Don Martindale, President of Panacea has over 30 years experience in parts sales and service.

Panacea Aftermarket Company might be the new kid on the block, but Don Martindale, president of the recently formed Canadian company with an international customer base, has some innovative plans which would be evident to anyone who has visited the Panacea website.

Martindale, who has over 30 years in the forklift industry as a dealer, established Panacea to service what he felt was a largely neglected aspect of the forklift industry - the supply of reasonably priced parts, promptly. Martindale explains: "One of the things that drove me absolutely nuts during my dealership days was buying what I considered overpriced parts from aftermarket suppliers."

Furthermore, Martindale says he was stunned at the number of orders which he constantly saw waiting on docks during his frequent trips to Europe and Asia. "These boxes weren't going to aftermarket suppliers," Martindale explains, "they were going to dealers, independents and even end-user customers. I knew that we could give these people a better service with better lead times".

Panacea does this by ordering parts in large quantities, which means that it is able to buy parts more cheaply and have them always in stock. This formula also means reduced waiting times. "We have been referred to as the Costco of the forklift parts world," he quips. As Martindale explains, "what makes Panacea different from other aftermarket parts suppliers is that we believe our pricing more fairly reflects the current fluctuating financial market and by doing so we provide a much better and fairer deal for all our customers. He adds, " Panacea isn't interested in making huge profits, we believe in a fair level of profit, the same gross percentage that you would expect at a dealership level".

Martindale is quick to assure customers that buying cheaply in no way compromises the quality of the stock. Panacea's experienced staff took six months to visit and develop relationships with suppliers and to ensure that the Panacea level of expected quality was understood, before selling its first part. "Our parts must meet or exceed OEM quality," he says.

Panacea is also committed to a high standard of environmental care and workplace health and safety which it manages in co-operation with suppliers.

Panacea backs up this trust in its suppliers by offering customers a hassle-free returns policy and what Panacea believes to be an industry-leading warranty on parts. The Panacea Aftermarket Company warrants products sold by it to be free of manufacturing defects in material or workmanship for a period of 13 months from date of purchase or 2,000 hours of operation, whichever may occur first.

"The world is a lot smaller now," says Martindale, "and customers are no longer forced to deal with a specific supplier because of proximity, and so Panacea had to offer something outstanding to the customer."

Panacea's impressive new HQ in Woodbridge, Ontario.

Panacea's plans for the future involve possible partnerships with other businesses. "We have been approached by a number of dealers and large independents and are having discussions involving offering our products to them at a master dealership level," says Martindale. "We also plan to have office/warehouses established in Chicago and LA within 18 months."

Martindale believes that the expansion of Panacea is a long-term commitment that requires capital, detailed industry knowledge, passion and dedication. "It is our goal to bring the change that this industry has wanted for a long time," he says.