In this article, learn about:
Why terminology breaks down
How core supply chain roles change throughout operations
How misaligned definitions can lead to compliance issues
Supply chains are not defined by a single set of labeled roles but instead by relationships. As products move from creation to consumption, the terms used to describe each player shift and evolve along the way.
A single organization may function as a manufacturer in one context, a supplier in another, and a trading partner in a third. These distinctions are not purely academic either as they directly affect ownership, accountability, system configuration, and compliance.
This guide follows the flow of the supply chain from manufacturer to end customer. It outlines the major roles, responsibilities, and alternate terms commonly used across commerce while acknowledging that real-world operations rarely fit neatly into a single definition.
Why Terminology Breaks Down
In theory, supply chain roles should be easy to define. In practice, terminology breaks down because systems care more about responsibility than titles.
Retailers, brands, and manufacturers all use the name “supplier” differently. Retail platforms, electronic data interchange (EDI) transactions, warehouse systems, and compliance programs assign ownership based on who is accountable for what.
Misalignment around terminology is one of the most common root causes of:
Compliance chargebacks
Routing and fulfillment errors
Failed integrations
Disputes between brands, retailers and 3PLs
Understanding how these roles function operationally is essential as supply chains scale.
Manufacturers
The manufacturer sits at the very beginning of the supply chain. They are responsible for producing physical goods, either from raw materials or from assembled components.
Manufacturers may also be referred to as:
Producers
Vendors
Makers
Factories
Suppliers
Original equipment manufacturers (OEM)
Original design manufacturers (ODM)
Tier 1 or tier 2 suppliers
Tiers refer to how far removed a supplier is from the final product. For example, a tier 2 manufacturer would provide components or semi-finished materials to a tier 1 manufacturer, who completes the final assembly of the product. Tier 2 suppliers often appear on bills of materials (BOM) but never transact directly with retailers.
Similarly, in most cases, manufacturers never interact with the customer as their responsibility ends once goods are handed off.
Common responsibilities of manufacturers include:
Producing finished goods
Managing labor, facilities, and equipment
Meeting quality, safety, and regulatory standards
Scaling production to meet demands
Once products are manufactured, they typically move into commercial ownership or distribution, which is where brands enter the picture.
Brands
A brand owns the product identity and market positioning, even when it does not manufacture the product itself. The brand is often the face of the product to retailers and customers.
A brand may also be referred to as a:
Brand owner
Product
Direct-to-consumer (DTC) brand
Supplier
Brand owners control how a product is named, packaged, marketed, priced, and presented. In retail systems, the brand is frequently designated as the “supplier” regardless of who physically produces or ships the goods.
Common brand responsibilities include:
Defining product strategy and positioning
Managing packaging, labeling, and positioning
Setting pricing and assortment strategies
Owning retailer relationships and compliance
Regarding EDI transactions, retailers often treat the brand as the “supplier” even when manufacturing and fulfillment are outsourced.
Some brands manufacture their own products in-house, while others rely entirely on private or white label production.
Private and White Label Producers
Private label and white label companies manufacture products that are sold under another brand’s entity, most often a retailer’s store brand.
Alternate terms for white label include:
Private label manufacturer
Store brand manufacturer
Consigner
With this model, the manufacturer focuses primarily on production while branding and merchandising are handled later down the line.
Common responsibilities also include:
Supporting multiple brand's identities
Producing standardized and/or customized products
Timely distribution with anticipated spikes
Meeting quality, safety, and regulatory standards
Private label models are especially common in grocery, apparel basics, personal care products, and household goods.
Distributors and Wholesalers
Distributors and wholesalers act as intermediaries. They move goods between manufacturers, brands, and retailers.
A distributor typically works directly with a manufacturer to represent, store, and sell products. They also might manage item setup and promotional data. Whereas a wholesaler primarily focuses on buying products in bulk and reselling them to retailers or other businesses with minimal involvement and would not manage any sort of item setup or promotional information.
