Sales Tip: Don't rule out specialty shops

Some tool dealers pass over custom shops because they're smaller or may not seem to do the same volume of work as a conventional repair shop. Yet they need tools and equipment, too. 
"You never know," says Phil Vincevineus, owner of Pleasant Valley Auto Body and Holeshot Customs, which share a building in Saukville, Wis. "If you've got one [tool] guy that keeps stopping, eventually you're going to need something and he's going to be the guy that you're going to buy from."

There are tens of thousands of custom shops nationwide doing everything from restoration and restyling to tuning and performance work. They use hardlines distributors already stock, like ratchets, wrenches and screwdrivers. They love specialty tools and usually do a great deal of special orders.