Born to do Business
Smart business sense helps one distributor straddle two industries
By Laura Thill
An entrepreneur at heart, John Garrard felt little trepidation about starting his own company. "I always knew I wanted to run my own business," he says. But, when he returned to school in the early 1990s to pursue an MBA at Vanderbilt University (Nashville, Tenn.), he was uncertain about what type of business he would like to run. Toward the completion of his degree, however, his mind was made up.
"I heard a professor [at Vanderbilt] state that one out of four dollars in the U.S. economy was spent on healthcare," he says. "When I completed my MBA, I knew healthcare was the place to be." In 1997, Garrard purchased MasterFit Gloves, a small latex glove importer in Jackson, Tenn. "That brand no longer exists, but the name has stuck around," he points out. As Garrard expanded his business, MasterFit Gloves became known as MasterFit Medical Supply. Although there have been moments when he has questioned the validity of his Vanderbilt professor’s statement, his sound business decisions have opened the right doors, not only to physician practices, but dental offices as well.
Tackling two industries
Early on, it made good business sense to abandon the idea of trying to attach a brand identity to a commodity product, and to diversify instead, he says. Through the financial strength of his silent partner, Ed Woodside, Garrard began growing the business through acquisition. He purchased a durable medical equipment/pharmacy business, followed by a distributor of X-ray equipment and a service dealership, and MasterFit Gloves became MasterFit Medical Supply. "One of our vans still has the MasterFit Gloves logo on its side," he says. "It may be time to retire that vehicle."
With a broader customer base, the company could move "full swing into the med/surg market, which [turned out to be] the largest and fastest growing part of our business," he continues. That said, some of his most loyal customers remained dentists.
"When we started out, we served any [customers] we could," he explains. "We had a local hospital group on a glove contract, and the volume was so substantial we were able to grow our business from there. We also sold a lot of local dentists their gloves. We would add a few products at a time and let our dental customers try them out and let us know if the products were satisfactory and priced right.
"I will say that our dental accounts have proven to be some of our most loyal people whom we have the privilege to serve," he continues. "A lot of the time, the dentist runs his or her own practice and is very involved with the daily operations. He or she makes the decisions to buy and use products, and he or she handles payment for the products." Working so closely with customers facilitates "an opportunity to form a loyalty that goes both ways," says Garrard. But, while Garrard feels fortunate to have both dental and medical customers, he has discovered how difficult it can be for a med/surg distributor to become the primary supplier to a dental practice. "The nationals do such a good job as dental practice management consultants as well as supply and equipment vendors," he says. Nevertheless, today MasterFit Medical Supply works with "more dentists now than ever," he says. "We still supply their gloves, as well as a lot of other items."
Growing pains
From three employees to 30, MasterFit Medical Supply grew a lot in just a short amount of time. (Today, MasterFit’s sales are five times as great as they were in its first year in business.) "We probably grew a little too fast," says Garrard. "But, when you grow through acquisition, what choice do you have?"
"Keep in mind that when we first started out we were just importing and wholesaling latex gloves," he says. "Our sales volume was decent, but the margins were very thin. We owned a significant amount of inventory when the latex glove market tanked. [Hence], the need to diversify quickly."
And, in fact, MasterFit Medical Supply expanded so quickly, it soon outgrew its infrastructure and only recently caught up with itself. Garrard attributes the rapid growth to his company’s membership with IMCO (Daytona Beach, Fla.), which provided greater access to products and resources, and the addition of Scott Lochridge, executive vice president and sales manager. "Scott has 30-plus years of experience and is passionate about this industry," notes Garrard.
Friends, not foes
"There is a lot of business to go around," says Garrard. But, getting, and holding onto, that business calls for some work. For one, distributors need to form strategic alliances with similar companies and vendors. In addition, they must "put together a team that shares a common goal for success," he says. Garrard attributes much of MasterFit’s success to his family of employees and the solid relationships they have with customers and manufacturer partners. "We have been very fortunate to have the best employees, partners, vendors and customers in the world," he says. "I really mean this, and I feel lucky each day to have these meaningful relationships."
Like all successful distributors, Garrard does what it takes to set his company apart from the competition. "There will never be a substitute for the close, personal relationship that you develop with your customers," he points out. "The Internet suppliers provide information to customers, but they can be confusing and inconsistent with their pricing." Providing customers with timely follow-up and delivering on one’s promises also are essential to success, he adds.
"To steal from the old Burger King slogan, ‘Special orders don’t upset us,’" he continues. "In fact, that is what makes us unique. Our reps always are available and our prompt, professional, courteous delivery is second to none. Our customers enjoy our quick response time.
"If the good Lord is willing and my wonderful team is willing, we plan to be cranking it out in western Tennessee, Kentucky, northern Mississippi and eastern Arkansas. I have three daughters to send to college and three weddings to pay for. I don’t play Lotto, so I plan on doing this for quite a while. But, I wouldn’t have it any other way!"
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