Dropshipping through the internet is barely 20 years around and you call that ancient?
Welcome
In terms of technology and the gig economy, I really think it needs to change. It seems to be good for a few people that persevere or have the funds to throw money at the problem, while others can be financially ruined.
I believe there is a way to make it fare, competitive, and safe for everyone. Right now the manufacturer that have a good product win, while sourcers that are doing SEO research start saturating the market for that product and screwing others that find the Golden Nugget first. In other words, there is a limited time of being the top dog selling that product until the next dog starts sniffing out the opportunity. In the end, your hoping to make a profit or your money back before that happens.
In a perfect world a manufacturer should be open to allowing sellers to only buy on demand, not bulk. Just based on the premise that when I'm stuck with inventory that is now a give away, I 100% of the time will never buy from that manufacturer again.
I understand that manufacturers need selling protection and sellers need an option to buy in bulk to get the best price, but what is the benefit if that seller is only a one time buyer and moves on, or is put out of business because they've allowed for over saturationb of that product, even in the private label arena.
I believe a new dropshipping model where an intermediary with brand trust on the seller and manufacturing side could be the fix, almost like escrow but with a market place for an unlimited number of qualified manufacturer can sell their goods.
A seller with good or bad credit could pay into a monthly subscription that gives them a bank account that works for Amazon sellers accounts. The catch is the account is controlled like escrow by the third party intermediary, so the manufacturers and the seller see the funds there, so both parties can have transparent trust in that the manufacturer will be paid and the sellers gets the mark up.
If the intermediary gets proper funding like any startup, sellers can build a reputation to get higher percentage of their funds released on a net 7 basis; that's what is missing in the industry right now.
In fact, this also would benefit manufacturers that understand that they could have more sellers pushing their sku's if they know they will get paid and had buyer protecting to allow for more seller to have an opportunity to buy on demand, instead of bulk do the seller has more liquid assets to push for the next money maker. Almost like a crowdsourced savings.
Not sure if any of that made sense, but would love to get feedback.
