News & Events

October, 2021

Post-COVID Marketing Strategies Can Help with Supply and Demand Issues

Economic disequilibrium happens when external forces cause a disruption in the market's supply and demand equilibrium. When this happens, the market enters a period when supply and demand are mismatched.1 Whether you needed a sofa, a desk chair, an automobile or PVC pipe in 2021, there is a good chance you heard this statement over and over again―IT’S BACK ORDERED! “Delays, product shortages and rising costs continue to bedevil businesses large and small. And consumers are confronted with an experience once rare in modern times: no stock available, and no idea when it will come in.”2―The New York Times “Factories around the world are limiting operations — despite powerful demand for their wares — because they cannot buy metal parts, plastics and raw materials. Construction companies are paying more for paint, lumber and hardware, while waiting weeks and sometimes months to receive what they need."3 ―The New York Times Unfortunately, PVC product manufacturers, including those producing PVC electrical pipe and fittings like CANTEX, got hit even harder with supply issues. In addition to COVID’s impact on production and logistics, PVC manufacturers are also dealing ... Read Full Post

September, 2021

TED MAGAZINE REPORTS: CANTEX Hires New Regional Sales Manager for Central United States

TED Magazine Excerpt: Fort Worth, Texas―CANTEX Inc. is excited to announce that Richard Thornton has joined CANTEX as the Regional Sales Manager for the Central U.S. region. Thornton brings more than 9 years of experience in sales and sales management to CANTEX. He comes to CANTEX from L.C. Eldridge Sales Co. where he worked as a Sales Engineer handling new business development for multiple markets. He holds a B.S. in Business from Texas A&M University. “I am extremely excited to join a preeminent organization like CANTEX that truly values excellence and superior customer service. I am joining an incredible team, and I look forward to helping my team with existing customers, cultivating agent and distributor relationships, and exploring new business development opportunities,” said Thornton. “Richard’s exceptional sales leadership, problem solving skills, and track record for excellence are truly impressive. We believe he will be an extremely valuable asset to the CANTEX sales team. He will play a huge role in increasing our market penetration and better serving our valued customers in this important region,” said Dave Milius, Vice President Sales and Marketing for ... Read Full Post

September, 2021

PVC Electrical Market Faces Growth in Historically Unprecedented Market

According to the Wall Street Journal and the Chief Global Economist at Decision Economics, Allen Sinai, the current U.S. economic situation is “without historical parallel.” The COVID shutdowns caused an economic downturn followed by a boom in the U.S. economy which have created unprecedented growth accompanied by major shortage of goods, raw materials and labor. This lack of supply is happening much faster and on a much larger scale than during any other economic rebound in history. Nevertheless, the experts predict the size of the economy to surpass pre-pandemic levels with the end-of-year GDP reaching the path forecasted before the pandemic ever happened.1 With all the very unusual changes impacting the economy, construction, and the electrical industry since the onset of COVID, forecasting PVC electrical product market trends for the remainder of 2021 might seem like an impossible task. However, these unprecedented disturbances don’t make forecasting insurmountable for the experts. Most data analysts are actually forecasting that even amidst all the chaos, the outlook is very good for the balance of 2021 and into 2022. According to marketwatch.com, the ... Read Full Post

May, 2021

CANTEX Launches Major Capital Investment Program

TED Magazine Excerpt: FORT WORTH, Texas — In an effort to help offset the historical challenges currently impacting PVC electrical manufacturers, CANTEX Inc., one of the largest manufacturers of American-made PVC electrical products, recently launched a major capital investment program. After experiencing disruptions to production caused by the pandemic, hurricanes, a record-breaking cold front in Texas, as well as resin shortages, CANTEX began investing in increased production capacity at its facilities nationwide to help overcome unavoidable slowdowns. CANTEX is hopeful that the multi-million dollar investment will also help position them to meet the product demand resulting from major increases in PVC electrical pipe and fittings sales in recent years. With continued projections for increased demand in the foreseeable future, the investment into new equipment is essential to service the growth of existing customers and to prepare for projected demand from new business. CANTEX has been making American-made PVC electrical products since the 1950s. They sell a full line of PVC electrical products. New molding machines, high-speed automation equipment, and a state-of-the-art computer system designed to improve speed from order entry to product delivery and ... Read Full Post

February, 2021

Recharging Electrical Distribution at NEMRA21

The National Electrical Manufacturers Representatives Association (NEMRA) a not-for-profit, electrical industry association comprised of independent sales representatives and manufacturers held its 21st Annual Conference in February. The NEMRA Conference looked very different this year because of COVID. However, while there wasn’t a big hotel with lots of conference rooms and in-person meetings, the show did go on with the NEMRA 21 Recharge Virtual Conference, February 2 - 5, 2021. Along with the usual one-on-one meetings, manufacturers held virtual large group meetings to inform everyone about the current market, the industry and manufacturing developments. This year, playing off of NEMRA’s 2021 theme, CANTEX presented a virtual conference entitled Recharged to over 70 sales agents on February 3rd. The CANTEX presentation focused on opportunities for growth surrounding electrical distribution amidst the challenges of a worldwide pandemic. During the presentation CANTEX Vice President of Sales and Marketing Dave Milius discussed key factors that led to an incredibly “Recharged” year for sales of CANTEX products in 2020 despite the challenging times facing many businesses. Milius attributed large percentage increases in sales for CANTEX PVC ... Read Full Post

