“Show up, follow through, and customers will coach you to wins.” ~Tammy Cale
Congratulations to Tammy Cale of Performance Foodservice – Thoms Proestler based in Rock Island, IL for being named AFDR’s DSR of the Month for October 2025, earning her a permanent place in the AFDR DSR Hall of Fame. Tammy lives about 20 minutes from the warehouse, and her territory is around the Quad cities surrounding area.
Tammy Cale is a top-performing DSR in the Quad Cities area (spanning Iowa and Illinois along the Mississippi River). Tammy shares her journey from a lifelong restaurant background to becoming a successful distributor sales rep, offering practical tips on overcoming early challenges, building customer relationships, prospecting new accounts, and adapting to post-COVID industry shifts.
The conversation emphasizes the value of transparency, education, and creativity in helping operators succeed – – key to driving sales and loyalty.
Tammy’s Background and Entry into Distribution Sales:
- Grew up in the restaurant industry (family-owned spots) and worked front-of-house roles; briefly sold newspaper advertising before transitioning.
- Entered distribution 8 years ago after seeking work-life balance; applied online to local distributor TPC (formerly Thoms-Proestler, acquired by Performance Foodservice).
- Tip for New DSRs: Leverage your restaurant experience—it’s in your blood if you love people and entertainment. Research local distributors online and highlight transferable skills in your resume.
Local Market Insights: The Quad Cities and Mississippi River Vibe:
- Quad Cities (Davenport, Bettendorf, Rock Island, Moline) is a river-centric area with unique east-west river flow; locals take it for granted but visitors are amazed.
- River influences local events (e.g., Floatzilla) and products (e.g., Whitey’s ice cream’s “Mississippi Mud” shake).
- Dave notes cities with more distributors have better restaurants due to competitive ideas flowing in.
- Sales Idea: Promote river-themed items (e.g., “Mississippi Fries”) to tie into local culture. Use your role to bring fresh concepts that enhance operator menus and stand out in markets with limited competition.
Early Challenges as a DSR and How to Overcome them:
- First years felt overwhelming: “Thrown into the state championship game” after training; green on back-of-house details like meats and products.
- Faced rejection from cold calls, self-doubt, and daily “gut kicks,” but persisted.
- Key to success: Ask customers questions about their pain points, like what keeps them up at night? They’ll trust you to help if you build relationships and show consistency.
- Utilize internal resources (e.g., chefs, kitchens, graphic artists) and learn from customers—transparency builds trust.
- Advice: Show up repeatedly; follow through on promises (e.g., samples, brokers). Customers notice and guide you if you’re reliable. Educate them on upstream issues like volatile prices via articles or market updates to dispel myths about distributors.
Post-COVID Changes and Adaptation Strategies:
- Increased carryout/delivery; menu downsizing (from 80 to 40 items) for efficiency amid product shortages and labor issues.
- Younger consumers prefer specialized spots (e.g., DoorDash for specific items like pizza or “dirty sodas”) over broad menus.
- Operators need niches (e.g., mac-and-cheese specialist) to draw crowds; community feedback shapes what’s “good.”
- Labor shortages persist: Front- and back-of-house staff are challenging, leading to reliance on pre-made, consistent products.
- DSR Opportunities: Suggest pre-cooked items to reduce waste/yield loss; help with portion control (e.g., cheese at ~21 cents/oz average) and recipes to cut costs. Offer to work a shift or observe cooks to identify issues like over-portioning, which can make or break profitability.
Prospecting and Approaching New Accounts:
- Research first: Use social media (e.g., local food groups like Quad Cities takeout pages) to find prospects via questions like “Best wings?” Check followers, reviews, and age groups.
- Visit anonymously: Eat there, observe service, customers, owner visibility, and operations.
- Start positively: Compliment specifics (e.g., “Your steak was fantastic last week”) to build rapport; get them talking about themselves.
- If food needs improvement: Inquire about products/equipment (e.g., “What beef are you using?”); offer cuttings or demos.
- Handle objections (e.g., “Happy with current supplier”): Congratulate loyalty but persist with new ideas/recipes/samples. Send photos from food shows or trips; differentiate by not just taking orders—bring unique twists.
- Pro Tip: Use Google Maps to scout menus from other cities (e.g., San Francisco) for inspiration. Aim to be a resource: Operators buy from you, not just the distributor.
Building Long-Term Success: Menu Analysis and Operator Support:
- Annually review menus: Identify top sellers, slow movers; check recipe adherence and portioning.
- Discuss costs openly (e.g., “How’s labor looking?”): Suggest cuts (e.g., 18% labor in slow seasons) or efficiencies like pre-made items for consistency.
- Competition isn’t just other restaurants—include C-stores (e.g., roller grill sausages).
- Key Mindset: Make operators reliant on you by educating them on profitability (e.g., Google portion costs if needed). Strong relationships mean they call you first, even for non-stocked items.
Final Takeaway: Tammy’s success stems from passion, persistence, and positioning herself as a partner—not just a salesperson. By educating, innovating, and showing up, DSRs can turn challenges into opportunities, helping operators thrive in a competitive, post-COVID landscape. Listen to the full episode for more straight talk from the street!
Be a Resource and SELL SOMETHING!!
