In this conversation, Wally shares why he chose to join Endries International, what he is most looking forward to in his new role, and the leadership principles that guide him. He also explains the value Endries brings to customers, where the company can make the biggest impact in a manufacturer’s business, and why listening to customers is so important to building stronger partnerships and developing better supply chain solutions.

---

My name is Wally Tappe, and I’m the Vice President of Sales for Endries International. I’ve had the opportunity to spend my career in industrial distribution, and I’m really excited to join Endries International for a couple of reasons. It starts with great people and a great culture, along with the opportunity to bring both an entrepreneurial spirit and a disciplined approach to serving our customers, growing in the market, and continuing to be an industry leader in supply chain solutions.

What I’m most looking forward to at Endries is the opportunity to get out in the field and meet with our customers face to face. I want to understand your business, learn how you operate, and, most importantly, learn what I can take back to our organization so we can build the tools and resources you need to help grow your business.

The values and principles that guide who I am as a leader really come down to three main things: people, culture, and execution.

Everything starts with people. When you put the right people in the right place and unleash their creativity to serve our customers and our industry, they do a great job. It’s all about people.

The second piece is culture. With the right people, you can build the right culture—a culture of winning, serving, taking care of our customers, and innovating. The culture we bring to our work makes all the difference in our business.

Then comes execution. You hire the right people, build the right culture, and then do what you say you’re going to do. For us, that means serving our customers every single day. Through all of that, we create accountability for ourselves to consistently deliver expert service to our customers.

The value Endries brings to our customers every day is our ability to take the complex and make it simple. We are not just a fastener distributor. We provide supply chain solutions for our customers, and we’ve proven that over the years by embedding ourselves within their supply chains.

We don’t simply supply the product. We provide an end-to-end solution within your facility designed to drive out cost and improve efficiency in your business every single day.

That’s where a distributor like Endries can make the biggest difference. It’s not just about the part we provide; it’s about removing complexity. Our customers are really good at manufacturing and producing their products. Where Endries brings expertise is in managing the supply chain and helping ensure that our customers can operate as efficiently and effectively as possible.

I always tell customers that we want you to spend your time producing your product while we spend our time making sure you have the supplies ready to go so you can do exactly that.

One of the most important things we do as an organization is get out and listen to our customers. By listening, we begin to understand your challenges, your needs, and the pressures facing your business.

Through that partnership, as we get to know each other, we have the opportunity to continue learning, iterating, and solving problems. That allows us to bring solutions to the table that help your business operate more effectively and ultimately help you grow.