It was a strong monthly acceleration as a handful of durable goods categories saw mid-single digit sales improvement. Meanwhile, the industry's overall sales growth outpaced inventories. Get a full breakdown of the latest government data here, which includes a look at how each product sector's sales and inventories fared month-over-month, year-over-year and year-to-date.
Latest In Featured Blog
Our March issue is packed with articles that complete our deep dives on distributors Singer Industrial and Ludwig Meister; advice from our 2026 Women in Distribution class; an inside analysis of Grainger Show; our monthly MDM Forecast and M&A Roundup; a Cutting Tools Market Profile; and more.
Importers may eventually reclaim even liquidated IEEPA tariff payments as CBP rolls out a phased refund system covering most entries first. The update comes as the Trump administration launches new and revised duties, raising both recovery opportunities and cost risks for distributors. Get the key details here.
In this sponsored MDM Amplify podcast episode, Canals Co-Founder and CTO Erez Arnon joins to unpack what MDM’s latest AI research reveals about customer service as one of distribution’s highest-impact use cases. Just as importantly, Arnon shares practical guidance on how to vet AI vendors in a crowded, hype-filled market, including key red flags and must-have proof points.
This category can only be viewed by members. To view this category, sign up by purchasing MDM Premium Subscription (monthly) or MDM Premium Subscription (annual).
Ludwig Meister shows how disciplined sequencing — not flashy tech — drives real innovation. Authored by former longtime MDM CEO and Editor Tom Gale, this case study details how the German distributor built a data-driven, AI-enabled operation by prioritizing internal processes, clean data and execution before transforming sales and customer experience.
This category can only be viewed by members. To view this category, sign up by purchasing MDM Premium Subscription (monthly) or MDM Premium Subscription (annual).
Most distributors aren’t failing at AI — they’re failing at data. This piece unpacks why 95% of GenAI efforts deliver no ROI, how agentic AI is changing workflows, and why a unified data foundation is becoming the real competitive edge.
This category can only be viewed by members. To view this category, sign up by purchasing MDM Premium Subscription (monthly) or MDM Premium Subscription (annual).
This category can only be viewed by members. To view this category, sign up by purchasing MDM Premium Subscription (monthly) or MDM Premium Subscription (annual).
MDM concludes its 2026 Women in Distribution series by spotlighting five leaders whose careers reflect the industry’s strength in talent development, customer focus and operational excellence.
MDM’s 2026 Women in Distribution series continues with five leaders whose careers reflect the industry’s growing global reach, strategic complexity and evolving leadership demands.
MDM continues its 2026 Women in Distribution series by spotlighting five honorees and leaders making an impact across the industry — from technology leadership to sales growth and organizational transformation.
Want your company to be considered and accurately ranked? We need its revenue info by March 31. The easiest way to submit it is via the survey linked in this blog.
MDM kicks off its 2026 Women in Distribution series by spotlighting five honorees and leaders making an impact across the industry — from supply chain innovation to operational transformation and team development.
This category can only be viewed by members. To view this category, sign up by purchasing MDM Premium Subscription (monthly) or MDM Premium Subscription (annual).
Unified commerce platforms paired with agentic AI are helping distributors eliminate “phantom margin loss,” optimize fulfillment and unlock real-time decision-making — shifting operations from reactive workflows to autonomous, profit-driven systems that boost growth, efficiency and customer experience at scale. This piece explores the work being done here and the factors at play that determine success rates.
This category can only be viewed by members. To view this category, sign up by purchasing MDM Premium Subscription (monthly) or MDM Premium Subscription (annual).
This category can only be viewed by members. To view this category, sign up by purchasing MDM Premium Subscription (monthly) or MDM Premium Subscription (annual).
Presented by MDM and recognizing a collection of women pivotal to their company's growth, innovation and leadership, see our class of 20 honorees, to be followed by a series of profile articles.