives rather thanjust survives or worse. So, this month I wouldlike to challenge you to reconsider the value ofreps to your company.

They don’t cost your company a dime and yeta good rep provides expanded sales coverageto your customers.

Growing Your BusinessThrough Unpaid (By You)Professionals

By Tom Buxton

continued on page 35

OCTOBER 2009 INDEPENDENT DEALER Page 34

Why don’t more dealers use their reps ef-fectively? I have found two major reasonsfor this phenomenon:

n Dealers don’t trust reps becausethey work with the competition.

n Some dealer reps perceive ven-dors as an intrusive presence in theiraccounts and are uncomfortable withtheir presentation skills.

It was Albert Einstein who said, “Insanityis doing the same thing over and overagain and expecting different results.” Re-spectfully, I think you are insane if youhave not realized by now that vendor repsare like doctors (and consultants): Theydon’t share one company’s secrets with itscompetitors.

I was fortunate enough to learn this earlyon in my career and consequently, I wasable to use my competitors’ distrust ofvendors to our company’s advantage.

When I became vice president, we had ameeting with all the rep groups and man-ufacturers that served our company. I

asked them how I could help them be-come more successful at their jobs andpromised to be responsive as long as theytook care of my sales team.

I did not ask for special treatment, but wereceived more value from reps than any-one else in our area, because we helpedthem reach their goals and treated themwith respect.

They never shared other companies’ pro-prietary information with us (and I did notask them for it), but when they receivedleads about new businesses or opportuni-ties that were not already tied to a com-pany, our reps heard about it first. Can youafford not to take advantage of such an in-expensive and professional resource?

Some of you might justifiably say, “Youhaven’t seen my rep for Company X … Iwouldn’t allow him in front of my own peo-ple, much less my accounts.”

I feel your pain. During my years in thebusiness I have met a few vendor reps thatcould not conduct a professional sales

call. But whatever you do, don’t let the fewpoor reps color your view of the servicethat most of them provide.

Let vendor or rep group principals know ifone their employees doesn’t meet your ex-pectations.

If the principal doesn’t respond appropri-ately, switch your business to one of theircompetitors, but don’t give up on all reps,because a few of them are inadequate.

Vendor and manufacturer reps are too vitalto the growth of your business in 2009 and2010 to be ignored. Make the effort topartner with your vendors today and yourbusiness will grow tomorrow.

Tom Buxton is founder and CEO of InterBizGroup, a consult-ing firm that works with independent office products dealersto help increase sales and profitability, For more information,visit www.interbizgroup.com.

OCTOBR 2009 INDEPENDENT DEALER Page 35

Growing Your Business Through Unpaid Professionals: continued from page XX

OCTOBER 2009 INDEPENDENT DEALER Page 36

Doing the WrongThing for the RightReasonby Paul A. Miller

Paul Miller is a founding part-ner in Miller/Wenhold CapitolStrategies, LLC, providers of

direct and grassroots lobbyingand related services. Before

setting up Miller/Wenhold,Miller served as government

affairs director for the NationalOffice Products Alliance and

the Office Furniture Dealers Al-liance (NOPA/OFDA) and hecurrently serves as NOPA’s

federal affairs consultant. Inaddition to his lobbying and

regulatory monitoring activi-ties, Paul also provides con-

sulting services to businesseson selling to the federal, state

and local government markets.

For more information, visitwww.mwcapitol.com.

After living in our nation’s capital for fifteen yearsnow, not much these days surprises me, nor am Ishocked to read or hear what our elected leadersare doing.

Case in point: Legislation has been introduced inthe House of Representative recently in the form ofH.R. 3558, the Small Business Fair Competition Actof 2009. After reading this legislation, I can tell youa better name for it would be The Big Business GiveAway Act!

I don’t want to be too hard on Rep. Parker Griffith(D-AL) because I believe his heart is in the rightplace, but he’s been sold a bill of goods that will domore harm to small businesses than good.

If signed into law, H.R. 3558 would create a hugeloophole for large businesses to continue to beawarded small business contracts.

Under this legislation, a small business that be-comes a large business as a result of receiving agovernment contract will continue to be able tocompete for small business contracts.

I understand Rep. Griffith’s motives but this legisla-tion would create a huge loophole for “other thansmall businesses” to continue to win contractsmeant for legitimate small businesses.

If you think the issue of pass-throughs is bad, thislegislation, should it pass, will make lost opportuni-ties due to pass-throughs look like pocket changeand make it even harder than it is right now for gen-uine small businesses to compete.

