2013 VIPAR Heavy Duty Annual Business Conference Marks a Record Turnout

CRYSTAL LAKE, Ill. - Nov. 27, 2013 - PRLog -- The 2013 VIPAR Heavy Duty  Annual Business Conference, held October 20-25 at the Marco Island (Fla.) Marriott, featured a record turnout of over 725 distributor, supplier, service partner and industry associate attendees. The annual meeting included over 130 exhibiting suppliers companies and more than 95 percent of VIPAR Heavy Duty stockholders which operate over 500 locations in the U.S., Canada, Mexico, and Puerto Rico.

In his general session presentation, VIPAR Heavy Duty president Steve Crowley said that over the past 12 months the organization has proactively responded to a heavy duty market that is in transition.

“In response to these shifting market conditions and channel demands, VIPAR Heavy Duty is well positioned to help its distributors meet these needs and challenges and stay ahead of the curve,” explained Crowley.

Crowley also noted that the independent distributor is stronger than ever. “Larger national firms are slower to react to market opportunities,” explained Crowley. “VIPAR Heavy Duty distributors build relationships with their customers and provide better service through their local presence.”

Noting the 2013 theme of “Success through Collaboration,” Crowley says though VIPAR Heavy Duty is made up of many different companies who think a little different than one another, “we collaborate together to make a stronger overall organization.”

Crowley also mentioned the success of Global Parts Network (GPN), VIPAR Heavy Duty’s wholly-owned subsidiary that achieved significant growth in 2013. GPN provides seamless service and support exclusively to the VIPAR Heavy Duty network of distributors and suppliers to satisfy the replacement parts needs of commercial vehicle operators and maintenance facilities. GPN operates Parts Distribution Centers as well as its brake manufacturing production centers, known as CoMan Centers™, with a focus on new and remanufactured brake shoes, brake shoe kits, friction material and related parts.

The 2013 VIPAR Heavy Duty Annual Business Conference included a motivational speech by football great Joe Theismann, along with a general session, tradeshow, one-on-one stockholder/supplier partner meetings, the annual stockholder meeting, as well as networking events. A special edition of this year’s conference was a Young Leaders Forum luncheon, giving emerging leaders the opportunity to network with each other and hear a presentation by industry speaker and author John Passante.

The 2014 VIPAR Heavy Duty Annual Business Conference will be held October 19-24, at the Marco Island Marriott, in Marco Island, Florida.

For more information on VIPAR Heavy Duty, visit http://www.vipar.com or e-mail: info@vipar.com.

About VIPAR Heavy Duty

VIPAR Heavy Duty is North America’s leading network of independent aftermarket truck parts distributors. VIPAR Heavy Duty distributors serve the needs of their customers from over 500 locations across the United States, Canada, Puerto Rico, and Mexico. VIPAR Heavy Duty distributors are specialists who understand the demands of their local, regional, and national customers for quality parts and exceptional service. For more information, visit www.vipar.com (http://www.vipar.com/?utm_source=Cision&utm_medium=PR...).