Distribution Talk Jason Bader, Distribution Team

If change is the only constant, why do some leaders resist it at all costs? Jennifer Murphy, president of NetPlus Alliance, an industrial buying group based in Lockport, NY, embraces the transformative process, ditching long-standing methods to ensure the future health of her multi-generational family business. Jason caught up with Jennifer to learn more about NetPlus’ culture of continuous improvement and how membership in a buying group benefits both the distributor and supplier.
Jennifer’s exposure to the family business at an early age informs her attitude toward taking risks. “I saw how important it was to embrace change and the types of things you needed to do to be a much more progressive and competitive business.” 
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For full show notes and services visit: https://www.distributionteam.com
Distribution Talk is produced by The Distribution Team, a consulting services firm dedicated to helping wholesale distribution clients remove barriers to profitability, generate wealth and achieve personal goals.   
This episode was edited & mixed by The Creative Impostor Studios. 
Special thanks to our sponsor for this episode: INxSQL Distribution Software, integrated distribution ERP software designed for the wholesale and distribution industry

You can call Richard Lawless many things––trailblazer, communicator, innovator. Just don’t call him ready to retire. This easy-going founder and president is still having too much fun growing the Lawless Group, his decades-old Dallas-based product rep agency. 
Jason caught up with Richard to uncover the secrets to his industry longevity, smart talent acquisitions, and successful expansion strategies.
While moving products for manufacturers of construction, electrical, industrial, and safety products efficiently takes more than physical space, having 600,000 sq ft of dedicated warehouse in which to stock said items doesn’t hurt. Add to that the 18 additional regional warehouses operated by Lawless Group, and you’ve got a logistics superpower that knows how to save time, save money.
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For full show notes and services visit: https://www.distributionteam.com
Distribution Talk is produced by The Distribution Team, a consulting services firm dedicated to helping wholesale distribution clients remove barriers to profitability, generate wealth and achieve personal goals.   
This episode was edited & mixed by The Creative Impostor Studios. 
https://www.distributionteam.com
Special thanks to our sponsor for this episode: Moblico, helping businesses do more business on mobile devices.

Hollywood loves to cast artificial intelligence as the villain. In reality, AI is more likely to win best supporting character accolades from those in the c-suite, says Nelson Valderrama, founder of Intuilize, the AI-driven firm specializing in helping distributors use analytics to optimize pricing, purchasing, and inventory management. 
Jason chats with Nelson about AI’s ability to sift through reams of data to unlock profitability, strengthen B2B relationships, and enhance employee productivity, not overtake humans. If only folks in senior distribution roles embraced the tech as readily as their Millennial and GenZ team members, says Nelson, they too would realize the transformative power of AI.
Nelson has 25+ years of experience in Latin America and the United States, beginning his career with GE, then moving to GE Capital before seeking opportunities with smaller, more agile companies. All the while, he maintained his fondness for distributors. 
“What I found out about all owners is that they have really good instincts. I'm not saying all the time it’s right, but typically it’s quite fine-tuned.”
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For full show notes and services visit: https://www.distributionteam.com
Distribution Talk is produced by The Distribution Team, a consulting services firm dedicated to helping wholesale distribution clients remove barriers to profitability, generate wealth and achieve personal goals. 
This episode was edited & mixed by The Creative Impostor Studios. 
Special thanks to our sponsor for this episode: INxSQL Distribution Software, integrated distribution ERP software designed for the wholesale and distribution industry

On-demand local delivery isn’t just for burgers or beer. Matt Lafferty turned a remodeling project a-ha! moment into Curri, a nationwide all-in-one logistics platform best described as the Uber of construction supplies. Jason chats with Curri’s energetic co-founder and CEO about the company’s serendipitous start, impressive growth, and cost-effective delivery solutions for building materials distributors. 
Curri is a network of on-demand delivery drivers with appropriate vehicles (think: lift gates, flatbeds, bobtails) that could pick up and deliver materials wherever, whenever needed. Today, Curri operates in 49 states, making a delivery every 10 seconds. Each shipment comes with the same tech-driven features that the biggest names in e-commerce rely on, like live tracking and digital proof of delivery.
Matt’s vision has proven so effective that many distributors have replaced in-house delivery fleets with Curri’s on-demand platform, saving hefty operating costs. “We have a lot of distributors that are literally selling off their trucks and just using Curri because they're making more sales. They're not taking on the risk and the insurance for moving supplies and materials.”
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Distribution Talk is produced by The Distribution Team, a consulting services firm dedicated to helping wholesale distribution clients remove barriers to profitability, generate wealth and achieve personal goals.
This episode was edited & mixed by The Creative Impostor Studios. 
For full show notes and services visit: https://www.distributionteam.com
Special thanks to our sponsor for this episode: Connected Peers, connecting key employees in distribution's leading organizations.

If entrepreneurs are known for marching to a different beat, then Jeff Peterson is an improvisational maestro. DT fans may remember Jason’s conversation with the CEO of Geneva Supply in episode 21, in which the two discussed growing and expanding that company’s footprint. And did he ever! Just as that business started to get predictable, Jeff stumbled upon his next entrepreneurial challenge: Interstate Music.
The opportunity to turn around a 75-year-old music retailer proved irresistible, and Jeff went all in — even though the company languished in bankruptcy and the world paused for a pandemic. He applied his extensive e-com knowledge and a lifelong affinity for live music to a new entrepreneurial challenge and has never once regretted taking on that challenge.
While the purchase agreement included Interstate Music Supply’s catalog of intellectual property, Jeff astutely excluded the company’s physical inventory and brick-and-mortar footprint: The revamp opened Interstate up to new avenues for attracting customers and building brand loyalty.
“There's big competitors out there that have been doing e-commerce music for a long time and doing it really well,” he says. “However, they're not selling to Amazon, they're not helping a manufacturer sell on a different platform in a different way. So that’s our niche to them.” 
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For full show notes and services visit: https://www.distributionteam.com
Distribution Talk is produced by The Distribution Team, a consulting services firm dedicated to helping wholesale distribution clients remove barriers to profitability, generate wealth and achieve personal goals.   
This episode was edited & mixed by The Creative Impostor Studios. 
Special thanks to our sponsor for this episode: INxSQL Distribution Software, integrated distribution ERP software designed for the wholesale and distribution industry.

“I like to say that I was able to put the dot on the “I” of HARDI, which is international,” laughs Guitze Messina. 
When HARDI, the premiere HVACR distribution association in North America, decided to expand its membership into Mexico, they tasked Guitze with the job. Jason chats with the dynamic executive director of HARDI Mexico about surpassing the organization’s boldest growth projections and fostering greater support for the two-step distribution model across Central America, South America, and Europe.
In Guitze’s five years at the helm, the organization has made tremendous headway within the Mexican market (signing on 70 members) and prompting interest from other Latin American countries.
Guitze’s commitment to the Mexican HVACR industry is evident in how he speaks of its future. “Besides being successful, we also want to pass on a legacy. We want the Mexican market to change.” But why stop there? Guitze and HARDI are poised to realize ambitious goals, bringing the tenets of networking, education, and business development to HVACR distributors worldwide.
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Special thanks to our sponsor for this episode: Profit2, helping distributors charge the right price.
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For full show notes and services, visit: https://www.distributionteam.com
Distribution Talk is produced by The Distribution Team, a consulting services firm dedicated to helping wholesale distribution clients remove barriers to profitability, generate wealth and achieve personal goals.   
This episode was edited & mixed by The Creative Impostor Studios.