| April 17, 2008 | News for the wholesale distribution industry |
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- W-D looks to private labels as food costs go higher
Corn futures reached record highs this month, worrying food distributors who anticipate higher prices on many products, from beef to breakfast cereal. A spokeswoman for Wakefern Food Corp. said the wholesale-distributor is promoting its own lower-priced private labels to keep consumers spending despite rising prices. NJBIZ (New Jersey)
(4/14)
     
- Avnet cuts costs amid expectation of missing earnings mark
Avnet Inc. said Tuesday it expects that net income for its fiscal third quarter will be "well below" management's predictions. The electronics distributor said cost-cutting measures already have been put into place. "We remain steadfastly committed to our financial goals despite current market conditions and, therefore, began taking corrective actions at the end of the March quarter and are in the process of taking further actions in the June quarter," said Chairman-CEO Roy Vallee. American City Business Journals/Phoenix
(4/15)
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| | Supply Chain: Low source cost doesn't always generate higher profits
Global sourcing and increasing supply chain complexity make supply chain measurement (SCM) critical. Four core steps will help you accurately measure costs and identify opportunities to reduce your current supply chain costs by 3-5%. Read More. | |
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| Best Practices |  | |
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- Plan for merger as if approaching marriage
As many as two out of three mergers and acquisitions do not live up to their potential, so managers should approach mergers with as much caution and solemnity as if they were entering into a marriage, an expert recommends. Some tips include meeting with managers as early in the process as possible, making sure to develop an integration strategy and announcing the plans of the merger to employees as soon as it's legally possible. Manage Smarter
(4/15)
- Good salaries can still be negotiated in tough times
Negotiating a decent salary may be tricky during slow economic times, but if the candidate has skills that are important to the employer's bottom line, they should be able to expect something above the market average. Employers will also be more likely to make generous offers to candidates with skills that are in high demand. The Wall Street Journal
(4/15)
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- Tools can put sales process in fast lane
Sales representatives should make the best use they can of automation tools to speed up the sales process. Four key tools are software to help find the right contact person; those that help track leads; those that help communicate through activities such as Web conferencing; and those that help close the deal. destinationCRM
(4/11)
| Small Business Manager | | |
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- State parks offer scenic, secluded meeting retreats
State parks have been upgrading their facilities to offer them as meeting places for businesses. Companies can save money choosing state parks over hotel and convention locations, and the parks offer secluded settings that limit interruptions. One downside -- or benefit, perhaps -- may be parks sometimes lack cell phone service. USA TODAY
(4/14)
| Executive Life | | |
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- Lui bridges PC and HDTV
The Lui PC and media server from NEC can record and stream high-definition content to televisions and computers and provides a wireless Windows connection for handhelds. Two models of the machine will be sold, including one with a Blu-ray drive and 1 terabyte of storage. Yahoo!/PCWorld/IDG News Service
(4/15)
| NAW Insider | | |
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Brand-new book: Profit Myths in Wholesale Distribution
This NAW Institute book has one overall goal -- to change the way distribution managers think about their businesses. Author Albert Bates says that both decision quality and decision consistency are influenced by some very bad information. He promises an eye-opening experience if you accept that much, if not most, of what you have been told about distribution finance issues is wrong.
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New downloadable Wholesale Distribution Economic Reports
Download individual economic analysis reports that are most relevant to your business from the 19 major wholesale distribution sectors in the 2008 Wholesale Distribution Economic Reports. These reports supply a wealth of channel benchmarking data, including revenue and employment growth trends, the number and size distribution of companies, gross margins, wages and many other operating statistics. Quantity discounts apply.
| Weekly Poll | | |
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Do you hope Congress passes a passenger bill of rights for air travel?
After voting once, check out the real-time poll results on NAW's All Access page as often as you'd like.
 | Yes -- Airlines need a checks-and-balance system. |
| No -- It will not make delays any less frequent. |
| Maybe, but I do not fly enough to worry about it. |
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| SmartQuote | | |
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| | Recent NAW SmartBrief Issues:
- Wednesday, April 16, 2008
- Monday, April 14, 2008
- Friday, April 11, 2008
- Thursday, April 10, 2008
- Wednesday, April 09, 2008
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