I’d like to tell you that procurement reform is a pri-ority of the Obama administration, but I can’t. It isnow ten months since the president took office, yetwe have only just had the head of the General Serv-ices Administration (GSA) confirmed and we are stillwaiting to have someone appointed to head theWhite House Office of Federal Procurement Policy(OFPP). These are critical posts that have been va-cant far too long!

Small businesses in the office products industrycannot afford for legislation like H.R. 3558 to pass

because once it is law, it will be almost impossibleto undo.

Every small business should have as its goal togrow and succeed. But it’s not the role of the gov-ernment to carve out special rules for them oncethey grow into successful large businesses so thatthey can continue to be classified as small busi-nesses.

I would urge Rep. Griffith to consider another ap-proach. Why not close the pass-through loophole?Why not create a procurement system that allowsfor real competition through the use of the GSASchedules and not so many buying vehicles?

Why not set more contracts aside for small busi-nesses? Why not allow agencies to get small busi-ness credit for using members of teamingarrangements?

These are just a few small steps that the Congressand the administration could take that would havea real positive impact for small businesses.

Unfortunately, our elected leaders seem determinedto make things more complex, even when the fixesare rather simple. The problem is, as usual, politicsgets in the way.

When it comes to small business procurement re-form, there’s no reason why we shouldn’t be ableto achieve a meaningful, bipartisan solution.

That’s what NOPA is pushing for right now. NOPAhas a plan that would close loopholes in the systemand open up opportunities to more independentdealers in the industry.

Sometimes what seems like a good idea is just theopposite and H.R. 3558 is one of those ideas. Ihope Congress will see the unintended conse-quences passage of this legislation will present andkill it before it gets out of the gate.

Sometimes doing nothing is better than doing thewrong thing. In this case, I’d choose doing nothingversus having to deal with the consequences ofH.R. 3558.

Measuring effective executionConsider the 16 questions below. If you can’t answer “yes” to most of them, you can’t give yourself or your company agood grade on execution. What gets measured more often get done. Without measurement, results show a tendencyto randomness.

Last month in our series on dealer leadership, I discussed the impor-tance of knowing not only what to do, but how to do it, and showedspecifically that behavior (the “how”) is a proven factor in driving per-formance and results.

The discipline surrounding execution is an important part of leader-ship behavior. High performance and remarkable bottom-line resultsonly happen via execution—when things get done.

A common fallacy exists in much of what has been written about thedifferences between leaders and managers. Leaders are typically de-scribed as those who set vision and direction, press for change, andmotivate and inspire, while managers are those who plan, organize,staff, problem solve, and execute.

Vision is a primary function of leaders, and vision may accelerate per-formance, but only when it is accompanied with effective execution,a joint responsibility of leaders and their managers.

I contend, as do Larry Bossidy and Ram Charan in their book Execu-tion: The Discipline of Getting Things Done, that execution is amajor—if not the most important—job of any business leader.

Dealer principals rarely rate themselves or their managers on effectiveexecution. Execution factors to be considered include discipline—which is behavior—as well as delegation (the ability to empower andassign the appropriate degree of authority), coordination, decision-making and follow-through.

OCTOBER 2009 INDEPENDENT DEALER Page 37

continued on page 38

Effective Execution:Getting Things Done

By Bill Kuhn

n Are company goals beingachieved?n Have you met or exceeded yourbudget or forecast?n Have the right decisions beenmade and strategies implemented?n Is decision-making authority closeto the front lines, so employees canreact quickly to changing marketconditions?n Have you capitalized on theopportunities in your marketplace?n Do you deliver products andservices that consistently meetcustomer expectations?n Has productivity improved,

eliminating sources of excess andwaste?n Have you achieved operationalexcellence?n Are the right people placed in theright jobs?n Does your dealership have a senseof urgency and act quickly andeffectively?n Have you given clear direction thatenables employees to understandyour expectations?n Have you assigned the appropriatedegree of responsibility and authority(empowerment)?

n Is there sufficient coordinationamong work groups to executeeffectively?n Are you, yourself, a good rolemodel in getting things done, drivingeffective execution?n Do you understand that the “how”you execute is as important as the“what”? n Most importantly, can youdescribe your culture as one thatembraces disciplined execution witheveryone in your organizationinvolved in the process?

Factors leading to effective executionIn working with dealer principals and theirmanagers, my experience has shown thatthe following are highly correlated with ef-fective execution.

Know yourself. As I have recently written inINDEPENDENT DEALERS’s sister publica-tion, Office Furniture Dealer located onwww.ofdealer.com, knowing yourself isleadership’s #1 commandment. None ofthe other factors will be particularly rele-vant without a good sense of self-aware-ness and the ability to recognize andunderstand your talents, attitudes, and be-havior, as well as the effect these have onothers.

