The 23rd annual Trucks, Parts, Service Distributor of the Year award program is underway once again.
Graciously sponsored by Commercial Vehicle Solutions Network (CVSN), Cummins-Meritor, High Bar Brands, Interstate Billing Service and Karmak, this year's program features a trio of prior finalists and two first-time program honorees. As always, the Distributor of the Year program seeks to recognize the independent aftermarket's strongest, most innovative operations for their unending commitment to customer service and business success.
Beginning today and leading up to the presentation of our next Distributor of the Year award winner on Jan. 21, 2025 at Heavy Duty Aftermarket Week, TPS will be regularly shining our spotlight on our 2024 award finalists and what makes their companies so special.
We begin with First Call Truck Parts. A finalist for the Distributor of the Year award for the second time, First Call was first highlighted by our program in 2018.
When was your business founded, and by whom?
How many locations do you have? (Please list the cities)
We have locations in Tallahassee, Fla., started in 2001; and Thomasville, Ga., started in 2022.
How many employees do you have?
We have 21 employees.
How does your business recruit new employees?
Primarily through word of mouth, online job boards, and community involvement.
What is your company’s value proposition?
First Call Truck Parts offers a wide selection of heavy-duty truck parts and tools for a competitive price, but our primary value proposition is our extensive experience behind the counter. We have a great mix of experienced parts specialists and young staff members that lead the way in embracing new systems, processes, and methods for securing the right part for the customer as quickly as possible.
Our primary goal is to lower the cost per mile for our fleet customers and decrease the turnaround time for our shop customers. We provide the training resources necessary to allow our customers to make educated decisions on what products will save them the most in the long-run. We provide free fleet surveys, on-site training, free delivery, free inventory management, and access to our state-of-the-art website which includes customer truck list and part purchase histories for easy part lookup/ordering.
Do you offer any additional services to complement your parts offering?
We offer shop services including flywheel service, DPF cleaning, custom U-bolt bending, custom hydraulic services and driveline balance/build/repair.
How do you differentiate your business from your competitors?
Most of this is noted above, but to summarize:
- Shop services
- Extensive counter experience
- Competitive pricing
- Education opportunities for customers
- State-of-the-art tech stack that allows for efficient part search, identification and ordering
- Community focused events to increase interest in the diesel industry
What is the biggest challenge facing your business in 2024?
Our primary focus is growth and the biggest challenge we face has been hiring. While we are confident in our current staff, we have had difficulties adding high quality parts specialist to our new store to match the overwhelming demand in the area. We seek to overcome this challenge by increasing awareness of the great opportunities in the heavy duty aftermarket world in general and at First Call Truck Parts in particular.
Why do you believe the heavy-duty aftermarket has nominated you for this award?
First Call Truck Parts is a premier heavy-duty truck parts and tools distributer and has been a loyal HDA Truck Pride distributor since 2006. Joe Ward, founder and CEO, has had the honor of serving on numerous commercial boards and committees including CVSN, AAAS, and HDA Truck Pride.
In addition to national board participation, First Call Truck Parts has focused on bringing high-quality American made products to the market and has sought to hire the most competitive and talented parts specialist in the area. This has led to phenomenal regional support from customers that in turn allows First Call Truck Parts to support key vendors and expand its product offering. First Call Truck Parts takes pride in hiring parts specialist to retire them and focuses on internal promotion of key employees wherever possible.
In 2023 after 22 years of operating out of one location in Tallahassee, First Call Truck Parts expanded its footprint across state lines by opening a new location in Thomasville, Ga., a town that had a great need for a local heavy-duty truck parts distributor. First Call Truck Parts doubled its footprint and employee headcount, created new local jobs, new distribution channels for vendors, and new customers. The Thomasville location is led by Terry Billingsley, store manager, and serves the South Georgia area.
First Call Truck Parts has also given back to the community by providing educational clinics to service technicians and enable them to further their industry knowledge and hone their craft. First Call Truck Parts hosts numerous local events, both in-store and out of store, to support the local community such as an annual open-house, annual tool sales, annual customer appreciation lunch, technical clinics, driver appreciation events, and the First Call Truck Parts Diesel Expo and Truck Show which had its inaugural event in 2024. This was a first ever event and was well attended by the public, vendors, diesel tech schools, and truckers and served to greatly increase the public awareness of the diesel world in the Southeast territory.
Stay tuned, as in two weeks will learn more about 2024 award finalist Freedom Truck & Trailer.
