During MEDCO’s annual customer show,  spoke with Ron Pegram, vice president of sales at National Oak, about this year’s “Growth in Motion” theme, the role of hands-on training, current challenges facing distributors, and the opportunities created by National Oak’s acquisition of MEDCO.

With more than 100 supplier partners and more than 200 businesses registered to attend, the event brought distributors and suppliers together for training, product demonstrations, and conversations about how they can grow their businesses in a challenging market.

Q: How was this year’s show theme decided, and what did you want attendees to take away from it?

A: We know the markets are really challenging this year. Specifically, collision is seeing a lot of consolidation. What we wanted to send was a message that we can really help our partners be more productive and find ways to be more profitable by leveraging our supplier partners to come in, meet with our customers, and talk about new opportunities.

The message was that we want to grow together, and we think “Growth in Motion” really covers that. It’s about moving together as partners and finding bigger and better ways to be more productive and more profitable.

Q: What training opportunities were offered at this year’s show, and how did Medco determine which topics would be most valuable to attendees?

A: We talked to attendees from last year, as well as our suppliers, to determine what seemed to be of most interest to people. Customers are always interested in new products and new categories, but they’re also interested in new ways to sell things they may have overlooked.

It’s a combination of introducing new products and helping customers sell things in ways they maybe didn’t understand before.

We had a number of suppliers providing training opportunities, from 3M to Milwaukee to ATD. We had a great number of supplier partners involved in the training.

Q: What feedback have you received from attendees and suppliers so far? Were there any products, demonstrations, or training sessions that generated particularly strong interest?

A: We had lots of new partners at the show and lots of new products from those partners. Milwaukee, for instance, had a lot of demo opportunities at its booth, and those demonstrations were also available during its training sessions.

I think that generated a lot of buzz. A lot of our customers are hands-on by nature, so they want to see the product and be able to test it. They don’t necessarily want to just read about it on a PowerPoint. That seems to have gone over very well.

I think customers also appreciate having training on Friday. There’s an entire day dedicated to training and education before the selling event on Saturday. That seems to work really well, and it’s been very well received.

Q: How many attendees and suppliers participated in this year’s show?

A: We had more than 100 supplier partners and more than 200 separate businesses registered to attend.

Q: Were there any new initiatives, programs, or additions to this year’s show that you were especially excited about?

A: I love all of our supplier partners equally. I think we’re really happy that our supplier community supports this effort as much as they do, and we’re excited to see all of the new products from all of our partners.

Q: Where is MEDCO seeing the greatest opportunities for growth right now, and how are you working to help customers capitalize on those opportunities?

A: I think it’s through collaboration. Quite frankly, it’s one thing to be a supplier to our customers. It’s another thing to be a partner.

Where we really think there are growth opportunities is in that partnership. It’s about understanding their business model, identifying unmet needs, and figuring out how we can structure our business to help them meet those needs.

It’s different for every customer. One customer’s need may be around local inventory. Another customer may need suppliers to talk with one of their customers and help them understand a new line.

Whatever the case is, we want to be there and help those customers win more business in their local markets. That really only happens through collaboration.

Q: What are some of the biggest challenges your customers are facing today, and what resources, training, or support is MEDCO providing to help them succeed?

A: I think vehicle repair is really tied to the overall economy. Many people are struggling with inflation right now, so consumer spending and confidence are down in many markets.

What we have to do is help our customers be more efficient and more productive with their own resources so they can offer better service to their customers.

That’s what this show is all about: bringing people together so we can all find ways to be more productive.

Q: Since MEDCO was acquired by National Oak, what new opportunities or resources will that create, and how will customers and suppliers benefit from the relationship?

A: Better service, more lines, more people, and better coverage. We see this as a huge growth opportunity for all of us, and we’re really excited about it.