Wheels, Inc., a leader in the multi-billion-dollar fleet leasing industry, has been named a finalist in the supplier category at the first-ever Excellence in Procurement of Indirect Categories (EPIC) Awards.

The inaugural EPIC Awards, sponsored by the ProcureCon event series and My Purchasing Center online trade publication, honor individuals and organizations that have made exceptional achievements in corporate procurement. Winners will be announced at ProcureCon Indirect East 2013, which takes place February 11-13 in Charlotte.

Wheels was nominated for the EPIC award by one of its clients, Best Buy Co., Inc. Wheels has provided fleet leasing and management services for the retail electronics giant since 2006, and last year the companies successfully collaborated on a major vehicle selector and upfitting optimization project for the Best Buy fleet.

“Wheels has always provided a multi-tiered account management approach that delivers incredibly insightful strategic guidance,” said Jason Pucely, Senior Manager of Logistics & Transportation at Best Buy. “During the recent selector and upfitting consolidation project, Wheels took the time to perform a detailed review of the specifics of our fleet, identify and understand our larger organizational needs, meet with our drivers to understand end-user preferences and develop a customized approach that delivered value not only to our fleet, but also our overall business.”

The success of the selector optimization project and other initiatives earned Wheels an Excellence in Partnership award from Best Buy in 2012.

“It is an incredible honor to named among the finalists for this prestigious award, and even more so because we were directly nominated by one of our clients,” said Scott Pattullo, Wheels’ Senior VP of Sales, Marketing and Account Management. “Delivering measurable value to our customers is the absolute heart of what we do, and the best part about being nominated for a procurement award like this is knowing that our clients recognize and appreciate the tangible impact that a well-run fleet can have on their businesses.”

Wheels is the only fleet management company to have earned a finalist nod for the 2013 EPIC Awards. Other organizations on the shortlist include some of the world’s best-known companies like Microsoft, Intel and DHL.