The Specialty Tools & Fasteners Distributors Assn. held its largest convention ever last month, with nearly 4,800 people turning out for the group's 29th Annual Convention & Trade Show in Baltimore. Held Sunday through Tuesday, Nov. 6–8, the event took place at the Baltimore Convention Center.

Highlights of the event included the General Session, featuring keynote speaker Colin Powell; the Technology & Consultants' Fair, which featured 28 vendors; and the Trade Show, which boasted a record 815 booths.

STAFDA membership increased to 2,655 companies this year, including 1,162 distributors, 1,143 associates, 329 manufacturer's representatives, and 21 affiliates, according to executive director Georgia Foley.

During her speech to members at the General Session, Foley also noted the changing face of the STAFDA membership. Many new members are in building materials, safety, MRO and pure industrial markets, as opposed to the association's traditional construction base, she said.

STAFDA president Marshall Jones followed Foley with his State-of-the-Industry report. Jones focused his remarks on the state of the manufacturer-distributor relationship. He commented on the power struggle between both groups in recent years, and suggested a new way of viewing the relationship: by banning the word "partnering." Distributors and manufacturers, he said, don't really want to be partners.

Instead, the relationship should be one of supplier and customer, he said, with the manufacturer treating the distributor as a customer and the manufacturer's rep as an employee. He also encouraged manufacturers to listen to distributors' needs, and to treat "strategic customers" radically different than they treat "authorized distributors."

Jones concluded by emphasizing the power of relationships and the resilience of STAFDA members in general.

"Our customers constantly remind us that there is no shortage of places to get the products we sell," he said. "Yet, we've survived."

Ed Gericke of Werner Ladder delivered the manufacturer State-of-the-Industry report following Jones' remarks. He noted that 2005 was one of the best business years in recent history for many STAFDA companies and pointed to the continued strength of the construction market.

But he also noted that change is on the horizon. Rising interest rates, softening home prices and slowing sales should put STAFDA companies on guard, he said.

"An adjustment will be coming, and I do suggest STAFDA members be prepared for that," Gericke said.

Former Secretary of State Colin Powell took center stage after the Jones and Gericke speeches, delivering the keynote address. In his one-hour talk entitled "Leadership: Taking Charge," Powell covered national security, technology, global socio-economic change, and U.S. foreign policy.

"If there's one thing I've learned...it's that leadership is leadership is leadership. It's all about creating conditions for followers," Powell said

He pointed to the U.S. military's success in Afghanistan and America's ongoing role in Iraq as two examples of leadership.

He concluded by saying that, "Solving problems is what leadership is all about," and noting that while there is much anti-American sentiment in the world today, people still look to the United States with respect, sometimes with resentment, and ultimately with trust.

The convention also featured networking and social events, along with workshops by industry experts. John Schreibfeder, of Effective Inventory Management, and Bob Footlik, an expert in warehousing management, ran workshops during the Technology & Consultants' Fair.

Other speakers included Michael Marks, of Indian River Consulting Group; Dr. Kathy Newton, of Purdue University; Steve Farber, of Extreme Leadership, Inc.; and George Hedley, of Hedley Construction & Management.

Also during the convention, Doug Hahn, of Hahn Systems in Indianapolis, was installed as president of STAFDA for 2006.

Next year's STAFDA convention will take place in Las Vegas, Nov. 13–15, 2006.