Lighting can be complex. It can also be “easy” if you’re just pricing the BOM, receiving the order, monitor delivery / ship it from your warehouse, and then bill it. It can be what you want it to be, based upon the level of effort you’re willing to invest, but the level of investment is also proportional to your level of success … as measured in sales and profits.

This is important as the lighting category is typically one of the top three product categories for an electrical distributor. It’s so important that there are distributors who exclusively focus on it and many distributors have lighting departments and divisions.

Further, the category is important as there are specialized sales organizations dedicated to lighting … lighting agents, and manufacturer reps who expand into spec-oriented lighting typically segment the business with a separate division / group.

Yes, I’m being a little facetious, however, years ago it was talked about how electrical distributors had essentially abdicated selling lighting. They left it to the lighting agent, who then quoted the business, added their “overage”, and then went to distributors and said, “what margin do you want to add” or said, “here’s the margin I added into this for you.”

Now, times have changed, for the most part, and distributors have become more involved, especially with value-engineering projects (VE). But they infrequently get involved with lighting specifiers and generate lighting demand, especially in new construction.

It’s considered that the “expertise” lies within the lighting agents and many lighting manufacturers seemingly “reserve” their training for their agents. There are also specialized training through IES as well as colleges to help people gain lighting knowledge.

NEMRA’s Lighting division launched its Stepped Educational Curriculum to help its members maintain their knowledge “edge.”

NAILD also offers training programs for distributors. They have programs that are open to all distributors and one that is exclusively to their members.

Few distributors have a focus, but Sonepar is one of them.

Sonepar has made a major investment in lighting training to create a differentiation in the field. Last year they partnered with IES and hosted training events around the country. The goal, other than training, was to strengthen relationships with the lighting, and more importantly, the lighting specification community.

Now Sonepar has expanded its training.

Sonepar Lighting Academy Trains Nearly 100 Associates in Advanced Lighting Strategies

 According to its press release, “Sonepar announces 94 associates have now completed at least one module of the Sonepar Lighting Academy, following the close of the program’s first 2026 module. Combining online coursework with hands-on learning, the academy builds expertise that helps Sonepar companies’ associates support customers with stronger lighting and controls guidance, design-build services, and project management support. Across its U.S. companies, Sonepar has 28 Lighting Certified (LC) associates, a prestigious credential awarded by the National Council on Qualifications for the Lighting Professions (NCQLP).

“We invest in lighting training for our associates because we want to be that trusted resource for our customers,” said Marc Hodges, Director of Services, Solutions and Lighting for Sonepar USA. “Sonepar goes beyond a traditional distributor’s role by offering value engineering and design-build support for successful lighting projects. We are a leader among distributors in adding new LCs to our organization.”

“As lighting technology continues to advance, customers increasingly rely on partners who can provide more than products,” said Bob Preston, Lighting Solutions Specialist at Capital Electric. “The Lighting Academy enables our associates to meet this demand and better support customers in a changing market.”

Graduates of the Sonepar Lighting Academy can help customers navigate lighting controls and emerging technologies and design lighting solutions for specific applications. Participants who complete all four modules can also take the third-party NCQLP exam to become Lighting Certified (LC). The LC credential signals an advanced level of technical expertise, giving contractors added confidence that Sonepar associates can help them solve complex lighting challenges and make informed product and controls decisions.

Acuity Brands is a strong partner of the program and co-hosted an in-person training event for the Lighting Academy at their Experience Center in Chicago in May. Acuity has also contributed subject matter experts, e-learning resources, and their Visual® Lighting design software.

“We’re excited to see Sonepar committing the time and resources to expand their expertise in lighting and controls,” said Stewart Shannon, Director – Strategic Accounts, Acuity Brands Lighting. “Our industry needs more specialists in these areas, and Sonepar’s investment in developing their associates will be critical to strengthening their long-term success in the lighting segment.”

Implications of Sonepar’s Training

1. Congratulations to them for investing in lighting training. While beneficial for them, it is also an investment in their people and, in reality, the industry given that in all likelihood, some will leave the company and become employed by a competitor, a customer, a lighting agent / rep, or a manufacturer. Not wishing them to leave but the odds of 100% retention …
2. This should be a wake-up call for lighting agents to continuously invest in their staff, and is another reason to join NEMRA Lighting as well as to always have people involved in the SEC. Your customer is becoming more educated. As they gain the knowledge and focus on their area of responsibility (lighting), they already have access to the manufacturer information and tools, have invested in the design / take-off / estimating tools and the only thing missing is the relationship with the lighting specifier. Further, they have a stronger relationship with the contractor which is 1) where VE happens, 2) contractors are doing more lighting product selection through their design work and 3) there are many projects that do not need a lighting designer because they are “simple” or are replacements / retrofit. The non-specifier involved market may represent 50-60% of the lighting market.
3. While Sonepar can effectively do this at scale, as can other national chains, could these types of initiatives move share from independents to nationals? Especially discretionary business that needs “a little lighting expertise?”
   1. Should AD and/or NAED be involved in coordinating this type of training, especially given the size of the lighting market? Should the NAILD Lighting Specialist training programs receive greater visibility?

The lighting industry model is under pressure as consolidation continues through the lighting agent landscape, the market is flat, there is some manufacturer consolidation but it is mostly small companies, there is lighting manufacturer capacity (more than enough brands … and how many do specifiers / end-users know), and many manufacturers are challenged in communication their points of differentiation to specifiers, contractors, distributors, AND THEIR OWN SALES ORGANIZATION. Further, many are marketing challenged, especially if you can’t remember them (limited brand awareness.)

Sonepar’s investment in lighting training will have a longer-term payoff and help them penetrate the market. Will they get the high-profile jobs? Probably not unless they win the bid. Will they gain profitable lighting business. I’d bet on it.