Have you ever heard the terms distributor and stockist? Both are often found in distribution activities. Understand the differences to find out what distribution model is suitable and produces greater profits for you.
Distribution is the process of moving goods from producers to consumers or vice versa. Not only does it consist of moving goods, distribution also includes storing goods in the warehouse, calculating stock, supplying goods, and distributing goods out.
A distributor is a person who distributes goods directly from manufacturers in large quantities to retailers, agents or suppliers to later be sold directly to end users or customers. Usually distributors also provide promotional materials, product information, technical support, credit and after-sales services to their customers. Distributors can sell products from several different manufacturers to meet needs in a particular area, but there are also distributors who have agreements to only distribute products from certain manufacturers.
The term stockist is also found in the distribution process. Stockists are people who provide goods for certain types of sales in the form of stock. They keep stock of goods with a minimum quantity, then distribute them to consumers at a certain time, season or place. When there is a shortage of goods, stockists make the goods available. Usually stockists become official partners of a manufacturer and get special prices when purchasing goods with a certain amount of stock.
After reading the information above, it can be concluded that distributors and stockists both distribute goods, but the difference is that stockists store goods in stock first before distributing them to resellers or consumers. Distribution of goods by stockists depends on factors such as time, season, or certain places, while distributors do not depend on any factors in the distribution process.
So are you now starting to be interested in becoming a distributor or stockist?
