Distribution's Love-Hate Relationship
GAF partners with ServiceTitan - first supplier to partner with contractor CRM
Hi everyone,
Happy President’s Day!
Did you know that February 22nd, the original President’s Day and also George Washinton’s birthday, was created as a holiday to celebrate America’s first president and legendary general. Another fun fact about President Washington, he’s the only president to have a State named after him!
Now, back to our original programming…
GAF, the largest manufacturer of roofing materials and shingles, announced a strategic partnership with ServiceTitan last week. This is a pretty big deal and a shot across the bow of GAF’s B2B distributors. It also is a great example of the theme for today’s newsletter:
Suppliers wanting to get closer to the end-customer, at distribution’s expense - through technology partnerships.
B2B distribution has a classic “it’s complicated” relationship with its suppliers—call it a love-hate relationship. Suppliers are the lifeblood of distribution—without them, distributors have nothing to sell. But as suppliers grow bigger, so do their ambitions. Large suppliers don’t like feeling tied down to distribution and often fantasize about a world where they can sell directly to the end-customer.
It’s a bit like Valentine’s Day in a rocky relationship—distributors are bringing flowers (sales and market access), while suppliers are secretly eyeing the “single life” (direct sales). Last week in the roofing vertical, it wasn’t all roses between suppliers and distributors.
Technology innovation and new digital business models have been a vector for large suppliers to use their cushy margins and make some risky bets on disruptive tech companies. The most recent example of that is GAF’s partnership with ServiceTitan, the new technology entrant into the roofing contractor space. Announced this past week, the partnership will involve GAF selecting ServiceTitan as its preferred CRM provider for GAF’s customers. GAF is the largest roofing manufacturer in North America, so this partnership is a significant win for Service Titan.
This tactic isn’t new. We’ve seen other examples of a large supplier partnering with a technology used by the end-customer, such as:
· Vetcove working directly with pharma manfuacturers in vet distribution
· Schneider Electric’s venture fund and its investments in customer tech like Kojo and the now defunct Renorun
· Schneider’s purchase of Aveva
· General Mills investment in GrubMarket
· The success of Knowde, whose marketplace helps many chemical manufacturers quickly stand up an online presence
· 3M launching a marketplace using Mirakl
· Provi monetizing beer, wine and spirits brands access to B2B customers
GAF and ServiceTitan Partnership
What Is It?
GAF, North America’s largest roofing manufacturer, has partnered with ServiceTitan, selecting it as their preferred customer relationship management (CRM) solution for roofing contractors.
Key aspects of this partnership include:
• Integration of GAF QuickMeasure™ with ServiceTitan: Contractors can now access GAF QuickMeasure™ reports directly within the ServiceTitan platform, enabling them to obtain accurate roof measurements and estimates in under an hour. This integration reduces manual data entry errors and enhances the efficiency of the estimating process.
• Exclusive Benefits for Master Elite Contractors: GAF’s Master Elite contractors who utilize ServiceTitan are eligible for a 3% rebate on their core roofing subscription, providing a financial incentive to adopt this integrated solution.
• GAF’s First Official CRM Endorsement: This collaboration marks the first time GAF has officially endorsed a CRM provider, underscoring their commitment to helping contractors streamline operations and enhance profitability.
The Supplier’s Dream: Turning Distribution into a Box-Mover
The customer (roofing contractor) gets a quote from the supplier (GAF). The roofing contractor selects GAF to win the project. Then, GAF assigns the project to a distributor – now, just a glorified 3PL – to fulfill the project.