The DPHA Representative Agency of the Year Award recognizes firms for their:
- Training programs
- Customer service
- Involvement and support of the industry
- Professionalism
- Demonstrated ability to create value for lines and showrooms
In each of the above criteria, D'Antoni Sales Group
excels. Covering Kentucky, Tennessee, Indiana and Ohio, Traci D'Antoni
does more than just "sell" - she builds long-lasting relationships with
her customer base, a significant reason her agency not only survives,
but thrives, since it began in 2004. Having come from a showroom
background, Traci knows not only how to interact with people in a
positive way, but she is extremely diligent in taking ownership of
problems that may arise in the field and strives to resolve them in a
satisfactory manner for all parties involved. As Traci told us, "Having
a small agency gives me the ability to react quickly and to let the
dealers know they are dealing with a decision maker, not a sales
person."
As one of the manufacturers that D'Antoni Sales Group
represents said, "Traci is always available for her customers and
specifiers. She offers a deep knowledge of a wide variety of plumbing
and hardware items from working in a showroom for a number of years, as
well as representing a wide variety of products. She provides solid
lines of communication between the end users, dealers, installers and
manufacturers. And she most certainly offers knowledgeable and credible
field support, when needed."
Traci also uses the training programs of the manufacturers
she represents, as well as the DPHA Education Manuals, in every aspect
of her daily work. She is committed to educating the showrooms she
calls on, and continually strives to stimulate showroom personnel to not
only be the best that they can be, but to take pride in their industry
and their careers in it. According to another manufacturer, she is also
terrific with the A&D community, helping them understand, and
thereby apply, a large array of plumbing and hardware products in their
designs.
Traci has always been involved in Midwestern NKBA chapters,
and once she joined DPHA, dove in head first. She joined a few
committees right away, and was the Education Committee Co-Chairperson
from the fall of 2015 until the fall of 2018. She also was elected to
the 2016 Board of Directors, where she still serves, was the
Association's Secretary in 2018, and has served on the Executive
Committee since the fall of 2017.
Traci's commitment to DPHA is more than just that though, it
is a passion. As Traci wrote, "Being a participating member of DPHA
helps keep me connected to other areas of the country and keeps me
informed of new trends in the industry. I also feel that serving on the
Board is a way of giving back while at the same time paying it forward
to the next generation of decorative plumbing and hardware
professionals. I want everyone in the industry to have a voice, no
matter how small a business or how remote an area."
It is for all of these reasons, and so many more, that DPHA
was delighted to have D'Antoni Sales Group named its 2018 Representative
Agency of the Year.
