357: Are You Choosing the Right School Supplies to Boost Your Early Childhood Program? With Tom Melhorn

In this episode of Childcare Conversations, Kate sits down with Tom Melhorn, president of North Star School Supply, for a really refreshing chat about something every childcare owner deals with: supplies and equipment. Tom shares how North Star takes a totally different approach than just handing you a catalog. They actually talk to you, assess your space and budget, and help you invest in quality, U.S.-made products that last. Think personalized service, 3D classroom designs, and someone who'll actually pick up the phone. No project is too small, and the goal is to be your supplier for life!

North Star Booking Link: https://calendar.app.google/BMv11DdzZEzMoopq9

Nimbl Assessment Link: https://calendar.app.google/6MSNVnLWo8zQGNLT6

Classroom audit blog post:
https://northstarschoolsupply.com/your-classroom-is-costing-you-enrollments-and-you-dont-even-know-it/

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Transcript

SPEAKER_02 0:01

Welcome to Child Care Conversations, the podcast where early childhood leaders like you get real-world strategies, honest talk, and a whole lot of support. Whether you're running one center or many, we're here to help you lead with confidence and clarity. This episode is brought to you by Center IQ. If you've ever added a child to a classroom, adjusted staffing, or made a quick schedule change, and then spent the next two weeks fixing the ripple effects, you're not alone. Most leaders make decisions and then see what happens. CenterIQ's decision intelligence lets you see what happens before you decide. Start your free trial today at centeriq.io. Now, let's get into today's conversation. One we think you're really going to love.

SPEAKER_00 0:51

Welcome back to Childcare Conversations. And today we are excited to continue to have real conversations about what you as owners and directors need, want, and how to find things that are a little bit different. So today we are bringing on tell Tom Melhorn from North Star School Supply. Now, school supplies are something that everybody has, everybody needs, but you know, you don't want to catalog. You don't want to just buy stuff to buy stuff. So one of the things that Childcare Conversations was so excited about partnering with North Star is that they care and they actually want you to have the equipment that one you need, not all the stuff on the list. And they work with what you already have. So, Tom, tell us a little bit about how you found yourself in the early child care education space and what your thoughts are about. I'm just gonna go with school supplies.

SPEAKER_01 1:52

Um thanks for uh having me on, Kate. Uh, really excited to uh take a deeper dive into this topic. I think that it's an important topic in early childhood. So happy to um again be here and be a part of the conversation. Um how Northstar evolved or how kind of um, you know, I formed the company is really um because of two things. Um one, I grew up um with a family or around uh family members that have been in early childhood and teaching and understanding how to um utilize and be creative with uh the items or funds that you are available. So how this uh came about is really understanding the need in the markets for furniture, let's say, and being able to stretch a budget as far as possible. So um that's really kind of what's Northstar's uh Pride and Joy has been is really being able to uh offer uh everything um that you could think of um from a high high quality perspective that's going to last a lot longer than um maybe uh things that are available from a uh a cost perspective.

SPEAKER_00 3:12

You know, I love that you mentioned the high quality because in addition to the quality piece, you a lot of your manufacturers or most of your manufacturers are actually US-based manufacturers. And I think that so many owners, directors, we get stuck with a budget and we go, Oh, I need to buy all this stuff and this is all I have. And instead of maybe taking a pause and going, well, if that's all you've got in your budget, let's buy a couple of items that are quality that will stick around for the life of your program and becomes a real asset instead of a depreciating asset that you have to toss and, you know, a couple of years and replace. So tell us a little bit about pick one of your manufacturers. You know which one I love, but pick one of your manufacturers and tell us a little bit about why they're a partner with you, why you use them, and maybe what's different than I'm not gonna have you name other brands or other suppliers, but what might be different and why uh you've chosen the manufacturers you have.

SPEAKER_01 4:10

Yeah, I think that um in today's world, especially as uh as you know, business has evolved, um, choosing a reliable um US-based source um really comes down to uh the quality and uh a cost, right? I think that uh supporting American manufacturing and community uh and the communities they serve, it really um just uh kind of brings everything to the forefront uh from quality and um being reliable. So um that reliability is having the quality uh behind the products that they create. And usually what that means is they're going to last uh a long time. Um and you're not so that ROI is there because it's going to last a lifetime. And that's kind of why we want to build relationships that last a lifetime with our clients and with the manufacturers that we support. One of the great companies that we uh support is Fumcor. Um they're based in Muskegon, Michigan, and they have um I don't know, up and down. They are something that we love to brag about their company culture, their go-to-market strategy. They want to bless others in their community as well as across the US. So they are very um um giving uh to internally as well as externally. Um, and you know, I I would be happy to um again always uh uh push push um manufacturers that um have have a good heart and uh a good to go to market.

