AD’s 5th annual eCommerce Summit, held Aug. 23-25 at the Gaylord National Resort in Fort Washington, Maryland, set a new benchmark for digital sophistication in AD’s independent distributor community.

The new partnership expands QuickDrain’s reach in the showroom space.

The microlearning platform is designed to train membership employees on soft skills in leadership, selling and merchandising.

AD is reporting member sales in the first six months of 2021 were $28.1 billion, an increase of 30 percent across its 13 divisions and three countries.

In her new role, Lugo will help build on the buying group's legacy of creating value for its members and suppliers.

The summit is one of two cross-divisional and functional summits held annually designed to extend the value of AD networking and best-practice sharing to additional disciplines within its member companies.

Associates in AD’s four U.S. offices assembled boxes filled with toys, coloring books, and other activities, along with inspirational messages, for The Jared Box Project.

The agenda was packed with AD leadership and program manager-led business meetings, panel discussions with member and supplier CEOs, and best-practice-sharing member networking meetings.

The campaign champions the noble calling of distribution.

The event, which took place from May 4-6, is the first non-virtual limited meeting held by the group in more than 16 months.