PPB December

DECEMBER 2014 •

PPB

• 51

PPB

’s 2014

Powerful Partners

Michelle Michelsen

Merchandising and Supplier Relations Manager

Summit Group

Itasca, Illinois

Years At Summit Group: Two

Nominated by Kellie Claudio, Sweda Company LLC and

Lisa Shayne, Hit Promotional Products

How has Michelle won your respect as a partner?

Michelle has been an important part of our Sweda Influential pro-

gram,” says Kellie Claudio, vice president of sales for Sweda. “She is on

the front end with us during product development and gives ideas to

make differentiators possible with product and programs. Her ‘Let's

win together’ attitude is extraordinary. We love the partnership we

have built with Michelle and Summit Group.” Nominator Lisa

Shayne, Illinois sales manager for Hit Promotional Products, gives an

example of Michelsen’s collaborative work style. “While Michelle was

planning a recent end-user show, she very clearly gave instructions on

setting up, what to expect and what items would be best received by

the buyers who were expected to attend. During the show she showed

real excitement while visiting the booths, either with or without

clients, to the new items and to what the suppliers had to offer.”

Claudio adds, “Her honesty and willingness to collaborate is so

appreciated in every aspect of our business. Working with our inside

team, Michelle demonstrates a beautiful spirit of professionalism and

patience. My outside sales executives also enjoy their time with

Michelle because there is true constructive and helpful feedback with

an honest strategy to grow business together. It is so wonderful to

have great partners like Michelle.”

One-On-One With Michelle Michelsen

How important are partnerships with suppliers and how do

they ultimately benefit you and your company?

Our supplier partnerships are extremely important. Two years ago

we made a change in our supplier philosophy by narrowing down our

supplier base and inviting a few with core competencies to be part of

our Preferred Group. We have a companywide goal to focus our sales

through this group. Our supplier partners play an important role in

how Summit competes in the marketplace. Critical elements to our

success include sourcing creative product ideas for our clients, deliver-

ing safe and quality items that are aggressively priced, and providing

superior service. Having strong relationships is imperative when going

out to bid on a project. We know our Preferred Group has our backs

and we have theirs. If a problem arises, we know our Preferred Group

will step up regardless of who is at fault. We all agree that the end

customer is No. 1 and we would not be in business without them.

What do you do that sets you apart from other distributors

in terms of working with suppliers?

Before joining Summit Group I worked for supplier DARD

Products as the marketing director for 10 years. During my tenure, I

was building relationships, involved with the daily co-op processes and

negotiating annual contracts with distributors. I was able to interact

with many different distributors and better understand what they were

looking for from a top-40 supplier. Being on the other side for more

than 10 years gave me the rare skill of knowing what I can expect as a

distributor from our suppliers. In 2012, I was also awarded PPAI’s

Silver Supplier Achievement award for Best Distributor Sales Tool

with the development of

Idea Books

were customized cata-

logs tailored with the customers’ logos on all products and the distrib-

utors’ information imprinted on the covers. We offered these at no

charge to distributors.

What advice do you have for others who want to achieve a

true partnership with their suppliers?

Spend time with your suppliers and share your goals. Suppliers

always ask what they can do to boost their sales with us. I always tell

them to be visible and stay top of mind with our merchandisers and

sales associates. We encourage our Preferred Group to visit our offices

regularly and be proactive instead of reactive.

Tina Berres Filipski is editor of

PPB.

201412_Powerful Partners Feature_PPB 2013 11/13/14 12:23 PM Page 51