of an enigma in our market. We have people who are just rabid about it. They want everything green. Then, the next guy will say, ‘It is 2 cents more — forget it.’ “It really takes the sales rep identifying where a customer’s head is when it comes to green. It is part of the sales rep’s investigation of a customer to see where his or her interests lie. “We do not say, ‘Hey, get out there and push some green because green is hot.’ If a customer is interested in eco-friendly products, we have them and we can solve any issues that he or she may have concerning green.” Shipman said many times organizations go to green products when they realize the health and safety of their buildings, and the people who work or visit their facilities, can be safeguarded by using eco-friendly products. “It is an initiative that is driven by the customer who says, ‘We have had a lot of reports through human resources about people who are highly allergic to certain smells or certain chemicals or whatever it may be.’” Clarke added: “Cleaning for health and safety definitely resonates with a select group of customers, and I think it is a growing base. They have been told the story enough times that absenteeism is tied to cleanliness and on down the line. It is a pitch the sales people are offering. There are people who buy into the cleaning for health and safety concept, and there is a group who will be buying green down the road after they are told the story enough times.” Shipman said he believes JC Paper was the first company to embrace one brand of ecofriendly hydrogen peroxide sanitizer. “Some people think if a green product does not smell like a traditional cleaning product, it must not work,” Shipman said. For customers who are motivated to go green, such as those seeking LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) points, JC Paper’s Clean Smart Solutions Division has the products, the training and the materials to offer. “It is an enigma for us because we are really kind of at the whim of customers who wake up one day and decide green is important to them,” Shipman said. Clarke said future plans are to have more of the company’s sales staff become LEED certified, as well as gaining other certifications, such as those offered by ISSA. Delivering In A Large Area Takes Planning JC Paper was founded by two office products salesmen. The company expanded into printing paper, desktop printing equipment and converting specialty ruled paper for schools. Subsequently, the partnership was dissolved and one partner, Wilbur Clarke, 12 — Maintenance Sales News — January/February 2016 Above: JC Paper operates about 28 vehicles to make next-day deliveries throughout its large service area in <strong>No</strong>rthern California and into Nevada. Below: JC Paper has 200,000 square feet of warehouse space. The company’s fill rate is around 99.7 percent with an error rate of less than 1 percent. kept the JC Paper name and supply business. In 1971, the company merged with Wausau Paper Mills. In September 1978, JC Paper was reacquired by a group of operating managers headed by Wilbur Clarke, returning the company to the status of being locally owned and operated. Over the years, JC Paper diversified into the jan/san and foodservice markets through acquisitions of several smaller distributors. At the end of December 1999, a four-member management group made up of Wilbur Clarke’s eldest son, Michael, and his youngest son, Mark Clarke, Shipman and Haruki Takemoto bought controlling interest of JC Paper. In late 2012, Takemoto passed away and his shares were retired. The remaining three-member management team continues to operate and direct the company. Today, JC Paper’s primary service area encompasses a 500- plus-mile radius from Fremont. It extends north to Santa Rosa and south to Monterey. The company’s area also includes Reno, NV. While offering next-day deliveries in such a large area takes much planning, it is a value-added feature the company’s jan/san sales reps are able to offer customers. “Our location in the San Francisco Bay area puts us in the heart of many population centers,” Clarke said. “In addition, our hub and spoke delivery system gives us full access to markets farther out. We deliver next day to 98 percent of our geographic markets.” On any given workday, JC Paper has about 28 delivery vehicles on the road, with each carrying both printing paper and jan/san products. “Part of the reason we decided to diversify into jan/san was because cleaning items travel well with printing paper products, as opposed to products that need special accommodations, such as refrigeration,” Clarke said. In planning delivery schedules, the high volume of traffic throughout the San Francisco Bay Area at certain times of the day was taken into consideration. “Our last truck leaves about 6 a.m. The majority of our deliveries are completed before noon,” Shipman said. “We hit the road before the morning rush traffic pattern develops.” To make next-day deliveries in outlying regions, the company uses the “drop and hook” method. The way it works, Clarke and Shipman explained, is orders are picked at JC Paper and loaded onto trucks that leave Fremont around 1 or 2 a.m. Trailers are
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