Professional Distributor - 20

Presentation is key

"The first thing people see is your truck when
it pulls up," says Marty Pessagno, owner of TNT Tools.
"[It's] real important that it looks good, so people want to come out there."
by Emily Markham, Assistant Editor

ased in Southern Maryland, independent mobile
tool dealer and owner of TNT Tools Marty Pessagno
has been selling tools for almost 13 years now after
following in his brother's footsteps.
For the first ten years of his tool selling career Pessagno
worked for a flagship, but as he puts it, "I kind of [do] better
working for myself than [working for] anybody else."
As his own boss and a part of GEARWRENCH's Street
Team, he services shops and dealerships in Prince George's
County, as well as makes runs to Andrews Airforce base.
When he first started, Pessagno had a diesel truck. In
his first month of business, he ran into a problem with the
truck that he notes was "devastating," as it had cost him
almost everything to get started. Three years later in 2011,
Pessagno was finally able to get rid of the problem truck and
purchase his current truck, a Ford F10 with a gasoline motor.
Though the tool dealer had the opportunity to lay out
the truck in a way that was workable for his needs, he admits
that, "I've learned things over the years that I would change
on the truck."
Since Pessagno's truck is a solid rear-axle, he lists adding airbags to the back as one update and adding a second
A/C unit to keep the truck cooler as another.
He was also able to add some customizations to the
truck, such as choosing the color of the straps that hold
the tools to the ceiling - blue - and adding an area large

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

VehicleServicePros.com/
21149277

20 Professional Distributor I September 2020 I VehicleServicePros.com

enough to put two toolboxes on the truck.
For Pessagno, one of the most important parts of his
business is presentation - inside and out.
"That's the first thing people see is your truck when it
pulls up, the second thing they see is you, and the third
thing they see is the inside of your truck," he says. "[It's]
real important that it looks good, so people want to come
out there."
The tool dealer keeps his truck neat and organized at all
times, so he knows not only where everything is, but when
customers get familiar with the truck, they can find what
they're looking for easily as well. Pessagno arranges his
products so that tools used for specific jobs are together -
A/C tools, body shop, electronics, etc, - and he keeps a lot
of the point of sale products close to him up front. These
are usually small items like soap or nail brushes.
Aside from organization, Pessagno's biggest tip for other
mobile tool dealers is to educate your customers on your
products. What do you have in stock, what's on sale, what
deals do you have going on? He notes that you should put
a sign on your sale items.
"Show [your customers] what you have on sale," Pessagno says. "Also, make sure you hand out your flyers because
the majority of your sales are going to come from the flyers."
Overall, Pessagno is very happy with his truck, and in the
future, he plans on adding another to go along with it.

Marty Pessagno
Southern Maryland

http://www.VehicleServicePros.com/21149277 http://www.VehicleServicePros.com

Professional Distributor

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Professional Distributor