CEO redefines the distributor as a business partner
Jim Williams has been a leading light in the Great Lakes Region for nearly 50 years, building the Grand Rapids, MI company he serves as CEO into a distribution powerhouse known for its service to customers in the kitchen and bath, heating and ventilation, plumbing and related markets.
As a full-service distributor to dealers, builders, contractors, interior designers and architects, Williams Distributing recognized early on that traditional two-step distribution in an increasingly sophisticated market involved more than simply providing an inventory of competitively priced, ready-to-ship cabinetry, plumbingware and other products. An early champion of customer training, education, marketing and relationship-building, Williams’ firm succeeded in a market whose product mix, distribution channels and specifier needs have undergone profound change since the company’s founding in 1968.
Williams himself has a lengthy record of community service, including as board chairman of the YMCA of Greater Grand Rapids and president of the Gerald R. Ford Council of the Boy Scouts of America.
He was named the Michigan State University Business Person of the Year in 2004, and was recently honored by the Cascade Community Foundation with its annual Claude and Marion Robinson Community Leadership Award, honoring a person who has demonstrated a commitment to improving the community.
