MSC Industrial Direct earned $66.1 million in its fiscal first quarter, up from $38.5 million in the year-ago period. The distributor had quarterly revenue of $848.5 million, an increase from $771.9 million last year.

Berlin Packaging aims to expand its presence in the French wine market by acquiring France's Gerfran, which specializes in Bordeaux bottles, as well as glass containers for the spirits, beer, juice and food industries. "Targeted acquisitions such as Gerfran are a key component of our European growth strategy," says Bill Hayes, Berlin Packaging's CEO and president.

Cloud-based systems give distributors the framework to maximize artificial intelligence, use data analytics and manage disruptions, says Steve Levy of software company Infor. Cloud tools also help strengthen security and facilitate mobility, and should be integrated "directly into our customer systems," Levy says.

Companies should consider installing new warehouse management systems when they experience changes in distribution centers, automation and/or logistics strategy, writes the staff of Supply Chain Digest. Replacing an outdated WMS or adopting a standardized or cloud-based one are other good reasons to make a change.

Global Industrial has upgraded its e-commerce site to give more personalized search results and product recommendations, and it also surveys buyers on their experiences with the site and uses the findings to improve its functionality. In addition, the distributor provides customers with added value, service and knowledge through its Accelerating the Customer Experience initiative, CEO Barry Litwin says.

Business-to-business companies identified as "leaders" in a Dun & Bradstreet report for their improvement in marketing and sales performance share common characteristics, including prioritizing data investment and quality, relevant buyer engagement and aligning around shared views of accounts. The study reveals 62% of these top companies say their data enables them to accurately identify target audiences, in comparison to 33% of other respondents.

C-Suite leaders must intentionally craft a clear and inspiring message about their strategy so their teams understand how to execute it successfully, writes James O'Gara, who notes research showing only 14% of employees know their company's goals. "This also means you must have intentional communication processes in place to ensure that message gets through," O'Gara writes.

In part 3 of this 4-part series, we'll get into the weeds on what AI will look like when implemented into a distributor's sales arsenal. Register here.

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