Relationship Building, Customer Service Fuel Quartermaster’s Success And Expansion

Shown, left to right, are representatives of Quartermaster Facility Supplies — Aaron Anger, Bradley Harrington, AJ Bucher, and Christopher Barney. (Photo by Harrell Kerkhoff, Maintenance Sales News)

By Harrell Kerkhoff, Maintenance Sales News Editor

Relationship building — in a time of phone trees, voice mail and other impersonal business practices — has been a boon for jan/san and related distributors not afraid to actually get in a vehicle and meet a current or potential customer face-to-face. This business strategy has led to steady growth for Quartermaster Facility Supplies (Quartermaster), a distributorship based in Indianapolis, IN, with a new location in the Detroit, MI, area.

Quartermaster CEO Christopher Barney and President Aaron Anger are, and always have been, businessmen who value building relationships. They like to meet people and find out their true needs when it comes to jan/san, foodservice, packaging and related supplies.

“Instead of sitting back behind a computer and sending out bids all day, we would rather be road warriors, meeting people and building friendships that lead to lasting relationships,” Anger said. “That is how Quartermaster has grown over the years and will continue to do so.”

Barney added: “Our business approach may be viewed as ‘old-school,’ but it works for us. That includes Quartermaster Sales Director James Payne, who is like a ‘walking billboard’ for our business when it comes to visiting people and finding out how we, as a distributor, can help them fill a need or solve a problem.”

A big part to Quartermaster’s success stems from an understanding that it’s not easy to clean away-from-home facilities. Floors need to shine, restrooms must be odor free, surfaces need to be properly disinfected — the list goes on and on. Facility care is a full-time job and requires the right products, procedures and training to be successful.

“In response, we focus on training our customers at their facilities and looking at their janitor’s closets to see what they may be missing,” Anger said. “All of that helps us bond with our customers — from the vice president of the company all the way to the custodian.”

Barney agreed, adding: “It’s important to reach the people at a facility who actually do the cleaning. As a distributor, we can learn a lot from that person and vice versa. It involves proper training and building lasting relationships.”

There is another big reason why Quartermaster officials like to conduct training at a customer’s location, according to Anger. It’s because “proper cleaning is very specific to the surrounding environment.”

“We feel it’s always better if a customer learns how to clean and maintain their own restrooms and floors rather than at our location, back at the distributorship,” Anger said. “For example, a customer’s facility may have hard water issues. That can impact how to properly clean that facility. The same is true with properly maintaining floors. What good is it to strip the same small section of flooring at our location? That floor finish is fresh and easy to remove. It’s not a true reality to what a customer is dealing with regarding his/her own floors.

“As a distributorship, we can provide great value for customers as they face many challenges in facility maintenance. Such training may be time consuming for us, but it pays off when a customer is happy and ready to conduct repeat business.”

Officials at Quartermaster also welcome help from the distributorship’s suppliers when it comes to training customers.

“Given my background in other industries, I’m used to relying on vendors who are willing to help with our customer training objectives,” Barney said. “It’s in the best interest of both vendors and distributors to help end-use customers succeed. Also, many of our customers understand that it’s hard for a distributor to be a specialist in all the products they sell. That is where vendors can come in and help — they know their products and procedures better than anyone.

“Again, we are relationship-crazy around here (at Quartermaster). Suppliers who can help us satisfy and build better relationships with our customers are suppliers we want to work with on a consistent basis. It’s in everybody’s best interest to help people properly maintain a facility.”

Part of that focus on training is showing end-use customers new and better ways of doing things. Product innovation is key, and suppliers who focus on innovation are very valuable to distributors, according to Anger and Barney.

“For example, we have had customers who have used the same floorcare products for 15 or more years. As a distributorship, it’s up to us to show new and better products and systems. The result is often very grateful customers,” Barney said. “Such outcomes, however, would not be possible without product innovations.

“That is how we grow as an industry — manufacturers, distributors and end-users coming together for better outcomes. The end result is cleaner and overall safer facilities.”

