Epicor Insights 2025 Delivers Customer Training, AI Roadmap and Industry Collaboration

Epicor hosted its Insights for Building Supply and Retail 2025 conference November 19–21 at the Gaylord National Harbor in Maryland, drawing about 800 attendees representing building-supply dealers, hardware and home-center retailers, distributors, and technology partners. The event marked the 18th year for the BizTrack and LumberTrack user community, which has expanded from just 60 attendees in 2007 to one of the largest annual gatherings for Epicor’s LBM and retail customers.

During the opening session, Epicor executives emphasized the breadth of industries the company now serves across manufacturing, distribution, building supply, and retail—which includes 9,000 hard-goods retailers worldwide. 

Speakers noted that Epicor platforms are used by a significant share of top U.S. building-supply companies and that the company continues to invest in long-term product development and cloud infrastructure. The session also highlighted the role of Epicor’s advisory councils, which met earlier in the week to provide feedback on product needs and industry conditions.

Conference programming included product updates, hands-on bootcamps, and deep-dive sessions focused on workflow efficiency, data tools, and emerging AI features. 

AI Drives Tech Developments, Retailer Interest

The pace of technology changes in the home improvement industry has accelerated sharply during the past year, with retailers arriving at Epicor Insights far more prepared to discuss artificial intelligence and its practical impact on store operations. According to Arturo Buzzalino, Epicor’s chief innovation officer and group vice president, the industry has moved from early curiosity to hands-on familiarity in just months, with attendees now asking pointed, highly technical questions that would have been less common a year ago.

“Coming into Insights this year, it was clear how quickly retailers and building-supply businesses have advanced in their understanding of AI,” Buzzalino said. “A year ago, these discussions were abstract; now attendees arrive with hands-on experience and detailed questions. That level of readiness changes the conversations we can have and accelerates how we build and deliver new capabilities.” 

Carl Hildebrandt, vice president of product for retail at Epicor — who also gave Hardware Connection an exclusive interview in its October issue — echoed Buzzalino’s sentiments.

“The excitement for retailers to adopt practical AI has been the biggest feedback,” Hildebrandt said. “As soon as we’re done with a session, they’re already asking about how they can bring it in. They just want to know the right way to execute it.”

In addition, Hildebrandt said retailers are increasingly focused on predictive ordering, and many were drawn to the demonstration of a forward-looking AI assistant designed to support employees in real time. The appeal comes from the high employee turnover in stores and the need for technology that helps any team member deliver expert-level service from the moment they start.

Awards Highlight Excellence Among Epicor Users

During the opening session of the conference, Epicor recognized high-performing customers during by presenting Retail Champion and Building Supply Champion awards tied to its core platforms. Madison Garden Center & Flower Shop of Adrian, Mich., earned the Retail Champion honor among users of the Epicor Propello retail system. Eikenhout, a building-supply distributor headquartered in Grand Rapids, Mich., was named Building Supply Champion for BisTrack users. The Building Supply Champion award for LumberTrack went to J. Gibson McIlvain Co., a specialty lumber and wood products supplier based in White Marsh, Md. Family Farm & Home, which runs a regional chain of farm and home stores from its headquarters in Muskegon, Mich., received the Retail Champion award among Eagle users.

Insights Focused on Learning Opportunities

Epicor Insights delivered a lineup of education and training for hardware and home improvement retailers, beginning with full- and half-day Extended Education Boot Camps on November 19. These sessions covered BisTrack, Eagle, LumberTrack, Propello and Warehouse Management, offering hands-on instruction in reporting, financial processes, workflow automation and system configuration. Attendees were required to bring their own laptops, and the boot camps functioned as in-depth technical training ahead of the main conference.

The main conference program on November 20–21 expanded the learning opportunities with several breakout sessions. Topics included pricing strategy, demand planning, inventory management, digital commerce, workforce development, AI-driven analytics and updates across Epicor platforms. Sessions were led by Epicor subject matter experts, including some hardware retailers such as Steve Fusek, owner of Fusek’s Hardware in Indianapolis, Ind., consulting partners and customer panels sharing real-world applications. Throughout both days, the Epicor Solutions Pavilion provided attendees with one-on-one support, product demonstrations. 

Retailers Share Solutions During Roundtable Discussions

In addition to software demos, Epicor Insights forums provided retailers opportunities to comparing real-world challenges with peers. For example, Cameron Wright, operations manager at Fries Tallman Lumber in Regina, Saskatchewan, said the biggest takeaway from his first Insights was how much common ground he found with other attendees. 

“There’s a lot of validation sitting in those rooms,” he said. “Everyone is struggling the same way… someone’s going to toss out the way they do it, and it’s going to trigger a thought.” He noted that the customer-led sessions in particular made it easy to trade ideas on workflow improvements and better ways to use tools retailers already have in place.

Wright highlighted several sessions that provided immediate, practical value for his operation. A manufacturing-focused forum offered new approaches for managing product and inventory flow through production facilities such as door shops, which he plans to apply back home. Another workshop on the BisTrack feature Journey Manifest showed how other dealers use cutoff times, truck capacity planning and day-full indicators—features his team has used only at a basic level until now. He said the cross-table conversations and exposure to different configurations make the conference well worth the trip. 

“Epicor Insights is worth the time, it’s worth the investment, and I can’t imagine you walking away feeling like you didn’t pick up some tips and tricks,” Wright said.

Keynote Speaker Adds Apple Pancakes, Excellent Customer Service to Menu

Kevin Brown, a bestselling author and leadership speaker known for his book “The Hero Effect,” delivered the closing keynote at the Epicor Insights 2025 conference, drawing on his experience helping grow family-run SERVEPRO into a $2 billion brand. Brown’s remarks centered on customer service, leadership and the importance of small moments that shape long-term loyalty.

Brown highlighted the role of personal connection in retail environments, sharing with attendees that simple actions such as a smile or an intentional greeting can create trust quickly. He emphasized that customers respond most strongly when employees “reach beyond what is required,” and said organizations known for service excellence share a common trait: frontline staff who take ownership of the customer experience without waiting for direction. Brown contrasted this with “ordinary” service, noting that satisfied customers often forget the businesses that served them, while memorable interactions generate lasting advocacy.

Brown’s keynote included the story about visiting Walt Disney World with his son, who has autism. When the boy requested gluten-free apple pancakes that were not available, a Disney chef purchased the ingredients after her shift and made the dish the next morning. Brown said that single act of initiative not only transformed his family’s experience but contributed to Disney developing a broader dietary-accommodations program that now serves more than 1 million children annually. He told attendees the episode demonstrated how one frontline employee can redefine a brand’s reputation and inspire internal change.

Brown closed by urging retailers to examine how they influence others, both customers and employees. He encouraged attendees to recognize the people who shaped their own careers and to consider whose lives might be improved by the choices they make each day on the sales floor, in the lumberyard or sales counter.