They want it as soon as possible, but issues from the BI/Merial buyout are still plaguing their sap system. Looks like Merck direct will hit first.
Merck doesn’t have the sales force or the infrastructure to go direct. BI, on the other hand, just needs to flip a switch.
I see you still buy into Merck’s “story.” Bookmark this post for reference when they go direct, most likely Q1 of next year.
It has been BI's plan all along to go direct. Check out their new facility in Saint Joseph across the street from Fed-EX. Wake up......
What makes you think Merck has the infrastructure to go direct? BI/Merial on the other hand already run things agency. Merck and Elanco the only friends you have left.
The value is that veterinarians don’t have to call 50 different companies to buy what they need. That’s the whole point of distribution. Plus distributors get the product to the vets in a day or two. You think shipping from Missouri to New York next day and not charge the vet shipping is worthwhile? All those margins by going direct will evaporate.
You haven’t done any research on shipping costs. It is significantly less than the margins being paid to distributors who do absolutely nothing but take orders and ship products. A person that proclaims themselves as a “distributor rep” should actually understand the true cost of logistics.
While I agree that hospitals much prefer one stop shopping and obviously hate ordering direct from individual manufacturers, especially Zoetis. I do think distribution is on life support. With all the hospitals going corporate, margins dropping, Chewy’s success, Walmart opening more clinics and starting an online pharmacy, and waiting for Amazon to get into the business, distribution is a dinosaur with a comet quickly headed this way.
I have to agree - it’s unbelievable just how much has changed in only the last few years. Pressure to get clinics to join GPOs, sign commitment programs, and show double digit year over year sales increases are just a few tasks the distributor reps are mandated to do. Also the shift from working with vendors is weird - we are now told who to work with, regardless of how shitty the vendor rep is, in the name of better margins, in some cases vendors who we dispised just a few short months ago.
These posters are newbies. Go back on Butler/Schein/Covetrus' thread about 10 years and this rumor was floated around back then.
You're stuck with the territory you got. You see your vets more than they do, make the best of it. The really successful reps, vendor or distribution, are professional people. They stand out from new people in the field. True also for managers.
You are so right...everything is the same as it was ten years ago. There haven’t been any changes in margins, consolidation, corporate buyouts, pressure from internet sites like Chewy’s, etc.,etc. This is an entirely new ballgame. Even your statement “Go back on Butler/Schein/Covetrus thread about ten years....” points out how ridiculous your statement is. So there is no way BI/Merial would ever go direct. I’ll bet they never sell direct to Chewy’s either. Wake up my friend, it’s a new day.
I just wish BI would get off the pot and announce its selling direct only, Idexx style, and Merck would follow suit so I would be banished from my distribution position, and be forced to search for an actually fulfilling career...
I would agree 100%. Just look at the consolidation that has occurred and how many of the message boards are no longer relevant, or in existence.
So who will be the next “big one” to go direct? BI could tomorrow. Others seem to think it’s Merck. Now Zoetis is loading up on regional managers, which means sales reps to follow...saga continues.