A Successful Partnership

Quartermaster Facility Supplies was the brainchild of the late Daniel Anger, a seasoned entrepreneur who operated a prosperous commercial cleaning enterprise from 1998 to 2017. Driven by a desire to support his clients in meeting their janitorial requirements more effectively, Daniel Anger ventured into the facilities supplies industry and formed Quartermaster in 2014, with the idea of offering quality products at competitive prices.

Quartermaster is now owned and operated by Daniel’s son, Aaron Anger, and Chris Barney. Its focus is to remain a full-scale wholesale distributor of janitorial cleaning supplies and equipment throughout the Midwest — with its main service region located in Indiana and Michigan.

“I took over operating Quartermaster after my father’s death in 2017, having worked in the business for many years prior to his passing,” Aaron Anger said. “Chris (Barney) contacted me several years later, in 2023, expressing his interest in becoming involved in jan/san distribution.”

Barney’s business background involves the automobile industry as well as owning a successful industrial supply house.

“I have found my past business experiences have been transferable to the jan/san marketplace,” Barney said. “It also helps to work with Aaron, who has been involved in the jan/san industry for many years.”

The name “Quartermaster” stems from Daniel Anger’s years serving in the U.S. Army, including Army Intelligence in Germany where he was a Russian linguist. He later served in Desert Storm.

In the Army, a quartermaster is an officer who supervises logistics and requisitions, manages stores and/or barracks, and often distributes supplies and provisions.

“I have always thought our name is very fitting for a distributorship,” Barney said. “Obviously, it took some vision on the part of Aaron’s father to come up with such a name, made extra special as he was an Army veteran.”

Although primarily involved with jan/san supplies, today Quartermaster also provides foodservice, safety and packaging supplies.

“We focus a lot on industrial accounts, such as those that involve manufacturing and warehousing,” Anger said. “Our product lines include paper products; dispensers; can liners; cleaning chemicals; gloves; and floorcare items such as floor pads and equipment.”

One way the distributorship works to find growth is by helping those customers who seek more sustainable and/or environmentally friendly products and cleaning systems.

“Those products and systems are very important to certain customers. As a distributor, it’s up to us to meet such needs by providing the correct products, systems, education and training,” Barney said. “It helps there are more quality products in the market today that are also considered friendlier toward the environment. It’s one of the beneficial changes that has taken place in the cleaning industry over the past 10 to 20 years — the level of quality among those products. It’s also great that the pricing of many such items has come down.”

Anger agreed, adding three of the four chemical products used in a highly successful dilution control system that Quartermaster sells are now green-certified, with the other product being a disinfectant — further testament to the improved quality of environmentally friendly chemicals used among many of today’s cleaning professionals.

In The Middle

The official slogan of Indianapolis is “Crossroads of America,” reflecting its historic importance and relative proximity to other major North American markets. The city is connected to four U.S. interstates (I-65, I-69, I-70, and I-74), making it a critical transportation and distribution hub. It’s also an area that has served Quartermaster well since the company has its own fleet of delivery trucks and drivers.

“Our main service region includes just about the entire state of Indiana and a large portion of Michigan. We are in a very good location, geographically, when it comes to getting products to customers in an efficient and timely manner,” Anger said.

Barney added: “One of our greatest advantages in the industry is that we are centrally located as a resident of Indianapolis. We can reach more than 10 major cities in less than eight hours. There is an average of 25,000 trucks passing through our state per day.”

A major expansion for Quartermaster took place in May when the company opened a second location in Bruce Township, MI, located on the northern edge of the Detroit metropolitan area. The expansion was made possible with the help of an existing customer to better service that customer’s needs in the Detroit area. Other business has followed at the new location, keeping Anger, Barney and other company representatives busy hiring new employees and fulfilling new needs at the Michigan location.

“Right now, we have a warehouse there as well as a delivery vehicle. Hiring employees for that location has also taken place,” Anger said. “Our new Michigan facility came about from the philosophy of being customer-led. If it makes good business sense, we will go wherever the needs are while serving our customers.”

One potential inhibitor to such growth often centers around the hiring process. Both Anger and Barney have been tackling various hiring challenges as of late.

“Finding the right hires can be amazingly hard. The key to our hiring process again goes back to relationship-building — making sure new hires have the capabilities and truly understand the importance of building solid relationships with customers,” Anger said. “We look for the best candidates during the hiring process — and then work to match the best position we have available for each successful candidate.”

