PRO Group, Inc. Group Merchandising Conference Connects Sellers with Buyers

Atlanta, GA (June 14, 2005) - PRO Group, Inc. Distributor Members and key industry manufacturers attended the inaugural Group Merchandising Conference in Atlanta, Ga. June 9-11, 2005.

The meeting format involved scheduled buyer/vendor appointments in private suites throughout the Embassy Suites hotel between 76 manufacturers and 26 Distributor Members of PRO Group, Inc.

Exhibiting vendors offered conference specials and reviewed benefits of new products, merchandisers, displays and promotions to attending buyers. Each attending vendor had the opportunity to display their product lines in their private suite, which added a hands-on component to the meeting. PRO Group, Inc. pre-scheduled 1,146 private one-on-one meetings between Distributor buyers and manufacturers, with additional meetings added at the conference. Steve Synnott, president and chief operating officer of PRO Group, Inc. said the idea for the conference evolved due to Distributor and manufacturer requests for more one-on-one selling time and product exhibits in a meeting format.

"The goal of the conference was to drive volume to key suppliers and sell more of their product to PRO Group Distributors by connecting the buyers with the sellers," Synnott said. In some cases, attending buyers and product managers had not previously attended PRO Group functions. "The level of interaction between these buyers and the top management at the manufacturer level led to actionable results by putting buyers and sellers together in a casual, yet structured setting," he said. As a direct result of the conference, more than 95 percent of attending Distributors inked new deals with group suppliers. Manufacturers set up products in the living rooms of their suites, with some actually setting up four-foot gondola runs. The meeting format itself also encouraged follow-through, with both buyers and sellers receiving a copy of follow-up materials.

Panacea Products, Amerock, Ames and LDR are a few examples of exhibiting vendors at the recent PRO Group Merchandising Conference highlighting upscale new products and lines. The Columbus, Ohio-based Panacea displayed artisan arbors and outdoor living products that have great appeal to consumers upgrading landscape designs and enjoying outdoor living spaces. Columbia, Maryland-based Amerock cabinet hardware appeals to the sense of ergonomics and to style, with new finishes and designs in cabinet pulls following fashion trends. Parkersburg, W.Va.-based Ames True Temper continues expansion of lightweight planters and pots with upscale faux finishes resembling natural stones and heavier man-made materials. Chicago-based LDR showed off new shower heads, finishes and more features per unit than most competitors. For example, a new handheld shower massage unit shown by LDR features a stretchable coil hose that takes the place of both the 72-inch and 84-inch units marketed by competitors.

Distributor Kathy Sponenberg, category coordinator for the Hazleton, Pa.-based Bradley Caldwell, Inc., said she found at least four new vendors as a direct result of attending the Group Merchandising Conference. Tom Bollenbacher, national sales manager for the Omaha, Neb.-based William H. Harvey Co., said, "The conference provided an excellent venue that allowed us to engage all the members within PRO Group. Everyone walked away with more business."

Distributor Chris Wickard of The CISCO Companies, based in Indianapolis, said he was pleased to see many new vendors at the conference. "What we like to see, as distributors, are the new products and new vendors. We want to make sure that we change with the times. This conference was the right place with the right vendors, especially the new vendors." Vendor Barb Griffin of the Centennial, Colo-based Leisure Arts, Inc., said, "This format provided Leisure Arts with the opportunity to explain our program and opened some doors to Distributors that we otherwise would not be able to meet with."

Andy Szulinski, vice president, C.R. Daniels, Ellicott City, MD Andy is demonstrating his newest wheelbarrow for gardeners. (click to enlarge)		Toby Green, Nutri-Vet, national sales manager, Boise, ID In front of his product display. (click to enlarge)
Doug Clary, Meyer Seed Co. of Baltimore, sales manager, Baltimore, MD Terry Jarvis, Leisure Arts, Inc, national sales manager - Home & Garden, Centennial, CO Leisure Arts publishes How-To books in the hardware and lawn & garden industries. (click to enlarge)

PRO Group, Inc. is a multi-divisional, international merchandising and marketing organization with corporate headquarters in Denver, Colorado. Its operating units include PRO Hardware, GardenMaster, FARM MART and GOLDEN-LINK. The Company's purchasing power exceeds $3 billion through its 41 Member Distributors.

For More Information Contact:
Steve Synnott, President/C.O.O., PRO Group, Inc.
(303) 792-3000 steve.synnott@pro-group.com
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Ruth Furman, Publicist
(702) 255-8288 ruth@ruthfurman.com