Jason Kane, National Sales Manager for Midwest Salt with over 14 years in the industry, joins Phil to share his journey from responding to a Craigslist ad to becoming a logistics expert in the salt supply chain. From explaining why salt is more of a commodity than people want to admit, to breaking down the complex journey from mine to contractor's truck, to learning hard lessons from contract mistakes, Jason reveals why curiosity drives knowledge, why customer service runs everything, and why being smart and truthful with suppliers is the foundation of success in this industry.

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Episode Chapters

00:22 - Intro and Welcome Jason Kane

00:46 - The History of Midwest Salt

01:38 - Jason’s Journey with Midwest Salt

05:31 - Customer Service in the Salt Industry

07:36 - Understanding Salt Logistics

08:54 - Regional Salt Sources and Types

12:33 - Challenges and Solutions in Salt Supply

14:34 - Bagged Products & Custom Solutions

16:29 - Liquid Deicing Solutions

18:33 - Government Contracts and Challenges

19:27 - Getting to Know Jason

20:56 - Availability and Client Engagement

23:16 - Industry Insights & Trends

27:08 - Things to be Mindful of in 2026

34:54 - Final Thoughts

Key Learnings

Midwest Salt Started as Bags in Basements - When owner Tony Johnson acquired Midwest Salt in 2008-2009, it was a smaller mom and pop shop delivering bags of salt into people's houses and basements, salt to water softeners, things like that. Tony came from a logistics background connecting dots with hub and spoke models, so when he saw the opportunity to acquire a company that fit his expertise, he took it. Midwest Salt is fundamentally a logistics company like many service providers.

From Craigslist to National Sales Manager - Jason joined Midwest Salt in late 2010 after responding to a Craigslist ad, having just moved from Colorado. What he thought would be a part-time job to get his feet in the industry turned into a 14-year career. He started managing warehouse stock, getting on trucks for routes, then evolved into an office sales position after two years of literally doing the heavy lifting.

Skydiving Taught Customer Service at Life-or-Death Level - Between 2012-2016, Jason spent summers as operations and customer service manager for a skydiving company while returning to Midwest Salt each winter to drive semis and deliver salt. In skydiving, customer service was literally about taking care of people's lives - ensuring planes were in tip-top mechanical condition, gear was the best available, and instructors were exceptional. This foundation taught him that no matter what you're selling, you're really taking care of people.

Customer Service Is Having a Revival - There's been a breakdown of customer service across industries, but it's starting to come back. People are seeing the value again. Companies thriving in customer service make the investment and create feedback loops - they're always asking for feedback through surveys and making it easy to provide input. Companies with terrible service make you dig to find a way to give feedback, then you never get a response - it's a black hole.

Salt Is More of a Commodity Than People Want to Admit - When it comes down to how salt moves and the cost it accrues getting from point A to point B to the end user, it's very much a commodity business. But the service layer on top of the commodity is what differentiates suppliers. It's not just about the product - it's about reliability, logistics expertise, and taking care of the frontline snow fighters who depend on having material when they need it.

Salt Supply Chain: From Mine to Truck - Salt is very abundant underneath the Great Lakes - basically anywhere the Great Lakes are. It comes from underground mines where it's extracted, crushed, and processed. The logistics process involves coordination between mines, transportation (rail, truck, barge), storage facilities, and final delivery to contractors. Each step in the chain adds cost and complexity, which is why understanding the full supply chain is critical for both suppliers and contractors.

Curiosity About How Things Work Drives Knowledge - When Jason came back to Midwest Salt in 2016, he was joining an established sales team that had been through a couple winters without him. He needed to reeducate himself. His curiosity about where all the salt comes from and how to get it to any destination in a tri-state area drove him to learn the entire system. That historical knowledge made him someone people can go to and ask questions, someone who can at least point you in the right direction.

Writing Bad Contracts Was the Best Teacher - Jason made two big contract mistakes in his career that cost money and let his team down. One was miswriting a section about terms and conditions for getting into or out of a contract - something he completely overlooked. Learning from those mistakes made him one of the main guys handling government contracts now. He focuses on writing contracts that are fair to both companies, not just falling in his favor if something goes wrong, working toward solutions that benefit both parties.

Making Mistakes Is the Best Thing You Can Do - As long as you're not making the same mistakes over and over again, making mistakes is probably the best thing you can do in any business. It's the best way to learn. The key is learning from those lessons and applying that knowledge going forward so you don't repeat the same errors.

Be Smart, Communicate, and Be Truthful - Jason's final advice: Be smart. Communicate with your suppliers. Try to be as truthful as possible and just be open to learning. The relationship between contractors and suppliers works best when there's honest communication and willingness to work together to solve problems.

Reflection Questions

How well do you understand your entire supply chain - not just who you buy from, but where the product originates, how it moves, and what affects availability and cost? Are you asking enough questions to truly understand the logistics behind what you're purchasing?

What feedback loops have you created with your customers? Do you make it easy for them to give you input, and more importantly, do you actually respond to that feedback? Or are you creating a black hole where customer concerns disappear without acknowledgment?

What mistakes have you made that you actually learned from and never repeated? Are you giving yourself and your team permission to make mistakes as learning opportunities, or are you creating an environment where people hide their errors instead of using them to grow?

Resources & References