august2023 - 4

EDITOR'S NOTE
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Stock up!
Give your tool truck a refresh
with some new tools.
K
EMILY MARKHAM
EDITOR
Emily@
VechicleServicePros.com
nowing what tools and
equipment to stock on
your tool truck isn't easy.
Between a diverse customer base,
shops that specialize in different
repairs, technicians who buy only
their favorite brands, and new
technologies hitting the market, it's
tough to appease everyone. For
the newer distributors still trying
to figure this out, your best course
of action is likely to stock up on a
bit of everything, and as you get
to know your customers more or
new products come out, change
things up where it makes sense.
For example, in this month's
Tales from the Road article (page
42), Mac Tools distributor, Tina
Leuschner, talks about how, when
she was first starting out, she had to
rely on her research skills to understand
what tools her customers
needed for specific repairs. With
no background in the automotive
industry, Leuschner has also
learned to lean on her customers
and let them tell her what they need
to guide what she keeps on board.
As for the distributors who've
been at this for a while, don't get
complacent about what you're
stocking. Sure, there are certain
tools and equipment you'll always
want to keep on hand, but that's no
reason for letting your inventory get
stale. Stay on top of industry trends
and the new tools and equipment
being released - especially those
that are improving on past versions
of a tool. Everyone is always on the
lookout for ways to do things faster,
easier, and more efficiently.
If you're not sure where to start,
4 Professional Distributor I August 2023 I VehicleServicePros.com
we've got you covered. Try flipping
to page 12 and checking out this
year's Innovation Award winners.
The products we're showcasing
were hand-picked by a panel of
judges out of over 100 submissions
as 26 of the best new products to
enter the industry in the past year.
Each product was judged on the
following criteria:
* Time savings
* Simplifying a task
* Unique/new approach
* Improving a current tool
* Ease of use
This should give you a good
place to start looking for potential
new products to stock on your
truck. However, if you're not currently
looking for something new
to add to your truck, here are a few
tips on how you can make your
current stock work for you.
1. Rotate your products - By
rotating your products to different
shelves throughout the
year, you'll keep your customers
looking, which may result in the
sale of an item that's been sitting
around for a while.
2. Product arrangement - Try
keeping faster moving products
towards the back of your truck.
That way customers will have to
walk past everything else to get to
what they're looking for, which
may cause a few impulse buys.
3. Switch up your display items -
If you have a lot of inventory, it
can be hard to have everything
on display at once, so regularly
switch out which products you
have on display to give your
truck a bit of a refresh.
Printed in the U.S. Volume 31, Number 7; August 2023
EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT - TRANSPORTATION
Kylie Hirko 630-253-4034 Kylie@VehicleServicePros.com
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920-234-6359 Emily@VehicleServicePros.com
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august2023

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