Commentary: Inside Every Threat There is Opportunity

What poses the greatest threat to the master distributor model? Ask two of the master distributors featured in this issue and they will share a similar response. Driven by factors such as increasing consolidation and the emergence of e-commerce marketplaces, homogenization and commoditization threaten to strip away the uniqueness of individual master distributors, disrupting their ability to invest in customer service and brand differentiation.  

In “What the Changing Role of the Master Distributor Means for the Industry,” Senior Editor Stacy Ward outlines not only the ways the market is…