Manage yourself. Self-management in-cludes maintaining self-control, thinkingbefore acting, and being self-disciplined

when managing yourself andyour responsibilities. Being a

good role model drives improved perform-ance and execution among your staff.Once again it’s not as much what you do,but how you do it—how your actions sup-port your dealership’s vision.

Delegate and empower. Effective execu-tion must be a company-wide effort. Youshould delegate authority—including deci-sion-making—to the lowest appropriatelevel. With delegation and empowermentcomes accountability, holding your peopleresponsible for their behavior and per-formance to achieve the expected results.

Set clear goals and priorities. Each per-son who reports to you should know ex-actly what is expected. I’m a firm believerin setting high levels of expectation, andwhen those expectations are met, asproven by results—i.e., execution—recog-nizing and rewarding that performance.

Coach and give feedback. After you’vegiven your staff challenging assignments

and set high expectations; focus on theirpersonal development. Help and coachthem to meet the challenges and attain thelevels of achievement desired.

Understand your business, your cus-tomers and your people. Get the knowl-edge that you need; the wrongimplementation can be worse than no im-plementation. Know the people who youwork with and who can do what best. Theright people must be in the right jobs.

Be decisive and act promptly. Measurethe time period—the gap—in what you in-tend to do and when you actually do it. Ef-fective execution is being decisive andacting promptly with positive results.

Execution requires the discipline to link thevision with results. Dealers who can beclassified as “best in class” are primarilydistinguished by their ability to execute—by getting things done and followingthrough.

OCTOBR 2009 INDEPENDENT DEALER Page 38

Effective Execution: Getting Things Done. continued from page 37

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It is important to acknowledge that whether youare a seasoned sales professional or a newersales rep, there is always room for improvement.

We often describe industry veterans as “sea-soned,” suggesting that their success and effec-tiveness is the result of an accumulation ofexperience and knowledge that has made theirselling style fuller and richer.

Consider, however, all the changes to the indus-try over the past ten years. The competition andtheir strategies have evolved. Perhaps even moreimportant, the buying process of customers hasalso changed, as have their particular needs.

New sales reps will develop selling styles that willbe somewhat different from their more experi-enced counterparts. And seasoned veteransmust be willing to adapt to industry and cus-tomer changes in order to maintain their effec-tiveness.

So let’s start by diagnosing your selling style andsee if we can identify some ways to improve it.

How would you describe your selling style?Where did your selling style come from? Does italign with your company's sales process? Is itborne of many years of experience and yourcompany's sales culture?

If a company’s or an individual’s selling style isn'tprofessional and doesn’t seem to align with yourcompany’s sales process, then you’re likely tosee lackluster performance and results.

One of the most effective ways of defining yourselling style is to examine perceptions about thesales process—both your perceptions of whatyou are doing and how you imagine your cus-tomer perceives you.

As in so many other areas, perception is often re-ality and when it comes to selling style, make nomistake: You are who you think you are.

OCTOBER 2009 INDEPENDENT DEALER Page 40

continued on page 41

You ARE WHO YOU THINK YOU Areby Krista Moorey

In previous INDEPENDENT DEALER articles we addressed the importance of having

a clearly defined sales process to shorten the sales cycle. Today, we’re going to ex-

amine the other critical component: your personal and professional selling style.

Two Important Components that Form “Selling Styles”1. Sales Rep Perceptions of the

Selling Process

Perception #1: The point of the salesprocess is to get an appointment, get a listof high usage items and copies of in-voices, describe the superiority of yourcompany’s customer service and explainwhy the customer should keep business inthe community and buy from a local inde-pendent.

Once that is accomplished, hope the cus-tomer sends you the list of items that theysaid they would so you can price the itemscompetitively and possibly get your firstorder from them.

Perception #2: The point of the salesprocess is to identify and call on ideal cus-tomers within the right size and market,schedule an appointment to discover anduncover their current circumstances andneeds, listen carefully, and ask questionsprofessionally.

Once you understand their needs, alignyour company’s solutions to those needsand present the customer with a writtenservice and pricing proposal.

Address the customer’s fear of changeand help them to feel and experience thedifference of dealing with your companywhile asking them to make you their pri-mary office products provider.

It’s easy to see how a sales rep’s percep-tion of the sales process could directlycorrelate to their selling style.

A sales rep who holds Perception #1 willuse a selling style of talking rather than lis-tening, and focus solely on price.

A sales rep with the second perceptionconsiders himself or herself more than justan office products pen-and-pencil sales-person trying to defend the customeragainst the power channel, but instead aconsultative partner who cares about thecustomer’s circumstances and needs.

