---
title: "Manufacturer-Dealer Relations Are Like Marriage: Cherish, Improve, or Part Ways"
description: "As 2020 manufacturer-dealer cooperation kicks off, market success depends not only on brand efforts but also on regional dealers' full commitment, especially in FMCG. Year-end and year-start are key times for evaluating dealers. This article discusses how regional managers can assess whether their dealers meet company needs, and dealers can also gauge their fit with company requirements."
author: "海游"
publisher: "New Distribution"
email: "zhaobo258@gmail.com"
telephone: "+8615854817671"
published: "2020-01-05"
categories: "Dealer Operations"
language: "en"
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citation: "海游. “Manufacturer-Dealer Relations Are Like Marriage: Cherish, Improve, or Part Ways.” New Distribution, 2020-01-05. https://xinjignxiao.com/en/articles/manufacturer-dealer-relations-are-like-marriage-cherish-improve-or-part-1350a807/"
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---

# Manufacturer-Dealer Relations Are Like Marriage: Cherish, Improve, or Part Ways

> As 2020 manufacturer-dealer cooperation kicks off, market success depends not only on brand efforts but also on regional dealers' full commitment, especially in FMCG. Year-end and year-start are key times for evaluating dealers. This article discusses how regional managers can assess whether their dealers meet company needs, and dealers can also gauge their fit with company requirements.

**2020 manufacturer-dealer cooperation has begun. Market performance depends not only on brand efforts but also on regional dealers' full commitment, especially in FMCG.**
Sales rhythm is affected by product shelf life; without a capable dealer, regional markets rarely succeed. Year-end and year-start are critical evaluation points; once cooperation is confirmed, it means unwavering commitment for the new year.
Today, let's discuss how regional managers can properly assess whether their dealers meet company needs. Dealers can also use this to understand their fit with company requirements.

**-01- Dealer's Attitude Toward Their Own Business and Product Fit**

**Dealer businesses generally go through four stages:**

**1. Startup Phase**
**Business attitude:** Full of passion, working closely with frontline staff, deeply involved in field operations, familiar with market conditions.
**Product attitude:** Pursues high margins and hard-to-circulate staples; survival first, development later. Mostly single-brand operations (e.g., only distributing Nongfu Spring).
**Fit:** If the brand's products don't meet these two points, there's no basis for long-term cooperation.

**2. Growth Phase**
**Business attitude:** Has scale, passion remains, has own team and systems, eager to learn, seeks management development and growth, aims to expand business.
**Product attitude:** Pursues product structure, profit structure, off-season/peak-season complementarity; needs first-tier brand cooperation to boost regional visibility. Mostly exclusive sales (one sales team sells one brand; e.g., one manager leads 5 staff for Nongfu Spring, another leads 5 for Master Kong instant noodles, independently operated and accounted).
**Fit:** First-tier brands, profit supplements, structure supplements, seasonal supplements.

**3. Mature Phase**
**Business attitude:** Operates as a trading company, scaled and systematic, considers employee income and development, and succession planning for children.
**Product attitude:** Focuses on cash flow; profit calculation isn't simple price difference × volume; product structure is rich. Mostly mixed sales (small teams sell 2-3 brands based on product and channel structure).
**Fit:** Brand's operational system and dealer guidance system.

**4. Decline Phase**
**Business attitude:** Chases novelty, invests in unfamiliar high-margin industries leading to cash flow breaks, succession fails, children have own careers and no one takes over, loses motivation; existing business shrinks, no ability or willingness to improve.
**Product attitude:** Existing products rely on inertia; no additional investment to push forward.
**Fit:** Unless your product's profit contribution exceeds 60% of their total profit, it won't be prioritized.

In summary, regional managers should consider: First, the brand's product is only part of the dealer's business; if the dealer doesn't value their own business, your product is even more insignificant.
Second, your product must match the dealer's business; forced matches don't work. Previously, a Nongfu Spring regional manager saw Jinmailang's four-in-one strength and forced Jinmailang beverage dealers to distribute Nongfu Spring; the results were predictable.
Finally, expand your product's influence in the dealer's mind, even improve their business attitude through your product. When the initiative lies with the product, why worry about market prospects?

**-02- Fit of Dealer's Service Model and Business Philosophy**

**1. Dealer markets generally split into urban and township, yielding three service models:**
1) Both urban and township are intensively cultivated;
2) Urban is intensive, township is wholesale service;
3) Both urban and township are wholesale-service oriented.

Example: If your product has a short shelf life (2-3 months), like low-temperature products, you must use the first service model. Only intensive cultivation can achieve:
> a. Regular visits;
> b. High-quality operations;
> c. In-depth communication with store owners;
> d. Complete after-sales exchange/return services.

