I am fortunate to once again be able to attend and present at the NAW/MDM SHIFT conference, and this year it will be interesting to see how the construction and industrial channels continues to evolve. Modern Distribution Management (MDM) has been hosting this annual event for Distribution Leaders called SHIFT (originally MDM Sales GPS) for the last decade. At Shift they … [Read more...] about Where is the channel headed in 2025 and beyond? Thoughts on MDM/NAW Shift conference in May 2025
Market Analysis
Ferguson Chugs Along, Accelerates HVAC Growth
Last week Ferguson announced its FY25 Q2 earnings with their analyst call. Ferguson continues to diversify into multiple markets beyond plumbing, including HVACR, lighting, waterworks, facilities supply, fire and fabrication, industrial and mechanical. They see opportunities to increase sales, and their market share, in these large markets, and continue to invest for … [Read more...] about Ferguson Chugs Along, Accelerates HVAC Growth
Copper, Steel, China and More About Tariffs
This last month has been an interesting one as a content provider for the HVACR Channel and keeping up with the Tariff news has been a daily occurrence. We published a column in our sister ElectricalTrends.com publication this week that we wanted to share with our Industrial Supply Trends Readers. There are some tariffs we know (China, imported steel and aluminum) and then … [Read more...] about Copper, Steel, China and More About Tariffs
Pricing on Your Website
When it comes to launching a commerce-enabled websites, frequently distributors get concerned about product content, pricing, and integrating with their ERP for “real-time” information. These are perceived as “daunting” and can frequently create paralysis in the decision-making process, especially if the distributor does not have an experienced person to lead the technical … [Read more...] about Pricing on Your Website
Is eCommerce Important to Your Customers? Let’s Ask Them
That’s the question many senior executives ask themselves regularly about eCommerce. They’ve invested much into their website. They’ve invested into product data. They’ve invested into people. They ask, does anyone care? Are we getting an ROI? I know I’m being, perhaps, a little facetious as intuitively many believe / understand that these investments are now expectations, … [Read more...] about Is eCommerce Important to Your Customers? Let’s Ask Them
Prokeep and Allied Join Forces to Support HVAC Distributors
Big news in the HVAC channel for Allied Air distributors that are seeking to differentiate themselves, be more accessible to their contractors (and their contractors' field technicians), and are seeking to grow ... especially with their house / uncoded accounts! Prokeep and Allied Air Enterprises According to its press release ..."Prokeep, distribution’s leading customer … [Read more...] about Prokeep and Allied Join Forces to Support HVAC Distributors
Up Your AI Knowledge at the MDM AI Summit … for Free
If you are talking tech or processes with anyone inevitably the topic quickly turns to AI. There is much going on in this space and it seemingly changes daily. I've recently had conversations with some people inquiring what distributors are doing and why it wasn't going faster. They asked if distributors had thought how they could use AI. I laughed (to myself) and said, … [Read more...] about Up Your AI Knowledge at the MDM AI Summit … for Free
