JD Martin Promotes Two

JD Martin, one of the largest independent manufacturer rep agencies in the country, recently promoted two people to regional executive management positions:

According to recent press releases …

Reid Shorter

Reid Shorter Promoted to RVP for Schell Martin

Craig Schell, President, of Schell Martin announced that Reid Shorter has been promoted to Regional Vice President, effective October 1, 2022.

In his new role, Shorter will continue to be involved in strategic sales management for several key accounts, in addition to increased responsibilities related to firm management across the Louisiana-Mississippi region.

“It’s been exciting to watch Reid launch his professional career here at Schell Martin,” said Craig Schell. “His personal drive, successful track record and commitment to deliver exceptional customer service make him stand out. Reid earned this opportunity by earning my confidence.”

“This is a really exciting time in our industry,” says Reid Shorter. “Finding new ways to solve the day-to-day challenges has given me both autonomy and space to grow—as a person and as a leader—with a great team, here, at Schell Martin. I’m honored Craig’s selected me for this leadership position.”

A Louisiana native, with a background in business administration, Reid joined the manufacturers’ rep firm in 2016. He’s served as an Outside Sales Representative for almost four years in the Greater New Orleans, Houma, Morgan City and MS Gulf Coast markets of the firm’s territory. Prior to that role, he served as an Inside Sales Rep for almost two and a half years at the firm.

Shorter earned his MBA from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette in 2019, and a BA in Business Administration/Management from Southeastern Louisiana University in 2016. He’d previously earned his Bachelors in Small Business Administration/Management from Southeastern Louisiana University.

Schell Martin is the Louisiana / Mississippi region for JD Martin.

Matt Garavaglia

Matt Garavaglia Promoted to EVP JD Martin for South-Central Region

Greg Baker, CEO/President, of JD Martin announced that Matt Garavaglia has been promoted to Executive Vice President. In this newly created role, Garavaglia will lead JD Martin’s strategic business initiatives throughout Texas and Oklahoma. Previously, he served as Regional Vice President of the firm’s Houston territory.

In his new role, Matt will continue to provide strategic sales management for several key accounts in addition to being responsible for leading talent development initiatives and deepening customer engagement efforts across the South-Central region.

An electrical industry veteran, with more than 23 years of sales management experience, Garavaglia’s professional background includes previous experience in multiple roles at Anixter, before joining JD Martin in 2020.

“Matt has made significant contributions since joining our team,” said Greg Baker. “He has both the passion and commitment to grow our people and operational efficiency. His valuable industry knowledge and successful track record of growing business within his territory helped make this an easy decision.”

“For over 68 years, JD Martin’s strength has been rooted in three core elements: our people, a strong line card and our entrepreneurial culture,” says Matt Garavaglia. “I’m excited and honored to have the opportunity to lead efforts to continue to drive market share gains for our manufacturer partners and further enhance the customer experience for our electrical distribution partners.”

Garavaglia earned a BS in Business Management from the University of Northern Colorado.

According to the press releases, these new roles within JD Martin were created to “expand the firm’s existing leadership pipeline.”

While JD Martin currently provides electrical manufacturers with representation in 15 states, each region has its own linecard, with regional management empowered to make local decisions.