04 Sep 2024 501 distributor keeps thousands of convenience stores stocked to serve you
By Donna Lampkin Stephens
Bob Douglas founded his wholesale tobacco and candy business in Texarkana in 1973, and 51 years later, the next two generations of his family have helped grow Douglas Companies into one of the leading convenience products distributors in the mid-South region.
The company, which supplies everything but alcohol to more than 1,000 convenience stores, has had a presence in Conway since 1978, when it bought a second distribution center. Jonesboro marked the third in 1989. According to douglascompanies.com, a 2005 expansion of the facility in Conway’s Industrial Park enabled it to consolidate all of its distribution operation in the 501. In 2017, the final of four expansions of the Conway location put the facility at 120,000 square feet.
“My father died in 2003, and my brother and I made the decision to stay in the business and keep going forward,” said Susie Douglas Munson, executive vice president. Steve Douglas, her brother, is president. “This is the only place we’ve ever worked. The business and family are just kind of one. It was all hands on deck.”
Their mother, Mary Glynn, now 88, was involved from the beginning and still expects reports from her children.
“But we wanted one centralized distribution center,” Munson said. “The way the industry is now, and to have all the automation, which is costly, we didn’t need three places. And to be able to purchase in bracket pricing, we needed to be here. It’s centrally located, and Conway is such a great town for our business.”
Bob Douglas served in the state legislature from 1963-78. He had worked for his father-in-law in the meat-packing business in Texarkana and called on Piggly Wiggly in Shreveport, where he found that the grocery was looking for someone to stamp cigarettes for excise taxes.
“He thought that would be a little something extra to do, and then he got interested in tobacco and candy, which had historically sold together,” Munson said. “There was a little local place in Texarkana called Williams Tobacco and Candy that was going to sell. He decided he wanted his own business, so he bought that, and that’s when convenience stores were coming into being and the industry was going away from mom-and-pop stores.”
The timing was spot-on, coinciding with the growth of the convenience-store industry.
“My father embraced technology and automation when nobody was doing that in this industry in this area,” Munson said. “He wasn’t married to the idea that there’s only one way to do things. He went from salespeople going around on trucks to pre-sells where our customers do their own ordering. We could sell so many more things that way. I credit him for being so open to doing that.”
Taylor Douglas, Steve’s son, who came on board in 2017, said the company carries 9,000-9,500 separate items, and customers can order any of those at any time.
Sarah Douglas Beach, Steve’s daughter who joined the company in 2014 as director of vendor and trade programs, explained the niche.
“A convenience store can’t order a truckload of candy from Hershey’s Chocolate, so somebody like us is buying a truckload, and then they can buy a box from us,” she said.
Taylor Douglas said the company buys all kinds of convenience store products from manufacturers and sells 250,000-275,000 pieces per week—cartons of cigarettes, boxes of Snickers, cases of bottled water, Styrofoam cups, ice cream, etc. Douglas Companies services more than 1,000 convenience stores per week all across Arkansas and portions of surrounding states.
The business has 150 employees, including 100 in operations (warehouse and distribution/delivery) and 50 in the front office, sales and customer service.
The four family members are University of Arkansas graduates. Steve Douglas’ degree is in marketing, Munson’s in secondary education, Beach’s in human environmental sciences and Taylor Douglas’ in finance and accounting. While Steve and Susie “graduated on Saturday and went to work on Monday,” the third generation earned graduate degrees and worked for a time outside the family business.
“New family rule,” Beach said. “We both got experience working for other people.” She is a registered dietitian; her brother is a CPA.
Munson said, “We wanted our kids to go out and have other experiences before coming back. We thought that was important. We all work together, and we go on vacation and enjoy each other outside of here,” Munson said. “The key is we all really have respect for our accountability to each other. We all have to be accountable to each other and trust each other. And I think that’s why it’s always worked.”
Her nephew added, “We wake up talking about it, work all day together and then talk about it at night,” Taylor Douglas said. “We’re fortunate that our company is large enough that we can have our own roles so we’re not stepping on each other’s toes.”
As COO, Munson sees the big picture and appreciates each person on the Douglas team, primarily comprised of non-family members. “Our Executive Team Members who are not members of our family are very important to the success of our business and a big part of our decision-making,” Munson said. “We are not able to operate at the level we do without the contributions of our other team members. Our Executive Team Members and Management Team Members work in the trenches with us every day to help guide and manage the company, and we value their input very much.”
The 51-year-old, family-owned business strives to remain on the course that founder Bob Douglas charted. By embracing technology and automation and staying open to new ways of growing the business, the Douglas workforce is achieving success.
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