Business is great, but every silver cloud must have a dark lining.
In February, I had the pleasure of attending a meeting of the PVF Roundtable in Houston. For those of you who have not been to the area, let me start by saying as far as PVF goes, everything IS bigger in Texas. Houston is both the PVF bellwether and the PVF Mecca. How PVF goes in Houston, so goes PVF nationwide - albeit, a little less intensely and a little later. Nonetheless, the Houston market is a strong leading indicator of the health of the PVF market in general.
Product proliferation adds complexity for sellers and confusion for buyers.
Recently, my wife and I contemplated replacing our kitchen faucet and decided to investigate options. Hooray for showrooms, but we didn't feel like wasting hours shopping given that we had our sights set on something pretty specific - a pull-out adjustable spray faucet. So I Googled.
As evidenced by the results of the merger mania of the '90s, many industry experts believe, as was the case in the previous decade, that as many as 80% of acquisitions do not succeed, resulting in billions of dollars invested in failure. Because the majority of acquisitions do not meet the original goals and objectives of the acquirers or other conditions change, some 40% of all businesses acquired will again be sold off within three to five years, according to available statistics.
In last month's issue, I wrote about the new 13-SEER residential air conditioning products and discussed why most manufacturers aren't making the change to R-410A more quickly. However, despite all the hubbub about meeting the new efficiency standards, there were some other interesting new technologies and ideas shown at the Exhibition that are certainly worth discussing.
Anyone who has sat through a high school science class may remember the term “osmosis.” This process was first described by a French scientist in 1748, who noted that water spontaneously diffused through a pig bladder membrane into alcohol.
As these words cascade from a keyboard during the last week of January, the industry is still buzzing about Home Depot's acquisition of Hughes Supply a few weeks ago. You can't get into a conversation without it coming up.
The 2006 AHR (Air-conditioning, Heating, Refrigeration) Expo that was held at McCormick Place Center in Chicago last January 23-25 was the largest in history. And although such brands as Carrier and Trane continue to be notably absent, one of the first companies to stop attending (Lennox International) was back in full force.
Well, I've stirred up a little bit of a controversy - and we need your (the readers') help to resolve it! I'll summarize the situation for you - but if you really want all the facts, refer to my article on manufacturers reps in the SUPPLY HOUSE TIMES December 2005 issue, page 71. Then dig out your January 2006 issue and read the letter to the editor from Bill Freeman, president of AIM/R (Association of Independent Manufacturers'/Representatives).
The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. Boil this famous statement down and what it really says is, “You must change.” I recently started working for a new client, one that has been through a steady downturn for a very long time.
In my last article (“Stop Wasting Time, Effort, Money!” SUPPLY HOUSE TIMES, January 2006, page 26) you learned about Muda, the Japanese word for waste. Since then, you have no doubt seen all sorts of Muda every day in your business - inside salespeople waiting for information; more inventory than needed stacked up around your warehouse; billing, shipping, receiving errors.
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