Also, a sales rep operating under the sec-ond perception tends to create a salesstyle that is more professional, caring, andtrusting, attempting to become a solutionsprovider and not just an order taker.

2. Sales Rep Perceptions of the Customer’s Experience

Your understanding of why the customerbuys from you and how you think the cus-tomer perceives the selling process alsoaffects your selling style.

If you think that your customer considersyou and your sales process along the linesof “Here comes another office productssales rep who’s going to try and get a listof items from me, quote me low prices, tryto get me to like them, and then bug metill they get an order,” then there’s a prettygood chance that your selling style will beinfluenced by that perception.

Ask yourself the following questions: Whydo you think customers buy from you? Arethey buying from you because they likeand trust you? Are they buying from youbecause of your company? Are they buy-ing from you because your prices are thelowest? Are they buying from you becauseyou have understood what they need andhave provided them a solution?

We would like to think that it's a combina-tion of all of the above. But your primaryand dominant selling style will be deter-mined by why you think the customers buyfrom you and how you think the customerperceives the experience.

If you believe that they buy from you be-cause they like you, then your selling stylewill be very personable, relationship-ori-ented and internally focused.

If you believe the customers buy from youbecause of your company, then your sell-ing style will be focused on the company’sreputation for local customer service,competitive pricing and what your com-pany can do for them.

If you believe that the customers buy fromyou because you understand their needsand are giving them a solution, than yourselling style will be more consultative: ask-ing questions, listening, uncovering needsand applying solutions.

A good way to diagnose your selling styleis to identify which of thefollowing state-ments best describes what you believe:

Customers buy from my company be-cause the product is priced right or atleast as good as the competition (TheProduct Style).

Customers buy from my company be-cause of the total value solution we pro-vide them (The Value Style).

Customers buy from me because theybelieve in trust, or otherwise love me(The Me Style).

The Product Style limits your ability to sellbecause your proposals are based solelyon price and tend to not address othercustomer needs.

The Value Style will increase your ability tosell because you have progressed beyondthe price stage. You are more likely to offercustomized proposals that address real,identified needs.

The Me Style assures reasonable successbecause you have developed a good rela-tionship with your customer. However, theMe Style still limits your selling ability be-cause you believe the only product you areselling is you.

A sales rep with the Me Style risks losingfocus on other customer needs and miss-ing opportunities for selling more productsand adding value.

Regardless of your dominant selling style,you need to identify what you can do per-sonally or as a company to improve andget the best sales results you can.

Ask yourself the hard questions: “Does oursales process need to change, and do oursales reps selling styles match ourprocess?” “What can we change aboutour styles and processes to improvethem?” Remember: You are who you thinkyou are.

Krista Moore is President of K Coach-

ing, LLC an executive coaching and

consulting practice that has helped lit-

erally hundreds of independent deal-

ers maximize their full potential

through enhancing their management

systems, sales training, and leader-

ship development. For more informa-

tion, visit the K Coaching web sites at

www.kcoaching.com, for coaching

and consulting programs and

www.opwebinar.com for the latest on-

line training courses.

OCTOBER 2009 INDEPENDENT DEALER Page 41

You Are Who You Think You Are: continued from page XX

Mark says his interest in classic carsbegan as a boy, when he would go to localcar shows with his dad, Chuck. About 12years ago, that interest resulted in Markand his dad taking on the 1934 Roadster.Five years later, the vintage Ford was backon the road and raring to go!Next up was the Camaro. “That was prob-ably my first and last e-Bay purchase,”Mark says ruefully. “The photos on theweb site looked great but the actual con-dition of the car turned out to be very dif-ferent.”Mark bought the Camaro in 2005 andended up replacing or repairing just abouteverything on it. Over the past four years,he’s added a new 475-hp motor, new floor-boards to replace ones that had rustedthrough, a new dashboard and gauges,

new suspension, disk brakes and more.“Just about every bolt had to be taken offand replaced by the time we were fin-ished,” he explains.Classic car restoration can be big busi-ness. Fully-restored Roadsters can fetchas much as $50,000 and Mark estimateshis Camaro is probably worth somewherearound $40-60,000.But, he says, he’s not in it for the money.“Those price tags sound good but with theCamaro, we’ve probably sunk as much ifnot more into it, just to pay for new parts,”he laments.But Mark makes it clear it’s been moneywell spent. Restoring classic cars is notonly his passion but it also offers the op-portunity to spend quality time with family.He pays generous tribute to his father forencouraging his hobby at an early age andclearly takes a great of pleasure and pride

that his own sons—Colton, age 9; Carson(6) and Caleb (3)—are already showingtheir own early signs of wanting to carryon the family tradition.And does his hobby furnish any useful les-sons when it comes to running an officeproducts dealership? “If you’re like most independents, chancesare you have days when it seems likeyou’re fighting everything and it’s just onefrustration after another,” Mark says.“Working on beat-up old cars can be verysimilar,” he contends. “It can certainly bevery rewarding, but it also calls for pa-tience, persistence and a willingness to dowhatever it takes to get your vehicle towhere you want it to be.” Sounds like a pretty good definition ofwhat’s involved in running a successful in-dependent dealership these days, too.Start your engines!

