Professional_Distributor_April_2021 - 42

Seeking independence

How a former manager slipped the trappings of corporate
culture by becoming a tool distributor.

B
BY BRITTANY VINCENT,
MANAGING EDITOR

502-519-7978
Brittany@VehicleServicePros.com

What's
your story?
Have an interesting
experience to
share with your
fellow distributors?
Share it with us!
Contact Editor
Brittany Vincent
at Brittany@
VehicleServicePros.com.

rian Baker is a multi-route operator and tool
distributor with Mac Tools out of Columbus,
Ohio. His routes run throughout the
northeastern part of the city, servicing dealerships,
independent shops, and body shops alike.
Baker runs his solo, which he finds a welcome
change from his role in management for 18 years
and 12 years in the armored car business. He decided
to pursue a career in independent tool distribution
because he " got tired of being responsible for other
people. " He's since found a perfect fit for his work
style and personality.
One of the things that makes Baker stand out
from much of the independent distributor workforce
is that he didn't start out as a technician.
" I didn't wrench and then decide, 'Let's go sell
[tools].' I was a manager, " he says. " I didn't want to
do that anymore, so just kind of took a year off. Mac
Tools had an open house, and I live five minutes
from headquarters. I started in June 2017 and it has
literally been the best job I've ever had. "
Baker serves the entirety of Columbus in his
Freightliner MT45 truck with a 16' box, which he
refers to as a " bread truck. " He ensures he has different goods on it every other week, " or else the guys
and gals will stop coming out to it. " That includes
snacks like beef jerky, a popular choice for his customers, and a variety of different tools and equipment he believes buyers want.
But Baker wasn't always attuned to what technicians may need, however, as a newcomer to
the industry.
" I didn't come from a technician background,
so I didn't know a lot of the product [when starting
out], " he said. " I knew what a screwdriver, hammer,
and a wrench were, but there were and are a lot of
automotive-specific tools that I didn't know what
the heck they were, " he says. Luckily, he adds, most
of his customers don't always know what they're
looking for, either.
" 'I need that one thing that's about this long, and
then its got a 90 and a 45-something on the end,' "
he says. " [Technicians] trying to explain to me wasn't
quite learning a new language, but similar. Almost

42 Professional Distributor I April 2021 I VehicleServicePros.com

Brian Baker runs multiple routes with Mac Tools in
Columbus, Ohio. He says that pursuing a career in
independent tool distribution is a perfect fit for his work
style and personality.

four years later, you tell me what you need and 99
percent of the time I know exactly what it is. "
Whether it's choosing where to do business or
what to stock on his truck, Baker ultimately values his independence as a mobile distributor over
everything else. As a father with a wife and two children, he appreciates the ability to help get the kids
to school and help pitch in at home. It's a refreshing
change to run his route, sell the tools he chooses at
his own pace, and avoid letting his day " run him "
instead of the other way around.
" It's just so nice to be able to make your own
schedule and not have to turn [my professional mode
on] and be Work Brian, and then come home and be
myself, " he says. " The freedom cannot be overstated,
how nice it is to work for yourself. "


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Professional_Distributor_April_2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Professional_Distributor_April_2021

Editor's Note
Aftermarket Profile
Most Wanted
Sneak Peek
Go Sell Something
In Focus Products
Driving Sales
Tales from the Road
Professional_Distributor_April_2021 - 1
Professional_Distributor_April_2021 - 2
Professional_Distributor_April_2021 - 3
Professional_Distributor_April_2021 - Editor's Note
Professional_Distributor_April_2021 - 5
Professional_Distributor_April_2021 - Aftermarket Profile
Professional_Distributor_April_2021 - 7
Professional_Distributor_April_2021 - 8
Professional_Distributor_April_2021 - 9
Professional_Distributor_April_2021 - 10
Professional_Distributor_April_2021 - 11
Professional_Distributor_April_2021 - 12
Professional_Distributor_April_2021 - 13
Professional_Distributor_April_2021 - 14
Professional_Distributor_April_2021 - 15
Professional_Distributor_April_2021 - 16
Professional_Distributor_April_2021 - 17
Professional_Distributor_April_2021 - 18
Professional_Distributor_April_2021 - 19
Professional_Distributor_April_2021 - 20
Professional_Distributor_April_2021 - 21
Professional_Distributor_April_2021 - 22
Professional_Distributor_April_2021 - 23
Professional_Distributor_April_2021 - Most Wanted
Professional_Distributor_April_2021 - 25
Professional_Distributor_April_2021 - Sneak Peek
Professional_Distributor_April_2021 - 27
Professional_Distributor_April_2021 - 28
Professional_Distributor_April_2021 - 29
Professional_Distributor_April_2021 - 30
Professional_Distributor_April_2021 - 31
Professional_Distributor_April_2021 - Go Sell Something
Professional_Distributor_April_2021 - 33
Professional_Distributor_April_2021 - In Focus Products
Professional_Distributor_April_2021 - 35
Professional_Distributor_April_2021 - 36
Professional_Distributor_April_2021 - 37
Professional_Distributor_April_2021 - Driving Sales
Professional_Distributor_April_2021 - 39
Professional_Distributor_April_2021 - 40
Professional_Distributor_April_2021 - 41
Professional_Distributor_April_2021 - Tales from the Road
Professional_Distributor_April_2021 - 43
Professional_Distributor_April_2021 - 44
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