While Doug Mansell never thought he’d get into the business himself, he grew up with Mac Tools. Doug’s father, John, has been in the business for 19 years.
"When I was 10, if I was off school, I wanted to ride with him,” Mansell says, of his father’s route. “I was just along for the ride and free lunch.”
“I’ve always been around it, I just never thought of me doing it,” he adds. “The more I thought about it, the more I thought, ‘That would be cool.’”
In business since April 2013, Mansell has established himself in State College, Pa. and surrounding area.
Prior to selling tools, Mansell worked in a number of industries, including logging.
“I started [selling tools] when I was 23. That was the hard part at first,” he says. “You get all these older guys who are like ‘Who is this snot-nosed kid coming in?’ It’s not like an older guy; it took a while to gain respect through a lot of customers. But I’m always up for a challenge.”
Of working in the mobile distribution business, Mansell says he really enjoys the variety, and the relationships he has built with customers and others at Mac Tools.
“I think it’s fun,” Mansell says, of being a Mac Tools distributor. “There’s always something new, I’m not sitting behind a desk. I do paperwork at night, I couldn’t do that all day.”
As for challenges, Mansell says it can sometimes be hard to stay motivated. But he also views motivation as a means to stay ahead.
“The biggest thing that motivates me is, if I’m not doing it, someone else is going to do it,” Mansell says. “If I’m not taking care of that customer, [another distributor] will. And, I hate to lose. I’m pretty competitive. Which can be a good and bad thing.”
Be like Mike
While Mansell enjoys his freedom on the road, he has set his sights on eventually moving up within Mac Tools.
In particular, he has found motivation and mentoring from fellow Mac Tools distributor Tom Neamon, and from Mac Tools director of sales Mike Button.
“I went on the road with him before I started,” Mansell says of Neamon. “Everybody has different sales tactics. I learned a lot that day. He’s an awesome guy, easy to get along with. He’s another person who has had a huge impact on me.”
Also, Button in particular has made a lasting impression on Mansell. Button himself first started out as a mobile tool distributor, before working his way up from district manager to regional manager.
“My first week, he came out to ride with me,” Mansell says of Button. “I’ve always looked up to him, ever since. He’s a wealth of knowledge, he knows what he’s doing. I had my notepad out on the way home from [Mac Tools] Tool Fair, I wrote down my goals for the year. One of them was ‘Be a Mike Button.’”
Mansell adds he makes sure to evaluate his progress on goals periodically.
Overall, Mansell says he enjoys working with Mac Tools, and appreciates the relationships he’s built on and off the truck.
“It’s like a brotherhood, you’ve got a bunch of guys you can call,” he says. “The guy I went to school with for Mac, in North Carolina, I probably talk to him once a month. There’s a guy in Iowa, every time we’re at Tool Fair we meet.”
