News & Events

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

July, 2020

Navigating Electrical Distribution through the Waves of a Pandemic

If you have ever driven a boat, you are well aware that it is a bit more challenging than driving a car. There are no landmarks or roads to follow, very few signs and many unseen dangers hidden underwater. Driving a boat definitely presents many unknowns. There are also additional challenges like the weather, the tide and even the waves when you are out at sea. Similarly, navigating a business through the drastic changes brought about by a global outbreak of disease like the pandemic create many unknown obstacles. These obstacles make it harder to navigate a path to success. However, just because it’s harder, it doesn’t mean it’s impossible or that it isn’t worth the ride! Just like driving a boat takes a little more navigating upfront with navigation equipment, knowing more about the downturns and upturns in your business market can help you to weather storms. Staying abreast of market trends during a crisis like a pandemic can help you keep your business afloat. For example, although business closures and social distancing have caused a downturn for many ... Read Full Post

March, 2020

CANTEX INC. COVID-19 Update

March 17, 2020 Dear Valued Customer, Given the current level of concern surrounding COVID-19, I want to take a moment to update you on our preparedness and reassure you about our stability of supply. You should know: We continue to service our customer base without disruption at this time. We are monitoring COVID-19 and its effects to determine if there are any potential impacts on supply. At this time, we believe our supply chains will not be disrupted. Nevertheless, we have taken a safety stock position on some materials to insure the best service possible for our customers. We have executed plans which will allow us to both protect our employees and ensure stability of supply. We are restricting face-to-face customer meetings that are not business critical, especially in regions hit hard by COVID-19, and we will expand or reduce those restriction based on CDC guidelines. Be assured that we remain committed to our employees and customers. There is the potential for communication to ... Read Full Post

March, 2020

Dave Milius Appointed to NEMRA Manufacturing Group Executive Committee

Dave Milius, the new CANTEX Vice President of Sales and Marketing, was appointed to the NEMRA Manufacturing Executive Committee in February. Milius’ appointment to this industry powerhouse is an honor to both Milius and CANTEX. Excerpt from NEMRA News: Eight Respected Industry Leaders Will Advocate for the Independent Manufacturers’ Representative and the Manufacturer Affiliates February 24, 2020―The National Electrical Manufacturers Representatives Association (NEMRA) announced the appointment of four officers to its Board of Directors and four Executive Committee Members to the NEMRA Manufacturers Group (NMG). NEMRA is a powerful voice in the electrical industry and an advocate for the independent manufacturers’ representative and the manufacturer affiliates. The NMG is an allied group of manufacturers who go to market principally through the use of independent manufacturer’s representatives. Appointments to NEMRA’s Board of Directors include: Troy Jennings of John Moore & Associates in La Vergne, Tennessee; Gabe Schill of Locust Sales in Ardmore, Pennsylvania; Winn Wise of Southwire in Carrollton, Georgia and Bill Tucker of One Source in Columbia, Maryland. “I am pleased to welcome these newest members to our Board of Directors” said Jim Johnson, ... Read Full Post

March, 2020

Powering the Next Decade---NEMRA Conference Presentation

The past decade has seen extremely rapid transformation to all things electrical brought on by the innovation of digital space; you can see it everywhere you look. Our ever-present connectivity includes but is not limited to smartphones, consumer-driven social media, intelligent manufacturing, smart technology, smart homes, smart cities, smart grids, rampant online shopping, and data centers that are popping up in every city. According to the World Economic Forum, energy consumption will increase 30% by 2040 and the necessary transformation of the electrical grid will have an economic value of $3.3 trillion in the next decade alone.1 It is this constantly evolving digital age that inspired the theme for this year’s NEMRA Conference: “Powering a Smarter World”. Playing off of this timely theme, CANTEX presented “Powering the Next Decade,” to all of their agents at the Orlando conference at the beginning of February. The presentation focused largely on the opportunities for growth surrounding electrical distribution as technological advancements continue at an even faster pace in the next decade. CANTEX President Dave Merker spoke about how all the changes to the electrical ... Read Full Post

November, 2019

Investing in SEO for Electrical Distribution

Believe it or not! 2020 is quickly approaching, and the further we get into this digital age, the harder it becomes to even imagine any purchase being made without some sort of online shopping. Whether someone browses products, gathers product information or makes an actual purchase, most purchases today are made with some help from the internet. According to Electrical Wholesaling magazine, over 70% of people who want to buy electrical products today go to Google first.1 While it may seem great that 70% of people are searching for the PVC electrical products you are selling, you also need to know that 75% of people searching for those same products will never scroll past the first page of any search engine.2 This means your products must appear on page one of Google, Yahoo, Bing and other search engines or you pretty much don’t exist in the digital world. Yes, it’s true! Unfortunately, while 25% of people searching for your products might possibly make it to page 2, the chances are slim to none that they will ever find you ... Read Full Post

