Jeff Valles and Tom Cohn have delivered strong content at Forte Buying Group meetings for a long time. Valles – Forte’s director of membership services – believed the group’s summer meeting was going to follow a typical schedule; seminars, workshops and receptions. But in the end Valles felt the July meeting in Rosemont, Ill., was the perfect time to shake things up.

Since I sold my showroom business in 1995, I have had the unique pleasure of working with dozens of wonderful plumbing wholesalers; some of the very largest and a number of smaller ones, as well.

Severe weather made another appearance at a major wholesale industry event. Back in April, tornadoes whipped through the Dallas-Ft. Worth area while WIT’s 2012 Distributor/Vendor Conference was going on just two miles away.

Dear Industry Colleagues, Serving as ASA president throughout the course of the past several months has been quite a learning experience. In addition to having the unique opportunity of working closely with association leadership and staff, I have also enjoyed the privilege of representing ASA at various industry events during this time.

In its first 20 years of existence, McJunkin Supply Co.’s offices were housed on the second floor of the old Arcade building in Charleston, W. Va.

Plastered throughout McCormick Place in Chicago was the slogan for the KBIS 2012 event: “Touch the Future.” With the pace companies are advancing technology in their kitchen and bathroom products the slogan for KBIS 2013 might be “A Touchless Future.”

For years, I have driven by this church. It’s one that reminds me of the old “Little House on the Prairie” schoolhouse church. Yes, I was an avid “Little House on the Prairie” viewer as a kid.