John Sheehan may know on which side his bread is buttered. But the vice president of channel sales for Sharp Imaging and Information Company of America cannot overemphasize the virtues of offering a varied menu. And while diversification is hardly a groundbreaking topic, Sheehan believes more and more dealers are appreciating the value and depth of opportunities that exist within the Sharp catalog.
The dealer messaging delivered during the 2025 Road Show event at the Sheraton Park Hotel in Anaheim, California, was part and parcel of the Foundation for Growth theme that attracted roughly 50 dealers to the third leg of a four-city tour. The Road Show, which also had stops in Teaneck, New Jersey, and Naperville, Illinois, wrapped up earlier this week with its Atlanta finale. In all, the Road Show drew about 130 dealers and 700 attendees across the four dates.
Situated in the shadows of Disneyland, the two-day session on Feb. 24 and 25 bookended a press breakfast that included (among others) Sheehan, Vice President of Marketing Bob Madaio and Dino Pagliarello, the vice president, product management and production print. Pagliarello joined Sharp a little over a year ago following a nearly 17-year career with Konica Minolta. The free-flowing 45-minute conversation kicked off with a story from Sheehan that illustrated the sometimes-arduous path dealers (sometimes begrudgingly) travel before seeing the light of diversification.
Converted Believers
About six years ago, Sheehan counseled a Midwestern dealer on the wisdom of diversifying beyond the lines of A3 and A4 units offered by Sharp. “I tried to get them into displays and get them to diversify their products,” Sheehan offered. “He told me in the nicest way…well, you can imagine.”
Fast forward to the Chicagoland leg of the tour a few weeks back. The same dealer was singing a different tune, having tapped into both displays and the Dynabook laptops.
“[The dealer] said he just had to do it; he saw the writing on the wall,” Sheehan noted. “He knows the copier business is going to remain strong, but he had to diversify. Our diversification message will get stronger, but I don’t think we’ll get away from the core MFP business. Our A3s and A4s are our bread and butter.”
Diversifications help to counter the compressed margins and service revenue. Sheehan’s tale underscored the notion that some dealers may still need prodding, perhaps just not as many as there were five years ago. Perhaps the adage about not filling up on bread resonated with the Road Show crowd.
The afternoon of the first day hit on three of the hot-button topics, with Vince Janelli (product management and business development) providing insight into AI and the opportunities to enhance efficiencies. Presentations by Henry Woods (AV) and Lisa Allen (Dynabook) helped set the stage for Sheehan’s diversification panel, featuring Joe Kucharski of Pacific Office Automation and Joe Hall of Office Solutions & Services. Sheehan’s panel discussed examples that dispel the belief that certain diversifications are one-and-done sales, sans recurring revenue.
Resource Font
Among the highlights on the second day, Madaio provided a look at the tools that can enable dealers to build their marketing foundation. Many solutions that can be found in the success center on the Sharp website—a still-flowering project. Erica Calise, Sharp’s director of marketing, government and commercial accounts, pulled back the curtain on less heralded vertical targets such as fire stations and churches and discussed the nuances of state and federal contracts.
The late morning of the second day saw attendees broken into two groups (three if you count the principals-only program). The red and blue groups had a choice of doing a deeper drill into AV/Dynabooks or the overview on selling production print, while everyone had the chance to hear an hour-long presentation on Sharp MFP opportunities.
Dealers unable to attend their regional Road Show will have a chance to catch up at the Sharp National Dealer Meeting slated for Oct. 7-10 in Orlando, Florida.
