The past is always present at Industrial Supply Company, thanks to a treasure trove of historical documents dating back to 1915. While the Utah-based company’s century+ heritage is impressive, Jessica Yurgaitis has no intention of dwelling in the dust of the organization’s bygone era, even if the history major in her loves posting those old handwritten letters and sales slips. 

We’re revisiting Jason’s conversation with this fourth-generation president about balancing respect for family legacy with a desire to launch the company into a thoroughly modern future.

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Distribution Talk is produced by The Distribution Team, a consulting services firm dedicated to helping wholesale distribution clients remove barriers to profitability, generate wealth, and achieve personal goals.   

This episode was edited by The Creative Impostor Studios 

Special thanks to our sponsors for this episode: Moblico, helping businesses do more business on mobile devices; and INxSQL Distribution Software, an integrated distribution ERP software designed for the wholesale and distribution industry.

AI isn’t coming; it’s here, optimizing behind-the-scenes tasks like forecasting, inventory management, and CRM oversight. John Long, CEO of THYNK AI, says artificial intelligence is ready to take on client-facing interactions. His company has the ultimate tool for the job: Eric, an AI-powered agent. 

Jason caught up with John to discuss the evolution of the company’s Thynk Agent and the cost-effective advantages it offers distributors in an increasingly competitive environment.

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CONNECT WITH JOHN 

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THYNK AI

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For full show notes and services visit: https://www.distributionteam.com

Distribution Talk is produced by The Distribution Team, a consulting services firm dedicated to helping wholesale distribution clients remove barriers to profitability, generate wealth, and achieve personal goals.   

This episode was edited by The Creative Impostor Studios 

Special thanks to our sponsors for this episode: Connected Peers, providing virtual communities for wholesale distributors; and INxSQL Distribution Software, an integrated distribution ERP software designed for the wholesale and distribution industry. 

It’s rare to come across a company that has evolved as profitably or organically as Threaded Fasteners, Inc. While it’s tempting to award all the credit to Billy Duren, president and CEO of the Alabama-based manufacturer and distributor, he’d be the first to tell you that the company’s success is wholly due to the creativity of its employee-owners. 

Jason caught up with Billy to learn more about the organization’s dynamic growth and its legacy of innovation, both of which were made possible by a succession plan that centered around an Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP).

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Nuts & Bolts Of Leadership

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For full show notes and services visit: https://www.distributionteam.com

Distribution Talk is produced by The Distribution Team, a consulting services firm dedicated to helping wholesale distribution clients remove barriers to profitability, generate wealth, and achieve personal goals.   

This episode was edited by The Creative Impostor Studios 

Special thanks to our sponsors for this episode: Profit2, helping distributors charge the right price; and INxSQL Distribution Software, an integrated distribution ERP software designed for the wholesale and distribution industry.

Ever heard the phrase "chain of pain?" If you’re a wholesale distributor, chances are you’ve experienced it via the cascading agony of outdated workflows or missed sales opportunities.

Pierre Barbeau, co-founder and CEO of Moblico, returns to chat with Jason about his company’s supercharged mobile technology solution to common pain points, including proprietary innovations such as unified business messaging automation, broadcast engagement strategies, and OrderAssist AI™, Moblico’s advanced tool for converting unstructured orders into fast, accurate sales. 

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For full show notes and services visit: https://www.distributionteam.com

Distribution Talk is produced by The Distribution Team, a consulting services firm dedicated to helping wholesale distribution clients remove barriers to profitability, generate wealth, and achieve personal goals.   

This episode was edited by The Creative Impostor Studios

Special thanks to our sponsors for this episode: Moblico, helping businesses do more business on mobile devices; and INxSQL Distribution Software, an integrated distribution ERP software designed for the wholesale and distribution industry.

Remember when eCommerce was going to revolutionize B2B sales? Twenty years in, only a handful of channels have capitalized on the initial promise. But distributors aren’t to blame for the operational failure, says Justin Johnson, Founder of Motivate. He maintains that the major e-commerce platforms should bear the blame. They failed to grasp that most orders are placed from the job site via mobile, a recurring purchase order, or a list scribbled on a piece of drywall. 

Jason spoke with Justin about his company’s innovative plug-and-play order processing solution, a PO-to-cart widget that works with the software distributors already own. It can even convert images into orders with incredible accuracy.

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Motivate

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For full show notes and services visit: https://www.distributionteam.com

Distribution Talk is produced by The Distribution Team, a consulting services firm dedicated to helping wholesale distribution clients remove barriers to profitability, generate wealth, and achieve personal goals.   

This episode was edited by The Creative Impostor Studios 

Special thanks to our sponsors for this episode: Connected Peers, providing virtual communities for wholesale distributors; and INxSQL Distribution Software, an integrated distribution ERP software designed for the wholesale and distribution industry.

