Nearly everyone with a radio, TV, or internet connection in the U.S. has heard or seen the term “PPP” bantered around in the news. It seems to have slipped temporarily out of the news cycle, so here’s a quick refresher. The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act of 2020 , otherwise known as the CARES Act (I am amazed at the acronyms the guys in Washington come up with) is a $2 Trillion stimulus bill designed to minimize damage to the U.S. economy based on COVID-19 related shutdowns. Within the massive bill was a $349 Billion fund intended to provide loans to small businesses with the intent of guaranteeing eight weeks of payroll and other costs associated with remaining viable. This little sliver of the gigantic stimulus bill is referred to as the Paycheck Protection Program or PPP. How this applies to knowledge-based distributors All but the largest of distribution-based companies easily qualify for the program. Based on a weekly survey we developed for the As...

Many segments of the wholesale business use rebates as a plan to modify and reward distributor behavior. While the roots of these end of year rebates and similar programs are mostly lost to history, they have become an important part of the distributor financial sheet. For example, Electrical Distributors typically report around 40-60 percent of their bottom line comes by way of rebates. Other lines of trade indicate similar numbers. This information is not anecdotal. This is not beer talk, the Profit Reports published through groups like NAED and others back up the statement. Without rebates, the channel could be in serious trouble. Marketing and Buying Groups help drive the rebate dollars Many independent distributors receive their rebates through   marketing groups. Organizations like IMARK and Affiliated Distributors (AD) in the electrical industry come to mind, as do groups in other lines of trade. Here is a short list (mostly top of mind): • Distributor P...