Join University of Colorado’s Brian Lewandowski, MDM’s Mike Hockett and Oracle NetSuite’s Ranga Bodla as they analyze economic conditions and the demand outlook for the rest of this year and beyond. The event will feature MDM’s latest industry revenue forecast and break down economic trends, emerging growth opportunities, what to watch out for and how distributors can capitalize on the current competitive landscape.
Distributors don’t fail because they see the future wrong. They fail because they expect only one future.
In a world defined by disruption — from AI to geopolitics to customer behavior — wholesale distributors are under pressure to evolve. But the biggest risk isn’t just moving too slowly. It’s assuming there’s only one way the future could unfold.
In this webcast, we’ll reveal findings from a major new research study that maps out four distinct futures for wholesale distribution. Built on interviews, trend analysis, and scenario planning, the research offers a powerful new way to think about risk, opportunity, and long-term strategy.
What you’ll learn:
This is not another trends presentation. It’s a strategic foresight session designed to help you make better decisions — today — by imagining tomorrow more clearly.
Register now to see what’s coming — and how to be ready for any future.
After riding the inflation wave in 2022, distributors of industrial, commercial and building supply products saw far smaller growth in 2023 as pricing was less of a tailwind. This led to modest annual sales growth or declines for most of the companies on MDM’s 2024 Top Distributors Lists.
Our annual feature presents the top players across 20 different distribution product sectors, ranked or displayed by their annual revenue within each sector. As always, it created a definitive who’s-who of the largest market movers in across the distribution landscape.
Join our free webcast as Executive Editor Mike Hockett and a handful of experts as they analyze the key factors that influenced our different lists, which serve as the definitive who’s-who of the largest market movers across the distribution landscape. We’ll examine macro elements that impacted many distributors, and granular items that led certain distributors to jump or fall on our lists.
Achieving sustainable, profitable growth in distribution requires a strategic approach to operations, pricing, and innovation. This session will dive into high-impact strategies for enhancing margins, optimizing costs, and uncovering new revenue streams. Industry experts will share real-world insights on how to improve efficiency and create long-term financial success. Whether you’re refining your growth strategy or seeking fresh ideas, this webcast will equip you with the tools to boost profitability.
By registering for this webcast, you are registering for the McKinsey Perspectives on Winning in Distribution, Strategies for Profitable Growth & Resilience Webinar Series presented by McKinsey & Company and hosted by MDM:
April 3 : M&A in Distribution: Navigating Reshaping your Business for Success
June 5: Maximizing Profitability: Growth Strategies for Distributors
Sept 25: The Labor Crunch: Solving Workforce Challenges in Distribution
Dec 4 : E-Commerce Revolution: Seizing Opportunities in Distribution
The Right Time to Move to the Cloud? Now.
Research shows that most distributors plan to migrate most or all of their business solutions to the cloud if they haven’t already.(1)
If you’re still on-premise, you’re missing out on seamless updates, enhanced security, the flexibility to work from anywhere, on any device, with real-time collaboration that boosts productivity – and much more.
In this webcast, we’ll get first-hand perspectives from two distribution companies — Alarm Products Distributors and Allegis Corporation — that recently made the decision to move to the cloud, why they did and what the experience was like for them. We’ll also talk to Stephanie Luk-Brust, Cloud Manager at Epicor, on why so many distributors are converting from on-premises systems to the cloud.
Together, their discussion will cover:
(1) Distribution Industry Insights Report 2023
As mergers and acquisitions reshape the distribution landscape, understanding the opportunities and challenges of these transactions is critical. In this webinar, presented by McKinsey & Company and hosted by MDM, McKinsey experts will explore key drivers behind M&A activity, strategies for seamless integration, and best practices for maximizing deal value. Whether your company is looking to acquire, merge, or adapt to industry shifts, this webinar will provide actionable insights to help you make informed decisions and stay ahead in a rapidly evolving market.
By registering for this webcast, you are registering for the McKinsey Perspectives on Winning in Distribution, Strategies for Profitable Growth & Resilience Webinar Series presented by McKinsey & Company and hosted by MDM:
April 3 : M&A in Distribution: Navigating Reshaping your Business for Success
June 5: Maximizing Profitability: Growth Strategies for Distributors
Sept 25: The Labor Crunch: Solving Workforce Challenges in Distribution
Dec 4 : E-Commerce Revolution: Seizing Opportunities in Distribution
Economic uncertainty leads distributor sentiment in early 2025, with looming tariff impacts at the heart of it. With the Trump administration’s tariffs policy taking shape, our latest free webcast tackles this topic head-on.
Join our discussion as we analyze MDM’s latest research on expected revenue and margin impacts from pending tariffs — quantitative and qualitative — and what it all means for your business strategy throughout 2025 and beyond.
Sourcing from MDM’s January survey of nearly 400 executives, our webcast will cover:
The rapid onset of AI and automation solutions have left distributors with plenty of options at their disposal, but choosing a path forward is its own challenge.