Even with their differences, both may be referred to as:
Resellers
Suppliers
Importers/exporters
Channel partners
Drop shipping partners
Authorized distributors
Value-added resellers (VAR)
Some of these roles are more common in grocery, industrial, and international trade environments but can be found in nearly all retail segments.
Common responsibilities include:
Purchasing and storing inventory
Managing bulk pricing and volume breaks
Supporting channel specific distribution
Facilitating product availability across regions/constraints
From here, products move closer to the point of sale with the help of logistics partners.
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Logistics and Fulfillment Providers
Even though they never own the products, logistics providers manage the movement, storage, and fulfillment of goods.
Logistics providers may also be referred to as:
Logistics partners
Freight carriers
Freight forwarders
Lead Logistics Providers (LLP)
These partners support everything from long-haul transportation to last-mile delivery, which directly provides the opportunity for supply chains to scale efficiently.
Common responsibilities of logistics partners include:
Order fulfillment and shipping
Transportation coordination
Returns and reverse logistics
While 3PLs execute fulfillment, they are rarely the contractual parties with retailers. Retailer compliance penalties, data errors, and chargebacks flow back to the brand even when a 3PL may have caused the issue.
Retailer
Retailers sell products directly to the customer, either through physical locations, digital channels, or both.
Retailers may also be referred to as:
Merchants
Sellers
Consignees
Online sellers
Marketplace sellers
Direct-to-consumer (DTC) brands
Brick-and-mortar retailers
Omnichannel retailers
Specialty retailers
Big-box retailers
Retailers set many of the operational standards that other partners must meet. For example, compliance issues, data requirements, and delivery expectations are all benchmarked by the retailer to ensure the supply chain is operating efficiently.
Common responsibilities include:
Merchandising and assortment
Pricing and promotions
Returns and refunds
Customer experience and service
In some cases, retailers operate marketplaces that introduce additional complexity.
Marketplaces and eCommerce Platforms
In today's retail environment, platforms blur traditional retailer boundaries. Marketplaces like Amazon, TikTok, and Temu have multiple sellers marketing the same products with different prices and shipping fees associated.
These entities may be referred to as:
eCommerce platforms
Channels
Retail platforms
A brand may be responsible for inventory accuracy while the platform controls customer communication and payment processing.
At the end of every supply chain is the individual that the entire system was built to serve.
End Customer
This is the final destination in the supply chain, but not the last step in the process. Customers are the measuring stick for whether or not the entire system worked.
Customers experience the outcome of hundreds of upstream decisions they never see: design choices, inventory forecasting, data accuracy, fulfillment speed, packaging integrity, and return policies. When something goes wrong, it rarely feels like a supply chain issue to the customer. It feels like a broken promise.
End customers may be referred to as the:
Consumers
Buyers
Purchasers
End users
Customers represent expectations. They expect products to be available, information to be accurate, deliveries to be timely, and issues to be resolved without friction. Every role in the supply chain ultimately influences that experience. When teams align on responsibilities, data ownership, and terminology, the customer benefits through consistency and trust. When they don’t, the end customer will feel the gaps immediately.
The Structure Matters
This complex system relies on clear communication and understanding in order for the supply chain to effectively move products from beginning to end. None of these terms exist in a vacuum. They shift based on perspective, responsibility, and context.
Suggested best practices include:
Document roles by system responsibility, not title
Align terminology internally before onboarding partners
Define ownership for:
EDI errors
Inventory accuracy
Compliance penalties
Fluidity within the supply chain is normal. What creates friction isn’t the overlap, but the assumption that everyone interprets these terms the same way. In practice, clarity comes from why a term is being used instead of insisting on a single “correct” label.
Continued Learning
Shared language is more of a foundation than an end point. As retail requirements, technology, and operating models all evolve, so will the terminology that surrounds them.
SupplierWiki exists to support ongoing education across the supply chain. We offer clear, practical guidance on how suppliers, retailers, 3PLs, and partners actually operate. Explore additional resources to deepen understanding, align teams, and stay current as expectations continue to shift.
