Tom Mahlke On Retail In The Heart And Soul Of Farm, Ranch And Home

In the world of retail, the farm store often doesn’t get the same attention as channels like Food, Drug, Mass or Club. But in many ways, this channel is the backbone of the North American economy. Tom Mahlke, CEO of Mid-States Distributing, knows this firsthand. Mid-States started in 1954 as a cooperative bringing together small entrepreneurial rural companies. Today, Mid-States has become one of the nation’s largest retailers in the farm store channel with 36 members, 700 store locations and annual sales in excess of 6.5 billion dollars. At their Winter Rendezvous Trade Show, I sat down with Tom to discuss the Farm and Ranch channel, what makes it different, and why relationships matter so much in their industry.