Author: GAWDA MEDIA

Commercial Miscellaneous Sales Commercial Miscellaneous Sales President Louis “Louie” Centofanti grew up around welding. His father and grandfather owned a shipyard and Louie developed a love for welding. When Centofanti graduated from college, he was interested in pursuing a career in welding and industrial supplies. “In the area we live, we’re dominated by major welding and industrial supply companies,” says Centofanti. “There was an opening for an independent. So, my father sold his shipyard and came on board with me.” The company was started in 2005. Today, Commercial Miscellaneous Sales services both the industrial supply market as well as the…

BTIC America BTIC America Corporation was established in Houston, Texas, in 1995. The company was actually founded as America Fortune Company, but began selling high pressure gas cylinders from Beijing Tianhai Industry Co., Ltd. (BTIC). That relationship grew and blossomed and eventually led America Fortune Company to become a subsidiary of BTIC. Thus, BTIC America Corporation (BAC) was formed. BTIC is one of the largest cylinder manufacturers and distributors in the world, and, together, BTIC and BAC represent more than seven different manufacturing facilities, offering a wide range of products for every cylinder need. BAC prides itself on offering “the…

Michigan Arc Products Michigan Arc Products (MAP) was established in 1970 by James Colosimo, Sr. to provide state-of-the-art welding technology to improve the manufacturing capabilities of Automotive OEM and Tier 1 suppliers. MAP provided the automotive industry with a professional technical sales force coupled with a highly skilled engineering department designed to provide welding process and procedure development management at a competitive price. Today, MAP is celebrating its 50th Anniversary. It has become one of North America’s premier suppliers of all grades of welding wire, welding equipment, welding robotics and comprehensive welding solutions. With regional warehouses throughout the U.S., Canada…

S.J. Smith Company S.J. Smith Company (Davenport, Iowa) is celebrating its 70th Anniversary in 2020. The company was established in 1950 by Sylvester and Helen Smith. Prior to opening S.J. Smith, Sylvester had experience in the industry selling welding supplies and gas for AIRCO. After AIRCO exited the distributor business, Sylvester and Helen continued to serve smaller accounts, while AIRCO handled the larger industrial accounts. In 1966, S.J. Smith bought the remaining welding supply business from AIRCO. In 1969, Richard Smith, Sylvester and Helen’s son, joined the company and eventually took over when Sylvester retired. Rich continued to expand the…

Fronius “I have opened a specialist repair shop for radios and electrical equipment at the Rankleiten hotel. All repairs are carried out by me personally at any time, both in my workshop or at your premises. I ask my valued customers to turn to me with complete confidence.”  With those simple words, Gunter Fronius marked the beginning of a journey that has encompassed the next 75 years. Fronius was started on June 20, 1945, in the Austrian market town of Pettenbach, where its headquarters still reside today. From its roots as a simple one-man radio repair shop in 1945, Fronius…

American Torch Tip Company In October 1940, Jack Walters, Sr. and his brother-in-law saw the need for quality replacement Torch Tips and created a new company called American Torch Tip Company. Walters was working as a plant manager for a competitor in Pittsburgh at the time when he decided to strike out on his own. To make his dream a reality, Walters sold torch tips during the day and went to work at the American Bridge Company at night. Today, American Torch Tip is in its third generation of family ownership. “Every generation has added to the company,” says Jack…

by Caroline K. Reff Forty years ago, your father and mother started a family business. They worked hard, and the business grew. Maybe, as a child, you helped behind the counter or as a teen started to learn some of the skills required on the production end of the business. Your three siblings did the same. At some point, however, you and your siblings each had to decide whether to make the family business a career. Maybe your parents influenced you, pressuring you to stay with the business or conversely deciding that you needed to go to college and/or work…

by Patrick Lencioni These days, virtually no one will tell you that teamwork isn’t important when it comes to an organization achieving its goals. Even cynics understand that groups of people who are willing to put their individual interests aside for the good of the team will outperform groups of people who do not. Having said that, there is something that often happens after a team succeeds that suggests many of us might be discounting the real power of teamwork. A great example of this happens in the world of professional sports. With the football season having just wrapped up,…

By Bill McCloy, Managing Director, AmWINS Program Underwriters, Welding DistributorPro Insurance Program Your business has suffered a loss – a natural disaster or a fire.  So much of how you respond after a loss is predicated on how well you’ve prepared prior to a loss.  Ask yourself these questions: Have you developed an Emergency Response Plan or Disaster Recovery Plan?  Do you have inventory lists, plot maps, vehicle registrations, accounts receivable and payable, or key contact information documented and backed up?  Is your back-up secured off site?   Do you have a dedicated individual accountable for coordinating the response if…

By Mike Marks, Managing Partner of Indian River Consulting Group Back in the day, the path to distributor growth was to sell service with excellent people. Sales reps sold themselves first and customers bought from reps that had earned their trust based on their past performance. A key driver in the customer value proposition was their relationship with their own sales rep, not the company. Supply chains were unreliable and heroic recoveries were visible and common. The reps were paid a commission on the gross margin they generated so they could “eat what they killed.” The sales force was self-directed…