For a manufacturer that sells through distributors — or a trading house that is one — the business is only half visible. The company sees what it ships to the distributor. What the distributor sells on, at what price, under which scheme, and with how much stock left over, sits in another system.
One layered model, plan to finance
For an FMCG manufacturer we built one layered model across six value-chain stages — plan, source, make, deliver, sell and finance — on SAP FI/CO, MM, PP and SD, with the distributor management system joined in for secondary sales1. Golden master data, a three-way match, consistent pricing and tax, and profitability analysis sit on top.
Two sales layers, one record
From our manufacturing case study
| Layer | System | What it tells you |
|---|---|---|
| Primary sales | SAP SD | What you shipped to the channel |
| Secondary sales | Distributor management system | What the channel sold on, and where stock sits |
| Golden record | Master data hub | That both describe the same product, customer and price |
Note: Capabilities as built; demonstration data is modelled.
Source: DaasLabs, “Delivered for manufacturers and distributors: manufacturing case study” (2026)
For automotive dealers too
The same pattern applies to automotive dealer networks and parts distributors: dealer health, stock cover, credit exposure and scheme claims all depend on joining what the OEM ships with what the dealer sells.
Where to start
Start with master data for one product category and region, join primary and secondary sales, and reconcile stock before attempting channel profitability.