Amazon sales up 26.4% in Q1, but profit down 28.8% | WESCO CEO: Pandemic won't affect Anixter merger | United Rentals reports Q1 profit, adapts to coronavirus
Amazon's first-quarter net sales, spurred by consumers ordering from home, increased 26% year-over-year to reach $75.5 billion, while profits dropped 29% and fulfillment costs jumped 34%. CEO Jeff Bezos warned investors to "take a seat" as the retailer plans to use its entire $4 billion in anticipated second-quarter profits for warehouse and delivery hiring, employee coronavirus testing and personal protective gear.
WESCO International reported a profit of $34.4 million on revenue of $2 billion for the first quarter, and President and CEO John Engel says the company's acquisition of Anixter International remains on track.
United Rentals reported $173 million in profit on $2.1 billion in revenue for the first quarter. The company remains open during the coronavirus pandemic, and it has paused share buybacks and plans to reduce capital spending.
Maintaining Business Continuity in Tough Times The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted the global economy and changed the way businesses operate. Modern enterprises don't have time for service disruption. Overnight, every business needs to reassess how to do more, with less. Learn how Sales Order Automation allows companies like Genpak to do more with less in this webinar.
Manufacturers can better monitor their supply chains for disruptions by using geographic information system technology to see what's happening in real time, writes Yasaman Kazemi. Such location awareness enables companies to model and mitigate risk from crises such as the coronavirus pandemic, she writes.
Podcast: B2B Marketplace Strategies Marketplaces pose risks, challenges, and opportunities. Join Adobe and Gorilla Group for a quick-hitting conversation and learn what it takes to succeed when building an owned or 3rd party marketplace strategy. Listen and grow your business.
Engagio's Jon Miller urges business-to-business marketers to humanize their brands by not only personalizing messaging, but using it to speak to the emotional needs of prospects. Be empathetic by identifying what your customers care about and becoming their advocate, he advises, before providing tips on how to infuse humanized marketing across day-to-day operations.
Marketers recognize the increasing interest in the Stories format on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Snapchat and Twitter and are tapping them for organic and influencer marketing and paid advertising, writes Debra Aho Williamson. Research indicates that marketers are embracing "less-scripted or behind-the-scenes moments" for organic initiatives and 83% of US marketers plan to use Instagram Stories for influencer efforts during 2020.
Meetings aren't a waste of time when participants are prepared, clear guidelines are established and everyone walks away with assignments, writes TBGA CEO Christine Alemany. And if you want to improve your meetings, especially remote ones, you'll need to ask for and encourage participant feedback, she writes.
NAW shares thought leadership each week in the NAW Blog "Distributing Ideas." NAW Institute for Distribution Excellence Fellows, authors and guest bloggers discuss today's critical issues specific to wholesale distribution. Catch up on blog posts here. Better yet, subscribe here and we'll deliver a new post each week straight to your inbox.
While shipping volumes are down due to COVID-19, wholesaler-distributors are already planning for the reopening of the country. Volumes will soon rise back to normal and with it, a surge in demand for truckload carriers. Find out how to access new carriers and ensure that your freight is moved at the most efficient price using Trusted NAW Partner Emerge and their Emerge Digital Freight Marketplace.
