Direct to consumer (D2C)

Also called: D2C or DTC.

The term D2C refers to the direct sale of a product to the customer, hence Direct-to-Customer. It means that there are no middlemen that the customer or seller has to deal with during the sale. D2C is primarily used in online sales. Web stores that use Direct-to-Customer often have no or a few physical stores open. Those with one or more stores have probably chosen to do so in order to provide additional service according to the "bricks and clicks model." The term D2C can also be used in the case of a streaming service such as Netflix that offers an audiovisual image directly to the customer.

Direct-to-Customer creates brand loyalty among customers, provided the relationship is well maintained. In addition, D2C reduces costs by reducing various lines of business. Consider the rental of physical premises and employees. Direct-to-Customer gives easy reach across the globe and the unlimited marketplace that comes with it. Some risks that come with Direct-to-Customer are cyber risk, liability risk and the more complex supply chain.