The Hunt for New Reps

After a tough year, most of you are probably happy to put a brand new calendar on the wall. But before you auld lang syne 2003 completely, think back to the article we wrote last September, in which we wondered how the gift industry can survive without new, young reps bringing their enthusiasm and energy to our business.

Well, there was no shortage of responses from readers, who exhibited a range of opinions as wide as the gift industry itself. One reader called our assessment "ludicrous," while another thought we posed great questions. Others had ideas, answers, and even more questions. Clearly, our question stirred something up.

Following are several different theories on the state of our industry. Hopefully they'll offer more perspectives worth contemplating.

One theme prevailed among all the responses we received. To quote Bob Dylan: "The times, they are a-changin'. " Jim Horkheimer of Rochester, New York, describes himself as "a rep approaching wheelchair age." Horkheimer started his career as an assistant buyer in a major department store. From there, he transitioned to sales trainee for a supplier, and then an independent rep. Jim had four sub reps that worked with him for a minimum of 15 years each. According to him, all four earned at least $50,000. And that was years ago in upstate New York, which, Jim says, was "never a garden spot."

So where did all that talent go? Jim says it disappeared when the local department stores went away. "Once there were three or four department stores in even the smallest cities," he explains. "Assistant buyers, buyers, even merchandise managers became reps. By and large, those stores are now gone. With them went the talent, as well as the customer base."

Travis Herrero, sales and marketing director at Mill Creek Studios, believes that changes in the industry — including slashed wholesale prices, smaller margins, and decreasing profitability — have led to a lack of loyalty in the business.

"This industry is made through relationships. Yet it seems that every time you turn around, a manufacturer is leaving a rep group because of some unattained, unreasonable sales expectation," Herrero notes. "One look around shows that the bottom line is getting to be too big. Community and relationships have no friends here. Why would an outsider looking in want to make a career doing this?"

That's an interesting perspective — especially from a manufacturer. But the deeper point is this: relationships and loyalty are the fundamentals on which our industry is built.

Much of the feedback we received focused on the dual tasks of creating better sales reps and where to find the right personality traits for the industry. Gregg Marshall, executive director of United Sales Association (USA) maintains that many industries are facing difficulty recruiting sales reps.

"The issue is made worse by the fact that most college sales and marketing texts ignore manufacturers' reps altogether, or incorrectly describe their function and place in the distribution channel," says Marshall.

Marshall also talked about the goals of his agency, USA. Formerly a "reps only" group, USA recently decided that by encouraging manufacturers to join, they could facilitate a better understanding of the challenges faced by both sides. One of their focal points is education. Two members of the group recently completed USA's Certified Professional Manufacturers Representative program, which Marhsall refers to as "the MBA in repping."

Working toward a shared understanding of challenges between manufacturers and reps makes sense. As we've often written, it can be hard for one side to appreciate the roadblocks, hurdles, and frustrations the other faces. If USA (and other groups) can remove some of those obstacles to understanding, it will be a huge accomplishment, as well as an incentive for bright young minds to try repping in the gift industry.

We got many responses about what qualities the ideal rep should have. "Youth is in too much of a hurry," said one respondent. "Older people have learned patience, which is a crucial quality in truly successful reps."

That sentiment was echoed by Bob and Jane Orenstein, who wrote, "Having just begun as reps at the time most people are retiring, we bring professional sales experience, enthusiasm, and organizational skills that are desperately needed in this industry. Almost immediately, we became the leading sales team for our rep company in the Southeast." In fact, Bob and Jane took some exception to our article, and we can understand why. They also added, however, "In our younger days we couldn't have taken a chance in this type of job."

Maybe the key is that the industry should be looking for "older" professionals, who bring experience, knowledge, and patience. Let the kids figure it out somewhere else first, and then come to us. It's an interesting idea.

Peter Trouw, rep principal for R-Biz Associates has no problems. "Most of our reps have been with us for a long time, are independent thinkers, and top-flight managers of their territories," said Trouw. "Maybe I'm just a lucky guy, with the good luck to be in a California marketplace with lots of opportunities," he said.

Well, we couldn't leave that one alone, so we called Peter. He said it's not magic, its just logic. "If you're good to people, they're good to you." R-Biz provides a draw and advances against what reps are writing. And the agency keeps them afloat when they need it. "If I have good reps, I treasure them," Trouw explains.

That's the way to attract talent.