Professional Distributor - 24

Driven by passion

This husband and wife team each have their own truck
and route to keep up with their customer base.
by Kayla Oschmann, Assistant Editor

ryan and Amanda Lee, owners of Silver State Tools,
are independent tool dealers based in Reno, Nevada.
They are part of the GEARWRENCH Street Team
and have routes covering multiple industries, including manufacturing, automotive, paint and body, mining,
and construction.
The couple has been on the road selling tools since October 2018. Within the first five months of rolling out their first
tool truck, a 2003 20' Freightliner MT55, they had more than
500 customers and quickly realized they would need another
truck to meet the demand. In March 2019, they purchased
their second tool truck, a 2001 18' Freightliner MT55.
Bryan has 35 years of experience as a technician. He and
his wife Amanda, a car enthusiast, previously owned a mobile
tool company in Sonoma County, California. However, due
to the economy they sold the company and later moved to
Reno, Nevada.
"After moving, we realized there weren't any independent tool dealers in the area and decided to take the leap,"
Amanda says.
The couple knew they wanted to purchase Freightliner
MT55s for the trucks' heavy duty chassis and engine. They
purchased the trucks from previous tool dealers, but both
needed maintenance work and "some elbow grease." The
2003 Freightliner mainly needed interior lighting and a major
cleaning, and the 2001 Freightliner - which has a completely
different interior layout than the other truck - needed even
more work.

The Silver State Tools team put in hardwood floors,
removed the carpeting on the shelves, exposed the oak
ends, and had a custom oak workstation built with a 2" hickory
butcher block countertop. They also built hanging shelves
on the back wall and door to hold merchandise on hooks.
"Customers have a hard time believing that our trucks are
more than 15 years old," Amanda says. "This is our store and
we want to present our store to our customers as if they are
walking into an actual storefront. We are frequently complimented by our customers on how nice our trucks are. Keeping up on the cleaning and maintenance ... is a big part of
our presentation."
The Lees run their business by the motto, "Treat people
as you would like them to treat you." They enjoy meeting
people and being able to help their customers get the tools
they need to be successful in their jobs. They also extend any
sort of raffles, giveaways, and promotional deals from their
manufacturers to their customers. For example, when a tool
manufacturer has a "buy one, get one free" promotion, they
will create a sign and place it in front of that product.
"A happy customer is a repeat customer," Amanda says.
For Bryan and Amanda, taking the leap back into the tool
industry has been rewarding.
"Business is just business, but being passionate and
caring really helps in making a business an extension of
your everyday life," Amanda says. "If you are doing what
you like, it's not hard to get up in the morning and face
another day."

To view more photos of
Lee's truck, visit:

VehicleServicePros.com/
21095917
Bryan and Amanda Lee
Reno, Nev.
Population: 425,417 (metro)

24 Professional Distributor I October 2019 I VehicleServicePros.com

http://www.VehicleServicePros.com/21095917 http://www.VehicleServicePros.com

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