When we last checked in with Wisconsin-based Mac Tools distributor Pete Kern (PD Tales from the Road, April 2018), he already had five trucks on the road and was looking to expand. Back then he was running the entire operation himself – trying to keep track of finances, training drivers, and running his own full-time route.
Fast forward to today, and Kern is up to nine units. That’s nine trucks, nine drivers, nine routes. These days, however, Kern has a business manager to keep track of accounting and take care of the day-to-day tasks such as insurance, payroll, and keeping Kern’s team on “the straight-and-narrow.”
Kern, who has been with Mac Tools for 12 years now, says having nine trucks makes him the largest mobile tool distributor - not just for Mac, but for any flag.
“I've made it to the top, right here in Stevens Point, Wisconsin,” he says. “I wanted to be the biggest of them all - I am that guy now.”
With so many trucks on the road, Kern’s territory has grown to take up most of Central Wisconsin.
“I have a route in Marshfield, I have one in Wausau, I have one in south Green Bay/De Pere, I have one in Kaukauna, I have one in south Appleton/Neenah/Menasha, I have one in Oshkosh,” he says. “And I have [my] route, which is Stevens Point, Waupaca, Plover, Fremont, Weyauwega, Amherst, Rosholt ... I do all that area. And then I have a truck in Wisconsin Rapids. I have a full circle all the way around me.”
The latest addition to Kern’s fleet is a 26’ 2017 Kenworth T300 with a 9.1L Cummins engine.
“It was a couple of years old, but it only had 35,000 miles on it,” Kern says. “It was like new.”
He says the truck was originally run under a different flag by a tool dealer in New Jersey. The former owner retired from that flag, moved to Florida to join another flag, and found the 26’ Kenworth was too large for his new operation.
That worked out well for Kern, who purchased the truck and had a driver bring it up to Wisconsin. Despite a breakdown in Illinois due to some DPF troubles, the truck made it to its new home to be outfitted with a fresh vinyl wrap and filled with Mac Tools product.
The new truck will be Kern’s to drive for the time being, but he would eventually like to find a new driver to take over his route. With so many trucks in his operation, he needs to hand his route over so he can concentrate on training and shadowing his drivers, ensuring they’re providing the best possible service to their customers.
“My main reason [for wanting] to be off the truck is to go with my other drivers,” Kern says. “I want to see how they're taking care of their customers; I want to talk to their customers, I want to know if they're doing it the right way - the way I trained them to do it.”
Even with an operation of nine trucks, Kern says he’s still not done growing. And, seeing how far he’s come - from five trucks to nine in less than two years - it’s easy to believe.
“As long as there [are] routes open within an hour and a half of my area, I'll be getting them,” he says. “I'll never stop until it's done. The sky's the limit.”
