Start Roto #8 | Sales channels in rotomolding — B2B or B2C: where to start? — LIVE

What you gain by watching

• Discover how to choose the right sales channel (B2B or B2C) before producing, avoiding the mistake of trying to reach everyone and selling to no one.
• Learn in practice how to calculate the real impact of marketplace fees on your final price and how to protect your profit margin on each sales route.
• Understand why your factory floor organization is a stronger sales argument than any pitch to win B2B client trust.

Episode chapters

1. 1

   Sales channels: choose yours before spinning the machine

   Closing the ideation phase, we talked about the decision that can define the direction of your rotomolding business: how and where to sell. We mentioned that each channel — from the counter to marketplaces like Mercado Livre and Shopee — has its cost and margin, and that you need to direct your focus to avoid headaches later. We showed that the right choice starts before production, along with product and audience validation, and that those who don't prioritize this end up 'kicking the donkey.'

   You're going to have to direct, see what type of market, type of audience for you to start also diluting this within your cost, because at the counter you sell, but when you go to sell on marketplaces, on Mercado Livre, Shopee, then you really have a cost.

   ▶ Watch at approximately 4:08
2. 2

   Where to start selling in rotomolding? The mistake of those trying to reach everyone

   In this section, we talked about the classic pain of those starting or wanting to expand in rotomolding: the temptation to sell to everyone, which often ends up selling to no one. We showed that lack of direction generates pricing, approach, and validation errors, and we told a real case where the price difference between service providers reached 50%, proving the importance of researching and negotiating. The path to the solution begins with choosing a priority sales channel, guided by a six-filter decision map that dissects everything from the buyer's profile to the company's current operation, to prevent you from jumping the gun and find the most assertive path.

   Whoever sells to everyone, sells to no one

   ▶ Watch at approximately 9:27
3. 3

   Distributor or cooperative: the focus that saves your profit margin

   When we talk about selling to distributors, many people think having a good product is enough, but there's an essential caution that separates profit from loss: knowing if your price and volume truly compensate for that channel's tight margin. In this section, we showed how this lack of alignment can make a company lose control of its own business by depending on a single client, and we told the real story of someone who decided to shorten the path and seek a more specific target audience, cooperatives, achieving much better profitability by delivering value directly to those who actually use the product.

   The margin they put there is very small, so you need volume. Although their volume of purchase is high, right, but there are things that end up not being worth it.

   ▶ Watch at approximately 14:38
4. 4

   When the market divides the country: the risk of depending on a giant client

   We reached the point where the power of large companies is revealed without disguises: they arrive, say how much they pay, and region by region, they divide the country among themselves — as we saw in the milk case, with Nestlé leaving the Northeast while another giant took its place. We discussed how dedicating production to a single large client is a dangerous trap, because they squeeze the price at every negotiation, and we also talked about how the game changes completely when the buyer is the final consumer: there, the decision is emotional, guided by influencers, and the perceived price has nothing to do with production cost. In the end, feedback comes faster, as in the example of the guy selling perfume on the sidewalk, and the difference between B2B and B2C becomes clear — while one only cares about margin, the other buys for satisfaction, and it's this distinction that should guide the communication of those selling directly.

   When you're dedicating your production solely to one client, I'm totally against that, being stuck to— especially large clients, the chance of that happening is very high.

   ▶ Watch at approximately 19:41
5. 5

   The approach that sells perfume on the street doesn't sell in industry: why does B2B ignore the emotional factor?

   Among stories of creative approaches by street vendors — from perfume bought under pressure and never used to the brigadeiro that the outraged granddaughter saw her grandmother buy without eating — we returned to the factory floor of a decision that seems distant: industrial purchasing. We talked about how the emotional appeal that works on the sidewalk, where the gesture of helping weighs more than the product, completely loses strength when the buyer is a company. We showed that in B2B, what drives the decision isn't the salesperson's charm, but the numbers, calculated risk, and trust in the supplier — and it's exactly at this point that the completely different decision-making processes between the individual consumer and the manager responsible for an operation are revealed.

