I know a car manufacturer
that forces vendors to accept
6 months as their terms
(yes, they don’t pay ANY bills
until 6 months after invoicing).
I know a high end housewares company
that hasn’t paid their bills
in a couple of months.
How can these companies
push vendors around so adeptly?
Because they’ve built a brand.
A start up car manufacturer
wouldn’t be able to do it.
A mom and pop housewares company
wouldn’t be able to do it.
To do business with these big names,
vendors will put up with a lot.
They also assume
that the big names won’t go belly-up.
THAT is one of the reasons
you build a brand.
It is like cash in the bank.
Or, you could cherish your vendors, as Zappos.com does, so that they are eager to do business with you, rather than merely willing to put up with you.