MONTH 2009 INDEPENDENT DEALER Page 42

The Other Side of Mark Porter of Porter’s Office Products

Keeping His Dealership and SomeClassic Cars in Top Gear

Mark Porter is one hard-charging entrepreneur. When he took over as president of Porter’s Office Products in Rexburg,Idaho in 1998, annual volume at the dealership his great-grandfather founded back in 1915 was about $900,000. Today,that number has grown to over $7.5 million and despite all the gloom and doom in the general economy, the dealershipcontinues to grow. Porter’s recently completed merger with another Idaho independent, Pocatello-based Bangs OfficeProducts, gives the dealers a significantly larger footprint in the state and, says Mark, further expansion efforts are def-initely on the drawing board as part of a long-term effort to become more of a regional operation.

When he’s not driving the growth engine at his dealership, however, Mark Porter spends a lot of time and energy focus-ing on motors of a different kind.

Mark likes to mess with cars. Not your run of the mill, present-day Chevrolets or Toyotas but real cars—like his 1934Ford Tudor Sedan or his ’69 Camaro. And messing around means a whole lot more than just changing his own oil orgiving the motor a little extra boost.

The author of this month’s Last Word column mustremain anonymous, for obvious reasons. Our con-tributor was a long-time sales rep with CorporateExpress before being laid off earlier this year byCE’s new owner, Staples. As such, the commentsthat follow represent a unique perspective on bigbox strengths and weaknesses and how the inde-pendent stacks up against them in the marketplace.As always, we welcome any comments or feedbackyou might have.

If you work for a mega-corporation for any lengthof time, it’s inevitable that sooner or later, what youmight call an IBM attitude takes over. You startthinking, “We’re superior to anyone else out therebecause we’re bigger and we can pretty much dowhatever we like.”

Bigger, however, is not always better.

Staples today is a huge operation. They run a verytight ship. They aren’t extravagant and focus a lotof energy and attention on keeping their operatingcosts down. They are very systematic and systems-oriented and their managers spend a lot of timetracking key metrics such as number of sales calls,number of customer reviews, etc.

But sometimes, that can translate into a Big Brothertype of mentality. Because of the financial pressuresthey’re under right now, they tend to load up theirsalespeople with so many accounts that it becomesdifficult to give customers the level of attention theyreally need.

And if you feel like you’re being micro-managed, itcertainly doesn’t encourage creativity or cama-raderie or loyalty. And while a systems approachmay help keep your costs down, it doesn’t give youvery much flexibility when it comes to respondingto special customer needs.

If you had a customer who wanted you to stock anon-standard item for them, for example, you hadto move heaven and earth to try and make it hap-pen. And if the product in question didn’t fit themodel—and often it didn’t—you and your customerwere out of luck.

At Staples, we had support teams for everything butwe didn’t’ always know who exactly to contact onspecific issues. And if you didn’t make a point offollowing up, it wasn’t unusual for someone to dropthe ball.

If something similar comes up at the independentwhere I work today, I can just go down the corridorto the IT department or Customer Service and getit taken care of quickly and with a minimum of fuss.

Pricing at Staples wasn’t all you might expect, either.The Corporate Express acquisition left them with alot of debt and a lot of brick and mortar investmentsto take care of and they price accordingly. My coston paper is lower now, when I’m with an independ-ent, than it was with Staples, for example.

All things considered, I’m so very grateful for howthings have turned out after the Staples-CorporateExpress merger. At the independent dealer where Iam today, I’ve been really impressed by the qualityof the people and their passion and their ability toreally meet the customer’s needs.

Where I am today, we’re just as sharp and just asgood as any of the big boys. And it’s been so refreshing for me to be able to focus on building relationships and bringing a consultative, solutions-oriented approach to my customers, instead of simply trying to sell them as much as I possibly can.

OCTOBER 2009 INDEPENDENT DEALER Page 43

TheLASTwordA Unique Perspective on Big Boxes and Independents