As it closes in on its 10^th anniversary, Mamsco Construction Supply sure knows how to leverage integrity and knowledge in the strong construction market in the northeast.

For owners Mike and Ann Marshall, unloading tractor-trailer trucks into their two-car garage used to require two things: home-baked cookies to lure help from the driver, and a Barney video to keep their two young children entertained while they worked.

After 15 years of selling for a major distributor of nailers and staplers, Mike Marshall caught the entrepreneurial bug, and on his wife's 40th birthday, his own construction distributorship, Mamsco Construction Supply, became a reality. Soon, 18-wheelers would be rolling into the couple's quiet cul de sac, packed with pallets of nails to feed a booming housing market in Connecticut.

Mike took to the road selling, and made deliveries from his "store on wheels" to industrial accounts and a growing base of wood residential building contractors. As sales increased, finding room for inventory became harder. Long daily commutes into the heart of his territory took their toll: he needed more time to sell, not drive.

Ten years, one showroom, a warehouse, 6,000 inventory items, and 10 employees later, the Branford, Conn.-based company posted 25 percent growth every year it has been in business. Sales this February were up 39 percent over the same period last year.

The Marshalls still see many of their original customers, and say it's a rare day that a new customer does not come walking through their door, thanks to positive word of mouth.

"It's all because of Mike," Ann Marshall, owner, says. "Mike felt confident that certain customers would follow him into his new venture, and he was right. Some of our customers think of Mike as, 'that guy who sold them something 20 years ago, and knew exactly what to sell them.' People felt secure in their purchases then, and that has carried over to today.

"We've always been the 'mom-and-pop' operation, whether or not we had a storefront," she adds.

Mamsco (Mike and Ann Marshall Sales Co.) found its current space when it became hard to separate work and home.

"Tractor trailers were coming and going and customers were knocking at our door to pick up nails and tools, and we needed some division," Ann says.

Mike concentrated on selling from his 24-ft. box truck, while Ann learned the business, ran the retail store, joined trade associations, and most importantly, listened to customers' needs.

"Through word of mouth and our on-the-road salesmen, contractors find out about us," Mike says. "They may find us for repairs, but then they see we are a full-service distributor."

"We're the tool and fastener 'toy store' for building contractors. And we rely on customers to tell us what they need," he adds.

Admittedly, Mamsco's tool repair is not a big moneymaker, bringing in only 5 percent of the company's annual business, but Mike says it helps separate the company from the big boxes. Typical turnaround on a repair is one week.

"We've been known to repair a broken nail gun in 10 to 15 minutes, and customers remember that," he says.

It's that personal touch that sticks with Mamsco customer Scott Struzinski, owner of Peak Restoration and Roofing in Killingworth, Conn.

"I don't know where else I can get that type of service. Sure, I could buy a pair of gloves for a dollar less at Home Depot, but when you go back to that big box, you're probably not going to find the guy that sold to you two weeks ago," Struzinski says.

"Mike is an honest, decent guy, and I'd give him my business on that point alone," he adds.

Mamsco's tool repairman wears a second hat as the company's computer guru. While the company does have a Web presence, the distributor does not focus on selling from it.

"It's very competitive selling on the Web," says Mike. "There's a big investment, it's over saturated, and the people selling on it in volume already have a good foothold.

"The problem with buying collated fasteners on the Web is that they often arrive damaged, or they get to the job site, and because of the nature of the construction business, no one is there to receive the shipment," Mike says. "We make sure a shipment gets to the job site in one piece."

Mamsco hired its first salesman, a former building contractor, six years ago to continue the job-site delivery strategy. Thanks to his knowledge of its customers' needs for tools that were not being offered to contractors, Mamsco's product line began to grow.

"We don't like to lose that connection with the customer," says Mike, "so while we know we need presence on the Web, we prefer not to focus on it."

Long gone are the inventory limitations that the couple's two-car garage posed.

The purchase of the distributor's current building, with a 4,000-square-foot warehouse and 3,000 square feet of showroom space, makes it comfortable now to store containers of products brought in from overseas.

With several big boxes and four lumber yards within a 15-mile radius, competition is stiff for Mamsco. The company recently tried a $6 fuel surcharge for deliveries, and customers resisted.

"We've looked at price increases, but it's tough to do when you have competitors around every bend," says Ann.

That competition also keeps the company on its toes, when it comes to its own employees.

"We're fortunate, as our very small team is willing to wear several hats," says Ann. "But to keep good people, you have to treat them right."

As it plans for its 10th anniversary, Mamsco looks ahead to the next decade.

"I see us doubling in size, at least," says Mike. "We'd like to open up more branches, and hire more salesmen. If residential wood construction took a nosedive, we'd still have a large opportunity in the commercial sector. We'd be able to easily switch gears—and you always have to have that contingency plan."

Should the Marshall's two teenage children decide to enter the distribution business, there will be a lot of directions they can go, contends Ann.

"There are so many second-, third- and fourth-generation businesses in [the Specialty Tools & Fasteners Distributors Assn.], and while I'd love to see my kids enter the business, I know it won't be easy," she says. "The market is always changing though. California is using different products than Massachusetts, some are more environmentally friendly. Those products will eventually head this way to New England."

Building codes also are changing, adds Mike. "Hurricanes and other natural disasters have changed everything over the last couple of years. New codes can add $400 to $1,000 in extra materials to the price of a house, and that gives us an opportunity to sell more product."