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MARTIN’S CORNER
Customer service and customer relations are the cornerstones of APS’ business.
(Continued from page 58.)
sign and construction of new proj- ects. Very involved, but money sav- ings when pursued and done properly. (Sorry to be a bit long there, but felt this needed to be said to sup- port your opinions as well.)
Martin: Does American have an
affiliation with any of the several buying/marketing groups out there in the market today? If so, could you give the readers a couple thoughts about your experience as a group member v/s simply going it on your
own in these times? Beall: In reading the other profiles
you have done in The Wholesaler on other distributor companies, I have noticed that not only do they all be- long to a group, but they all had very positive comments to make about
•THE WHOLESALER® — MARCH 2011
their group as well. It is no different with us here at APS either. You see, John, early on after we purchased the company we starting seeing the need to get involved with a buying/market- ing group. We joined The Piping Connection, which was focused at the time on the PVF wholesaler. Shortly after that, C.L. Watt asked TPC to join them to really kick off their newly formed PVF division, and we did. Soon afterwards, C.L. Watt merged with Affiliated Distributors in 2000 and we joined the PVF division and have since joined the A-D Plumbing division also. Our associa- tion with A-D has impacted our com- pany tremendously. The positive impact of being with a network of other independent wholesalers across the country has helped enhance our product lines and our level of service. It has brought us closer to vendors and helped provide education on how they get their product to market. All groups, I’m sure, do have pos-
itive impacts in varying levels with all of the member/owner wholesalers that are involved in them, or they would not be in business —A-D is such a group for APS. Martin: Very well said, Mr. Beall.
Coming from a USA commodity ven- dor for the past 43 years, I subscribe to the fact that it is better to be with a marketing/ buying group today than to not be with them. It is a cost of doing business these days (just like some of the things you want to do or have to do for your best customers), so why not get involved and reap some bene- fits? A-D is indeed recognized as one of the best in the industry. Just a few more questions, I prom-
ise. Does you company have any spe- cial events/activities that you sponsor to help build customer loyalty and re- lationships? Beall: Customer service and cus-
tomer relations are the cornerstones from which APS has built and grown their business. To build customer loyalty and relations we sponsor nu- merous events throughout the year. Each branch has at least one cus- tomer appreciation luncheon each year in addition to vendor sponsored counter days. Kyle:We also sponsor various en- tertainment activities including a va- riety of hunting and fishing trips along with outings to both profes- sional and college sporting events. Martin: Would you describe the
leadership philosophy today in your company, such as accessibility to customers and employees, and hands-on activity by you and your key management? Beall: The leadership philosophy
See contact information on page 194 • Be sure to visit
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of our management team is based on (Turn to... page 62.)
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