MDM, the National Association of Wholesaler-Distributors’ source of business intelligence for wholesale distribution executives, has been named a two-time regional finalist in the American Society of Business Publication Editors’ 2026 Azbee Awards of Excellence.
The Azbee Awards honor the best in B2B media, recognizing editorial excellence by business, trade and association publications across 59 categories. It is recognized as one of the most competitive awards programs for B2B media.
The competition received more than 740 entries, which were judged by 83 experienced editors and journalism professors.
MDM is a regional finalist in two categories — Diversity, Equity and Inclusion and Case Study — represented by the following two content features published during 2025:
- From Niche to Necessary: The Business Case for Women-Specific PPE by MDM Senior Editor Vesna Brajkovic: This Premium article explores the growing demand and business rationale for stocking PPE specifically designed for women in construction and other trade sectors. It highlights the safety issues caused by ill-fitting, male-centric PPE, referencing OSHA standards that now require properly fitting PPE for all workers. The article includes proprietary product demand data from MDM Analytics, and features interviews with NAW members and MDM Top Distributors Vallen and Airgas.
- Linc Systems: A Formula for Transformational Growth:  This deep dive report — authored by MDM’s former CEO and now Contributing Writer Tom Gale — traces the strategic components of LINC Systems’ service-first model and growth trajectory, as well as the key inflection points that created the fasteners distributor’s formula for success. This report is available on MDM Premium and the MDM Store.
To unlock access MDM Premium content, you can become an NAW member here.
This is the second year in a row MDM has moved into the regional finals within the Case Study category. In 2025, MDM won a Silver Azbee Award for its in-depth case study on Fastenal’s transformative shift to a digital-first distribution model. See that Fastenal Case Study here on Premium and here in the MDM Store.
The winners of this year’s awards will be announced by April 22.
MDM Executive Editor Mike Hockett said: “These were undoubtedly two of the best content features we published in 2025, and we’re proud to have them recognized as Azbee Regional Finalists. Vesna’s women-specific PPE article provided a spotlight and context for an important product category relevant to many industrial distributors, and Tom’s LINC Systems case study effectively told the story of an innovative mid-market distributor that our audience can glean a wealth of insights from. Both features required considerable research and reporting, so we’re glad to see them recognized like this.”
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