SPEAKER_00 5:54

Well, one of the things that we didn't talk about, but I will talk about is that although uh a lot of our audience is international, so we have 125 countries and we do have a pretty strong listenership in Texas, uh both North Star and a lot of your vendors are Midwest based. And so folks who've listened know that I grew up in Ohio, that Carrie was born in Michigan. Um, we only let that be a problem one weekend a year. And for the most part, um, for those of you who don't know, there's a whole Michigan, Ohio thing. So anyway, uh sometimes listeners will message back and not quite get my joke. So, but in this case, I think that those Midwestern values really do come through uh not only in North Star and North Star's relationships, but also your relationships with your vendors and your partners. So you mentioned relationships. You mentioned being with folks for a lifetime. What does that look like from a supply standpoint? Or even more, if I'm a director or I'm an owner, what does that mean to you? I'm so used to having, you know, I just place my order and not that it is what it is.

SPEAKER_01 7:04

Um yeah, I think that you have to look beyond that upfront cost, right? I think that it's uh uh maybe what you're getting at is maybe that transaction. And, you know, with North Star, it's quite a bit more than a tra transaction. Sure, we can um, you know, go to any website and select uh a product that we want or you know, maybe guess on a product that um that we have um in our mind if it will fulfill a need um of the center or of um of the educational value. But um, you know, I I think that when we think about the buyer journey, I guess we want to take more of a personal approach, right? Where we want to understand the needs, uh the maybe budget. Um, and instead of you know just pushing maybe a pre-built kit or pre-built catalog, I think it's taking more of a personalized approach to understand the needs, um, the goals, and um also um kind of bringing them through uh a buyer journey that's more personalized. Um, so that way the quality uh products that we push um go beyond that um front cost, as I mentioned, where you're not gonna have to um, you know, uh be repairing, you know, the product, uh fixing, I guess, ordering replacements, um, incurring any sort of shipping delays. And, you know, uh along the line, I guess just further downstream, it just really does, you know, increase that uh expenditure long-term.

SPEAKER_00 8:44

Yeah, so we were talking, um, so you've got staff other than just you. Um, so folks might get you, they might get Maria, they might get Alicia, but they're gonna get somebody who stays with them from the first phone call. And somebody on your team is there all the way through, literally unboxing and setup if that's something that the program is looking for and interested in. And that that developing that relationship also means that your goal isn't to try to sell them everything at once. Am I right? Like you you kind of work with what they have, both budget-wise and existing materials. So what would be the first step? If somebody reached out, place to call, they saw your contact information, they said, Hey, I heard you on the podcast, what would the the next step look like?

SPEAKER_01 9:30

Yeah, so maybe I'll touch on quick before I jump into that is maybe our our services. So when we think of that journey, really where it starts is from concept. So, you know, whatever concept that you may have uh in that uh purchasing program, um, being able to bring that to life and helping uh I guess guide you. So we want to understand that. And maybe what's um, you know, what a great place to start would be, you know, uh jumping on a phone call. And what we would do is perform an assessment. Okay. What do you have in place today? Do we want to follow, you know, those same guidelines or do we want to create a new experience and being able to kind of guide you through then the process and how we go to market. And again, we want to provide those uh lasting products. That way we get to continue to talk to you. And um, you know, those those projects can be big or small. So um really we take the same approach no matter what um what your budget is.

SPEAKER_00 10:34

All right. So they've grabbed a phone call, you do an assessment. Where do they go from there? Is it just like something that magically shows up? Do they hear from you? Um tell me tell me a little bit more.

SPEAKER_01 10:46

So some other uh services that we provide. Um one of our uh services would be a design um service. So Maria's able to put together a um classroom layout with or even a full school layout. Um, and what that looks like is a 2D, 3D rendering of every component within a classroom. It takes into considering your licensing requirements. Um and uh we really want to be able to provide you with the look and feel that you're gonna receive when you're in that space. So we can utilize um, you know, existing furniture, but we use uh CET files, um, but we can input existing furniture and then kind of uh help um provide a better understanding of what the new components in the classroom may look like. Right.