This ensures the product takes root and grows in the market. Also note: many dealers are essentially "middlemen" earning price differences, with large wholesale resources and high annual sales, but their service model can only be the third type.
If your product is in the introduction stage or is a hard-to-circulate staple with minimal after-sales needs, consider continuing cooperation; otherwise, adjust quickly.

**2. Fit of Dealer's Business Philosophy**
Business philosophy is broad; different markets and dealers have different approaches, making it hard to define or judge right or wrong.
However, all philosophies share basic fundamentals. For example, if you're distributing Master Kong instant noodles, ask the dealer:
> 1) How many outlets are in your market? How many do you serve?
> 2) What's your annual turnover? What's the share of high-price vs. mid-price noodles? Container vs. bagged? What market share do you hold?
> 3) Who are the main competitors? How do you counter them? What market opportunities exist?
> 4) How do you adjust staffing between peak and off seasons?

If the dealer answers these fluently, they have a clear strategy. Hand over the market; you only need to provide some guidance.

**-03- Comprehensive Fit Assessment: People/Vehicles/Outlets/Display/After-sales**

> 1. People: How many dealer staff are dedicated to your product?
> 2. Vehicles: How many dealer vehicles are dedicated to your product?
> 3. Outlets: How many outlets sell your product?
> 4. Display: What's your product's display position, facing, quantity, etc.?
> 5. After-sales: Does your product have after-sales? What's the quality?

Example: A previous sales manager in Henan recruited a large dealer with annual turnover over 100 million, nearly 100 employees, strong overall strength, and good market reputation. He thought the product would sell well, but after six months, sales were lower than a mom-and-pop dealer.
The regional manager found that while the dealer had nearly 100 staff, only 2 served our product; of nearly 20 vehicles, only one electric tricycle and one small box truck served our product. Outlets, display, and after-sales were similar.
The plan was to "attach to a big player," but it turned out to be like being the fifth concubine—the company's overall product range had strong coverage, but our product was exposed. This can't work. So, the fit must emphasize what truly belongs to "your product."

**-04- Fit of Business Office Setup and Market Innovation Capability**

**1. I've visited many dealer business team offices; they fall into three types:**
1) Dirty, messy, poor—fit is zero. The meeting room might have been built on a whim, not used consistently or considered unnecessary. Such dealers lack management concepts, no team reflection or sharing, typical peddlers. They're unsuitable for first-tier brands, only for local brands.
2) Business office and meeting room are regularly used, with wall charts updated frequently, sales policies posted, projectors, surveillance cameras, slogans, announcements, income details, meeting minutes—all tools are functional, fit is 80%. This shows the dealer values team management, reflection, and data-driven management. Such dealers meet all brand needs but still need guidance.
3) In addition to type 2, they have employee life walls, corporate culture walls, organizational charts—tools are genuinely used. These dealers have team-building thinking, focus on human care, high employee tenure, stable service quality—fit is 100%. Cherish such dealers; the relationship isn't "managing dealers" but "serving dealers."

**2. Fit of Innovation Capability**
Innovation is a bonus capability, a result of deep market research. For example, a Master Kong instant noodle dealer in Shanxi had nearly 70% market share. In FMCG, you can't kill competitors; you can only compress their space. To grow, this dealer needed new paths.
He combined the manufacturer's guidance to position instant noodles as a regular meal, and during Spring Festival, he made gift bags and banners to promote instant noodles as gifts for friends and family.
So, if your product is strong in the market, with per capita consumption and market share far above competitors, you must consider the dealer's innovation capability when seeking growth.

## **Final Thoughts:**
**Dealer-brand relationships are built on mutual fit; otherwise, friction will persist, harming the manufacturer, dealer, and market. This timing is especially critical.**
## Business is business, feelings are feelings. For next year's cooperation, ensure thorough dealer evaluation—it's the foundation for all market actions.
## If the dealer fails half or more of the four points above, it's better to end the pain quickly. Of course, if the dealer recognizes shortcomings and is willing to improve, with a "guarantee," cooperation can continue.
## In short, the higher the fit, the more you should cherish, serve, and develop together. For low fit, either improve or part ways. These four points are for regional managers' reference.

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## Citation metadata

- Publisher: New Distribution
- Author: 海游
- Published: 2020-01-05
- Canonical: https://xinjignxiao.com/en/articles/manufacturer-dealer-relations-are-like-marriage-cherish-improve-or-part-1350a807/
- Original source: https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/ApPM5DT9Q94RzBbEdhKhfA

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Contact: zhaobo258@gmail.com · +86 158 5481 7671