Based on the title of this column, you probably can tell what comes next. It’s been nearly 10 years since I took over as the publisher of Counterman magazine. For me, it’s been 10 of the more than 45 years I’ve worked in the automotive industry. Parts distribution has been a part of my days for my entire life. As many of you know, I was born into a family of parts stores, and even though my career took me many different places, I never got too far away from auto parts.

Today brings another journey for me into a different job, but again, not too far away. I will be assuming the duties of all content management here at Babcox Media. So, in a way, I’m still involved in Counterman, but also in the more than 17 other Babcox automotive properties. From time to time, I will contribute stories in Counterman, but they’ll be as a guest contributor, and I’ll probably be commenting on a broad aftermarket issue.

I’m sad to leave these pages, but I’m excited to dig into my new role. Luckily for all of you, Josh Cable is still on board and will continue to deliver relevant content on the subjects you need and like to read about. We here at Babcox pride ourselves on keeping you, the reader, as up to date and educated on subjects and products as we can, with the goal of helping you be more effective in your jobs.

Jim Merle will be assuming the publisher duties here at Counterman, and he is very well-qualified to lead the team into the future. Jim has more than 25 years of experience in the aftermarket, and currently is the publisher of the Babcox Media Tech Group. Jim’s publications serve the businesses that service and repair vehicles in more than 100,000 shops across the United States. I think this gives him the unique perspective of the repairers, who, ultimately, are the customers of Counterman readers. It will be a great fit.

Thank you for your loyal readership over the years, and I still look forward to hearing from you.