Snap-on Tools' Recent Show

As many of you know, a few years ago, Snap-on changed their tradition of holding their regional shows across the country into one big annual show in Las Vegas. Again, this year, they returned to Las Vegas. This year they held their show at the South Point Hotel, Casino and Spa in Las Vegas. The hotel was at the very end of the strip, but well worth the cab ride. Once you arrived, you didn't have to go anywhere else for food, entertainment, gambling and tool news!

As it turns out, this year's show ended up being very well attended. For most of the year, a lot of manufacturers have crossed their fingers at the approach of each show, asking themselves - "will the distributors show up? Will they buy anything? Did I make the right decision by spending the time/money to attend another tool show?" But - according to my sources, there was no need for concern. Once again, Snap-on held a fabulous show. It's been reported that more than 3,000 distributors attended. And, best of all, they were in a buying mood! Manufacturers were not disappointed.

Considering that ISN held their show just 5 weeks earlier, many manufacturers did not have anything "new" since then. However, they brought all their new 2008 products, and the Snap-on distributors LOVED it. No surprise - the hottest products appeared to be in the DIAGNOSTICS section. Diagnostics was always jammed with distributors, from the beginning of the show on Friday, til the show ended Sunday afternoon.

One manufacturer told me, based on his sales at the show, it was the best show he's attended this year. People were in a buying mood and his sales reflected this.

All in all, it was an excellent opportunity for Snap-on to showcase their new products, and share some of the successes of 2008 with their community of dealers and vendors. Perhaps this is an indication of our industry picking up again in the second half?

As announced in late July, Snap-on has been having a pretty good year, even though the U.S. economy has slowed. Their operating results for the second quarter of 2008 include a 7.6% increase in net sales over prior year (without their favorable currency exchange, their net sales are up 3.1%).

They attribute their success in the first half of '08 to the improvements they've made in operations and growth initiatives. According to Nick Pinchuk, Snap-on's president and CEO, "second quarter operating performance evidences continued achievements in our strategic
diversification and growth initiatives. Despite the continued macroeconomic challenges, the strength of our global and diverse customer base and the value created by our innovation and rapid continuous improvement processes combined to deliver significant sales and profit improvements.”

Additional highlights of Snap-on’s second quarter 2008 operating results are as follows:
• Operating earnings of $111.7 million increased 27.8%, or $24.3 million, over prior year, Operating earnings as a percent of revenues improved to 14.2% in 2008 from 12.0% in 2007.
• Net earnings from continuing operations of $66.9 million increased 26.7% from $52.8 million in
2007; diluted earnings of $1.15 per share increased 27.8% from $0.90 per diluted share in 2007.
Commercial & Industrial Group segment sales of $387.7 million were up $56.1 million, or 16.9%,
from prior year, including $25.0 million of currency translation. Excluding currency translation, sales growth was 9.4%, with strong contributions from Snap-on’s global industrial and power tools businesses.
Emerging markets continue to be important for growth, as well as increased sales of imaging alignment systems, and higher sales of professional tools in Europe - all contributed to the year-over-year sales increase.
Operating earnings of $49.3 million increased $16.8 million, or 51.7%, from prior year primarily due to the sales improvement, including higher sales of innovative new product, improved pricing and continued benefits from Rapid Continuous Improvement (RCI) and other cost reduction initiatives, which more than offset higher production and material costs. The operating earnings increase also reflects $5.0 million of lower restructuring costs and $1.5 million of currency translation. As a percentage of sales, operating earnings in the quarter improved to 12.7% as compared with 9.8% a year ago.

Silliness for a Friday Afternoon

Inside the American Hot Dog Business By: Kate Rockwood This comes from the July issue of Fast Company Magazine. Perhaps more statistics than you want to know about hot dogs and the Americans who eat them.

Americans will eat about 2.3 billion -- a disgusting eight per person -- during National Hot Dog Month. National Hot Dog Day is July 18th, but the 4th is the biggest dog day. Here's a look inside the business of America's favorite sausage.

Inside the Bun: The Business of Selling Hot Dogs
related article

- 17 Contestants ate 576.5 hot dogs and buns at last year's Nathan's Famous Fourth of July International Hot Dog Eating Contest. (That's 33.9 dogs per person, in case you're counting!)
- 66 Hot Dogs were eaten in 12 minutes by 2007 winner Joey Chestnut, who won $10,000 and set a new world record.
- $39 million -- estimated media value of the TV coverage for the contest's sponsor, Nathan's.
- 69% of Americans prefer eating hot dogs on a bun.
- 15% prefer them naked with baked beans. (We call them beanies n wienies in my house.)
- 14% prefer corn dogs.
- While the National Hot Dog & Sausage Council advises that no one over age 18 use ketchup on a hot dog, 23% of people consider it their favorite topping. (Mustard wins out with 32%.)
- 1 in 6 -- odds that the beef in a beef hot dog originated in Texas.
- 1 in 4 -- odds that the pork in a pork hot dog originated in Iowa.
- Each year almost 100 million Red Hots are bought at 7-Eleven, North America's No. 1 retailer of cooked hot dogs. (This has to be the most disgusting revelation of the day.)
- Americans spend more than $1.9 Billion at the supermarket on hot dogs annually.
- The No. 1 producer is Oscar Mayer, which sold upward of 129.5 million pounds of dogs in 2007.

