December 10 2007
Volume 37, Issue 23 - 12/10/2007
37
23
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U.S. companies doing business overseas. But not all manufacturers and distributors are benefiting. For those distributors who import from the euro-zone, for example, costs have suddenly spiked, forcing them to reexamine the way they define value in this marketplace. This article examines the impact of the dollar decline on three groups:
- U.S. importers,
- manufacturers who export to the European Union, and
- Canadian distributors who buy from U.S.-based manufacturers.
Recently, Equipment Controls Co., Norcross, GA, has started to factor the value of the U.S. dollar into its business planning. The gas measurement and control equipment …
- Premium
MDM Audio Conferences recently featured consultant Mike Marks and attorney Gene Zelek in Strategic Pricing: Create a Value-Based Approach.” The two told participants they must go beyond traditional pricing practices, segment customers and not be afraid to differentiate based on price. This article is based on that audio conference.
If you are implementing a pricing structure from scratch, and want to unfreeze an organization from its old habits, plan for at least 12 months of work to “make it stick.” Keep in mind: “It’s more than just coming up with a new price sheet and imposing it,” says Mike Marks, a principal in Indian River Consulting Group.
Here are a few thoughts to get you started.
 
Legal Hang-ups
One of the first …
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Finding that a supervisor’s comments about an employee’s age were admissible circumstantial evidence, and that his employer’s reduction in force plan was not a plan” at all, an appeals court has reinstated the claim of a 57-year-old employee, who had been let go in a Reduction in Force (RIF) that affected over 90 employees.  ;
  ;
Richard Blair had worked as a sales engineer since 1986 for Henry Filters Inc., a manufacturer of industrial filtration systems. In 2001 the new owner of Henry Filters, Durr Ecoclean, decided for business reasons to consolidate the sales force of Henry Filters with two other companies it owned, resulting in a cut back among the sales staff. Blair was one of the employees let go, and believed it was because of his age.
To …
- Premium
An electrical distributor in the Northeast delivers more than one-third of its invoices by email. More than 95 percent of its contractors who receive their invoices by email said in a survey they are satisfied or very satisfied with the delivery method.
About 70 percent said they like email delivery to save time” and because they “get their bills faster.” Most would recommend email delivery to other contractors. This electrical distributor is not alone in its invoicing practices.
A recent report by Allen Ray Associates, Channel Marketing Group and BillTrust says that as companies become more comfortable with electronic processes, customers are gravitating toward receiving invoices electronically via email or by downloading them off a distributor’s Web site. …
- Premium
News that CompUSA will shut its remaining 100 stores and sell off its assets offers some insight for distributors and manufacturers feeling the pressures of consolidation. The downturn of the electronics retailer was not for lack of investment, but likely poor positioning.
Investing in the business in the late 1990s, Mexican telecom and retail store magnate Carlos Slim (now the richest man in the world) took CompUSA private, and the company grew its consumer electronics business through acquisition, including The Good Guys, a California chain.
The Wall Street Journal estimates annual sales last year at $4 billion, but likely to come in at $1.5 billion this year. Early in 2007, it said it would close 126 stores, more than half of its total then.
Anyone who …
- Premium
UK-based Wolseley plc will be laying off 1,300 more workers in the U.S. in its second quarter; the global building materials and plumbing distributor reduced headcount by 1,700 in the three months ended Oct. 31, 2007. In total to date, layoffs represent a third of Stock Building Supply workforce and 10 percent of the Ferguson work force. More
Noland Company, Newport News, VA, has cut 45 jobs across the company over the past month due to the national housing downturn, according to the local paper, the Daily Press. Noland, bought by WinWholesale, Dayton, OH, in 2005, sells plumbing and HVAC supplies to construction end-markets. More
<br ...
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The industrial product group listed here – Safety Products – represented a market in 2007 of $6.5 billion, according to estimates by Industrial Market Information, Minneapolis.  ;
These charts show the top ten industries, by SIC code, consuming these products; and the 2007 end-user consumption of these groups sorted by the nine government market …
- Premium
Adam J. Fein, well-known wholesale distribution industry expert, presents an exclusive first look at how U.S. economic trends are shaping up  ; for wholesaler-distributors in the year ahead. Use this CD of this Dec. 6 program to benchmark your 2008 sales and marketing plan with the latest segment-specific economic data and analysis for wholesale distribution channels.
  ;
Tap into Fein’s insightful analytic commentary on the latest government business data, emerging macroeconomic trends and his forecast for 2008 conditions. This 90-minute Webcast includes detailed data on 19 wholesale distribution sub-sectors and Fein’s seasoned analysis of the 2008 economic landscape.
  ;
Based on the latest quarterly data, you’ll learn:
- Forecast …
To access this page, you must purchase MDM Premium Subscription, MDM Premium Subscription – Monthly or MDM Premium Subscription – Annually.
