Nordyne’s participation with wholesale distributors is not a new concept for the manufacturing company. The company, headquartered in O’Fallon, Mo., partners with independent distributors for the vast majority of its residential and manufactured housing distribution. Although the company has opened a handful of Nordyne-owned factory locations in areas that historically it has had problems reaching, across most of the country, the company has independent distribution partners, many of whom have been Nordyne customers for decades.
“The decisions to open the handful of factory locations were made selectively and carefully as this endeavor is designed specifically to enhance our footprint where we need the most help getting our products, programs, and brands to contractors and consumers,” explained Philip Windham, vice president of sales at Nordyne. He noted that Nordyne primarily serves the United States and Canada, but that the company also has an international division with a presence in Mexico, South America, Asia, Australia, Europe, and the Middle East. “Distributors are vitally important to our company and our brands. We rely on distributors to select the contractor base and be our voice with product and program benefits. They also provide an expansive footprint of locations, local expertise, and ancillary products and services that further enhance our attractiveness to contractors and consumers.”
Distributor Partnership Relationship
Nordyne’s overall approach to the wholesaler distributor is one of partnership,
said the company.
“Over our first 25 years in the residential market, independent distribution has been key to Nordyne’s continued growth and success,” he said. “Distributors bring value in our company in different ways, much of which depends on the mindset and strategic focus of that independent business owner.”
According to Windham, local knowledge, adequate stock of equipment and parts, superior customer service, and key investments that tie directly to the consistent promotion of Nordyne brands are all value-added services a distributor can provide the company.
As for the services that Nordyne provides its distributor partners, several items made the list of benefits that distributors receive when in partnership with the manufacturer.
“We offer them the ability to attract and retain HVAC contractors with brands of equipment the homeowner already knows and trusts,” explained Windham. “We offer industry leading warranties. We provide them with the most extensive equipment offering in the industry, at the highest SEER levels, and the most thorough, aggressive program campaign to date.”
The company also provides face-to-face training; online training; and more.
Partner Training and Support
Nordyne has been providing training for distributors for much of its history and continues to provide new ways to help distributors conduct business. For example, in 2008, Nordyne started a broadcast website called the Nordyne Interactive Network. The company has since used this portal to hold frequent web broadcasts on product, program, and company news. These distributor-only broadcasts are live and include question and answer sessions with a product manager or someone from the technical team.
Over the last two years, Nordyne’s field sales team has been revamped.
“They primarily focus on helping our distributor partners at the local level with everything from product launches to program execution to contractor ride-a-longs,” explained Windham. “Our technical services team travels across North America to host technical training at distributor locations, and our product managers frequently participate in distributors’ contractor meetings.”
Its latest training tool, the Distributor Marketing Toolkit app, was launched in 2013. It provides a distributor the background information on products and it is available in the field even when he’s disconnected from the Internet.
Honoring Independent Partnerships
At its annual distributor meeting, Nordyne awarded multiple distributor companies under each of its brands for their performances in 2013. Tri-State Distributors of Royston, Ga., won the 2013 Tappan Distributor of the Year.
“Tri-State Distributors outpaced industry growth thanks to a lot of hard work,” said the manufacturer. “They did an excellent job promoting the Tappan brand to their contractor base and increasing sales.”
Gemaire Distributors of Deerfield Beach, Fla., won the 2013 Maytag® Distributor of the Year
“Gemaire Distributors worked closely with us to build even greater loyalty through their Maytag® contractor base,” said the company. “They put full effort into the brand, including a renewed focus on dealer recruitment. That strategy paid off in 2013.”
NB Handy of Lynchburg, Va., won the 2013 Sales Improvement Award.
“NB Handy has gone to exceptional lengths to reinvigorate and reinvest in their Nordyne business,” said the company. “The turnaround has been significant.”
Aireco Supply of Laurel, Md., won 2013 Frigidaire® Distributor of the Year.
“A year and a half ago, Aireco Supply started aggressively looking for ways to revitalize their Frigidaire brand,” said Nordyne. “These efforts paid off in 2013 with a strong, engaged contractor base.”
Locke Supply of Oklahoma City, won the 2013 Westinghouse Distributor of the Year Award.
“While still relatively new to the Nordyne family, Locke Supply has taken positive growth steps across their entire footprint,” said the company. “We expect great things from them in 2014 and beyond.”
Partners Supply of Chattanooga, Tenn., received the 2013 “12th Man Plan” Distributor of the Year Award. The 12th Man Plan is the Nordyne contractor program that includes marketing, sales, business, and technical support.
“We measure the success of the 12th Man Plan through contractor participation,” explained Windham. “Partners Supply was a stand-out with their number of enrolled contractors and, more important, their number of participating, engaged contractors.”
Noland Co. of Tampa, Fla., received the 2013 NuTone Sales Region of the Year award.
“This location continues to grow sales year after year,” explained Windham. “The Noland Tampa region also gives us outstanding feedback on products and programs.”
Nordyne presented Michigan-based Tommark Inc. with the 2013 “Rookie of the Year” Sales Performance Award.
“Tommark joined the Nordyne family in early 2013, and ramped up to speed amazingly fast,” said the company. “They have been exceeding our expectations ever since.”