Join Modern Distribution Management in a conversation with SAP on taking innovation from concept to practical application, including examples of uses of Business AI for distributors regardless of size; making informed decisions on where to apply technology for the best outcomes; and delivering innovation through the business in a financially responsible way.
This free event will explore how to improve business outcomes with technology; how to evaluate operational performance; and how to know when you need technology to support different functions.
Benchmark your sales and growth expectations for 2025 with MDM’s annual industry forecast, review of macroeconomic and distribution-specific trends, and the latest exclusive Baird-MDM MarketPulse survey insights. Join Baird Senior Research Analyst David Manthey, NetSuite VP Ranga Bodla and MDM Strategic Advisor Tom Gale for the data and insights on how to best navigate the conflicting market signals shaping 2025.
Without an online commerce platform, companies are extremely challenged and currently experiencing an array of inefficiencies in their business related to areas that include order taking, catalogue merchandising, pricing and inventory management.
Going digital is the best solution for those who aren’t running on a commerce platform today. Even those with one, the landscape has changed drastically, and your customers expect a B2C-like online experience.
This webcast will show and discuss a commerce platform that can help grow your business and help eliminate many of those inefficiencies in your business. We’ll share features and functionalities of the platform that will help increase your average online order value and customer use cases.
In this session, you will learn:
B2B buyer expectations are evolving, and wholesale distributors and manufacturers face increasing pressure to adapt to eCommerce demands while managing complex product data challenges. These demands will only continue to grow, as 87% of buyers will turn to competitors if they can’t find the information they need.
That’s why, in this webcast, we will explore the common concerns and critical trends reshaping B2B commerce. These include the rise of omnichannel experiences; the growing importance of product information management (PIM); and how the right technology systems can streamline data, enhance customer experience and future-proof your business.
We will also unveil key findings from a recent survey of 650 B2B professionals across the U.S., UK, France and Germany, and share insight into how those organizations are tackling some of the biggest challenges in today’s market.
By the end, you’ll better understand how to identify effective strategies to:
Join us to learn how to navigate these challenges and develop a resilient, data-driven strategy that will prepare your organization for the future of B2B eCommerce.
In the rapidly evolving distribution industry, leveraging AI is no longer optional – it’s essential for staying competitive. Join us for an insightful panel discussion on the transformative power of AI within the distribution industry. This webinar will delve into real-world applications of AI across various business functions, from front-of-house operations in sales and marketing to back-office tasks in operations and finance.
Our expert panel, featuring thought leaders and experts from MDM and Infor, will share real customer use cases to illustrate how AI technologies are driving efficiency, enhancing decision-making, and creating competitive advantages. Whether you are looking to increase your sales revenue, streamline operations, or enhance financial accuracy, this webinar will provide actionable insights and practical examples to help you harness the potential of AI in your business.
Key Discussion Points:
Seize this opportunity to stay ahead in the distribution game. Register now to unlock the full potential of AI for your organization and ensure you remain at the forefront of industry innovation.
This webcast, exclusively meant for B2B distributors and wholesalers, will help you explore the game-changing potential of composable eCommerce. Learn how this approach enables businesses to create highly customized digital experiences from industry leaders at commercetools, Contentful, and Orium, and discover the strategies and technologies that are transforming the B2B landscape.
Learn from real-world examples and get actionable insights on how composable eCommerce empowers businesses to adapt quickly, integrate seamlessly and deliver impactful experiences at scale. Whether you’re looking to modernize your tech stack or future-proof your business, this webcast is your gateway to understanding the future of B2B commerce.
Key Takeaways:
Reserve your spot today and take the first step towards transforming your B2B eCommerce strategy!
Exposing your true value proposition beyond the physical products you sell is a challenge for many distributors – in comes eCommerce and digital technology to enable you to stand out among the competition. Join us for a roundtable discussion with distribution leaders on how and why they are elevating eCommerce beyond simple transactions and as a core business product and service that provides sustainable value for customers, employees, manufacturers, and partners alike.
In today’s competitive labor market, understanding compensation trends is essential. As part of our partnership with NAW, MDM is pleased to present a free webcast discussing detailed findings from NAW’s 2024 compensation study. This essential tool offers unparalleled insights into current salary and benefit trends within the wholesale distribution industry. This session will be moderated by MDM Senior Editor Vesna Brajkovic and will feature expert panelists Greg Manns of Industry Insights and Mike Emerson from Indian River Consulting.
Manns, CPA and Senior Vice President of Industry Insights, Inc., brings over 30 years of experience directing more than 400 research projects, including NAW’s Cross-Industry Compensation and Benefits Study. His work has been widely cited in leading publications such as The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times. Emerson, a partner with Indian River Consulting Group, specializes in compensation design, strategy facilitation, market research, and data modeling. With extensive experience working with distributors and manufacturers, Mike has authored four books on distributor and marketing channel topics and is a renowned speaker and university lecturer.
Join us to gain valuable insights from these industry leaders and stay ahead of compensation trends that impact your business. Register now to secure your spot in this essential webcast!
