The Wholesale Forums

[Bonkers]

As the title says are distributors and wholesalers the same thing?

Here's the plan get my site up and running get registered as a business, get a business bank account then contact manufacturers asking for distributors of their products so I can buy from them, then sell online. (probably won't be as easy as that but you get my drift).

Just wondered because the products I want to sell I believe I won't be able to get wholesale unless I contact the distributors and I can't do this unless I have a website / shop / registered business / proof of trading etc etc

so to the point am I barking up the wrong tree doing this?

[hardwareheroes]

Originally Posted by Bonkers

As the title says are distributors and wholesalers the same thing?

Here's the plan get my site up and running get registered as a business, get a business bank account then contact manufacturers asking for distributors of their products so I can buy from them, then sell online. (probably won't be as easy as that but you get my drift).

Just wondered because the products I want to sell I believe I won't be able to get wholesale unless I contact the distributors and I can't do this unless I have a website / shop / registered business / proof of trading etc etc

so to the point am I barking up the wrong tree doing this?

Fine line between distributors and wholesalers but essentially they can mean the same thing. Distributors tend to work on smaller quantities whereas as wholesalers are looking for bulk purchasers is how I take it

[greedyboy]

Distributors distribute specific products (as the name suggests). They are usually the route to market for manufacturers and as a result may have exclusivity to certain products/ranges.

Wholesalers buy large volumes (and buy from distributors) and break the volume down and seller in smaller bulk to retailers/resellers.

[Pete]

Yes, the distribution channel often runs - manufacturer - distributor - wholesaler - possibly jobber - retailer / installer / tradesman - consumer.

A distributor may be given an exclusive for an entire country, or a section of a country with the understanding they do not ship or sell outside their assigned territory. This can become tedious when one distributor signs up a national chain. Should the NYC distributor ship to LA, or should the local LA distributor make the sale? Etc.

Many times they may be one and the same. A general electrical goods wholesaler may also be a distributor for one or two specific brands, while being a regular wholesaler for other products. In some cases, they may even be forced to sell as if a wholesaler even on the distributor products and then get a "redistribution" rebate for sales to other wholesalers.

Each manufacturer and product category has it's own rules and traditions in this regard. There is no "national law" or anything like that spelling out specifics.

So, many wholesalers may call themselves distributors, but no one will challenge them.
.

[nooprintery]

thank you Pete, it is very clear

[Bonkers]

Thanks for the info am I going the rigth way about things then?