February, 2021

Why Quality Product Information is Important to Electrical Distribution

One fact of life in this Information Age is that people want lots of good information about anything they are interested in purchasing at the click of a button. What is the first thing you do when you want to purchase anything? If you didn’t say “Google it” you definitely aren’t the norm in this century. Chances are, even if you’re planning to make your purchase in a brick and mortar facility, you will look for the product on the internet first. Consequently in 2021, there is no doubt that you will sell more products if you have the best product information with the best online access to that information. It doesn’t matter what you are selling. According to a recent article in Electrical Wholesaling, Electrical Distribution customers are more mobile than ever before because mobile devices make it easy to access product information.1 This mobility makes easily accessible high-quality product information more crucial to successful Electrical Distribution than ever before. According to manufacturing.net, a recent survey on online shopping activities indicated that consumers felt companies that provide detailed and ... Read Full Post

November, 2020

CANTEX PVC PIPE IN THE NEWS

In the September issue of TED Magazine Vice President of Sales and Marketing Dave Milius shared insights into the current PVC pipe market. TED Magazine Excerpt: Conduit Keeps Up An industry mainstay, the demand for conduit is on the rise as the need for bandwidth and data accelerates. By Kara Bowlin Conduit is a mighty mainstay of the electrical distributor’s catalog. Simple and straightforward, both steel and PVC conduit have become an important asset during the pandemic as reliance on Internet-enabled devices has skyrocketed. In fact, according to Dave Milius, vice president of sales and marketing at CANTEX (cantexinc.com), many of the markets served by the company are soaring. “Some of it is supporting infrastructure, including roadways and wastewater treatments plants,” he explained, adding that a lot of the company’s business today is also going to new data center construction. “The need for more bandwidth and more data continues to accelerate.” Milius also noted that the construction forecast for PVC piping and fittings shows a 10% increase over the next four to five years. “So it hasn’t slowed down; if anything, it’s accelerated for us,” he ... Read Full Post

November, 2020

Customer Care in the Time of COVID

There is no doubt that COVID has significantly affected the lives of most people in one way or another. Consequently, millions of people feel isolated and have experienced some hardship and loss during the course of the COVID outbreak. Since times of crisis make people more vulnerable, it is important to remember that excellent customer interaction is essential during this global pandemic. “Particularly in times of crisis, a customer’s interaction with a company can trigger an immediate and lingering effect on his or her sense of trust and loyalty. As millions are furloughed and retreat into isolation, a primary barometer of their customer experience will be how the businesses they frequent and depend upon deliver experiences and service that meet their new needs with empathy, care and concern.”1 While isolating and social distancing have created major challenges for connecting and maintaining business relationships or cultivating new ones, there are strategies that can help you show customers that you care. These simple steps can help you connect and build the trust crucial to sustaining and cultivating valued business relations. Since many people are ... Read Full Post

October, 2020

CANTEX Receives CSM Vendor of the Year Award

CANTEX recently accepted the Continental Sales & Marketing (CSM) Vendor of the Year Award for 2020 with great honor. Continental Sales & Marketing is one of the largest and most respected retail sales representatives in the nation. The award was presented to CANTEX for being an exemplary partner with CSM in key areas most valuable to CSM in their partnerships. Those key areas include the following: • Leadership – Setting the standard as the premier supplier for retailers in a given category of business. • Responsiveness – Ability to address issues or concerns or course correct to meet the needs of retail partners. • Alliance – True partnership in all aspects of daily business related to communications, strategic planning and execution with retail partners. “CANTEX has been a key partner for Continental Sales and Marketing for over 37 years. While they have always been a great partner, in 2020, they have taken extraordinary measures to meet the myriad of challenges arising from the global pandemic. They have continued to provide unparalleled service and quality PVC electrical products in a time when many suppliers have been unable to meet ... Read Full Post

July, 2020

Turning to Digital Marketing for Help during the Pandemic

The shutdown of many sales channels such as live events, conferences, trade shows and most face-to-face business is creating a huge marketing challenge for many businesses amidst the pandemonium of this pandemic. Yet many businesses continue to do quite well. What is their secret and how can we tap into it in the world of Electrical Distribution? “In the coming months, businesses are going to become more reliant than ever on their digital strategy. Without wanting to sound too alarmist, in many cases it will be the deciding factor in whether they make it through the tough times ahead,” Forbes Magazine said in their recent article entitled Why Companies Turn To Digital Marketing To Survive COVID-19.1 With more people self-isolating and spending more time online than ever before, a strong internet presence is more important than ever. Keeping products like PVC electrical pipe and fittings in front of potential customers online can help you remain competitive during these difficult times. “Digital is likely to be the clear winner here, and companies – including ones that may not so much as had ... Read Full Post

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