MELVILLE, N.Y. and DAVIDSON, N.C., June 9, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- MSC INDUSTRIAL SUPPLY CO. (NYSE: MSM), a leading distributor of Metalworking and Maintenance, Repair and Operations ("MRO") products and services to industrial customers throughout North America, has been recognized as B2B E-Commerce Player of the Year by Internet Retailer magazine. The annual award was presented at the Internet Retailer Conference & Expo Wednesday evening in Chicago. Steve Baruch, Senior Vice President-Strategy & Marketing; Charlie Bonomo, Senior Vice President and Chief Information Officer; and Mike Roth, Senior Director of E-Commerce, accepted the award on behalf of MSC.

The B2B Player of the Year Award process reviewed dozens of companies, including manufacturers, wholesalers and distributors, said Paul Demery, who coordinated the judging process as managing editor of B2B e-commerce at Internet Retailer and editor of Internet Retailer's sister publications, the twice-weekly newsletter B2BecNews and website B2BeCommerceWorld.com. The judges included the editorial staff of B2BecNews and three industry analysts: Andy Hoar of Forrester Research Inc., Gene Alvarez of Gartner Inc. and Justin King, a partner of consulting firm B2X Partners and founder of the B2B resource website EcommerceandB2B.com. Each judge scored contestants on a scale of one to five and submitted subjective comments on such criteria as web design, site usability, customized features for business customers, growth in B2B sales and overall perception of how a site operates.

MSC Industrial Supply stood out as a company that provides B2B customers with an excellent online purchasing experience and that has a long-term commitment to building its B2B e-commerce sales, Demery said.

"One of our judges noted that 'MSC merchandises like a B2C company, with a clean product layout with lots of images on an easy-to-use site, but operates like a B2B company with the special features business buyers need, such as custom pricing and a process for getting orders approved by a buyer's superiors,'" Demery said. "Another judge added that MSC provides an 'astounding' amount of product data with a search and navigation function that expedites finding and purchasing products. Judges also noted that MSC has a long-term commitment to growing its online B2B channel, with B2B e-commerce sales accounting for about 60 percent of total sales."

MSC's Baruch said, "We strive to create a world-class online experience for our customers as part of our effort to improve their operations and supply chains, so we are pleased that Internet Retailer and its noteworthy panel of experts recognize the product breadth, information, functionality and value that we offer our customers through mscdirect.com."

About MSC Industrial Supply Co.
MSC Industrial Supply Co. (NYSE: MSM) is a leading North American distributor of metalworking and maintenance, repair, and operations (MRO) products and services. We help our customers drive greater productivity, profitability and growth with more than 1 million products, inventory management and other supply chain solutions, and deep expertise from more than 70 years of working with customers across industries.

Our experienced team of over 6,500 associates is dedicated to working side by side with our customers to help drive results for their businesses - from keeping operations running efficiently today to continuously rethinking, retooling, and optimizing for a more productive tomorrow. For more information on MSC, please visit www.mscdirect.com.

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SOURCE MSC Industrial Supply Co.