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ere was a time when Greg Jackson made his living as a
bartender and Santa Monica lifeguard. In 1983, he started
repping a line of recreational marine products. Life was good.
But it got even better in 1990 when one of his marine lines
came out with a bomber jacket; it opened an enormous new
sales area for Jackson.
“I sold a mast to a distributor who was having a custom sail
boat built,” he says. “He saw the bomber jacket, asked how
much, and said he had a 100-piece opportunity; did I have a
sample? My reply was, ‘A 100-piece opportunity? I only have
this one, take it!’ His name was Greg Murdock and we sold
about $30,000 through him that rst year. I was hooked.”
What’s kept himmotivated in the years since is the ability
to pick the suppliers he wants to work with and to be more
than a one-product source for his distributors. Today, from
its home base in Seattle, Northwest Reps consists of three
full-time reps who cover Washington, Oregon and Idaho.
“We like to think we are di erent,” says Jackson. “We give it
our all every time. And I include our suppliers as part of our
team. We can’t do it without them—and we don’t think they
can do it as well without us.”
“Greg Jackson and his team are always thinking of creative
ways to separate his lines from their industry counterparts,”
says nominator Teddy Scott, vice president, sales at supplier
AZX Sport. “Jackson is always on the road making sure his
lines stay front of mind with distributors in the area and he
does whatever it takes to ensure our customers are pleased
with their orders even if that means delivering orders
himself. Jackson is a fantastic partner and hands down one
of the best reps in the business.” Among the unique features
Jackson brings to his customers are good-quality videos
that showcase new product ideas for all of his lines, says
Scott, and the weekly barbecues held at the company o ce/
showroom for top distributors. “Sometimes a boat ride on the
lake is also part of the event.”
One On One With Greg Jackson
On what’s most dif cult about being a rep:
Not
making the cut with suppliers. We are huge team
players; we like being part of the team and when
the coach/supplier decides to cut us, it hurts, not
just monetarily but to the core. It’s like we’re not
adding enough value to make the team.
On exclusivity and giving equal attention to
each line:
We try not to overlap but it happens.
Most of our lines specialize in one category but
when you have a great line like Starline, it’s hard
not to overlap. They hit multiple categories so
there’s bound to be an overlap here or there.
Equal attention, that’s the great part about being
a multi-line rep. We have some awesome lines,
and because of that we can book appointments
when others can’t. We try to get in at least two
appointments minimum per season and feature
half of our suppliers at each presentation. We
always take our line card and a smattering of the
other line samples with us to remind distributors
of what we have.
On multi-line reps remaining relevant:
If your
line is affected by a supplier’s acquisition, you
have to remain positive; there will always be
acquisitions. You have to continue to add value
to the supplier and value to the distributor. The
multi-line is the buffer between the two, the
advocate for both.
On how distributors can help him serve them
better:
There are many things we can do to help
them, they just have to ask.
Founding Partner
/ Northwest Reps
GREG JACKSON
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APRIL2017
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53
Best Multi-Line Reps
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FEATURE