The Interfaces of Supplier, Distributor and Consumer—An Appraisal

Whilst it is a truism that the distributor is the link between the supplier and the consumer, even where a manufacturer, for example, sells direct to the consumer, the distributor often provides information to the manufacturer and services to the consumer which generate more business and heightens consumer satisfaction across a whole range of related products. So the distributor link provides, in general terms, (1) information about consumer preferences, and data to help in the allocation of resources to meet those preferences, and (2) alternative patterns of distribution and promotion to suit manufacturers' policies and requirements. The distributor, therefore, initiates and completes, on his behalf and that of the manufacturer, innumerable small‐scale transactions with consumers which would be hopelessly uneconomical for the manufacturer to undertake. For example, it is reckoned that, just to buy food in the United States, the public completes 230 million transactions weekly.