We have the expertise and knowledge to provide what is necessary to successfully take your product to market.

Executive Team

John Link/Owner/Managing Partner - After a 10 year career and a Masters degree in Civil/Structural Engineering from University of Illinois John joined GDHWD in June of 1992. Johns product knowledge and understanding is pivotal to his success. John works with Grainger, ULINE, Walgreens, and True Value.

Tom Stineman/Owner/Partner/Vice-President - Tom joined the company in August of 1985 after graduating from Saint Leo University. Tom has served as President for the Housewares Club of Chicago (currently known as MRMA) on many other committees. Tom works in most classes of trade including Meijer, True Value, Ace Hardware, and Do It Best.

Brett Gern/Owner/Partner/Vice-President - Brett started his career with Home Depot in 1993 and opened the first 2 Home Depot stores located in the Midwest as the Department Manager in Hand/Power Tools and Lawn & Garden. Currently Brett is a managing partner of our agency and has sales with Ace Hardware, True Value, and Menards.

Account Sales

John Widmer/Sales - John has 6 years with Impact Sales/GDHWD and currently has responsibility for retail sales and marketing for farm stores, ag stores and automotive retailers in Central and Southern Illinois. John’s Key accounts include Rural King, Big R, Farm King, Farm and Home, Stock & Field, Effingham Warehouse, All Car, & Hoerr Racing. Previously John spent 25+ years in the automotive aftermarket as sales manager and operations manager with Napa, Big A and Car Quest Auto Parts.

Jason Schroepfer/Sales - After graduation from UW Madison, Jason started his career in the automotive aftermarket managing and merchandising at locations for both All-Car Automotive as well as CSK. He joined Impact Sales in a sales role in October, 2002 working in his home state of Wisconsin calling on all channels, along with time spent at the service level of individual accounts and stores. With the mergers of Impact Sales and GDHWD & Eberle, his responsibilities continue to stay in Wisconsin, with heavy focus on Blain’s Farm and Fleet, Fleet Farm, and Menards with relationships and business in a variety of departments and categories.

Chasity Smith/Sales - After graduating from Sullivan University, Chasity started her sales career with AgSouth, LLC, a manufacture of Farm, Lawn, and Garden equipment. As an in-house sales rep for the Ag supplier, she oversaw the day-to-day sales and shipping to customers and private label manufacturers including John Deere, SMA, and Tractor Supply. She joined GDHWD & Eberle, assisting with trade shows and special projects behind the scenes, but is now bringing her sales experience and knowledge to our vendors and clients as a salesman.

Alexander Gern (Alec) - Alec brings a strong academic and athletic background to our team. He earned his undergraduate degree in Psychology with a minor in Sociology from Carthage College, where he also recently completed a Master’s degree in Business Design and Innovation. A dedicated and accomplished athlete, Alec took advantage of a fifth year of eligibility to continue playing lacrosse at Carthage. His academic journey has included international experiences in Africa and Greece, with his Master’s capstone program recently concluding in Barcelona, Spain. Alec will be working closely with our Sales and Administrative teams, and we’re excited to have him on board.

Operations

Peggy Geslicki/Executive Assistant and IT Support/Sales - Peggy brings over 20 years of experience in the manufacturing representative industry. Peggy joined GDHWD & Eberle in 1998. Peggy has a degree in graphic arts and continues her computer knowledge with PC and Mac. Peggy works on the Grainger account in assisting with proposal/presentation prep, maintains service related pricing, specifications, and communication both internal and external. She interfaces between all assistants and salespeople as a communication focal point within GDHWD & Eberle.

Katty Rodriguez/Executive Assistant - Katty started with GDHWD & Eberle in May of 2002. She has experience being in the Hardware/Home Improvement Industry since 1992 and has performed on both the retail and vendor side of the business. Katty works with Ace Hardware, Menards, Home Depot, Prince, True Value, Walmart, and various other customers.

Meghan McLaughlin/Executive Assistant/Office Manager - Meghan joined GDHWD & Eberle in September of 2015. She provides administrative assistance, customer service and sales support for True Value, Orgill, Meijer, and various other customers. Before joining GDHWD & Eberle, Meghan worked in the automotive industry for 8 years.

Valentina Gern/Executive Assistant - Valentina (Val) has had quite an impressive career! After graduating from the University of Michigan, she joined GDHWD & Eberle in 1998, bringing with her a wealth of experience in hand and power tools, as well as automotive products for major retailers. She was also part of the Rapid Retail Set Team, a service company for Home Depot in the Midwest.

After leaving the company in 2013, Val has now returned, focusing on key clients like Orgill, Do It Best, Tractor Supply, and Rural King. It’s great to see her leveraging her extensive background to make an impact once again.

Mike Superits/Sales Support - Mike brings 35 years of experience and knowledge in the Manufacturing Rep and In Store Service Industry. He has been with Rowe Marketing since 2002 and joined GDHWD in 2020. Mike provides administrative sales support & customer service for Ace Hardware, Do It Best, Orgill Bros & True Value accounts.

Mary Stineman/Accounting Services - Mary is responsible for managing financial transactions, analyzing financial data, and generating financial reports within the company. A graduate of Miami University in Ohio with a Bachelor of Science in Business (Accounting), Mary obtained her CPA and has years of work experience in corporate accounting and financial analysis.

Jackie Link/Special Projects - Jackie is a special projects website and portal assistant. Most of her time is spent in Grainger Supplier Connect & PCM/PIM systems management.