Hot on the heels of a real life internal fraud disaster for one of his clients, this episode is top of mind for Jason. Listen for actions you can take right now to protect your business.

Movies portray embezzlement as a big-money, high-flying romp. Fact is decidedly different than fiction—and surprisingly common! 

Jason dives into the realities of pink-collar crime with Kelly Paxton, a workplace dishonesty expert, fraud educator, and host of the Fraudish podcast. The pair offer case studies that expose the motives behind the misconduct, company culture's role in fostering opportunities for theft, and how small withdrawals add up to big financial headaches. 

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Embezzlement: How To Detect And Investigate Pink Collar Crime

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For full show notes and services visit: https://www.distributionteam.com

Distribution Talk is produced by The Distribution Team, a consulting services firm dedicated to helping wholesale distribution clients remove barriers to profitability, generate wealth, and achieve personal goals.   

This episode was edited & mixed by The Creative Impostor Studios. 

Special thanks to our sponsors for this episode: Connected Peers, providing virtual communities for wholesale distributors; and INxSQL Distribution Software, an integrated distribution ERP software designed for the wholesale and distribution industry.

Want to know a time-tested business secret? Commitment to the long game always pays off. Vic Wilson is a virtuoso practitioner of that adage. Decades before immigrating to the US and taking over as head of sales at voestalpine Böhler Welding, the Canadian-born Wilson was busy forging relationships across the country. 

Jason caught up with Vic to discuss what it means to build a successful 35-year career one connection at a time. The pair also explore the welding industry's challenges due to new US tariffs, the benefits of co-op membership, and the satisfaction of giving back.

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CONNECT WITH VIC

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voestalpine Böhler Welding

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For full show notes and services visit: https://www.distributionteam.com

Distribution Talk is produced by The Distribution Team, a consulting services firm dedicated to helping wholesale distribution clients remove barriers to profitability, generate wealth, and achieve personal goals.   

This episode was edited by The Creative Impostor Studios 

Special thanks to our sponsors for this episode: Profit2, helping distributors charge the right price; and INxSQL Distribution Software, an integrated distribution ERP software designed for the wholesale and distribution industry.

Most AI conversations revolve around the tech. That’s understandable, given its computational superiority and unlimited potential, especially when applied to distribution. Nick Pericle, Vice President of ProfitOptics, engages in more expansive discussions, complete with sessions of task-oriented, experiential learning.

Jason caught up with Nick to learn about ProfitOptics’ experiential approach to creating scalable solutions and securing employee buy-in. And, yes, the pair also discuss the amazing, adaptable AI tech driving the distribution industry’s evolution.

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ProfitOptics

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For full show notes and services visit: https://www.distributionteam.com

Distribution Talk is produced by The Distribution Team, a consulting services firm dedicated to helping wholesale distribution clients remove barriers to profitability, generate wealth, and achieve personal goals.   

This episode was edited by The Creative Impostor Studios.

Special thanks to our sponsors for this episode: Moblico, helping businesses do more business on mobile devices; and INxSQL Distribution Software, an integrated distribution ERP software designed for the wholesale and distribution industry. 

When was the last time curiosity got the better of you on a business trip? In this rare solo episode, Jason explores roads less traveled. Literally. Calling on clients is what business travel is all about, but is there room in your schedule for unexpected experiences? 

Are you open to making mundane travel more magical this time around?

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For full show notes and services visit: https://www.distributionteam.com

Distribution Talk is produced by The Distribution Team, a consulting services firm dedicated to helping wholesale distribution clients remove barriers to profitability, generate wealth, and achieve personal goals.   

This episode was edited & mixed by The Creative Impostor Studios. 

Special thanks to our sponsors for this episode: Connected Peers, connecting key employees in distribution's leading organizations; and INxSQL Distribution Software, an integrated distribution ERP software designed for the wholesale and distribution industry.

Leading with compassion is one thing (and a good thing at that). But what if whole departments ran on a standard of sensitivity and genuine emotional concern for the people in their care, be they customers or employees? Before leaving The Granite Group to start her own consultancy, Tracie Sponenberg held the title of Chief People Officer. She’s credited with shifting the company’s human resources perspective towards compassion over compliance. 

In this revisited episode, Jason speaks with Tracie about the impetus for this mindset change, strategies for CEOs interested in making similar upgrades to their company’s HR culture, and what she’s doing now to support the meaningful evolution of workforce administration.

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Website

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For full show notes and services visit: https://www.distributionteam.com

Distribution Talk is produced by The Distribution Team, a consulting services firm dedicated to helping wholesale distribution clients remove barriers to profitability, generate wealth, and achieve personal goals.   

This episode was edited & mixed by The Creative Impostor Studios. 

Special thanks to our sponsor for this episode: Moblico, helping businesses do more business on mobile devices; and INxSQL Distribution Software, an integrated distribution ERP software designed for the wholesale and distribution industry.