US wholesale sales rebounded in November, rising 1.3% from October and 5.2% year-over-year, according to the Census Bureau. Durable goods sales increased 1.2% and nondurable goods sales rose 1.5%. Inventories also grew, up 0.2% month-over-month and 1.8% year-over-year. The inventories-to-sales ratio decreased to 1.28 from 1.30 in October.

Britton Lumber Company announced a planned acquisition of Massachusetts-based building materials distributor Denison-Cannon Company. Expected to close this month, the deal would bring Denison-Cannon's entire team under Britton Lumber's control, including longtime leaders Peter Hyatt and Carmen Mattuchio. The acquisition will expand Britton Lumber's reach in Massachusetts and introduce the company to new markets in Rhode Island and Connecticut.

MDM is seeking nominations for its Women in Distribution Profiles to recognize women who have been instrumental in business transformation, innovation and growth in the wholesale distribution industry. Nominations are open until Feb. 25, and the profiles will be published in March, coinciding with Women's History Month.

Import volumes at US ports are expected to remain subdued year over year through April, with only minor month-over-month improvements noted. According to the Global Port Tracker by the National Retail Federation and Hackett Associates, ports will not see a year-over-year increase until May, as retailers adjust from a busy 2025 and earlier frontloading of cargo. This muted trend is influenced by lingering effects from late 2024's elevated imports and ongoing trade policy changes.

Warehouse management systems are essential for modern distribution, offering real-time inventory visibility and reducing errors, writes Carolyn Hunt, a consultant with more than 50 years of industry experience. Hunt emphasizes the importance of aligning warehouse processes with business goals, integrating WMS with enterprise resource planning systems and leveraging feedback from frontline workers.

Video storytelling is increasingly important in B2B marketing as AI-powered discovery tools prioritize multimedia content, writes Luxid's Matt McClung. Marketers are investing more in video to enhance AI visibility and emotional engagement, with 78% already using video and more than half planning to increase budgets. Effective video for AI requires accurate transcripts, keyword-rich descriptions and structured metadata, while human-centered narratives drive higher engagement and authenticity, McClung writes.

Leaders often struggle with the myth that they must be perfect and feel pressured to embody an unrealistic ideal image, writes Bud Caddell, the founder of NOBL, who suggests leaders humanize themselves by naming the myth, locating the source of their fears, sharing the emotional burden with their teams and envisioning a future where leadership is less taxing. "The leaders who do the most durable work are rarely the ones who feel heroic. They are the ones who have learned to separate the role from the self, to share the emotional load rather than absorb it and to stay present even when certainty isn't available," Caddell writes.

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