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is moving so fast that it can be hard – really hard – to keep up with the latest alphabet soup of advances. And then comes the even harder part – how can you put the latest AI to use in your business when you already have a backlog of other projects and a healthy concern for not injecting “hallucinations” into your supply chain?
Join us for an educational discussion and practical demo to enable your teams to quickly harness the latest advances in AI. We’ll answer questions like:
This presentation is tailor-made for leaders from wholesale distributors responsible for order-to-cash/order fulfillment process improvements, digital transformation, cybersecurity, customer service, or sales operations.
Join us at this MDM virtual event to learn the secrets to delivering a new era of operational excellence and customer satisfaction by applying cutting edge AI advances and hidden industry best practices.
Join University of Colorado’s Brian Lewandowski, MDM’s Tom Gale and Oracle NetSuite’s Ranga Bodla as they analyze economic conditions and the demand outlook for the rest of this year and beyond. The webcast will feature brand new data and insights from MDM’s annual distribution benchmarking report and break down the latest economic trends, emerging growth opportunities, what to watch out for and how distributors can capitalize on the current competitive landscape.
After riding the inflation wave in 2022, distributors of industrial, commercial and building supply products saw far smaller growth in 2023 as pricing was less of a tailwind. This led to modest annual sales growth or declines for most of the companies on MDM’s 2024 Top Distributors Lists.
Our annual feature presents the top players across 20 different distribution product sectors, ranked or displayed by their annual revenue within each sector. As always, it created a definitive who’s-who of the largest market movers in across the distribution landscape.
Join our free webcast as Executive Editor Mike Hockett and a handful of experts analyze the key factors that influenced our different lists, which serve as the definitive who’s-who of the largest market movers across the distribution landscape. We’ll examine macro elements that impacted many distributors, and granular items that led certain distributors to jump or fall on our lists.
In today’s rapidly evolving world, labor challenges are becoming increasingly complex. Workforce shortages, high turnover and generational differences can all reduce efficiencies and profits. Distributors and manufacturers alike consistently tell MDM that labor and talent management are the top challenges they have today and going forward. Thankfully, digital tools can help provide relief on this front.
In this webcast, we will address:
Streamlining Processes: From inventory management to order fulfillment, we’ll discuss how automation and integration can reduce manual tasks, minimize errors and increase speed. We’ll also explore how real-time data and analytics can provide valuable insights, enabling you to make informed decisions and improve operational efficiency.
Enhancing Productivity: We’ll examine how digital tools can empower your workforce, enabling them to work smarter, not harder. We’ll explore how technology facilitates collaboration, improves communication and increases job satisfaction, leading to higher productivity levels.
Create and Foster a Culture of Digital Innovation: Finally, we’ll cover how to create and foster a culture of digital innovation within your organization. We’ll share strategies for encouraging employees to embrace new technologies, fostering a mindset of continuous improvement and creating an environment where innovation thrives.
Distributors are increasingly challenging convention about who they sell to, what they offer, and how they generate revenue. In other words, distributors are innovating their business models.
But how does a distributor conceive, launch, and scale new business models?
In this MDM Webcast, we’ll take an in-depth look at how distributors are thinking about – and acting on – these new opportunities.
Our discussion will cover the topics of a multi-month research effort that aims to answer questions like:
We’ll be joined by Mike Nagy, Vice President at Motion Industries, who has led the launch and growth of P2MRO, a new business model that leverages data analytics capabilities to offer predictive maintenance and facility uptime for their clients.
Join a handful of distribution leaders in a compelling roundtable discussion on redefining inventory management for a volatile world. In this live event, you’ll discover first-hand how these executives are revolutionizing their inventory policies, supply chain planning and response mechanisms to adapt to market fluctuations.
Learn from your peers as they delve into leveraging insights, AI/ML technologies, and the industry expertise of GAINS to optimize performance and effectively address pressing inventory challenges, including:
Don’t miss this opportunity to gain valuable insights and practical strategies to power your distribution business in uncertain times.
While over half of distribution leaders believe they are advancing their company’s data capabilities at least as fast as their peers, almost all agree that they haven’t achieved the level of data maturity they ultimately aspire to – and see the next 3 years as a critical window making significant strides towards being data-driven.
What challenges and opportunities do distribution executives see as they pursue their data ambitions? How will these be reflected in what gets prioritized, invested in, and implemented?
This new research, conducted with over 200 senior distribution executives reveals critical sector-wide insights about how leaders are progressing against their data goals, where gaps may exist, and how deep data capabilities can unlock new value and competitiveness.
With consensus expectations showing an industry slowdown in nearly all markets for most of 2024, distributors will be tasked to perform in business conditions that are far from ideal. In this one-hour program, we’ll explore sales strategies to outperform your competitors and gain market share in a down economic year.
Via insights from distributors and other experts, you’ll come away with insights that cover:
Work with a banking partner that knows your business. Get detailed information on investment banks with expertise in the wholesale distribution industry.
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