Measures That Traditional Distributors Can Take to Compete With Amazon Supply, Other Giants | SupplyChainBrain

Measures That Traditional Distributors Can Take to Compete With Amazon Supply, Other Giants

July 8, 2015

Grainger sells only a few commercial bathroom fixtures, but claims more than 31,000 pipe, valves, fittings, water heaters, toilets, replacement parts and faucets and repair kits. And it claims an additional 30,000 HVAC SKUs including equipment, parts and supplies.

MSC Industrial's website lists some 4,600 PHCP items, including mini-water heaters, pumps, plumbing tools, lavatory faucets and sinks, flush valves and repair parts. And it lists some 3,600 HVAC items other than equipment.

These giants seldom make warehouse mistakes, so warehouse mistakes made by traditional PHCP, PVF and HVAC distributors can result in losing sales to the giants; maybe even losing customers. However, there are some measures traditional distributors can take to ensure their warehouses are not hurting customer service.

Read Full Article

Related Content

Related Videos

Featured Product

Photo: iStock/Anastasiia Yanishevska

How a Leading U.S. Floral Distribution Company Reduced Warehouse Labor Costs by 45% with RFID

Recycled Tagging Fasteners: Small Changes Make a Big Impact

Mobile geolocation service for track delivery, cargo shipment and freight transportation. Logistic Import Export business (Elements of this image furnished by NASA)

Enhancing High-Value Electronics Shipment Security with Tive's Real-Time Tracking

Franchise business e-commerce online e-marketplace or digital marketing branch expansion for growth or use technology to analyze product consumer data website management plan for sale service concept.

Moving Robots Site-to-Site

Five Industry Shifts Transportation Leaders Can't Ignore

With transportation and logistics operations focused on delivering products and services to specific locations, parts of the industry will always be physical in nature. But what’s now disrupting the sector more than anything are digital forces, from AI-driven automation to increasingly volatile global trade networks.

Scb Q326 Aptean Top5 Thumb

From Software Vendor to Partner: Transforming Operations through Logistics Technology

The Logistics landscape is evolving rapidly, and leading organizations are moving beyond transactional vendor relationships to true technology partnerships. In this webinar, the presenters will explore how supply chain organizations are using logistics technology to transform how they plan, execute and optimize operations from transportation visibility to real time data integration.

Upcoming Webinar Deloitte Tue Nov 10 2026 2p Et

Securing the Cross-Border Supply Chain: Risk Mitigation and Customs Compliance in U.S.-Mexico Trade

This white paper presents supply chain executives with a comprehensive blueprint for securing cross-border trade between the U.S. and Mexico.

Cross Border Cover

Next Generation Fulfillment Centers: From 12 to 5 Steps

As supply chains face increasing pressure from labor shortages, rising customer expectations and growing SKU complexity, leading organizations are rethinking fulfillment operations to achieve greater speed, capacity and efficiency.

Knapp Thumbnail 595x841

Why Going Global Isn't Always the Right Call

For years, global sourcing has helped companies reduce production costs, access specialized suppliers, and achieve greater scale. But today’s supply chains face tariff uncertainty, geopolitical risk, transportation disruption, supplier concentration, inventory pressure, and rising customer expectations.

Supply Chain Brain Thumbnail

5 Ways Aftermarket Parts Distributors Improve Uptime, Accuracy, and Scalability with Goods-to-Person Automation

Aftermarket parts distributors face a unique set of fulfillment challenges. SKU counts continue to grow, demand can change without warning, and customers often need parts quickly to restore critical equipment. At the same time, distributors must maintain accuracy, control costs, and operate with limited labor.

Thumbnail (1)

Fireside Chat with Gartner Expert Beth Moller: Leading at the Intersection: Building High-Performing Supply Chain Teams in the Age of AI

In today’s rapidly evolving business landscape, Chief Supply Chain Officers face a critical challenge: building leadership teams that can break through functional silos, navigate competing priorities, and align around a shared purpose.

Upcoming Webinar Gartner Supply Chain Brain Webinar Ep4 Of 4 Tue Oct 10 2026 11a Et

Million Dollar Baby Planning Meets Supply Chain Agility: A Conversation with Julia Bedanova

SupplyChainBrain

Supply chain planning has never mattered more. As organizations navigate continued volatility, shifting customer expectations, economic uncertainty, and the rapid acceleration of AI and new technology, the ability to plan, adapt, and make smarter decisions will be a critical competitive advantage over the next 12 months.

Re Run On Demand Graphic

Born at the Dock: Plan With Execution Built In

Born at the Dock argues that a supply chain plan is not complete when software approves it; it is complete only when the physical network can execute it and the customer receives the order in full. The whitepaper reframes planning around the dock, where inventory must be found, cases picked, pallets built, shipments staged, trailers loaded legally, carriers dispatched, and destinations prepared to receive.

Cover Born At The Dock Provision Ai

Transportation Under Pressure: Planning Through Fuel, Capacity and Regulatory Shocks

Transportation Under Pressure applies the Born at the Dock standard to a transportation market exposed to volatile fuel prices, tightening carrier capacity, regulatory change, labor constraints, and regional disruption. Its central argument is that shippers cannot control the next external shock, but they can reduce the internal exposure that determines whether that shock becomes a manageable cost increase or an operational crisis.

Cover Transportation Under Pressure Provision Ai

How Mars uses 4flow’s AI Platform for Logistics Optimization

Supply chains are under constant pressure from disruption, rising costs and increasing service expectations—yet decisions are still made across fragmented systems and functional siloes. Even with heavy investments in digitalization and AI, many organizations remain stuck in reactive execution.

Gist Webinar Vert 4 Flow

2026 Buyer's Guide to Real-Time Shipment Visibility

The 2026 Buyer's Guide to Real-Time Shipment Visibility from Tive provides a practical framework for evaluating today's leading shipment visibility technologies and selecting the solution that best fits your organization's needs.

White Paper Front Cover

Page 1 of 957