With an eye towards a slow growth economy, recently we launched a three part series in Electrical Wholesaling entitled “Back to Basics”. The premise is that in a slow growth economy it is important to “tighten” the back of the […]
Over the past year, we’ve conducted a number of national and regional contractor surveys where we asked them “Why do you buy from the distributors you purchase from?”Selections included: Relationship with people Overall service Product Availability Price Location Company I […]
As promised, some feedback from the last day at the NAED Eastern, and observations about the conference. The final day consisted of the one-on-one meetings and the mad dash to the airport for many. Luckily customs was easy (no line!! […]
Busy couple of days here at the NAED Eastern, with more meetings today, but we wanted to share some thoughts and observations Attendance appears to be about 600 with 74 distributor companies registered The economic mood appears to be a […]
In mid-September we wrote about the possibility of contract manufacturers eventually reaching out and creating their own brands / going direct (read the post). Two announcements this week displayed their intent. HTC, a manufacturer of cell phones and other electronics […]
Much has been said about the need to accelerate the benefits of the IDW. One of the areas most needed is participation by small to medium sized manufacturers. Without them it is difficult for distributors to further drive costs out […]
Historically many manufacturers, after reviewing their current year performance, will send out 2008 price increase notices in November/December, and then send their sales people out to “cut” year end “deals” with the intent to “help” the distributor meet their purchase […]
CED and USESI issued a press release October 9th that may indicate a change in business models for CED. But then again they may be setting up a successful division that will continue to grow because of the business model […]
You may have heard that Hagemeyer received an unsolicited offer from Sonepar and that reportedly Rexel also has some interest. And with Hagemeyer planning to meet with Sonepar to “clarify” the offer, it wouldn’t surprise us to see some type […]
Interesting how the mass media can heighten visibility of trade issues.This summer’s product recalls by Mattel increased interest in private labeling. Occurring shortly after issues with pet food, toothpaste and tires, many questioned if private labeling is a wise decision […]
