Nalla Duarte and the Customer Everyone Loved
The sales team called them Titan Automotive, always with a certain tone that blended pride, relief, and habit. Titan was Meridian Industrial Solutions’ largest customer, its longest-standing major relationship, the most recognizable logo in the portfolio, and the first name mentioned in nearly every board presentation. Titan represented prestige, dependable volume, and the comforting story every company likes to tell itself about being trusted by industry leaders. When new hires joined, someone would inevitably say, “If you understand Titan, you understand this business.” Nalla Duarte had heard the phrase often enough to become suspicious of it.
