 |
Lock in savings now before June 1 rate increase! |
 |
It's that time of year again – when most larger distributors are reporting their annual sales and providing updates on initiatives they pursued throughout 2010.
Fastenal, No. 9 on MDM's list of the top 40 industrial distributors, recently released its annual report. Here are a few items of interest from the report:
| We
Deliver Distribution News to Your Inbox Sign up below to receive MDM Update, your free weekly distribution news update by email. |
To grow sales to federal, state and local governments, Fastenal created a new position in 2010 – the vice president of government sales. According to Fastenal's annual report, the position initially focused on state and local government. President and CEO Will Oberton wrote that much of the purchasing for state and local governments is driven through purchasing cooperatives that work with states to leverage their buying power and help smaller entities save. So the distributor's government sales team focused in the past year on meeting with these state purchasing agencies and cooperatives to win new business.
Another hot area for Fastenal is industrial vending through its Fastenal Automated Supply Technology (FAST) program, which Oberton said took off in 2010. "The program was designed to be extremely cost-effective for customers, in turn creating new opportunities for our stores," Oberton wrote. "And in fact we're now seeing exceptional growth at customer sites where FAST 5000 machines are placed. In my opinion, this will be a big part of the future of industrial supply, and it will become an increasingly important part of our business in 2011 and beyond."
And finally, the distributor created a customer research group in late 2009, which interviewed nearly 20,000 customers throughout 2010, focused on learning how Fastenal's customers view the distributor's services, strengths and weaknesses. The group took what was learned and created a list of customer service standards. They turned it into a book – named The Little Blue Book of Customer Service – that was printed and distributed to every employee.
 |
 Download
the Top 40 Industrial List -FREE |
| View the Top Distributors in 12 Sectors: | |
| 2011 Distribution Landscape Report: Access Now | |
Join MDM's Independent Distributor
Network 
Follow MDM on Twitter
 Critical Profit Driversin Distribution Al Bates, Profit Planning Group, speaks frankly about the most important factors to driving profit. Watch now. iPad users: click here to view. |
 Economic Update:Behind the Moderation MAPI Economist Cliff Waldman discusses some of the factors behind the slowing economic recovery. Watch now. |
 7 Minutes With ...Bell Electrical Supply CEO Burt Schraga discusses the importance of building a strong culture in his organization. Watch now. |
More Audio and Video Features from MDM: |
Think About It: |
|
Training Resources
 |
 |
 |
 |
|||
|
Featured Article: What AmazonSupply.com Means for Independent Distributors $34.95 |
Inventory Management Best Practices with Jon Schreibfeder: DVD + Book $119.00 |
The State of E-Commerce and Catalogs in Distribution $44.95 |
Benchmarks & Best Practices: The Answer Book for Growth-Minded CFOs & Controllers $249.00 |
| Title | Company | Location |
|---|---|---|
| Digital Strategy Manager | Border States Electric | Fargo North Dakota |
| Risk Manager | Border States Electric | Fargo ND |
| Purchasing Manager | PCA SKIN | Scottsdale, AZ |
| BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT MANAGER | Graybar Electric Company | Denver, CO |
| INDUSTRIAL OUTSIDE SALES REPRESENTATIVE | Graybar Electric Company | Phoenix, AZ |
| General Manager | Applied Industrial Technologies | Norfolk, VA |
| Rubber Specialist | Applied Industrial Technologies | Baltimore, MD |
| View ALL Wholesale Distribution Job Listings |
|
|
 |
|
|
|
 |
Leave a Comment