Dear readers, I'm Yuan Lai from New Distribution. Over the past two months, I've been visiting frontline markets and meeting many distributor owners. A clear observation emerged: more and more distributors are moving toward local B2b supply chain platforms, opening up new business opportunities. I see this as a positive development. Indeed, distributors who have深耕 local markets for decades building B2b supply chain platforms represent one of the few new directions and models for business growth, and can establish a local channel moat in the future. Against this backdrop, New Distribution, leveraging its exclusive distributor network resources, independently researched and published the 《2024 China FMCG Distributor B2b Platform Strategy Insights Report》 (hereinafter referred to as the Report). This report aims to provide distributors with a comprehensive, systematic set of strategies and implementation paths for B2b platform transformation. Through theoretical explanations and case studies, it helps distributors clarify key processes and success factors, and anticipate various challenges during transformation. Additionally, the report offers valuable insights for brand owners, guiding them on how to identify and seize strategic cooperation opportunities with B2b platform distributors, fostering mutual growth. The full report will be publicly released at the 6th China FMCG Conference & 3rd China FMCG Hard Discount Conference & 3rd China FMCG Distributor Conference, held from August 20-22. This article shares selected excerpts in advance. Interested friends are welcome to attend the conference to obtain the full version. Interpretation of Distributor B2b Platform Models What is a B2b platform distributor? The report provides a relatively accurate and clear definition: A distributor that, within a specific geographic area, builds an online B2b platform to integrate upstream suppliers and brand resources, offering one-stop FMCG procurement services to small retail stores, convenience stores, supermarkets, and other outlets in the region. This model aims to reduce supply chain layers (wholesalers, distributors), improve circulation efficiency, lower procurement costs, and enhance supply chain management through information technology. Traditional Mainstream Distributors vs. B2b Platform Distributors Traditional distributors face limited coverage of small local retail stores due to their small size and dispersion, making coverage of multiple brands or single categories costly. To cover these scattered stores, supply chain integration and B2b platform upgrades are necessary. E-commerce B2b Platforms vs. B2b Platform Distributors E-commerce B2b platforms find it difficult to invest sufficient resources in a specific geographic area. Moreover, since most products overlap with local major distributors, intense price competition can erode channel margins and increase costs. B2b platform distributors are localized resource-based enterprises whose core competitiveness lies in deep local market cultivation. Distributor B2b Platform Strategy Guide The report proposes five core strategies for distributor B2b platform upgrades, including product procurement and sales, pricing strategy, store marketing, operations and promotion, and organizational structure. We divide the development path of distributor B2b platform upgrades into four stages: Stage One – Startup Phase: 2000+ SKUs. Focus on categories, with agency as the core supplemented by self-purchasing/external procurement. Leverage existing advantages, use self-operated agency brands as the core, establish a stable supply chain, quickly build platform image and credibility, and attract initial customers. Stage Two – Growth Phase: 3000+ SKUs. Diversified categories as one basket, combining agency, self-purchasing, and external procurement. After stabilizing the B2b platform in the trading sector, expand to the wholesale segment, cooperate with local brand distributors, and introduce more products as a second-tier wholesaler to meet retailers' diverse needs. Stage Three – Maturity Phase: 12+ categories. One-stop full category service, expanding agency brands supplemented by self-purchasing/external procurement. By continuously expanding agency brands and optimizing operational services, gradually achieve one-stop full-category service for small stores. At this point, the distributor has evolved into a regional B2b platform. Stage Four – Expansion Phase: 12+ categories, diversified business expansion. Urban supply chain service provider. After entering the maturity phase, platform growth slows, and distributors begin exploring diversified profit models through horizontal expansion, vertical integration, and innovative businesses, upgrading again around financial services, regional expansion, emerging channel development, and industry consolidation, conducting various forms of business exploration. Value of Cooperation between Brand Owners and B2b Platform Distributors Regarding the four major values for brand owners cooperating with B2b platform distributors: First, Expanding Coverage and Penetration: B2b platform distributors have broad geographic coverage, helping brand owners expand distribution boundaries, increase sales outlets, and achieve channel下沉. By providing channel relationship maintenance, new product promotion, and other functions, they increase brand penetration in regional markets. Second, Improving Channel Efficiency: B2b platform distributors leverage their local channel and outlet coverage advantages, using efficient centralized distribution to help brand owners achieve rapid product distribution and accelerate product circulation. Third, Increasing Business Transparency: Data and information provided by B2b platform distributors help brand owners better understand market demand, sales trends, and inventory status, enabling data transparency and refined management. Brand owners can monitor terminal coverage scale, single-product distribution volume, and average transaction value in real time, allowing timely and accurate market strategy adjustments. Fourth, Optimizing Distribution System: By cooperating with B2b platform distributors, brand owners can integrate and optimize regional distributor systems, reduce channel conflicts, and lower management costs. Data feedback from the B2b platform system effectively identifies distributor performance in business and market terms, helping brand owners achieve survival of the fittest in the distributor system and improve overall channel quality. -1- -2- -3- Swipe left/right to view more Due to space constraints, only part of the insights are shown here. The full report will be released on-site at the 6th China FMCG Conference & 3rd China FMCG Hard Discount Conference & 3rd China FMCG Distributor Conference from August 20-22. At the conference, Yuan Lai, Chief Content Officer of New Distribution, and Yun Chuan, Founder of Shengyihao Consulting & B2b Supply Chain Expert, will provide in-depth interpretation of the 《2024 China FMCG Distributor B2b Platform Strategy Insights Report》. Additionally, on August 21, we will host a closed-door salon with dozens of regional B2b platform founders and brand executives, engaging in a deep dialogue and business exchange around "Store Penetration and Product Portfolio for Regional B2b Platforms."