   ▶ Watch at approximately 24:48
6. 6

   Organization on the factory floor: the invisible test that wins the B2B client

   In this section, we faced a connection drop and, upon returning, dove into the importance of trust between supplier and B2B client, recalling how a simple visit to the factory can reveal everything. We told the story of a small safety valve workshop that, despite its size, impressed with impeccable organization – painted floor, labeled drawers, every screw in place – and how that was decisive in closing the deal. In contrast, we described another machining shop where the mess was so great that parts got lost in the middle of the rubble, proving that the production environment speaks louder than any sales pitch. We closed by reflecting on the differences between B2C and B2B, showing that in the corporate market, the decision is more rational and time-consuming, and that it's no use having the right product in the wrong channel – you need to be prepared to receive the client and prove your seriousness from the factory floor.

   Not only for the quality of his service, even if his service was more or less, we would arrive at the place because just his organization there was an impressive thing.

   ▶ Watch at approximately 30:44
7. 7

   The right sales channel: the kayak, the fishing box, and the risk of squeezing the price

   Join the discussion on which sales channel makes sense for each product: for items like the kayak, the distributor is essential, as they support the client, resolve defects and exchanges on the spot, reducing risk for everyone. But our conversation turned when we showed the danger of becoming hostage to a single buyer — like the factory that produced 95% for one client who squeezed the price so much that quality plummeted, to the point where a milk cap broke and a driver sank their foot into the product. This example led us to the turning point: before choosing the channel, you need to assess whether your product is easy to understand on its own or requires demonstration, like the fishing box with features that the client only notices with direct contact and explanation.

   The other one holds up. Get it? So you— but what is it? With so many distributors starting to squeeze and set the price, people were no longer paying attention to quality.

   ▶ Watch at approximately 36:11
8. 8

   How much does it cost to sell on a marketplace? The example of the R$ 149 vase

   When we put a product in a digital showcase, the question every manufacturer asks arises: why does a fishing box cost R$ 150 here and R$ 50 there? The answer lies in price composition, and we showed it in practice, with a fictional R$ 149 plant vase, how Mercado Livre and Shopee fees — which range from 10% to 18%, plus shipping costs and commissions — can add more than R$ 40 to the final cost, completely changing the margin. Thus, direct sales, with a salesperson showing the product, or a good presentation in a catalog or website, gains enormous weight, because it explains to the client exactly the 'hundred reais more' they see in the comparison.

   We're not going to delve too deeply into these platforms, because that's not the focus of the episode.

   ▶ Watch at approximately 41:48
9. 9

   Pricing in practice: the three paths to sell your product and the costs you can't ignore

   When we take an R$ 149 vase and add marketplace fees, the scare comes: 14% plus R$ 20 fixed becomes R$ 40.86 in cost, pushing the final price to R$ 189.86. In this section, we showed the behind-the-scenes of the three sales routes every rotomolder needs to master: resale, which is negotiated case by case and can be consigned with different prices for direct purchase; the distributor, who aggregates small retailers and handles bulk shipping; and the marketplace, which subsidizes part of the shipping but charges dearly for convenience. The math doesn't work out on its own, and we learned this in practice with our dog houses: on consignment, the price was higher because payment was weekly; on cash purchase, the value dropped and the margin stayed entirely with the reseller — a negotiation that required flexibility and strategic vision to not leave money on the table.

   Your product would go to 189.86 for the final consumer

   ▶ Watch at approximately 46:54
10. 10

    Direct sales: why the website still beats Instagram for the right client

    When the subject is selling directly from the factory, many people think just posting on Instagram and letting the algorithm work is enough. In this section, we showed why the website is still the most assertive path for those with resale: while the social network delivers a showcase full of distractions, a well-built landing page guides the buyer through a funnel designed for their pains — volume, price, and reliability. And we reminded that you can even start with free artificial intelligence tools, but when the operation level grows, the professionalism of the website makes all the difference in turning clicks into closed deals.