SPEAKER_00 11:36

So one of the things that I know, so when folks are listening to this episode, it's you know, we are talking right dead smack in the middle of summer camp, but every owner, every director right now is, whether they want to admit it or not, starting to think a little bit about fall enrollment. So we have programs all over the country who reach out to us, who talk to us regularly about not having enough butts in the seats. And so a lot of that comes back to they might even get the people in the door, but they're not closing the deal. And so sometimes, you know, we we get a little blind to the fact that maybe our space needs a little bit of a freshen up. Can you guys help programs who are maybe struggling with that first impression piece? How could somebody even think about equipment when it when it wraps around that tour, that first impression, and really what you're telling that family?

SPEAKER_01 12:30

Yeah, I think that um through that assessment, you know, if it does, depending on the scope, that's something that, again, we want to build these relationships. So if it does mean, you know, coming out and taking a look at the center to help you um drive revenue in that uh enrollment phase, you know, it's something that we can walk through the center and better understand maybe um what small tweaks we could or additions, let's say, um, we could provide value in. Um, I think something that comes to mind as you know, I have a three and a five-year-old when we're going through different classrooms is understanding um what's something that could brighten up the space or um split up various areas within a room. And one of those might be uh a simple uh rug or carpet um that can brighten up the space or you know, provide a little more uh it can provide a feeling, right? Um, within that space. Another one is uh, you know, oftentimes when we're going through different centers, something that's uh that you know we see is um clutter, right? And when there's clutter, you know, sometimes that just comes across as being unorganized and simple things that uh, you know, storage components, um, where there's so many different varieties of storage um uh pieces or units today that we can get creative and fulfill, you know, your clutter or you know, really aid in that organizational approach um within each classroom.

SPEAKER_00 14:06

I love that. And I think that's a great thing for owners and directors to think about. And of course, anytime you make room adjustments, we always want to get buy-in from the teachers because we don't really want to walk into a classroom and change everything and then have the teachers completely frustrated because maybe it doesn't how it works for them. Uh, so we've got to come up with that dialogue that is kind of a happy medium. So, what presents well to the families, what is useful to the children. I love the fact that you talked about licensing requirements and you're in state minimum standards because you guys have clients all over the country. Although that you're based in the Midwest, that isn't where your clients are. I know you have clients in Texas, I know you've got clients in Georgia. What are some things that you run into kind of consistently, regardless of what state, that you see as a really big problem that everybody has when it comes to buying their supplies and their equipment?

SPEAKER_01 15:01

I think the big problem when buying, um I I would have to say that, you know, it's just they do what's easy, right? And the easy, uh what's easy is always going to um, you know, a uh a large supplier and being able to select and you know, purchasing. Or, you know, where we want to provide extra value is being able to um point you in the right direction, understanding what exactly maybe you do need and uh provide the quality, the understanding of the quality behind the different products, um, helping you understand the lead times when we need to. I think it's just more taking that personalized approach where sure uh you know anyone in today's, you know, uh world can go in to understand a catalog, but I think that when we don't um, you know, uh want to um go through that that journey of personalization, I think that we can help um stretch your budget further. And uh part of that is jumping on a phone call or you know, just a small exercise where we can understand your needs and um help you save in the long run, besides the project or the scope is me if no too many owners and directors that when you say I'm going to help you save money and maybe even save you time and energy, they aren't, they should not, they should absolutely be, where's that number?

SPEAKER_00 16:33

Uh because what I think is great is when having conversations with y'all, you're happy to work with somebody who just needs a rug. It doesn't have to be a full brand new school, it doesn't have to be a whole refresh, which are things you do. You work with franchisees, you work with franchisors. So you work on full school scopes, you work on, I got a little bit going on, or you know, I want to test you out and see if you're really as good as Kate and Carrie say you are. So I'm gonna buy one thing from you. And um, maybe that's where you start. And so uh I think the fact that there is no project that's too small, there's no project that's too big, uh, and that for the most part, you're not gonna just take a list. You're gonna talk through that list, talk through, you know, because the list may have twice as much stuff on it as your actual space is truly licensed for in your state. And I think that was one of the examples y'all gave me was um a client who went to go buy, you know, they're like, I need to buy this because this is what they're telling me I need to buy. But yet their space wouldn't have allowed for all that equipment and all those materials. And so yeah, they could have spent the extra 10 grand. And I'm sure most businesses would be perfectly happy to let them spend that other 10, but you didn't. You stopped them and basically had a conversation about you don't have this many rooms or you don't have this much space. So why do you need this many materials for that age group? And I think that that is something that any of us, if we were trying to do it ourselves, right? There's a lot of folks on this podcast, I'm sure, that definitely do the DIY version of supplies and equipment and they get a catalog from a conference, or they just go online and maybe they buy something from, you know, China and, you know, it's shipped over and it smells like it and it looks like it and it lasts like it. And, you know, you're bringing US-made um supplies, equipment, furniture uh to early learning leaders, early learning programs all across the country in a way that you you hear them, you get them, you know that this is the right thing for them. And if I'm right, you guys have a vested interest, right? You want to be their lifetime supplier, not just their single product one time.

