For many new companies, selling direct to the customer is quite natural. However, if you run an established company, you might be asking yourself how difficult will it be to set up a direct to customer model. This is the fourth in a series of articles on D2C. In previous articles we’ve looked at the factors that make D2C possible, the non-cash be...
Read MoreThis is the third in a series on Direct to Customer (D2C). This one explores the financial implications. All of us in business are part of an end-2-end value chain that ends when the product or service is consumed. The ‘Direct to Customer’ model is one that skips some of the traditional steps that in the past would have been completed by an indirec...
Read MoreThis is the second in a set of short articles on Direct To Consumer (D2C) sales models. This one explains what you can gain from this approach. OK – so the above are benefits of a D2C model. But (and it’s a big but) it is not for everyone in every situation. You need to look at the value that each member in the value chain is adding to the end use...
Read MoreUnemployment figures continue to improve; we have a little way to go before we are back to pre-pandemic levels, but we are moving in the right direction. Currently, unemployment in Canada is 7.5% (1.5m) and in the US it is 5.4% (10m). These figures will include people who are ‘looking’ for work; they won’t include the people who could work but f...
Read MoreWritten By Andrew Penny It’s no secret that traditional supply chains are changing dramatically.D2C is quickly becoming the default way for manufacturers to enter new markets. A typical sales channel includes the manufacturer, a distributer / a master reseller and resellers who interact with the end customer. These multistep channels have outlived...
Read MoreI have been thinking about the subject of ‘asking questions’ quite a bit lately. As a consultant, it is a significantly important part of how I operate. It is also a key skill for anyone in a leadership position; while it is straight forward to ask a question that generates an answer, some questions can generate deep understanding, or unleash huge...
Read MoreBy Andrew Penny What are you really, really good at? You may own a services company, a manufacturing company, or you may sell to other business or sell to consumers. You may be a distributer or a value-added reseller. No matter what you do, someone else, somewhere else in the world, is doing the same thing.
Read MoreAs we continue to work with more and more manufacturers coming into North America, we are seeing a sharp increase in the number of companies that are exploring a Direct-to-Customer (D2C) model. The advantages of this are many, including: In the manufacturing segment, markups are typically 100% on the wholesale cost before it goes to retail. Innova...
Read MoreWhenever the name Thomas Edison is mentioned, people often think about ‘the man that invented the light-bulb’, and most are aware of the many variations of his famous quote about trying to make the lightbulb work: “I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work”.
Read MoreIn my first job as a Key Account Manager in the Fast-Moving Consumer Goods industry, I was trying to sell a couple of pallets of Carpaccio to my client in Riga. The client kept ignoring my calls and I was starting to feel very frustrated. I had only been on the job for about a month and was starting to feel that I would never succeed at this. I cal...
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