Wholesale's Role In The Supply Chain

A wholesaler's main role is to improve supply chain efficiency, which helps manufacturers and distributors reach end users more effectively. At the same time, wholesalers also help distributors manage their assets more efficiently.

Today's wholesalers serve as an extended warehouse for distributors, granting access to numerous lines of products from national suppliers. A major benefit of working with a wholesaler is that distributors do not have to meet order minimums like when they do when buying direct from manufacturers. Wholesalers give distributors the opportunity to purchase in small quantities or can be relied on for special orders. Thus, distributors are not stuck tying up capital in inventory that otherwise might end up being dead stock. Distributors can also benefit by receiving shorter order lead times from wholesalers, which in turn help them turn product faster.