🔒How to safeguard your margin before the year begins
Many distributors start January negotiating under pressure. And that almost always means losing margin, accepting poorly considered conditions, or beginning 2026 with less control than you’d like.
Protecting your margin starts with a simple action: closing your negotiation templates before the year ends.
Why it pays to do it now
When you work with closed templates:
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You enter January with clear, agreed-upon conditions.
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You avoid improvised negotiations that end in unnecessary concessions.
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You gain margin visibility for the first quarter.
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You strengthen your position with clients who tend to apply strong pressure at the start of the year.
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You reduce the risk of accepting conditions that will hurt you throughout 2026.
In short, it’s about avoiding improvisation in the most delicate month of the year.
As we often say at Red Paralela in our sessions with distributors:
“Starting January with everything agreed is the difference between defending margin or giving it away.”
Practical steps for a distributor
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List your key clients (the ones that really move margin).
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Define what you want to achieve: final margin, rebates, services, exclusivities.
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Prepare clear, closed templates that are easy to validate.
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Schedule meetings before Christmas. The sooner, the better.
This preparation saves you trouble and protects your margins for months.
A friendly piece of advice from Red Paralela
Red Paralela doesn’t negotiate on your behalf or participate in your agreements, but we work closely with many distributors and we see the same pattern every year:
those who plan ahead negotiate better.
That’s why we insist on this message: closing templates before January is a small action with a huge impact on your 2026 margin.
If you want more practical advice to improve your distribution,
stay connected with Red Paralela.