Powering the Next Decade - Presentation 2020

March, 2020

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 infrastructures that will be necessary to keep up with rapid technological advancements in the 2020s can only mean growth for electrical distribution. Merker also discussed how all of the economic indicators also point to increased sales for PVC electrical products in 2020 and beyond.  Merker also highlighted some of the areas responsible for recent sales growth at CANTEX, which are expected to continue. Utility contracts, data center construction, large government projects, border walls and strong retail growth were some of areas of growth for CANTEX mentioned by Merker.

As part of the “Powering the Next Decade” presentation, Jayne Wilks, the Marketing Manager for CANTEX, highlighted both the challenges and opportunities for marketing PVC electrical products in the next decade that will result from the ever-increasing amount of online shoppers in this digital age. Wilks pointed out that those online shoppers are expected to reach over 300 million by 2023. Consequently, she discussed the importance of an excellent digital footprint in a world where consumers now count on online product information to make most purchases. She also pointed out that consumers expect information to be just seconds away with one click. While competing in the world of digital marketing might sound challenging, Wilks shared how the smallest efforts in online marketing can make a great impact on electrical distribution sales growth. CANTEX achieved over 1.2 million website page views last year and now has close to 500 relevant product key words on page one of Google through digital marketing efforts.

“Since electrical distribution has been a slow to embrace the digital world, it easy for those in the industry who work the search engine optimization (SEO) system with great content, digital ads, keyword ads, social media etc. to get great results. It easier and less expensive for this industry to rise to the top of the Google results simply because it’s not that competitive yet. Since electrical distribution is a little behind the times in terms of online marketing, It is pretty easy to get PVC electrical products, like pipe, boxes, fittings and accessories to rank well on Google. There just aren’t too many people competing for that prime space yet. Putting a little effort into these platforms can give you a great internet presence in this industry. If you invest in any marketing in this decade, it should all be about expanding your digital footprint, “explained Wilks.

Merker ended the presentation talking about all the capital investments taking place at all the CANTEX molding and extrusion facilities to help keep up with sales growth and to maintain customer satisfaction.  He also outlined many of the market strengths for the coming year and the next decade that should position CANTEX for continued success and growth well into the 2030s. 

“CANTEX is a one-stop shop for American-made PVC electrical products. We have a nationwide distribution network and an exceptional network of professional sales reps with excellent customer relationships. We’ve added revamped and effective marketing tools and programs, and the economy continues to be on an upswing, so there is no reason CANTEX won’t continue sell above forecast next year and in the years to come,” said Merker.