A tool truck is like a puzzle – to get all your inventory to fit, you’ve got to put the pieces in the right places. Mac Tools distributor, Staci Effertz, has got her puzzle all figured out.
Eight years ago, Effertz started dating Tracy Snyder, owner of the three-truck Mac Tools distributor team she’s a part of, and one year later, he convinced her to quit her job and help him with the business. Fast forward five years and Effertz has taken over Tracy’s truck, as well as manages all the training for their other team members and handles part of the bookkeeping.
The lay of the truck
Though the 2015 Freightliner truck was designed for Snyder, Effertz has made it her own.
“The key is organization,” she says. “It just makes your day go so much easier.”
And considering her schedule, organization is essential. Effertz is located in Minot, North Dakota, but her route has her covering oil fields in western North Dakota and eastern Montana for most of the week. She spends two days out on her route, comes back into town for a day to restock, and then spends another two days on road. Because of this Effertz notes that her truck is “pretty packed.” However, “packed” doesn’t mean messy.
“I get people saying all the time, they’ve never seen a more clean and well stocked and organized truck,” she says. “I take pride in that.”
Additionally, her organization is important considering the size of the products she keeps on her truck.
“We carry large,” Effertz notes. “Extra-large sockets, extra-large wrenches – I mean, [our customers] need bigger. Some of the sockets are 2 1/2” drive, so some of the sockets we order weigh 50 lbs.”
Although her truck is packed full, Effertz explains that her passenger seat is often filled with special orders, her drawers on the bottom of her shelves are always full, and the two compartments on the outside of the truck are never empty.
Customizations
With so much of her time spent on the road, it makes sense that some of the truck’s customizations were added for the comfort of the distributor. For instance, the 24’ truck has an extended opening for the desk space giving Effertz just a bit more wiggle room. Her desk also features a large monitor. She connects this to her laptop, so she doesn’t have to use the small screen of her computer.
A fridge is tucked away behind the desk for her personal use. Due to Effertz’s main customers being oil fields, there isn’t a good way for her to keep the fridge stocked throughout the day for customer use.
Overall, the desk space customizations allow for the area to stay neat and clean, which permits Effertz to showcase many product displays behind her desk.
“You have to utilize every inch of your truck,” she notes, “cause your truck is never big enough.”
