Just as so many others before her, Jamie Benson never really set out to become an independent manufacturers’ rep. Her first dream was to become a big-shot singer-songwriter-musician.

According to Benson, “I think you either have the rep business in the family or you somehow stumble into it. As for me, I grew up in Phoenix, Arizona, and spent the hot summer afternoons in my bedroom learning how to play the guitar and recording myself on my tape player. I fantasized about playing on a great big stage with bright lights and a crowd of fans singing along with my songs. Reality hit my senior year of college when I completed an internship at a record company in New York City. It was then I realized how many phenomenal musicians were out there just singing in bars every night of the week, trying to get by. At that point, I decided I ought to consider a different career path.”

That different path has taken her to where she is today heading Architectural Resources, a San Diego-based independent rep agency for top-tier building product manufacturers. But before she got to where she is, there were a few stops along the way.

As she reflects on her rep career Benson notes, “I was always a people person, so I figured a sales gig might be a good fit. My dad worked in real estate for his entire career and just loved to work with people. They say the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. I heard careers in pharmaceutical sales were great, so I set off with an entry-level sales job selling window coverings to build up my experience and then apply for a big pharma position.

“I had just moved to San Diego and was living my best summer life. For so many years I longed to call this city my home and had finally made it happen! I was on the right track until I had the opportunity to ride along with a pharmaceutical rep and was not enthralled. As it turns out, I don’t love to be in doctors’ offices and although I do believe there is a time and a place for pharmaceuticals, I was concerned about having an internal ethical battle if I didn’t strongly believe in the drugs I was tasked to bring to market.”

She continues, “Fortunately, my entry-level window covering gig sparked an unexpected interest in commercial construction. Sorting through ideas for the next steps in my career, I met Jen Foster, a friend of my mother. She and her husband Bob owned an independent manufacturers’ rep agency in Phoenix, Arizona, Foster Engineered Products. Their agency, which was featured in Agency Sales magazine (November 2019) specializes in architectural building products for commercial construction. After many discussions with Jen and Bob, they hired me as a sales rep to support their growth in the San Diego region in 2008.”

Baptism by Fire

Having graduated college with a degree in communication and music, Benson admits she knew little about construction — “I could read a tape measure, but I had a lot more to learn to become an expert in my field.

“However, I jumped in headfirst and loved every minute of it. I figured baptism by fire was as good a way as any and proudly showed up to my first job site with freshly painted green polka dots on my hard hat. To say I was the talk of my little niche specialty world was an understatement. Embarrassed and red in the cheeks, I removed the polka dots, figuring it might be best to fly a little lower on the radar as I learned the tricks of the trade.

“As the years passed, I worked hard to develop my understanding of the rep business and become a technical resource for the products I represented.

“Being fully committed to developing business in San Diego, I decided to pursue my interest in having an ownership stake in my work. The entrepreneurial spirit burning inside could no longer be ignored. I became a member of MANA and was pleased to find that the association had a wealth of knowledge on how to establish and run a professional rep agency. I don’t believe you can ever be fully prepared to make a monumental life change, but certainly educating myself before jumping into the deep end was a big priority. I attended a couple of Women Rep conferences through MANA and pored over articles and other information contained in MANA’s ‘Steps to Rep Professionalism’ program in order to prepare myself to become an owner.”

About one year ago, Benson completed her 13-year chapter with Foster Engineered Products. “I thanked the Fosters for everything they taught me and in March 2022, I launched my single-person agency, Architectural Resources. I started from scratch without a manufacturer to represent and began calling everyone I knew to share the big news and plant seeds for opportunities. I also used my LinkedIn network to connect with the industry and to spread the word as quickly as possible.”

Explaining the market she serves, Benson says, “I established Architectural Resources to service the architectural building product market exclusively in San Diego. Typically lumped into territories spanning across Southern California, San Diego is often under-supported as a result of the demands of the neighboring Los Angeles market, which is rich in large architectural firms and a vast construction market. Having worked exclusively in San Diego for 13 years, I offer a unique perspective on the region with strong relationships in the architectural and contracting communities and have a great pulse on the commercial construction market.”

She continues, “I developed strategic business plans and shared my story over the first few months with countless manufacturers. That effort has yielded an excellent start for my agency, and I’m proud to have partnered with four domestic manufacturers and one international. The goal was to get back to market as quickly as possible to continue to build upon the relationships I had established over years past. I’m about one year in now and hitting the ground running!”

