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Who is HDA?
In April 2022, Distribution America and PRO Group Inc. joined forces to become Hardlines Distribution Alliance (HDA). In the two years since its formation, HDA has harnessed the purchasing power of both groups and has tirelessly worked to streamline merchandising, accounting, marketing and advertising services to offer the most efficient programs to members and partners.
What is HDA’s mission?
Our mission is to continue to build the success of distributors, vendors and independent retailers so they can compete and thrive in today’s challenging marketplace.
Who is part of the HDA network?
HDA has over 60 distributor members, over 400 vendor partners and thousands of independent retailers in our network. Additionally, HDA boasts over $7 billion in purchasing strength, and our distributor members serve all 50 states, Canada, Central America, the Caribbean and Mexico.
How does HDA facilitate partnerships within its network?
HDA hosts two conferences per year: the Group Merchandising Conference (GMC) and the Executive Planning Conference (EPC). Considered by many to be some of the most interactive events in the industry, both the GMC and EPC guarantee one-on-one private meetings between distributor members and vendor partners. In addition, HDA hosts purchasing, sales and merchandising meetings between member distributor personnel so challenges, best practices and solutions can be shared and implemented to help all entities thrive within the network and the hardlines industry as a whole.
How does HDA build programs with vendors?
Vendor partners work directly with the HDA merchandising team to match them with the right distributor members, build a program that fosters success within the network and helps them utilize advertising and promotional communications to reach multiple audiences. In addition, multiple networking events exist for vendor partners to forge business relationships including the GMC and EPC, distributor shows and digital vendor introductions and spotlights.
What are HDA’s goals for 2024 and beyond?
“HDA continues to make strides in delivering more value to distributor and manufacturer partners. In 2024, we will launch a new portal that provides efficient purchasing tools to all partners, allowing for more robust reporting and automated communications,” says HDA president Shari Kalbach. “As we look ahead to 2025 and beyond, we aim to enhance our pet, farm and ranch assortment to support our large network of distributor members who specialize in that sector. In addition, we will continue to improve existing CRM and promotional systems, allowing HDA to offer streamlined merchandising and advertising services to our network.”
