As you may recall, Pat Schrager, VP Global Distribution for Panduit, recently shaved his head in support of kids fighting cancer. This occured during a St. Baldrick’s Foundation Party on March 20th. Pat set a goal of raising $5,000 and […]
As you may recall, Pat Schrager, VP Global Distribution for Panduit, recently shaved his head in support of kids fighting cancer. This occured during a St. Baldrick’s Foundation Party on March 20th. Pat set a goal of raising $5,000 and […]
Over the past couple of weeks I’ve had a number of conversations with magazine editors and association managers about “social media”. The all want to write stories on the subject or bring in speakers to educate their members on what […]
The art of reaching new customers is a challenge for many distributors. Frequently I hear we know everyone in the market we’re doing business with everyone we want to we know who pays their bills they are not our type […]
As many know, NAED held it’s 2010 National Electrical Leadership Summit this past weekend. There were about 83 distributor companies represented and 74 manufacturer companies. While the distributor attendance improved, it seemed like the manufacturer number declined, especially small to […]
What does Rexel’s U.K division, (also known as Newye & Eyre), Lutron, Rockwell Automation, Philips Lighting and probably a few other industry companies have in common? They are all preparing to market to a new generation of customers with enhanced […]
A little bit of an “around the industry” to get the week started: IDEA is going through some personnel changes (and interestingly, just before its E-Biz Forum). After over 35 years in the industry, the last seven as IDEA’s Director […]
The greening of America is gaining lots of visibility. Over the past few months a number of corporations have pledged to reduce their carbon footprint, NBC spent significant money last week with original programming to gain awareness, and Monday’s Wall […]
According to Steve Epner, Brown Smith Wallace Consulting Group, “Data synchronization is one of the most significant opportunities for cost-savings in the electrical channel.”As many know, IDEA has helped many manufacturers and distributors to pursue this path, saving them thousands […]
Private labeling and unbranded products could have unintended consequences. An emerging trend amongst “contract manufacturers” is the development of strategies to move up the value chain. Consider: A July 18th Wall Street Journal article entitled “Contract Manufacturers Shift to Brand […]