From Issue 127 July 2008

How to be the Best - It's easier than you think

I had a boss who once told me that in order to be extraordinary in this business, I had to be just a little bit better than pretty good, because the business world is filled with a lot of mediocre players. His advice was simple: do what you say you're going to do, return phone calls/e-mails promptly, thank customers for their business, treat people fairly, smile, and then, when you think you've done everything you can, do a little bit more. Oh, he had other advice too, such as "get to work before the boss and stay a little bit longer than he does", and of course, my personal favorite, "don't cr*p where you eat." And the truth is, to be the best in any business takes adherence to these principles, but you also need to know a little bit about accounting and finance and marketing and sales and psychology and a million other things. Running a successful business cannot be reduced to a handful of well-worn phrases.

However, these phrases can certainly provide a framework from which you build a successful business. It sounds so simple, so "business 101". And yet, how many times a day do you find yourself wondering, why is my business not doing better?

Well, times are tough, according to the national news media. So, blame it on the recession, blame it on your customers (who can't manage their business), blame it on Bush/McCain/Obama, blame it on your neighbors, maybe it's China's fault. But before you place the blame elsewhere, look inward and ask yourself, "Have I done everything I can today to increase or improve my business?"

• Before you leave work tonight, make one more phone call.
• Send a handwritten note to someone.
• Thank an employee for a job well done.
• Thank a customer for a recent order.
• Start a big project, so when you get in the next day, you can build on the momentum of the night before.
• Review your goals on a regular basis and take a positive action on each of them.
• Read a business magazine.
• Share the successes of the day with someone else.
  
  There are many ways to excel in the business world. Most of us measure success in financial terms. Notice that none of the suggestions in the previous paragraph have anything to do with selling or making money. But I promise you, if you begin to think daily about what you've done to increase or improve your business, and learn to act on them, your financial success will be assured.

New VP at Central Tools Announced

Here's some good news out of beautiful Cranston, RI: Central Tools, Inc. has announced that Bruce Dawson will assume the role of Vice President of Sales and Marketing. Bruce had previously been Director of Marketing.
Bruce’s primary focus will be managing the traditional WD sales channel as well as some national accounts. “Bruce will work closely with our Manufacturer’s Rep Agencies to ensure that the voice of the customer is heard loud and clear and that in turn the customer is wholly aware of all the products and programs that we have to offer” said Bob Pond, Central’s President.

Pond also says, “Central is in a unique position in the marketplace, offering their customers a wide variety of products across multiple categories and Bruce is the perfect individual for making sure that our customers understand this and are able to take advantage of that situation for their benefit.”

Bruce will also continue in his role of managing the company's advertising effort and the timely and effective publication of catalogs and other marketing materials.

Everyone who knows Bruce knows this is well-deserved. Congratulations to Bruce on your latest promotion!

On a side note, Central Tools, Inc. is also celebrating their 100th year in business. Congratulations! That's a rarity these days.

Strategic Plan for Success in 2008

Here we are, it's early August. For some, it feels like this year can't end soon enough. Others are so busy they can't believe it's August already. Before we know it, it will be 4th Quarter, 2008 and we'll all be planning for 2009.

It's time we take a look at the months that have passed, and plan for the remaining portion of 2008. If you haven't reviewed your plan since you wrote it, it's time to pull it out, review it, and start checking your successes and failures against what you thought you could make happen.

Evaluate what worked and what has not. Look at those activities that have brought you PROFIT, not just income. This economy is not going to turn around anytime soon, so spend your time wisely. Know what actions impact your bottom line.

Review your goals. Have they changed since the first of the year? Have any been accomplished? Is it time to modify what you have or add new ones?

Be specific. Review the details of each goal, especially any that have numbers associated. These are easy to track and evaluate. Don't just say you want to increase your sales by 5%. List each product or service you provide, and then set specific goals by number of customers, income, types of products, etc.

Develop steps to accomplish each goal. You probably did this when you wrote your initial plan. Again, it's time to evaluate the actions you've taken and the results you've experienced. What should you modify?

Know your costs. Make sure you understand any costs involved with reaching each goal. For instance, you want to introduce a new service to your customers and your goal is to have $635,000 in sales by March, 2009. Budget for advertising, travel, sales meetings, etc. Anything you'll have to do to achieve your goal will more than likely have a cost involved. Budget it.

Estimate your time frame. Maybe at the beginning of this year you had hoped to launch 3 new products, but you've only gotten 2 out to your customers. You did not take enough time to estimate the time you'd need. This is important because it can also impact the number of people working on a project.

Estimate people. Are you going to be responsible for everything? Or are there projects you can delegate or out-source? All these can be "hidden" costs.

Prioritize. You know what you have to do to survive. Make sure those action items get accomplished. You know what you have to do to thrive. They should be your secondary level. You know what has the best chance of success. This should be level three. Realize that it's unlikely you'll get all your goals accomplished. It's smarter to get the important ones completed, than to get all of them partly completed.

Write an action plan. This is your daily guideline to getting things done. Schedule the time during the day, week or month when you will work on something. Then, do it on time and get it done.

Last item: Reality Check

Can these goals be met with you and your current team? Discuss the plan with your team, get their commitment, and you're back on track to achieving your goals and being successful in 2008!