Invisible Fence^® Brand Announces National Dealer Recognition Awards

KNOXVILLE, Tenn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dealers across the United States and Canada, from New York to Topeka, have been named award winners by Invisible Fence^® Brand, the leader in pet safety for more than 35 years. The firm recently announced its annual National Dealer Recognition Awards which acknowledge dealer achievements in a variety of small business disciplines including sales, marketing and customer service.

“The award winners excelled at a variety of crucial business areas such as sales growth, innovative marketing, streamlined operations and professionalism,” said Mark Thomas, Senior Brand Manager. “These awards are truly meaningful when you consider the high caliber of professionals in the Invisible Fence Brand Dealer Network.”

Attitude, commitment and results are three words that define the 2007 “National Dealer of the Year.” For the second year in a row, Tony Hettinger from the Invisible Fence of Upstate New York and Invisible Fence of Western Rochester won the top dealer awards. In addition to delivering outstanding customer service and surpassing his sales goals, Hettinger generated more than 10,000 new leads between his two dealerships. “In his four years at the helm, the Upstate New York dealership has prospered as never before, setting new records in customer satisfaction, new business sales and most importantly dealer profitability,” said Thomas.

Hettinger edged out two outstanding finalists in the “Mega Dealer” division, Michael Moriarty from Moriarty’s Fence Company in Warwick, Rhode Island and Jim White of Invisible Fence of the Carolinas. White’s other dealership, Invisible Fence of Raleigh was recognized in the “Super Dealer” division, in addition to the owner of Invisible Fence of Middle Tennessee, Bob Moody, but it was Hettinger’s dealership in Western Rochester that took the “National Dealer of the Year” award in that category too.

Invisible Fence^® Brand recognized a new group of dealers this year in the “Sprinter” division. Invisible Fence of Syracuse, Coastal Carolinas, and Kansas City/Topeka were finalists in this category comprised of smaller dealers. Because of his dedication to sales, marketing and customer satisfaction, Kurt Gage, owner of the Syracuse dealership, received the first ever “Sprinter Award.” Thomas said, “He bought the struggling dealership two years ago and after a reassessment of personnel and the implementation of new marketing strategies, unit sales were up 46 percent last year.”

Rick Fernandez of Invisible Fence by AAA Dog Fence in Warwick, NY was awarded the title of “Best New Dealer of the Year.” “Under Fernandez’s leadership, the business grew by 155 percent last year and he recently hired a salesperson to continue this growth,” Thomas said of Invisible Fence by AAA Dog Fence. The finalists in this category included Invisible Fence of the Mountain Region, acquired by Bill and Janet Jamison earlier in the year, and Invisible Fence of Southeast Ontario. Steve Welch purchased the Canadian store and increased sales by 33 percent during the year’s remaining eight months.

In another new category, Invisible Fence of the Southern Tier owned and operated by Daniel Kelley won the National Guerilla Marketer of the Year honor. Kelley developed a program for the charity “Sheltered Love,” a Web site for dog lovers to find out more information about dog ownership and acquisition while promoting pet adoption and support of dealers. Kelley edged out two other finalists: Tony Hettinger of Invisible Fence of Western Rochester and Invisible Fence of Northwest Ohio owner, Susan Fraley.

To recognize outstanding Power Cap^® sales growth, Invisible Fence Brand honored two dealers for significant achievement. The “Power Dealer of the Year” Award went to Invisible Fence of Susquehanna Valley with Branden and Trisha Eckman accepting the honor. The award was determined by the dealership with the best ratio of Power Caps purchased compared to receivers purchased for 2007. The Invisible Fence dealership of the Quad Cities owned by Kathie and Phil Vroman was recognized as the other “Power Dealer of the Year” for the greatest sales growth in 2007. The Invisible Fence Brand Power Cap is the power source for the Invisible Fence Brand Computer Collar^® receiver. For more information, visit www.invisiblefence.com.