Members of NEXUS North America met for the group’s third annual N! North America Connecting Days, held May 15-16, in the Chicagoland area. The event served as a forum for NEXUS North America founding partners, The Automotive Distribution Network (The Network), Automotive Parts Associates (APA), VIPAR Heavy Duty and executives of NEXUS Automotive International, to meet with current and prospective global supplier partners.
The two-day event offered an opportunity for NEXUS North America members and suppliers to spend dedicated time together, reaffirm existing relationships and explore new business opportunities.
“Connecting Days is an opportunity for NEXUS North America to meet with suppliers that are new to the North American market as well as strengthen our existing vendor programs,” said David Prater, president of The Network.
N! Connecting Days North America was highlighted with NEXUS North America members holding productive one-on-one meetings with suppliers. It also provided a forum for all three North America program groups to share ideas, knowledge and work collectively on key initiatives to best meet the dynamic needs of customers ranging from light passenger through heavy duty commercial vehicles.
NEXUS Connecting Days is a global program initiated by NEXUS Automotive International to help the N! community to accelerate its growth. In addition to the yearly global N! Business Forum, more than 10 local Connecting Days are organized every year by NEXUS around the world. This event is one of the most important innovations of NEXUS among its community, the organization says.
“In an industry that’s constantly changing, it’s important for our shareholders that we create and develop key partnerships in order to provide stability and competitive supplier programs,” said Douglas Squires, Automotive Parts Associates board chairman. “Our alliance with the Automotive Distribution Network and VIPAR Heavy Duty gives us an opportunity to not only discuss the changing environment and share insights, but it has also provided a valuable connection for collaboration toward future growth. By creating a support structure like NEXUS North America, we all benefit as resources for each other.”
NEXUS North America continues to deliver value to its members through real-time collaboration on a variety of projects in areas such as parts distribution center opportunities, national fleets and technology, including a B2B platform to provide an e-commerce solution for end-user customers.
“We have just started down the road, but already the level of cooperation and collaboration among NEXUS North America members is a model for what successful industry partnerships look like,” said Chris Baer, president and CEO of VIPAR Heavy Duty. “The great work we have accomplished over the past few years has enabled us to better serve our respective customers.”
