EXCLUSIVE
Panasonic has issued a ‘termination notice’ to a number of independent retailers saying that it has decided to “reduce the number” of dealers it sells to directly – based on current turnover levels.
The company sent out an email last month to an unknown amount of independent retailers. It said it would no longer be offering them the ability to purchase products directly from Panasonic “in the same way as previously”, and that direct orders would only be taken until 31 March 2024.
A Panasonic spokesperson told ERT: “This decision was not one we took lightly and was carefully considered. We constantly monitor the size and structure of the channel and make adjustments where necessary both in the interests of our customers and Panasonic.”
ERT also spoke to several independent dealers (anonymously) about this ‘termination’ and their shared view was that this is “no surprise”…
One retailer said: “It’s a great shame that it’s come to this. We used to do a lot of business with them, not just brown goods but some white goods as well, so it feels like the end of an era. But we haven’t dealt with them properly for years so for me it’s no hardship that they’re closing my account. I saw the email come through, I shrugged my shoulders and thought ‘oh well’.”
Another independent dealer, who said they hadn’t conducted any business with Panasonic since almost 2020, simply added: “This won’t make any difference to my business.
“There aren’t many Panasonic dealers around anymore. Their share of the TV market is much smaller than it used to be – it’s not good business sense to keep me open. If customers aren’t asking for Panasonic product, why would you bother?”
A third independent retailer, who did not receive the ‘termination’ notice, told ERT: “It’s a real shame to hear about this as historically the brand is, in my view, great. They still have some cracking product such as their DVD and Freeview recorders – nobody else makes such a great product anymore.
“But they have been bumbling along for years and I think going forward it’s only going to get worse. Their current deliveries to us are every two weeks – you can’t do successful business these days with a manufacturer that offers those levels of delivery.”
The Panasonic spokesperson continued: “Our commitment to the independent channel remains strong as we see growth year-on-year and we hope to be able to support our ongoing accounts further in FY24.
“We see limited impact to this growth with the closure of accounts which contributed less than one per cent of the channel result for FY23.”
The company added that it is currently exploring future options for these closed accounts to still be able to access Panasonic products.
