Before any discussion takes place of MacKellar Associates, Rochester Hills, Michigan, here are some challenging — if not daunting — facts about family-owned businesses:

• According to the Harvard Business Review, approximately 70 percent of family-owned businesses won’t make it to a second generation.
• Only 30 percent of family businesses survive the transition from first- to second-generation ownership.
• Just 12 percent survive the transition from second to third generation. Only 13 percent of family businesses remain in the family more than 60 years.
• And, 47 percent of family business owners expecting

If anything captured the tone of a discussion during a MANAchat devoted to artificial intelligence and ChatGPT it’s probably the words of one rep who’s just begun using these technological tools who maintained, “I feel like I’m the guy who just discovered fire.”

Those words perfectly describe the experiences of many who are fairly new to the possibilities, benefits, pitfalls, and dangers of this new technology.

For those uninitiated to the subject of this MANAchat conducted over three days early this fall, the subjects are well defined as follows by Barbara McQuade in her book Attack … Read the rest

Several years ago a MANA member was quoted in these pages as saying, “The popular misconception concerning independent reps is that all they have to do is make calls and follow up.” If there’s any putting that belief to rest, it’s in the practice of Jo-Ann Hernandez, who heads the Princeton, Massachusetts-based Business Lazo.

Hernandez and her agency were profiled in the January 2024 issue of Agency Sales magazine. While that profile focused on the operations and philosophy of her agency, what it didn’t mention was some of the unique product lines that she represents, and that’s where we learn … Read the rest

When it comes to describing the strengths and benefits of going to market with independent manufacturers’ reps, reps most frequently cite the relationships they’ve developed and maintained with principals and customers. No exception to that rule is the experience of Trevor Smith, who heads the Southern California‑based Technical Sales Reps, Inc.

As an example, Smith, who maintains that “My whole life has been driven by strong relationships,” describes how a relationship and a belief in going the extra mile for a customer paved the way for him to become a rep.

Prior to … Read the rest

What’s better in the eyes of principals:

• The large, multi-person agency, with plenty of feet on the street that represents 15-20 lines?
• Or, the small, in many cases single-person agency, representing relatively few lines?

That was just one of the many questions asked and answered during the course of a MANAchat devoted to the concerns and challenges of the single-person agency. While there was obviously a bias in the way the participants of the chat addressed that topic, here are some of the views that were expressed.

Kicking off the discussion, one rep explained, “My recent experience … Read the rest

Glen Baines enjoyed early business success with his own landscaping business that he began in college and continued after graduation. However, “After getting married, I realized that things were pointing me in a different direction than just cutting grass.”

Thankfully, having grown up around the rep business, he found a comfortable place to park his lawnmower and began a new career as an independent rep. “My father was a factory salesman for 18 years prior to opening his own agency. He had always made it clear that if I was interested … Read the rest

When it came to identifying and facing myriad challenges to the way they conduct business, a group of MANA members found no shortage of subject matter to consider earlier this year in the course of a three-day MANAchat. Communication challenges, the threat posed by venture capitalists purchasing rep firms, and considering something called the Entrepreneurial Operating System — among other subjects — were all discussed.

Communication challenges, specifically as they apply to the rep’s ability to contact and stay in touch with customers, appear to be something that is a universal concern. The discussion on this … Read the rest

When Craig Cumming reflects on opening his own agency 28 years ago, he’s asked whether he was apprehensive or scared about making the move. Without missing a beat, he offers, “Fear is not a bad thing; and if anybody isn’t scared about such a move, then something is wrong.”

Obviously, there was nothing wrong with Cumming as today he can look back on almost three successful decades heading C-Square Industries in Colorado. The single-person agency represents manufacturers dedicated to:

• Air and liquid filtration.
• Air movement equipment.
• Waste treatment and water reuse.
• Industrial equipment and systems.

Cumming followed a fairly typical … Read the rest

The growing impact of artificial intelligence, the importance — or lack of importance — of written sales reports, and knowing when to cut the cord with a principal were major topics of discussion during a MANA single-person agency special interest group chat early this summer.

Can AI aid the independent manufacturers’ rep? That’s how the discussion of AI was kicked off and the group was quick to offer their thoughts:

• “One thing it can do is to produce a business plan in under a minute. Having said that, the more information you provide, the more accurate your business plan is