Barney agreed, adding: “At Quartermaster, we feel we have some of the best employees in the industry. Our people are constantly seeking industry knowledge to make Quartermaster a best-in-class janitorial supplier. And, we’re always in need of more good people to hire.

“Our team is trained to attentively listen to customer issues and find solutions. We also feel it is our responsibility, at Quartermaster, to educate customers on new products and show them how many of those items can become a substantial part of their sustainability and green initiatives.”

When it comes to new hires, both Anger and Barney recognize there is often a steep learning curve involved to selling away-from-home cleaning products as well as properly educating and training customers.

“It’s often advantageous if somebody has a janitorial background,” Anger said. “However, new hires can learn this industry through proper training and guidance without such a background. It just may take them longer to grasp all the nuances of this industry.”

Barney is a perfect example, as he was not involved with the cleaning industry prior to coming onboard at Quartermaster. However, with the help of Anger and others within the industry, as well as attending various industry-related conferences and educational sessions, Barney now feels comfortable helping customers with their various cleaning-related needs.

“I also quickly realized that within the jan/san industry, everybody can be your customer,” he said. “There are a wide variety of people in charge of facility maintenance who need paper supplies, floorcare products and equipment, disinfectants and other items used to keep facilities clean and healthy. Those people also need advice, education and training. That is where a good distributor, such as Quartermaster, comes into play.”

Both Anger and Barney recognize the need for younger people to become involved in the overall cleaning industry.

“One of the first things I noticed, while attending my first industry-related conference, was that I was one of the younger people in attendance — and I just turned 57,” Barney said, with a laugh.

Anger added: “It’s often said that the cleaning industry is not very ‘sexy’ for those younger people who are considering a career choice. Therefore, there is a great need for industry leaders to reach out and help the industry become friendlier and more appealing to younger people. It’s also critical to give those people space to properly learn today’s products and processes that are needed to maintain a facility.”

Barney also reported on something else he has noticed while becoming further entrenched in jan/san supply. It’s a common “ailment” reported by many such professionals — often in a comical sense.

“Today, I can’t walk into a restroom and not notice what type of soap and paper dispensers are being used,” Barney said, again with a laugh. “I also can’t help but look at the condition of floors and other surfaces when entering a building. I’ve been told by others in this industry that this is normal.”

Challenges & Opportunities

Various changes in business today — brought on by modern technology and growing competition — can leave some distribution professionals questioning what their roles will be in the future. Although such challenges are a concern, the need for true problem solvers and relationship builders is as great as ever.

Both Anger and Barney see a bright future ahead for Quartermaster and other distributorships that put customer service, education and training ahead of everything else.

“It seems like we are forever seeing consolidations and acquisitions trending in the jan/san industry. However, at Quartermaster, we feel such changes can be viewed as a positive for our company as it helps strengthen our customer service focus and relationships,” Barney said. “Our focus on solid customer service has allowed Quartermaster to grow during these changing times. That focus will continue. As a distributorship, our overall business today is healthy and heading toward added growth despite a very competitive marketplace.”

A key goal at Quartermaster, according to Anger, is for the company to double its growth in 2026.

“Such expansion includes looking at new geographies that best fit our current business model,” he noted. “We see many opportunities in the market, and thus are looking to get the right systems and people in place for future success.”

Other Quartermaster goals include:

• Adding capacity to the distributorship’s equipment service capabilities to benefit a growing customer base;
• Expanding the company’s fleet of delivery vehicles and capabilities;
• Expanding the company’s warehouse capabilities with the addition of new technology; and,
• Continually looking for added support and communication with Quartermaster’s vendors.

“Both Aaron and I feel Quartermaster is strategically in a good position for future growth development,” Barney said. “It helps that our sales and operation teams are very strong and driven to be a best-in-class wholesale distributor to an expanding customer base.

“At Quartermaster, we enjoy the day-to-day challenges of finding solutions for our customers as it pertains to their facility maintenance needs. Being a distributor also gives us the ability to garner industry knowledge from past and existing relationships. That is very beneficial for our current and potential customers as they make their purchase decisions.”

Visit quartermastersupplies.com.