Strange how these brand managers seem to hate online selling. There is little room for competitive advantage, as there is so little service involved for a large portion of sales. Outside of answering a few emails, the largest impact a seller has on the customer is how quickly they hand the product over to a third party, the shipper. Have a decent website that isn't hard to navigate, use polite language, keep accurate inventory. Not huge hurdles. Not saying they can operate on cruise control, but there isn't much differentiation, just meeting base expectations for the industry. That means cost controls and competing on value become paramount.
There is no differentiation of product, they are selling the same brand manager/manufacturer and the same models, outside of ponying for upfront costs on exclusive sprints - which are hardly worth it if the brand manager will undermine the idea of exclusivity in short order with re-issuance for wide distribution. Why buy from one site instead of another? Maybe one uses UPS but your area is better served by FedEx. Beyond that, price becomes a major factor. A ZT or BM from retailer A is going to be a ZT or BM from retailer B, you'll just order the cheaper one. Well, that's gone. I suppose the brand managers will expect the sellers to drive costs down further and offer free shipping, kitschy order bonuses, or something else to separate themselves from the competition - increasing their carrying costs or requiring more labor when they actually had a viable means to compete on cost controls, but they have no way to reflect that in pricing.
I guess they can all sit on unsold inventory for greater stretches of time, increase their wait on cash conversion, and just all around be less efficient. Highly competitive, no switching costs for buyers, no differentiation in products, pitiably low barriers to entry, and now super-duper-extra-strength supplier power. The American online retailer maybe should be looking for another product line to carry, because knives aren't going to hold their luster so easily if this continues for more brands. The general disdain for sellers and unabashed love for brands seems highly dysfunctional. The seller is the relative small-timer who communicates with you and relies more heavily on your transaction, they generally don't have government orders and global distribution to put food in their bellies.
