All brands must rapidly upgrade legacy technology systems and processes. And that is regardless of whether or not they sell directly to customers!

Brands are facing an onslaught of greater demands externally (consumers and retail partners) and internally (to execute successful digital marketing campaigns and digital commerce strategies). As a result, brands are evaluating the tools and technology they already have or need to put in place. As they do this, brands must identify where the same solution can support both direct-to-consumer (D2C) and wholesale (B2B2C) sides of the business.

We have set out five tech solutions that brands need to successfully support commerce across D2C and wholesale partner relationships. Key takeaways from this research overview include the following:

  • Brands must become “future-ready” and digitize. To keep pace with a changing retail landscape and increasing consumer and wholesale partner expectations, all brands need to upgrade legacy technology and processes related to product data, inventory, orders, and the supply chain.
  • Brands need tools and tech for the enterprise. Brands must reconcile technology and systems across D2C and wholesale businesses, along with organizational structures and processes. Technology enables change, but to achieve its full business impact, organizations must tackle changes to roles and responsibilities, processes, and skills.

Alongside questions of technology, brands are also asking questions such as: Should all brands sell directly to customers online? How should brands work with marketplaces? What is my brand’s digital opportunity? What does all this mean for existing retail partner and distributor relationships?

Additional research related to these questions can be found here.

If you are grappling with any of these questions and would like to discuss in more depth, please go ahead and set up an inquiry call.