What Is a Product Vendor?

A product vendor is a person who represents a company that sells products to another company, usually a manufacturing company that sells products to retail businesses. This person often acts as a sales representative to the company purchasing the products, and may also follow up on products that have been sold. Such follow-up often involves ensuring products are displayed properly, setting up additional displays or signage, and answering questions about issues or complaints related to a product. A product vendor can also be an independent business owner who sells goods to customers without using an intermediate retail business.

Often simply referred to as a “vendor” by retailers, a product vendor acts as a seller and representative for a particular product or company. The duties and responsibilities of a vendor can vary quite a bit, depending on the product he or she represents and the businesses with which the vendor works. A product vendor often goes to different retail stores to discuss new products with store managers or owners, or may approach owners of a business about selling a product from a new company without an established relationship between the two companies. Any complaints or questions a company has about a particular product are also typically presented to a vendor.

One product vendor can represent a particular product or company for a fairly large area. It is not uncommon for a vendor to spend a good deal of time traveling between retail locations and businesses. Vendors often go to retail stores to ensure products are properly presented on shelves and to set up promotional displays or discuss upcoming deals and opportunities with business owners. Depending on the business a product vendor represents, he or she may also give managers or employees free samples of a product to allow them to test the product and be more informed when recommending it to customers.

A product vendor can also be a person who acts as an independent seller of goods, rather than someone who works with a retail store. This type of vendor usually deals directly with customers and may be selling his or her own products or acting as a direct sales representative for another business. Such vendors often use networking and various Internet resources to contact customers and make sales. This sort of product vendor still acts in much the same way, making sales and representing a product, but deals with consumers rather than with businesses as customers.