The different channels of distribution are:
(i) Wholesalers: Wholesalers are the business people who purchase items in bulk from the manufacturers and sell them in retail. By purchasing bulk, wholesalers get the product at a discounted price and sell it to retailers which are the next channel of distribution. The above is the example of Adani Wilmar, which is a FMCG – Fast Moving Consumer Goods company whose products are sold on a wholesale basis.
(ii) Retailers: Retailers are the customers of wholesalers, who do the same work as wholesalers but they provide various offers to their customers. The customers of retailers will buy in bulk but not like wholesalers. Best example of retail shops is Big Bazaar, where you can find all the products you wish under a single roof.
(iii) Distributors: They are the closest one to the customers, where they sell their product to customers without any further intermediaries. The best examples are local petty shops and grocery shops where you are the direct consumer and they are the direct sellers. Here the product diversification is normal but the options of discounts are very low or at times they provide you offers and discounts less than wholesalers and retailers.
(iv) E-Commerce: E-commerce companies are those who make use of software and technology, to directly sell the goods to the customers. Best example we all know is Amazon and Flipkart, where most of our products which we use currently will be bought from them. They sell the products to individual consumers whereas in other distribution channels, goods are procured for large consumers irrespective of any criteria. In E Commerce we can get offers for the products we purchase through festive sales, credit card and debit card offers and mostly Digital Transaction is done for the products we buy.
