ORGILL'S NEXT GENERATION

Anew generation of Orgill executives is stepping up to the plate, and there's no telling where they'll take the company when they do.

Here and on the following pages, HBSDealer spoke with three Orgill executives - all of whom are in their early 30s, and all of whom have been promoted recently.

Their stories reflect some of the skills highly valued in managers by the Memphis, Tennessee-based distributor. Effective communication is a given. Then there's an understanding of the potential, and limits, of technology. And there's also empathy - described by CEO Ron Beal as "the ability to understand and identify with the needs of customers, suppliers and co-workers."

Here are their stories:

Alan Shore

Senior Category Manager, Outdoor Living

Few people at Orgill understand change quite as well as Alan Shore, who is now in charge of the oft-fluctuating category of Outdoor Living.

Not only do the products change often - changing trends and the significant role of seasonality play into this aspect - but they're also highly marketable.

Facing these challenges (and tasked with the creation of a more appealing product offering to Orgill's dealers), Shore regards Outdoor Living as a "fun category to be associated with."

For this year and next, "challenges" could mean anything ranging from keeping up with consumer preferences to coming up with exciting new ways to promote the products, especially at the Dealer Markets.

Indeed, it's the 2016 Outdoor Living assortment that's currently taking up most of Shore's time, as well as the upcoming Dealer Market, which Shore expects will be exceptionally lucrative.

"We have some exciting new additions that we are anxious to introduce to our dealers," he said. "We see some great opportunities to help them be successful with these programs."

Though Shore has spent the majority of his 10-year career at Orgill working...