News and Trends

• Wolseley CEO discusses possible sale of unit
  Wolseley has indicated that the U.K.-based distributor is considering selling its Stock Building Supply, with Wolseley CEO Chip Hornsby in a recent webcast Q-and-A saying the market for new home construction is likely to drop further before rebounding and noting that the company had essentially gone as far as it could in terms of paring back costs at Stock. "We must acknowledge that further large-scale reduction of Stock will inevitably eat into the infrastructure of the business," he said. Modern Distribution Management (9/24)

• Building Materials Holding faces lawsuit from group of workers
  A group of construction workers has filed a class-action lawsuit against Building Materials Holding Corp., claiming the distributor coerced them into working unpaid overtime, among other alleged violations. The company declined to comment, but in a statement, it denied the allegations. Industrial Distribution (9/24) , Los Angeles Times (9/23)

• Canadian wholesale revenue jumped in July
  Wholesale revenue in Canada increased 2.3% in July to $46.2 billion, the fifth straight monthly gain. Six of the seven wholesale sectors posted July gains, with the only decline reported in the food, beverages and tobacco products sector. Six provinces posted sales increases in July, with Saskatchewan recording a 10.4% rise. Modern Distribution Management (9/24)

• Other News

• FTC gives antitrust approval to Owens & Minor's proposed Burrows acquisition
  RTT News (9/23)

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Best Practices

• Family-friendly benefits help put companies on Top 100 list
  Benefits executives speaking at a forum described how important an entire benefits package was in gaining a spot on this year's list of Fortune's 100 Best Companies to Work For in America. At Holder Construction, that meant establishing a paid-time-off policy that allows employees to take time off to attend school events, children's doctor appointments and to take elderly parents to appointments. BenefitNews.com (9/24)

• Offer motivation, training to retain best talent
  The key to having the best employees isn't just in finding and recruiting top talent. Providing training, incentives and a challenging work environment help companies to grow and retain the most sought-after personnel. BusinessWeek (9/16)

Sales

• As retailers' orders slump, W-Ds hit the Internet
  With the slumping economy meaning dropping sales, many wholesaler-distributors are turning to the Internet and switching to direct-to-consumer sales. For many, the switch to retail means adjusting to the task of dealing directly with customers and adopting marketing strategies appropriate to e-commerce. Modern Distribution Management (9/24) , The Wall Street Journal (9/18)

Hot Topics

Top five news stories selected by NAW SmartBrief readers in the past week.

• Wolseley profit drops 22.1% due to U.S. housing market (Industrial Distribution)

• U.S. Foodservice to acquire Texas land for distribution center (American City Business Journals)

• FDA warns Sysco unit about "adulterated" salads (MarketWatch)

• Your cheat sheet for wine pairings (The Dallas Morning News)

• Experts suggest 21 low-cost marketing strategies (Entrepreneur)

• Results based on number of times each story was clicked by readers.

Small Business Manager

• Quality of Web site is reflection of business
  Consumers often judge the quality of a business by their first impression online, says one expert in this Forbes primer on how to build a "great" Web site. For some companies, site quality may determine whether they survive a recession. Forbes (9/23)

Executive Life

• Business fliers will likely travel in "less comfort," experts say
  Business travelers on U.S. airlines may be fewer in number next year, but they'll also be higher in stress. With corporate budgets shrinking, business travelers will have to "produce more, with the same amount of salary, with less comfort in much of their travel," said Susan Gurley of the Association of Corporate Travel Executives. The basic message of employers will be: "You should be lucky to have a job, and if it means staying in a less expensive hotel or doubling up or taking a more uncomfortable flight, so be it," she said. The New York Times (9/22)

• Study: Honey could be sweet cure for sinusitis
  Natural germ fighters in honey might bring relief to people suffering from sinusitis. A study found honey was more effective than commonly used antibiotics in killing the bacteria that causes sinusitis, but the key now is figuring out how to apply the findings to patients. HealthDay News (9/24)

NAW Insider

• OUTLOOK 2009: Get the latest on key industry trends!
  OUTLOOK 2009 provides an update on the major and emerging trends identified in 2007's Facing the Forces of Change. It emphasizes practical steps for distributors to take for real success. Read it and make a personal commitment to knowledgeably respond to key industry trends, share information with your staff, and plan for success through strategic thinking, analysis and positive action.

• Turn your distributor-supplier relationship from dysfunctional to highly effective
  It takes a long time to develop good distributor-supplier relationships, but it only takes a short time to destroy them. Working at Cross-Purposes examines what drives these relationships, how often they go bad and why. Especially with today's challenges, both partners can avoid the economic and other consequences of a relationship turning sour by correcting problems before they become critical.

Weekly Poll

• Would your company consider direct-to-consumer sales?
  After voting once, check out the real-time poll results on NAW's All Access page as often as you'd like.

	Yes. There are good opportunities in the direct-to-consumer market.
	Maybe, depending on the way the markets change.
	We already have a retail component.
	No. We do not plan to change our business model.

VP of Information Systems D&H Distributing Company Harrisburg PA.

SmartQuote

We cannot always build the future for our youth, but we can build our youth for the future." --Franklin D. Roosevelt, 32nd U.S. president