    On your website, you have the option to build a trail, or rather, in technical terms, a specific sales funnel for your client. Now, when you're on your Instagram, no matter how organized your stories are and all, it's not as assertive, it's not as controllable as a website.

    ▶ Watch at approximately 52:11
11. 11

    Choose the right channel so you don't compete with yourself

    When we think about expanding sales, that anxiety of being everywhere at once hits. But when analyzing distribution, we realized each channel has its cost and logic: shipping a kayak makes selling from afar unviable, and the marketplace that seems like an easy showcase can become an unfair competitor, with a lower price than your own. That's why we showed that the smart path is to start focused on a niche — like garden centers — and only then expand, avoiding the trap of fighting your own product and preserving margin and distributor relationships, as the experience at Parker Hannifin taught, where the policy was to separate regions so each one could sell without tripping over each other.

    You're not going to bring a kayak from São Paulo here to sell the kayak, that doesn't work.

    ▶ Watch at approximately 57:34
12. 12

    The pricing policy that protects the distributor and the lesson that became advice

    On the factory floor, unfair competition between regions can destroy a distribution network, and that's exactly what a Parker Hannifin director avoided with a pricing strategy we learned to respect: those who sold outside their area paid a fine to the local distributor, forcing the client to buy from the rightful one. This lesson led us to reflect on how those who enter the market without this knowledge end up creating competitors for themselves, and that's why we shared our learnings here and recommended SEBRAE for those who want to train. And to close, we showed a real case from CX Contábil that proves how good tax management can put hundreds of thousands of reais back into the company's cash, transforming what seemed like cost into investment.

    So if you sold, you had to pay a fine to the distributor of the region, you understand? To which the client belonged.

    ▶ Watch at approximately 1:03:26
13. 13

    Before validating your product, find out where to sell and how much it costs

    In this section, we showed that the anxiety of getting an idea off the ground can lead to a common mistake: skipping the analysis of sales channels and margins before validating the product. We reinforced that it's essential to list three possible channels, like marketplaces, and talk to five real buyers — even a visit to the vet yielded valuable feedback on consumption habits. The turning point comes when you understand that knowing the margin of each channel defines whether product validation is financially worthwhile, preventing a good idea from becoming a loss within your own company.

    It's no use having a product if you don't know how much you're going to earn on the product

    ▶ Watch at approximately 1:08:42
14. 14

    A pretty idea doesn't pay the bills: the cost of validation that comes before the mold

    Before any model, prototype, or modeling cost, the market needs to be heard — and that's exactly where the mistake lies for those who fall in love with their own idea without testing if it will be absorbed. We closed the ideation stage with a direct warning: validation is the most important phase of the process, because what's beautiful isn't always viable for the margin. Next, we opened the path for those who want to follow us towards real market tests and presented the community's next moves, including a company that will visit us to talk about a problem we already know closely: porosity recovery in aluminum molds.

    Not always what you think is beautiful, the market will be absorbing

    ▶ Watch at approximately 1:13:43
15. 15

    Resin at R$ 20 a kilo? Friday we'll show you how to protect your operation

    The resin market is on fire and, as we said in this closing, the impact has already knocked on the door — with the kilo approaching R$ 20, the question is: what to do to not sink with the cost? On Friday, at noon, we're going to open up and show real options to reduce cost without miracles, and also debate whether the price will keep rising or if it's a passing peak. Here's our invitation for you to have lunch with us and get ahead, because, as we said, those with hair are already standing on end, and those without, are gone — but good information always arrives at the right time.

    We're not going to perform miracles, we're going to bring products that will give the material you're working with today some options.

    ▶ Watch at approximately 1:19:05