Locating Principals

She adds that when it comes to identifying prospective principals, “Never underestimate the power of your network — from close colleagues to acquaintances, the degrees of separation are few.”

Expanding on the single United Kingdom-based international manufacturer that she works with, Benson says, “While I’m a big advocate of domestic supply, there are, however, certain international offerings that are not available in the United States marketplace. Certainly, supply chain delays and congestion in the ports have resulted in concerns in the industry for procurement internationally, but so long as schedules are set early in the project, material procurement can be coordinated to meet project demands.”

Explaining her rationale for the market she serves, Benson says, “I absolutely love getting to be a part of the built environment from design through completion. Working with architects is incredibly rewarding. They have so much creative perspective to conceptualize and working with them to provide the technical support required to bring their visions to life is incredibly enjoyable. Supporting the construction side of the project is also very rewarding. I love the thrill of bidding a project, getting it on the books and coordinating with my contractors to secure approvals and deliver material to the site. Working so closely with contractors has yielded many great friendships over the years!”

When she’s asked if, since she’s opened her agency doors, she’s had any experience with receiving retainers or shared territorial development fees from manufacturers, Benson explains that “Time is valuable and professional representatives should not be expected to work for free. Always keeping that in mind, I’ve had some success in receiving shared territorial development fees, which are extremely helpful in supporting the costs of bringing new products and principals to market. With costs of everything on the rise, simply the gas required to get in front of prospective customers is a big-ticket item in the budget.

“Getting creative in circumstances where shared development fees cannot be agreed upon is essential for managing cash flow as commercial construction can have a two- to five-year sales cycle, a lengthy window of time to await a steady flow of commissions. I’ve found that early commission draws in conjunction with bonuses at agreed-upon metrics are another way to generate some cash flow.”

Technology’s Impact

Even though Benson is new to owning and operating her agency, she’s obviously armed with well over a decade of experience as a rep. As a result, she’s quick to note the importance of one major change in how reps conduct their business today. “If I can point to one major change that has impacted reps it’s absolutely technology, technology, technology!

“When I started working as a rep, all of my opportunities were organized on an Excel spreadsheet. Looking back, it’s hard to imagine how that ever worked. Today CRM platforms are game changers in allowing reps to track day-to-day business, customer engagements, opportunities, project management, and commission reconciliations.

“And, there’s more! Ready or not — turn on that camera. Thanks to Covid, virtual meetings are now a part of the everyday work week. I must admit that I was a bit gun shy in jumping on the virtual meeting bandwagon, but there was no shying away from it in spring of 2020. Ring light and all, I’m fully enabled and sharing my screen like a pro! I’m certainly grateful to be seeing more in-person meetings again, but the virtual technology is here to stay.”

And, then there’s LinkedIn. “LinkedIn has become a very powerful network in the professional world. I’ve used it from time to time over the last few months to share updates on the evolution of my business and principals I’m representing. I’ll continue to use LinkedIn more and more to keep in touch with the industry at large on local project updates and Architectural Resources’ involvement in relevant industry-related content.”

As if shared territorial development fees, tech advances and keeping up with social media aren’t enough to concern her, Benson admits there are other topics to keep in mind that can impact her fairly new venture. “First up, will my principals value the time it takes to increase sales in this region and give me the time I need to prove my success? Construction has a long sales cycle, and it takes years to develop a dependable pipeline. I communicate very regularly with my manufacturers, so they are aware of what’s happening week to week in the market.

Starting at the Right Time?

“Then there’s the recession. What a time to be starting a business! Material escalations combined with hikes in interest rates are a definite cause for concern in commercial construction. The momentum is still rather fast and furious in the San Diego market, and I’m hopeful for this to continue but realistic to know that the economic instability will have a significant impact at some point in the foreseeable future. The economic climate is certainly out of my control, so I try not to dwell in this space of uncertainty but strive to do everything in my control to establish my business, continually building my reputation so that in a downturn, I can sustain.

“And, finally what about money? I’ve mentioned that the sales cycle is long in my industry. I went into this business knowing this — yet I’m still counting down the days to a pipeline that’s turning profits on the regular.”

In closing, Benson admits that a major help to her in starting her own agency has been her membership in MANA. “I discovered MANA through an article shared from Agency Sales by my previous employer, Foster Engineered Products. I jumped at the opportunity to join, thrilled to have found a network for manufacturers’ reps. The educational tools on the website, Agency Sales magazine, and members I’ve connected with have been invaluable resources in preparing me to become the owner of an agency. I’m very grateful to have discovered MANA and will be a member for many years to come!”

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