1) In VMI, the trading partner or reseller, i.e., Wal-Mart, Safeway, or CVS. 2) In direct consumer, the end customer or user.

Inventory Counting 101: Your Simple Guide to Better Stock Management
Running an ecommerce business? Then you know inventory is everything. But here’s the question: do you actually know how much inventory you have right now? Many business owners think as long as they have enough products to sell, the exact count doesn’t matter. That’s a costly mistake. Accurate inventory counts