The 6 Cs of Unifying Your Employees Under One Message
How managers can walk the line between encouraging creativity and freedom on their teams and pushing toward the same goals.
February 2013
Second Estimate: GDP Increased at Rate of 0.1% in 4Q12
Previous estimate had GDP declining in the fourth quarter.
MAPI Quarterly Forecast: U.S. Economy Faces Political, Global Headwinds
Forecast expects GDP growth of 1.8% in 2013, with a higher rate of growth in manufacturing production.
Strauss: People Are the Key to a Strategic Sales Approach
When everyone has the same product lines, investing in people and services is critical.
DXP Enterprises Sales Hit $1.1 Billion in 2012
Sales, driven by acquisitions, were up 35.9% in 2012 for DXP Enterprises.
Tip: Make Sure Messaging is Uniform Across All Branches
It's critical that corporate leadership communicate a clear vision and strategy internally.
National Oilwell Varco Buys Robbins & Myers
Shareholders will receive $60 for each Robbins & Myers Common Share.
United Natural Foods 2Q Sales Up 12.3%
CEO: Growth reflects strong demand for natural and organic products.
The Secret to Right-Sizing Your Sales Force
Ratios and sales levels should be just part of the equation in determining the size of your sales force.
The Home Depot Sales Up 6.2% in 2012
Fourth-quarter sales increased of 13.9 percent
Bunzl Sales Up 5% in 2012
Bunzl acquired more than US$500 million in revenue in 2012.
General Cable Sales Up 6% in 4Q
North American demand for wire and cable slowed while demand for aerial transmission products increased.
Global Competition on a Local Level
This article is part of an ongoing series looking at The Shifting Competitive Landscape in wholesale distribution. Read this and other articles in the series at www.mdm.com/shiftinglandscape.
Cross-border M&A in wholesale distribution has accelerated in recent years, adding to an increasingly busy competitive landscape. The U.S. market continues to be attractive to Europe-based distributors seeking growth outside of their traditional markets. This article looks at this trend and the impact it has had on the market.
In recent years, Europe-based distributors have accelerated their expansion in the U.S. As a result, local and regional distributors are increasingly facing local competitors backed by resources they did not have access to previously.
“As Thomas Friedman says, the world is truly flat,” says Robert Stolz, who leads Wurth Group’s North American …
Commentary: Shifting Landscape, Shifting Relationships
If there’s anything I’ve learned in my time covering the wholesale distribution industry, it’s that distributors hold one thing above all else: relationships. Even in the shifting competitive landscape, relationships have an important role in this industry.
Sure today’s distributor may look a lot different than distributorships of the past. Once-local businesses are being bought up by larger national or …
MDM Interview: Disintermediation & Channel Conflict
Principia Consulting’s Building Products Distribution 2012 study identifies the best growth opportunities in the sector through 2014 and provides strategies for value creation and competitive advantage.
Ken Jacobson, partner at Principia, spoke with MDM staff writer Angela Poulson about the study’s findings, including increased disintermediation and how distributors can stay competitive despite e-commerce’s role in accelerating this trend.
MDM: In Principia’s 2011 survey, 50 percent of building products distributors expected industry-wide growth of at least 5 percent in 2012. What are distributors’ expectations for 2013?
Ken Jacobson: It depends on the day of the week that you’re asking. It depends on the still-looming status …
Monthly Wholesale Trade Data: December 2012
Sales and inventories data for wholesaler-distributors in December 2012.
Download this Issue in PDF: Feb. 25, 2013
This is the PDF of this issue of Modern Distribution Management.
Table of Contents:
- Shifting Competitive Landscape Series: Global Competition on a Local Level
- Commentary: Shifting Landscape, Shifting Relationships
- MDM Interview: Building Materials Sector - Disintermediation & Channel Conflict
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MDM News Digest 4303
News briefs from Feb. 11-Feb. 25, 2013
Chicago Fed National Activity Index Declines in January
Two of four categories of indicators made positive contributions to the index.
Podcast: Why ‘Big Data’ is More than Just a Buzzword
Manufacturing Revival Radio talks with Tom Gale of MDM & Industrial Market Information
