“As I often tell our team, it’s not the big that eat the small, it’s the fast that eat the slow … the companies that thrive are those that can react quickly,” says Highline Warren CEO
The supply chains that have kept the automotive aftermarket running for decades have exposed some major vulnerabilities. The fragmented system of interconnected manufacturers, distributors, suppliers and service providers has driven tremendous industry growth, but in recent years it has revealed a major vulnerability: complexity.
From the pandemic to ongoing raw material constraints and today’s oil supply disruptions, companies across the aftermarket have learned that supply chain resilience can’t be taken for granted. Security of supply has become a key priority.
Simply put, a company is only as valuable as the products and services it can deliver; everything else is secondary. Customers may never notice when the supply chain works perfectly, but they notice immediately when it doesn’t.
This is why controlling the supply chain is so crucial and has become one of the most valuable currencies in the aftermarket.
Speed Beats Size
While size has traditionally been the key to competitive advantage in the aftermarket, today’s environment increasingly favors speed and consistency. It is still true that bigger companies have greater buying power, reach and resources, but organizations that can adapt and respond quickly to changing market conditions while maintaining service levels will excel.
That kind of speed and reliability rarely comes from size alone; it comes from empowering the people closest to a problem to act on it. As I often tell our team, it’s not the big that eat the small, it’s the fast that eat the slow.
Whether it’s groups going out of business, a key material becoming constrained, or costs skyrocketing, the companies that thrive are those that can react quickly. The goal is simple: keep the product on the shelf when customers need it.
Why Control Matters More Than Ever
Control of the supply chain is paramount because dependence on too many outside partners makes an organization only as strong as the weakest link in the chain. Each handoff between manufacturer, distributor and retailer creates another opportunity for delays, communication gaps and service disruptions.
Partnering with a company that owns the entire process, from manufacturing to distribution and everything else in between, creates a single point of accountability. The result is greater visibility, faster decision-making and, ultimately, more reliable service for customers.
From Transactional to Strategic
Relationships have always been — and will always be — critical assets. Diversifying across suppliers can seem like the safer play by spreading risk across multiple sources, but it often has the opposite effect: a company buying from eight or nine different suppliers isn’t a high priority for any of them when supply gets tight.
As allocation decisions get made, suppliers naturally protect their most strategically important customers first, and that’s exactly when having product on the shelf matters most. Becoming one of a supplier’s most valued partners, rather than one of many accounts, changes the relationship from transactional to strategic.
Instead of negotiating against each other, both sides end up lining up on the same side of the ball, working to win together. The more fragmented the process becomes, the more friction it creates.
Simplicity Creates Strength
Simplifying the supply chain is just as critical as controlling it. Every additional layer involved in getting product from the manufacturer to the shelves and into the automotive aftermarket adds complexity and increases the risk of disruption. Organizations that can simplify and source an array of categories will receive restocks more quickly and reduce operational complexity.
It also allows them to turn inventory faster and use their cash more efficiently. Less time managing vendors and chasing inventory means more time focused on customers and running the business. Those that can get products from manufacturer to end user with the least friction — keeping products available when customers need them — will be the winners in the aftermarket.
Visibility and Agility Are Essential
Visibility and agility also help companies adapt to a quickly changing market. Adapting well requires two things: reliable data and the discipline to keep reassessing conditions rather than relying too heavily on annual forecasts and plans. A monthly cadence works well, checking what current data shows, then acting on it before disruptions reach customers.
It is also important not to let these ideas get trapped in layers of approval. Good ideas are good ideas, regardless of where they come from. The best companies lean on their subject matter experts, empowering and rewarding them to make decision regardless of where the idea originates.
There are more than 1,700 people at Highline Warren, and many of them could have better ideas than any single leader about how to improve specific parts of the business that they might be closer to.
A good leader hires the best people, gives them clear expectations, tools and guidance and then gets out of the way. That way, when disruption occurs, and it always does, those organizations move faster than competitors constrained by bureaucracy.
Looking Ahead
Today’s challenges are centered on oil availability, tariffs, labor pressures or raw material constraints. Tomorrow’s disruptions will look different, but the lesson stays the same. The strongest companies will consistently focus on the security of supply, build strategic partnerships, streamline product movement, keep products available to customers, and create organizations capable of adapting quickly.
They will also be the companies that remove friction from the process, become more significant to their suppliers and make it easier for customers to get what they need when they need it.
As disruption becomes a more permanent feature of the automotive aftermarket, companies are recognizing that complexity often creates vulnerability, while simplicity can create strength, underscoring the importance of operational control and supply chain resilience.
In the world we live in today, control isn’t simply an operational advantage; it is the foundation of customer trust, and increasingly, it’s the currency that determines who wins.
About Darcy Curran
With more than 30 years of experience in operational optimization, Darcy Curran serves as Highline Warren’s CEO and is a member of the company’s board of directors. Prior to Highline Warren, Darcy served as Senior Vice President of Wolseley, Canada, a $20 billion distributor of plumbing, heating, and building supply products. He serves on the MEMA Board of Advisors and resides in Memphis, Tennessee.
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