Finding success through industry relationships

By Anna Lockhart.  

In residential construction, it can be incredibly valuable to build relationships with industry distributors. The experts weigh in on why and how contractors should seek connections in the community to further their success.  

In a recent episode of Roofing Road Trips®, host Heidi J. Ellsworth visited with Vice President of Residential New Construction, Jeff Leyden and West Region – Business Development Manager, Stephanie Lyons of ABC Supply to discuss residential construction trends and the relationship between distributors and contractors. In this conversation, the three discussed the importance of building such relationships and how they can impact the success of residential contracting businesses.  

Jeff has decades of experience in the industry, and he shared that based on the data they are seeing, there’s going to be a good opportunity for growth in residential construction in coming years. As the industry grows, it is essential for contractors and business owners to create a reliable line of communication and a relationship with distributors. ABC Supply is a trusted distributor for the industry and knows the importance of building these relationships. "We want to make [ABC Supply] your one stop shop and help you grow with what's going on with the business that we see," said Jeff. "So, we're really excited about what's coming [in the industry] in the next few years." 

By working to become a one-stop shop for their customers, the company can help residential contractors and builders find any product they need, in reliable quality and quantities across a variety of material and tool types. When it comes to product selection, Jeff noted the company can provide “everything on the exterior, the roof, walls, cladding products, window products and accessories," to name a few. ABC Supply also supplies solar products in select markets, which has expanded across the country since its introduction to the company several years ago, "Now, we have over 80 branches stocking solar components for our customers,” Jeff shared. He continued, “With that, we have the machinery and equipment to load it on the roof, which is unique in the industry... We’re trying to make it easy for the contractors to shop through us so we can service their business.” 

Stephanie emphasized the importance they place on timelines and customer service as a distributor, including making connections with contractors along the way. “I think there are a lot of challenges that small builders face where the relationship with a distributor can help. [As a supplier], we have resources that the builder may not have with software, programming or even at our branch level, where they can help with estimation. We have access to the manufacturers that they may not have at every level, so we can assist with them finding product literature, finding products that meet municipality requirements, and things like that,” she shared. “So, having all those relationships in place helps ensure that product gets to where you need it as that small builder. But if you don't have those relationships built, it makes that more of a challenge, especially with the smaller builders.” 

For both contractors and distributors, finding ways to make a connection and build a solid relationship can be a tremendous benefit to a company’s success and reputation long term. Stephanie explained that having those relationships in place helps ensure that products get to where they’re needed, when they’re needed.  

Read the transcript or Listen to the podcast to learn more about distributor and contractor relationships!  

You can also learn more about ABC Supply and its offerings at abcsupply.com.