Every marketplace has its share of con artists, scamsters, fraudsters, etc. and in the past fortnight we have observed the channel reeling under the weight of an increasing number of defaulters.
p____p The channel for long has been a mute witness to the rising number of debtors and fly-by-night operatorsin the industry. Duping a number of distributors and fellow dealers, these infamous few have successfully managed to create a bad name for the entire community. These incidents are not a new phenomenon experienced by the channel, but the increasing number of cases has led to a general discontentment and a feeling of helplessness amongst the community.
p____p Is the lackadaisical attitude of the channel to be blamed for such events? Now that the channel is used to such kind of incidents most of them have become immune to such happenings. And what kind of actions do dealer associations take under such circumstances? Isn�t it time that channel organizations and reseller communities in respective regions pay heed to the need of the community? All said and done, local/zonal reseller bodies have to play a key role in uniting their members together to prevent unpleasant incidents.
p____p However stringent the guidelines may get, such cases may not cease overnight. Beginning at the top tier, vendors need to ease the pressure on the distributors to sell. Going below, the cut-throat competition between distributors needs tobe curbed not only on the pricing front, but also on the credit period. It is when distributors want to have their share of their pie and eat it too, the problem begins. This is where such disasters take root and unless there is a change in the functionality of the first- and second-level tier, the buck will continue to pass on to the reseller level.
p____p And when all fails, The Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) and Enforcers of Intellectual Property Rights (EIPR) come to the rescue. Interestingly, EIPR lays greater emphasis on the role of associations to make the channel a better arena for fair and safe practices. It points out that dealer associations have to take action on dealers who default regularly on cheque payments, instead of covering up for them. The distributors too should share information on defaulters on a regular basis.
p____p Although the EIPR�s main focus is to reduce rampant duplication through enforcement measures, it elucidates that it is not a raid-conducting agency. FICCI, on the other hand, is appealing to reseller associations to unite under its banner for an effective end to the menace, while raising the issue of counterfeits as a national issue.
p____p The solution is out there, it�s the effort that seems to be lacking.