Brave New World — The Changing Era of Wholesale
Industries like wholesale — established, conventional models that have been doing things the same way for a very long time — often don’t change very well. They have been around forever really, and been largely successful for the most part, so their position is reasonable. Except for the fact that no industry was prepared for the magnitude of change that e-commerce and the internet were to bring, and only the most innovative survive. Due to the influx of new models such as dropshipping, and of new ideas such as supply chain disintegration, wholesale has suffered a bit of an identity crisis. They’re facing a plethora of challenges — but there’s still hope. So how do wholesalers build up their place in this Brave New World?
Adding Value to their Services
Wholesaling as a supply chain model doesn’t simply mean buying products in bulk from suppliers and shipping it to retailers at higher prices. A good wholesaler offers plenty of other services that need to be emphasized if they are to survive in the 21st world of e-commerce. These may include financing options of paying through installments, or even offering retailers the tools to build their website for a subsidized fee as long as they consistently buy from them. Another example may be built in market research services. The wholesalers, who usually have a long working relationship with retailers in their industry and a deep understanding of the market, offer free advice to retailers on the products that are likely to do well and make them tailored packages. This is not a service that can be replicated easily hence it adds value to the wholesale model specifically.
A Better Delivery System
One of the biggest advantages of smaller scale supply chain means such as dropship is that they offer a lot of flexibility to their customers in terms of delivery. They can single products directly to their customers’ doorsteps at fast timelines . To compete, wholesalers need to upgrade their delivery systems from the bulking behemoths they once were. This of course includes quicker delivery, through more efficient third party distributors, but also letting customers tailor the delivery options to their needs. It’s key to offer this flexibility in terms of both time and location — wholesalers now must have the requisite infrastructure to ship products directly to customers’ premises at a time that they reasonably ask for. A worldwide delivery system, not just to industrial centers, is very important in attracting clients from across the globe and expanding your market reach.
Partnering with Retailers
The wholesaler-retailer partnership doesn’t have to be one way — the shipping of products one way and the sending of payment the other. The best partnerships stem from mutual understanding of strengths and weaknesses. Wholesalers tend to have a grasp on market trends and should always try to connect retailers with the products that they believe will do well in the current market. Similarly, retailers collaborating with their wholesale suppliers to create a unique product line will definitely have mutual benefits. Lastly, there’s one area that is sure to have benefits for both the retailer and the wholesaler — avoidance of third party services and products in the supply chain. Whether this includes marketing, customer service or delivery, a mutually beneficial partnership here is key to wholesalers surviving and thriving in the long run.