November, 2019

A PLETHORA OF NEW CANTEX PRODUCT INFORMATION AVAILABLE

Whether you are looking for the CANTEX Full Product Line Catalog or for individual product sell sheets for any CANTEX PVC electrical products, we have the product literature you need. Browse through our portfolio of product literature for PVC electrical products like Schedule 40 or Schedule 80 Conduit, PVC Junction Boxes, or PVC Split Sleeve Couplings on our Product Literature Page. We are currently in the process of developing an abundance of product literature for our sales channel partners and valued customers. The goal is to have a sell sheet for every product by the beginning of 2020. You will find our product literature on the Product Literature page of our website here: https://www.cantexinc.com/resources/product-literature-pdfs. Additionally, by February of 2020, every individual product page of the online CANTEX Product Catalog will have a link to a Sell Sheet PDF along with the product's technical drawing and safety data sheet (SDS). For example, when you search our website for CANTEX 5133164 8” by 8” by 6” Junction Box and arrive at the catalog page (below), you will find all the product literature for that ... Read Full Post

November, 2019

TED Magazine: CANTEX Names New Vice President of Sales and Marketing

TED Magazine Article Excerpt: FORT WORTH, Texas — CANTEX Inc. is pleased to announce the appointment of Dave Milius to the role of Vice President Sales & Marketing effective September 30, 2019. Milius brings more than 24 years of electrical distribution sales leadership experience to CANTEX. Prior to accepting his new position at CANTEX, Milius served as Vice President of National Distribution for Signify, formerly North American Philips Lighting. Some of his other sales leadership roles with North American Philips Lighting included the following: Key Accounts Director; Director of Distributor Sales; Sr. Key Accounts Manager; Regional Sales Manager; and National Account Manager. Milius earned his Bachelor’s degree at the ITT Institute of Technology and has extensive experience in electrical equipment design. He also holds patents for ballast circuits that he developed during his early career as an Electrical Design Engineer. “I am very pleased to welcome Dave Milius to CANTEX to lead our sales and marketing team. His extensive experience at leading sales teams and his ability to implement strategies that lead to growth will certainly benefit our organization,” said Dave Merker, President of ... Read Full Post

August, 2019

TED Magazine: CANTEX Names New President

TED Magazine Article Excerpt: FORT WORTH, Texas — CANTEX Inc. announced that Dave Merker, former Vice President of Sales and Marketing for CANTEX, has been named President of CANTEX effective August 8, 2019. Merker succeeds Don Wirtanen as President, after Wirtanen’s untimely passing in July. Merker’s extensive sales and management experience in the electrical distribution industry, including 28 years at CANTEX, make him ideally suited to lead CANTEX. Moreover, it is Merker’s ability to implement and manage business strategies to meet the evolving market demands that make Merker the best person to lead CANTEX into the next decade. Wirtanen hired Merker in 1991 as the Director of Sales and Marketing/Electrical. In 2001, Merker was promoted to Vice President of Sales and Marketing, the position he held until he was named President last week. Wirtanen and Merker became an incredible team that helped lead CANTEX to several of the most profitable years in CANTEX history. This tremendous growth necessitated the development of new manufacturing facilities and distribution centers nationwide, taking CANTEX to the forefront of the PVC electrical product market in the United States. “CANTEX is very ... Read Full Post

July, 2019

Don Wirtanen Honored with Lead Story in TED Magazine

Upon his untimely passing, CANTEX President Don Wirtanen was honored on July 18, 2019 with an article about his passing taking the lead story in TED Magazine, one of the electrical distribution industry’s most prominent trade publications. The article led with TODAY’S TOP STORY in large red capital letters as an honor to Don and his many achievements. Click here to read the article in TED Magazine. TED Magazine Excerpt: CANTEX President Passes Away FORT WORTH, Texas — CANTEX inc. announced yesterday that its longtime President Don Wirtanen passed away at his home in Fort Worth, Texas this week at the age of 66. Wirtanen’s 33-year career at CANTEX began in 1986 as a Product Sales Manager before he was promoted to Director of Sales & Marketing-Electrical in 1990. In 1991, he was promoted to CANTEX Vice President of Sales & Marketing. He then progressed to Executive Vice President & General Sales Manager in 1994 before taking the lead of CANTEX as President in 1995, the position he held until his untimely passing. Wirtanen’s career is marked by several years of record sales for CANTEX ... Read Full Post

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