For much of the past five years, margin conversations in plumbing and PVF distribution have focused on pricing: price increases, price discipline, price transparency, and how to hold the line as costs rose across the supply chain. But as the industry moves deeper into 2026, many distributors are finding that pricing alone no longer explains why margins feel tighter — even when top-line revenue remains relatively stable.

"Quite simply, we're seeing pressure show up in places that have nothing to do with the price sheet," says Bob Mucciarone, chief operating officer at F.W. Webb. "Private equity acquisitions of many of our customers have led to increased requests for end-of-year rebates. That forces wholesalers to pick their poison; do we relent, or do we hold the line?"

Read the full article from our friends at Supply House Times!