Sales rep group showrooms and how to do them is a subject that often generates great differences of opinions. But one thing is for sure, it’s not easy to create a great showroom and then make sure it gets used properly to help increase sales for both the group and the manufacturers they represent.
Here’s what Scot had to say……
TabletopJournal: What is the reason(s) that a hospitality tabletop sales rep should invest in a great showroom?
Scot Rose: As manufacturers’ reps our biggest responsibility to our factories is building their brand, along with our brand. The lines that Eisner Rose Associates represents in Florida are value-added products. Our primary focus is on the quality and the return on investment these products can bring to our customers.
So, after 12 years of growing our business, we felt the natural progression was opening a studio to better communicate our brands to dealers & operators. We find that most of our clients want quality products, they just need to better understand why they might pay a little more up-front for better quality. Sometimes we get caught up in selling products with features & benefits, but what we are actually selling is piece of mind.
Studio ER was developed for Hospitality/ Food Service professionals, giving the ability to visualize, while “feeling, touching, & sitting”, the latest trends in the industry. Our studio helps both Operators & Dealers to work together to save time and money in an ever-changing, innovative industry.
SR: When designing Studio ER, we wanted the studio to reflect our style as a company, along with the spirit & characteristics of South Florida. Studio ER is an open floor, elevated ceilings, industrial/urban showroom concept. We wanted clients to come in & feel as though they could stay & be comfortable for the duration of their visit. People will judge you – at least initially – by your appearance, so we thought long & hard about how we wanted to convey our brand image in everything we do, always putting the customer first.
Many people will make snap decisions about your brands based on their first impressions, if they like what they see, then they will invest further, if not, they may go elsewhere. We feel Studio ER is a great environment for clients to be creative and get a better understanding & knowledge of our brands.
TJ: Do the local dealer/distributor salespersons’ utilize your showroom? And, when they do… what is impact?
SR: Studio ER is utilized for training on new products, showcasing product features/benefits, & highlighting the value and return on the investments our products can bring. Each month we conduct sales/training meetings to educate dealer salespeople – what’s new & how their customers can benefit from products we represent.
We find salespeople are creatures of habit. If dealers have any type of fear or if they’re not completely educated on products, they tend to veer away & sell what they know and are comfortable with. We want to take the fear aspect out of the selling process. Studio ER is open to all dealers to utilize as their own showroom. Dealers are often asked, “Where can I go to see products?”.
Our goal was to create a work space that is conducive to all types of operators and their needs.
Through hard work, consistency, keeping a solid reputation, and hiring the right people since partnering in 2003, Scot Rose and partner Jonathan Rose (above) and Eisner Rose Associates have become one of the Southeast USA’s top manufacturers’ rep groups.
TJ: How and why did you and Jonathan Eisner get into the sales rep group to a manufacturer?
SR: As founding partners, both Jonathan Eisner and I have backgrounds in food service equipment, supplies, and furnishings that is dealer-based. Before working in the dealer community, I was managing a high volume catering facility. Our experience in operations & dealerships led us to join forces in 2003 & it was then that we started Eisner Rose Associates. We both felt a great need for younger, talented manufacturers’ reps in the Florida market. We felt we could bring fresh ideas & “new blood” into industry.
We built our rep firm on hard work, consistency, keeping a solid reputation, and hiring the right people. Currently, Stacey Minor covers the West Coast Florida and she joined the company in 2011. Maritza Jorge recently joined ER in 2015, and she covers Central Fl. & North Florida.
TJ: What the real value of a professional sales rep group to a manufacture?
SR: The ability to leverage opportunities created one line by the other lines in your portfolio gets a vender into many more places than could likely be achieved by a single-line sales force. Therefore, creating synergy within your line portfolio is one of the most valuable & underestimated aspects of being an independent sales rep.
We wear many hats during the average day, with often times one manufacturer that is being presented leads to others lines be introduced or re-established. That same theory works with showroom, clients may know you for representing a specific manufacturer and, upon entering showroom, they are exposed to other non-competing lines, creating a great one-stop shop experience.
Statistics show that company salespeople average tenure with company is 22 months. Manufacturers Reps longevity is well documented. Being rooted geographically leads to stability of relationships! Our is advice is cogent because of the familiarity achieved over the years, not only with the customer’s needs, but also the customers culture of doing business. Manufacturers reps tend to use more of a solutions approach – looking at the larger forest, not just the trees.
Territory knowledge, combined with multiple-line exposure and entrepreneurial personality adds to a wide-ranging perspective on who’s doing what, how it’s working, and where it leads.
TJ: Well said, Scot. Thanks for your time.
Clearly, it takes a lot more than a showroom to make a successful rep group. But, just as clearly, a well thought-out and properly utilized showroom is a cornerstone to the success that Eisner Rose Associates continues to achieve in the Florida marketplace.
Today, Eisner Rose Associates is proud to represent the following lines:
Homer Laughlin China, Strahl/Innova Beverageware, TableCraft, Rubbermaid, Risch Menu Covers, Matfer Bourgeat, Walco Stainless Flatware/Buffetware, Frieling, EMU Contract Seating, G&Z Seating Products, EquipEx Ovens, and BK Resources
