A focus on customer service and integrating technology to strengthen efficiencies is helping the VIPAR Heavy Duty Family of Companies stay ahead of the aftermarket at large, Chairman of the Board Bill Nolan and President and CEO Chris Baer reported Monday during the organization’s IMPACT Conference opening general session in Marco Island, Fla.
Nolan kicked off this year’s conference by noting 2024 has been an uneven year for most of the aftermarket. MacKay & Company’s John Blodgett confirmed that assessment later in the session. The parts industry is facing the same headwinds found in the dealer channel as freight volume and carrier profitability have waned from recent all-time highs.
But Nolan says despite current market uncertainty, VIPAR Heavy Duty is a business built to turn uncertainty into opportunity. This isn’t the first time the aftermarket has fallen on tough times, nor will it be the last. Nolan says VIPAR Heavy Duty understands that, and remains focused on growth and the future despite current challenges.
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“As these uncertain times test our faith, our resilience and our hope, remember that this uncertainty has always been here. It’s been a part of our lives,” he says. “We must recognize that opportunities arise during difficult times.”
And Nolan believes collaboration between VIPAR Heavy Duty’s Family of Companies with its distributors will enable the organization to capitalize on those opportunities.
VIPAR Heavy Duty Chairman of the Board Bill Nolan speaks Monday during the opening general session of the company's 2024 IMPACT Conference.
“We are stronger together, when we work together,” he says.
Baer followed Nolan’s opening address by sharing the many ways VIPAR Heavy Duty is working to support its member companies.
He offered updates on VIPAR’s program management, business development, marketing programs, technology and rebate operations, as well as the organization’s stockholder owned Global Parts Network (GPN) remanufacturing facility. Key updates included enhancements to purchasing methods through GPN, the company’s new training platform and new ERP integrations and business analytics resources to improve how the group and its distributors can work together.
Baer also touted GPN as a major growth potential for all distributors, as the facility has capacity to increase production and support some of the highest volume product lines across the entire organization.
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Baer also was happy to show how much VIPAR Heavy Duty continues to grow. The organization surpassed 1,000 points of sale this year and Baer and Vice President of Business Development Jim Pennig say more locations and new distributors are coming before the end of the year. Baer says VIPAR’s stockholder numbers are down slightly from a decade ago, but the organization as a whole is much stronger because the companies that remain or are entering the group are growing so well.
Baer says the VIPAR Heavy Duty Family of Companies will exceed $1 billion in purchases in the very near future.
“We look forward to celebrating that number with everybody here very soon,” he says.
VIPAR Heavy Duty Vice President of Marketing Jeff Paul presents about the company's new Nucleus Training Center during a breakout session Monday at its 2024 IMPACT Conference.
VIPAR ‘breaks out’ to showcase new resources
Monday’s IMPACT Conference also featured discovery breakout sessions addressing key resources VIPAR Heavy Duty is providing for its distributors.
Those sessions covered its new training platform, Business Resource Center and strategic purchasing through its six buying channels. Led by VIPAR’s leadership team, the sessions were designed to enable distributor attendees to better understand VIPAR Heavy Duty’s many new tools that can be leveraged to strengthen their operations and customer service.
VIPAR Vice President of Marketing Jeff Paul says the company’s new training platform is set to launch early in 2025. During Monday’s session, he shared the company’s education strategy to train distributor users on its functionality and showed samples of how the tool works and classes available.
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In the resource center session, Wendi Frederick, director of business resources, and Ben Muxlow, BRC analyst, highlighted shipping and logistics options, warehouse and shop supply contractors, analytics tools and other solutions the resource center has compiled to help distributors save money on essential business operations.
Larry Griffin, vice president of program management, led the third session and addressed how VIPAR’s expanded procurement options are designed to maximize price savings for distributors based on specific needs. Griffin says expanding avenues for distributors to place orders will provide volume pricing and shipping advantages across the group.
