Community, culture and connection with XTV

By Emma Peterson. 

With XTV, SRS Distribution has created a networking space that is not only a great business opportunity, but also a ton of fun.  

When it comes to summertime activities, it’s hard to beat a good tailgate party. From good food and friends to the fun sports match, there’s a lot to love about tailgating. And SRS Distribution has added networking and community-building to the list for roofers! In this Roofing Road Trips® episode, Megan Ellsworth chats with Keenan Perry, SRS’ director of field and event marketing, and Justin Tognoni, their field marketing manager, about how they have built a space for roofers to find community, connection and culture in the Xtreme Tailgate Vehicle (XTV).  

XTV is transforming the way that roofers network with each other. Keenan elaborated, “XTV is a fleet of vehicles that travel the country and bring tailgating experiences to SRS/Heritage branches and sporting events across the country.” The original idea for XTV came from Ron Ross, the SRS founder. Keenan explained, “Ron Ross found himself at a tailgate thrown by colleagues and customers. It really inspired him, he was like ‘Hey, this is a really cool thing that we've got going on. What if we just did this around the country as a customer appreciation thing?’ So that's how the XTV was founded and it's been rolling ever since.” 

Now, 15 years after Ron attended that tailgate and became inspired, XTV is a powerful source of connection between SRS, their customers and their suppliers. Keenan explained, “We just try to create a much more relaxed space where you can go get off your feet, have a conversation, meet like-minded professionals and truly just soak in the SRS ethos of, ‘Make money, have fun and give back.’” And these tailgates have become a must-attend event in the industry. Justin gave an example, saying, “We were at an event in San Diego recently and when we arrived and set up I was expecting a pretty good turnout. There’s a ballpark number of people that usually attend. But this one was crazy, we had easily over 150 people. It really was a community thing.” 

Read the transcript or Listen to the episode to learn more about SRS Distribution’s Xtreme Tailgate Vehicle program.