Wholesale: Working For You Behind The Scenes

What is happening behind what you take for granted in your daily life is more important and more efficient than you think.

Wholesale, and wholesalers, operate out of the limelight, which means that if they perform well, you enjoy a seamless service without knowing the efforts that are taking place behind the scenes. This bodes well for us in our busy lives, as it means we can enjoy a good night out, find the medicines we need to make us better and know that our home construction project or the improvements we need to the lighting in our offices are progressing. Thanks to wholesalers, we do not need to know the details but can rest assured that they making the crucial link between who we see and the manufacturers, crafts and other services they are connecting.

In our video, we explain what is happening behind the scenes and if you want to find out more, you can take a look at how you are being served so well in restaurants and flower shops. While you may feel the benefit, the target of wholesalers are the businesses they serve. What businesses get is choice, storage, logistical support, and customisation to meet their customers’ needs. As well as financial help, reduced risk and many other competitive advantages.

We asked our member, Metro, to explain how they make the lives of SMEs easier. They explain this is through the services they offer, for example helping restaurant owners find good quality, affordable food for their menu and helping them ease processes through digitalisation.

Wholesale is not visible, which is why it may be a mystery to policymakers. They are a key source of added value, jobs and innovation in the EU.  Not understanding wholesale, and its variety of business models, has caused problems – with many wholesalers facing complicated, uncoordinated and unpredictable reporting obligations linked to, for example, due diligence rules or even a threat to their business model from the Commission’s proposal to combat late payments.

This makes it even more important for policymakers to understand the role that wholesale plays when making decisions on the supply chain. As you can discover further in our video, wholesalers are sourcing from the Single Market and globally. With this, they contribute to choice, bring efficiency, innovation and lower prices for their customers.

With this in mind, we invite you explore our website and if you too find that you too have respect for this invisible giant, spread the word that it is time to #AppreciateWholesale.