From a manufacturer’s point of view, a distribution channel is how they get their product to market. For beverage manufacturers, those channels might include:

–   Supermarkets and general merchandise stores, the largest beverage channel in the U.S., representing approximately 50% of the market for soft drinks and bottled water.

–   Food service and drinking outlets, including fast-food outlets, full-service restaurants, and bars, representing about 20% of the U.S. beverage market.

–   Convenience stores and gas stations, taking in around 10% of the market.

–   Vending machines, representing another 10% of the market.

–   The other 10% of the U.S. beverage market goes to exports and wholesalers.

As a convenience store owner and one of the primary distribution channels for soft drink and bottled water manufacturers, the challenge is how to make that channel work most effectively for you. You could establish direct ties with multiple manufacturers who can supply you with products, but that would entail having a number of different contacts that you would need to nurture and build over time. This would require extensive communication efforts with the various manufacturers to keep pace with market research on what consumers are buying. It would also require that you set up a delivery routine that usually best fits the manufacturers’ schedules. In many cases, this may require that you need a separate storage facility to maintain your product inventory.

A better alternative is to work with a wholesale distributor such as Atlantic Dominion Distributors. We already have established relationships with all of the major beverage manufacturers to provide you with both canned and bottled products, as well as dispensed beverage services. We keep up with market and product trends to provide you with insight into what consumers want, and we can make suggestions on how to best promote your product mix.

Best of all, we offer next-day delivery on all the products we offer, so you can maintain a large selection of beverages without needing to worry about inventory. This will be particularly beneficial as we move into the summer months and demand for cold sodas and bottled water rises.

The key to improving and maintaining your beverage distribution channels is communication. As your single-source for all the products you wish to offer, our team will get to know you and your needs and are always just a phone call away. We’re looking forward to working with you.