- Premium
This is the pdf of this issue of Modern Distribution Management. Apply the full $24.95 pay-per-view cost toward an annual subscription (within 30 days of purchase), which includes two issues a month plus access to more than six years of online archives and market data. Call 1-888-742-5060 or email info@mdm.com to …
- Premium
U.S. companies doing business overseas. But not all manufacturers and distributors are benefiting. For those distributors who import from the euro-zone, for example, costs have suddenly spiked, forcing them to reexamine the way they define value in this marketplace. This article examines the impact of the dollar decline on three groups:
- U.S. importers,
- manufacturers who export to the European Union, and
- Canadian distributors who buy from U.S.-based manufacturers.
Recently, Equipment Controls Co., Norcross, GA, has started to factor the value of the U.S. dollar into its business planning. The gas measurement and control equipment …
- Premium
MDM Audio Conferences recently featured consultant Mike Marks and attorney Gene Zelek in Strategic Pricing: Create a Value-Based Approach.” The two told participants they must go beyond traditional pricing practices, segment customers and not be afraid to differentiate based on price. This article is based on that audio conference.
If you are implementing a pricing structure from scratch, and want to unfreeze an organization from its old habits, plan for at least 12 months of work to “make it stick.” Keep in mind: “It’s more than just coming up with a new price sheet and imposing it,” says Mike Marks, a principal in Indian River Consulting Group.
Here are a few thoughts to get you started.
 
Legal Hang-ups
One of the first …
- Premium
Finding that a supervisor’s comments about an employee’s age were admissible circumstantial evidence, and that his employer’s reduction in force plan was not a plan” at all, an appeals court has reinstated the claim of a 57-year-old employee, who had been let go in a Reduction in Force (RIF) that affected over 90 employees.  ;
  ;
Richard Blair had worked as a sales engineer since 1986 for Henry Filters Inc., a manufacturer of industrial filtration systems. In 2001 the new owner of Henry Filters, Durr Ecoclean, decided for business reasons to consolidate the sales force of Henry Filters with two other companies it owned, resulting in a cut back among the sales staff. Blair was one of the employees let go, and believed it was because of his age.
To …
- Premium
An electrical distributor in the Northeast delivers more than one-third of its invoices by email. More than 95 percent of its contractors who receive their invoices by email said in a survey they are satisfied or very satisfied with the delivery method.
About 70 percent said they like email delivery to save time” and because they “get their bills faster.” Most would recommend email delivery to other contractors. This electrical distributor is not alone in its invoicing practices.
A recent report by Allen Ray Associates, Channel Marketing Group and BillTrust says that as companies become more comfortable with electronic processes, customers are gravitating toward receiving invoices electronically via email or by downloading them off a distributor’s Web site. …
- Premium
News that CompUSA will shut its remaining 100 stores and sell off its assets offers some insight for distributors and manufacturers feeling the pressures of consolidation. The downturn of the electronics retailer was not for lack of investment, but likely poor positioning.
Investing in the business in the late 1990s, Mexican telecom and retail store magnate Carlos Slim (now the richest man in the world) took CompUSA private, and the company grew its consumer electronics business through acquisition, including The Good Guys, a California chain.
The Wall Street Journal estimates annual sales last year at $4 billion, but likely to come in at $1.5 billion this year. Early in 2007, it said it would close 126 stores, more than half of its total then.
Anyone who …
- Premium
UK-based Wolseley plc will be laying off 1,300 more workers in the U.S. in its second quarter; the global building materials and plumbing distributor reduced headcount by 1,700 in the three months ended Oct. 31, 2007. In total to date, layoffs represent a third of Stock Building Supply workforce and 10 percent of the Ferguson work force. More
Noland Company, Newport News, VA, has cut 45 jobs across the company over the past month due to the national housing downturn, according to the local paper, the Daily Press. Noland, bought by WinWholesale, Dayton, OH, in 2005, sells plumbing and HVAC supplies to construction end-markets. More
<br ...
- Premium
The industrial product group listed here – Safety Products – represented a market in 2007 of $6.5 billion, according to estimates by Industrial Market Information, Minneapolis.  ;
These charts show the top ten industries, by SIC code, consuming these products; and the 2007 end-user consumption of these groups sorted by the nine government market …
- Premium
Adam J. Fein, well-known wholesale distribution industry expert, presents an exclusive first look at how U.S. economic trends are shaping up  ; for wholesaler-distributors in the year ahead. Use this CD of this Dec. 6 program to benchmark your 2008 sales and marketing plan with the latest segment-specific economic data and analysis for wholesale distribution channels.
  ;
Tap into Fein’s insightful analytic commentary on the latest government business data, emerging macroeconomic trends and his forecast for 2008 conditions. This 90-minute Webcast includes detailed data on 19 wholesale distribution sub-sectors and Fein’s seasoned analysis of the 2008 economic landscape.
  ;
Based on the latest quarterly data, you’ll learn:
- Forecast …
To access this page, you must purchase MDM Premium Subscription, MDM Premium Subscription – Monthly or MDM Premium Subscription – Annually.
- Premium
This is the pdf of this issue of Modern Distribution Management. Apply the full $24.95 pay-per-view cost toward an annual subscription (within 30 days of purchase), which includes two issues a month plus access to more than six years of online archives and market data. Call 1-888-742-5060 or email info@mdm.com to …
