FAST vs CRH Comparison

Fastenal began as an industrial retailer, expanding its product portfolio from nuts and bolts to cutting tools, safety equipment, and janitorial supplies. It transitioned into a distributor by building out a dense network of branches close to its business customers. Once a customer becomes large enough, Fastenal installs vending machines and its own personnel on-site. Today, these on-site locations exceed Fastenal's branch count and remain the firm's main focus for expansion. Fastenal acts as a one-stop outsourcing partner for its industrial customers, offering value-added services along with a wide breadth of maintenance, repair, and operations supplies.

CRH is a global manufacturer of a range of building products used in construction projects, operating via a vertically integrated business model. The past decade has seen CRH transform into a leading building materials business, with increasing exposure to upstream building activities such as aggregates and cement. CRH's geographic footprint is mostly across developed markets. North America is CRH's largest market and accounts for 75% of EBITDA. The company is the largest producer of aggregates and asphalt in the US.