PERSPECTIVE: 2006 Quips of the Year

John Wolz

David Gates of FreightAuditRecovery.com was doing his homework for a presentation at South-western Fastener Association by talking with retired fastener veteran Harold Hieter. Price is not the only consideration in freight carrier selection, Hieter counseled Gates. Harold explained to me that at one point in his career a very good looking saleswoman with a great pair of legs made a sales call to get his shipping business,’ Gates told the SFA. Harold was so taken that he signed up.’ Soon a salesman called on Hieter to get some of his freight business. Hieter explained he had fallen for this saleswomans legs and bought her pitch.’ The next day a woman in a miniskirt barged into his office, propped one leg on his desk and asked, Hows this leg?’ Hieter was startled and speechless. She pointed out Hieters office window to where the salesman from the day before was standing. She said, Hes my husband, and he wants your freight business,’ The husband and wife team won the contract.

Robert Heydenreich Jr. of Ace Bolt & Screw Company further enlivened the SFA How to Save Money on Freight’ audience by suggesting you find your competitors account number and use it.’ On the screen behind him was a picture of Heydenreich dumpster diving’ outside a Fastenal branch.

Fastener sales perople have to sell to engineers and thus knowledge of products and applications is vital. If one was given a gun without ammunition, how could one fire?’ Malaysian fastener manufacturer Thum Kam Yew asked.
Some issues are tricky to explain, so Tom Reilly of Tom Reilly Training asked Specialty Tools & Fasteners Distributor Association members to Please dont hear what I didnt say.

How fast is the fastener industry moving to Asia? Dick Schwind suggested to the National Fastener Distributors Association that you will soon see all your old friends in China.’

When Jeff Campbell of Irwin Newell-Rubbermaid travels on business for more than four days he brings back gifts for his two children. Before a recent trip to Asia Campbell asked his 10-year-old son what item made in China he would want. Campbell told STAFDA in his State of Manufacturing address that his son responded, Dad, isnt everything made in China?’
Fasteners were manufactured in the United States; some of us are old enough to remember that,’ Tim Marzano recalled at a Western Association of Fastener Distributors conference.

Newer fastener company employees may be familiar with the copy and paste’ function of computers. But when Tim Roberto, a 40-year veteran of Star Stainless, put together an overhead summary of nickel prices for a presentation at the WFDA, he emphasized that For you younger folks, I did actually cut & paste this chart.’

Star Stainless owner Wayne Golden spoke at WAFD criticizing large corporations which take over fastener firms without understanding the business or smaller company culture. Noting that one of his daughters is a doctor and one an aspiring actress and neither oriented toward taking over Star, Golden acknowledged that he is probably going to have to sell to a big corporation.’ At that point Suzanne Dukes of Hayes Bolt raised her hand and volunteered: Im up for adoption.’ Steve Kultala opened the WAFD fall conference with a session on the Seven Deadly Sins of Business Presentations.’ As Kultala counted through the sins, one of the on deck’ presenters found himself feeling more like I was sitting at the defense table than in the green room waiting to go to the podium.’

Boomerang of the Year
Mike McGuires own copyright disclaimer boomeranged in 2005 when he began posting articles from other publications word-for-word with neither attribution nor indication he had obtained permission.
And using Internet searches for any story with the word fastener’ boomeranged in a second way with the headline Technical Handbook on Fasteners Released’ leading to a bra hooks & zippers’ article. The apparel fastener articles continued to boomerang in 2006. Among the non-industrial fasteners articles on McGuires American Fastener Journal website were the History of Velcro Fasteners’ posted word-for-word from a copyrighted website; apparel fastener supplier Scovill Fasteners Inc. announcing a distribution/licensing agreement with Cotton Tree Ltd. of Pakistan; and Fastenation, a manufacturer of clip systems for attaching skirting to tables, unveiling a marketing campaign.
“If Mike doesnt read what he copies and pastes, why does he think the stuff is worth the industrys time?'” a reader commented.

As CEO, Dominic Polimeni presided over fastener distributor Questron Technologies fall into bankruptcy. Next in less than a year as CEO, Distribution Dynamics Inc. filed for bankruptcy. Polimeni walked away with a more than $1 million bonus while DDIs fastener suppliers lost millions of dollars in the bankruptcy. Polimeni recently told one of his former employees that he was confused’ as to why he was getting such a bad rap’ in the fastener industry. Even though it was a telephone conversation, I was pretty sure he said it with a straight face!’
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