SPEAKER_01 18:57

Right. Yeah. I mean, we want to be a trusted resource, right? And um, you know, I've I think where you touched is, you know, when maybe the scope is very big, you know, uh, we encourage everyone to go out and maybe get multiple bids. Um, I think that that allows us to really showcase um our value add outside of maybe just throwing um throwing you at our catalog, or um it really provides, you know, the that um, you know, good Midwest value of uh being able to um you know pick up the phone and reach us right away. I think that you know, we want to bounce ideas, we want to be flexible for you. Um and really uh like you're saying, we don't want to, you know, provide or create pre-built kits that, you know, uh provide no additional value to you. I mean, it's then it's the same look and feel as everyone else, right? There's there are reasons why you are different. We want to understand them and we want to um, again, uh, I guess create shared success amongst uh amongst that relationship.

SPEAKER_00 20:09

So I love that. And I love the fact that the majority of your staff have young children. So you guys are actively in this space. You are spending day to day working with people who are working with children in this age limit or this age group. And the other thing that I think is really, really exciting for those who are listening is that this isn't some massive conglomerate that has 47 different businesses. You are, you know, a small company with a small staff, but yet you have a huge reach, you have a huge opportunity. And so if somebody has an issue, they get to talk to the president and CEO, not just, oh, let me pass you along to somebody who might be able to help you. Like customer service is you, it is Maria, it is your staff, it is your team, and your team is close and your team all know each other, and they've you guys have worked together uh in other ventures. And I think that that's exciting and it should be exciting for the owners and directors who are listening because you're not going to get that level of customer service anywhere else. So all right. So, what else? You look like you have something you want to say, Tom.

SPEAKER_01 21:16

Oh, don't mind picking that.

SPEAKER_00 21:18

You leaned up. I was like all prepared. I was like, Tom's got some words of wisdom. So how would you like? What do you want to leave folks with as they're listening to this episode?

SPEAKER_01 21:27

Um no, I think that again, what we want to maybe articulate to everyone is that we are a resource and we are um a resource that you can uh reach out to and have real quality interaction with. Um I think that um again, there's there's a lot of value behind uh the personalized touch and the personalized journey towards um, you know, whatever goals that you may have. And instead of um, you know, having things so um I guess pushed for you to figure out, um, we would like to uh in a sense handhold you through the journey and uh provide you with you know the the Ritz-Carlton type of approach where you um you have no matter big or small, these are high quality products that are large um you know price points you know in a in a larger sense of your budget. So we want to make sure to push the higher quality products and we want to um as a small company uh help stretch your budget further. So um that's really our go-to-market and uh what we have, you know, I guess have a lot of pride uh doing and have a lot of success with, you know, the clients that we do serve today.

SPEAKER_00 22:47

Absolutely. So if you are sitting here trying to figure out how to navigate your uh supply budget or expanding, buying something new, maybe you just want to do a refresh. Uh, I'm gonna take a little navigation play on the whole North Star thing. And so follow your North Star to a much better uh equipment map and an equipment experience. And so with that, make sure you go like and subscribe to Childcare Conversations on your podcast player of choice, and we will talk to you in a couple of days.

SPEAKER_01 23:22

Like and subscribe.

SPEAKER_02 23:24

Thanks for tuning in. We love bringing you real talk and fresh insight from the world of early childhood education. Be sure to follow us on social media to stay connected and catch all of the latest episodes. And if you're planning a conference, training, or special event, Kate and Carrie would love to speak to your audience. You can learn more about their keynote sessions and workshops at kateandcary.com. If you learned something today, share the show and leave us a review below. We'll see you next time on Childcare Conversations.