Consumer Distributing Better Jun 2026

It was the original online shopping— before the internet . No browsing aisles. No impulse candy at the checkout. Just pure, transactional efficiency wrapped in the smell of cardboard and industrial carpet.

For those who grew up in Canada during the 80s and 90s, wasn’t just a store—it was a ritual. consumer distributing

Consumer Distributing relied heavily on the printed catalogue. Printing and distributing millions of catalogues was an enormous expense. As the internet grew, the catalogue became obsolete. Amazon eventually perfected what Consumer Distributing tried to do—selling everything from a warehouse without a showroom—but Amazon did it without the cost of physical stores and paper printing. It was the original online shopping— before the internet

During this era, the catalogue was a trusted friend. It was how people compared prices before the internet. If you wanted to know the standard price for a microwave, you checked the Consumer Distributing catalogue. Just pure, transactional efficiency wrapped in the smell

It was the promise of Would they have it in stock? Would the system fail? Or would you walk out five minutes later holding the exact VCR you came for?

However, consumer distribution also presents several challenges, including: