Truck Parts and Service | Heavy Duty Trucking, Aftermarket, Service Info
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/539530
16 learning about independent aftermarket distribution. He still remembers the event like it was yesterday. "I remember thinking afterward, 'This was the greatest thing I've been to in my life,'" he says. "I'd been on the dealer side for years and I had never seen a group of dealers as willing to talk about their businesses as the aftermarket guys were. It was incredible." Greer says everyone he met at that fi rst meeting was friendly, helpful and most importantly, informative. He says he learned as much from his contem- poraries at that meeting than he would have in months or a year with a group of dealers. Buoyed by the confi dence he gained at that fi rst meeting, Greer says he dove head fi rst into independent distribution. He immediately began attending more industry events, and not long after joined the board at HDA Truck Pride. "When you go to dealer meetings there are a lot of good relationships there, but it's a little different environ- ment," he says. "People are a bit more guarded and less willing to share infor- mation. The independent aftermarket is a much more open community." Ian Johnston says he had a similar experience when he entered the industry full-time a year later. While Johnston wasn't totally new to the aftermarket like Greer — he'd worked in his father's business, Harman Heavy Vehicle Specialists, since he was a kid — it wasn't until he formally joined the company in a professional role that he discovered his father wouldn't be the only person he could rely on. "The amount of knowledge in this industry is incredible," says Johnston, now Harman's vice president of opera- tions and marketing. "You just have to be willing to get involved. To ask questions and listen." Edward Kuo says that's the tactic he used when he fi rst stepped into the industry. As someone who didn't know the difference between an air brake and a hydraulic brake, Kuo says he was sur- prised by how quickly he was able to get acclimated to the parts industry. "Having an extroverted personality, I knew the fastest way to get up to speed was by asking questions of other people," says Kuo, now the director of sales, motor vehicles at Datalliance. "When I started, I remember asking some really, really ridiculous questions. But I needed to know the answers if I were to succeed at my job. Even now, I know Wikipedia can't answer all of the questions — particularly those questions that involve personalities and processes." He says the independent aftermarket did, without hesitation. But why, you ask? Why are so many professional distributors and suppliers willing to sit down and talk shop with potential competitors? Don Purcell, partner at Stone Truck Parts, believes that openness comes from the industry's faith and total commit- ment to the prosperity of the indepen- dent distribution channel. People in this industry want and need it to remain successful. "I think everyone realizes if our industry is to continue to grow that we need to be willing to work together," he says. "If one person develops a technique that can help others, it is in his best T R U C K P A R T S & S E R V I C E | J u l y 2 0 1 5 Building relationships throughout the aftermarket can be vital when it comes to training your team. You can take what you've learned from throughout the industry to strenghten your operation. Cover Story The amount of knowledge in this industry is incredible. You just have to be willing to get involved. To ask questions and listen. – Ian Johnston, vice president of operations and marketing at Harman