CEOs from leading distributors Grainger, Fastenal, Applied, MSC and Motion reveal secrets to their success during a challenging third quarter.
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The industrial safety distributor saw a 10% net sales increase in the third quarter of 2021 versus the same period a year ago.
The seasonally adjusted Fastener Distributor Index (FDI) for September was 54.2, down from 55.8 in June, due to recent challenges.
For August, Fastenal reported daily sales of $24.1 million, which was a 9% increase versus a year ago, while fastener sales increased 18.9%.
Fastenal’s reported daily sales for the month were up 9.7% versus a year as its sales mix continued at its normal levels.
The distributor’s revenue was flat in 2Q as safety sales dipped, but it beat analysts’ EPS expectations behind solid construction activity and increased digital sales.
"The absence of pandemic-related impacts produced significant shifts" in Fastenal's product mix, meaning fastener sales were up and safety sales were down.
Distributor focused on e-commerce growth, new bin technology and converting pandemic-purchasers into long-term customers.
Fastenal’s reported daily sales for the month also were down 3.2% versus a year ago as safety sales dipped 44.1% in May.
March sales increased 12.4% over the same month a year ago as the company saw fastener sales continue to rebound, growing 14% in the month.
Fastenal’s reported daily sales for the month also were up 1.5% versus a year as its sales mix continues to return to normal.
Fastenal’s reported daily sales for the month were down 9.1% versus a year due to softness in fastener sales and the non-residential construction end market.
On January’s fourth-quarter earnings call, Fastenal CEO Dan Florness and CFO Holden Lewis pulled back the curtain on how they view the company’s diminishing role of physical branches.
For the full year of 2020, Fastenal’s sales increased 5.9% over the previous year driven by nine strong months of safety and PPE sales to offset softer fastener business.
Fastenal’s reported daily sales for the month were also up 6.8% versus a year ago — again based on strength in safety (35.9% growth) and despite a 1.7% dip in fastener sales.
Despite the dip in overall sales for Fastenal, the company reported daily sales were up 4.1% versus a year ago based on strength in safety (32% growth).
Strategic activity from leading distributors like Ferguson, Grainger and Fastenal led to the most-read blogs of October 2020.
Despite just 2.5% sales growth in the third quarter, Fastenal is poised to take market share in industrial distribution, according to one analyst. See what the distributor has working in its favor.
September sales increased 7.3% over the same month a year ago as the company's safety and PPE sales continued to bolster company during pandemic, although they moderated.
Industrial distributor Fastenal saw its sales mix continue to return to normal in August, and the company again reduced its total workforce, this time by 7.5%, which is part of a larger industry trend toward omnichannel selling.