Retail Without Middlemen What We are Learning From Direct Disbursal Models

Why cutting layers from the payout chain is transforming brand execution on the ground

In India's intricate retail landscape, last-mile execution has always involved navigating layers—distributors, vendors, field teams, and local coordinators. While this multi-layered model provided scale, it also resulted in opacity, delayed payments, and friction in operations. Rather than embracing this model, we chose to disrupt it. We posed a disruptive question: What if brands could pay their field workers directly, and there were no middlemen?

That question led to one of our most game-changing innovations—direct disbursal models, where payments to merchandisers, beauty advisors, in-store promoters, and sales teams flow straight from brand to beneficiary. Today, we’ve enabled this model at scale, managing 400+ crore in disbursals across 11,000+ field staff. And the outcome is telling.

More Control, More Clarity

When brands pay directly, they see right away who they are paying, how much, and why. No waiting around for any middlemen to settle up on invoices or report attendance. Every payout—a salary or milestone reward—is tied to verified attendance and performance data captured using technology. Such transparency has changed the game when it comes to brand teams' budgeting, ROI measurement, and compliance handling.

Motivation Without the Middleman

Field teams do a lot of work. But when payments get held up due to bureaucratic loops or agency-level problems, morale suffers. With direct disbursal, funds go directly into the worker's account sooner and more reliably. That reliability has had a profound psychological effect. Folks report showing up more regularly, working with more responsibility, and lingering longer with the brand. It's not merely payroll—it's brand loyalty created in the moment.

Built on Trust and Technology

Clearly, eliminating middle layers doesn't equate to bypassing process. It translates to substituting digital trust in place of manual dependencies. Our in-house technology at Account Mein sees to it that only authenticated records initiate payouts. Our system takes geo-tagged attendance, shift records, sales data, and even feedback loops—ensuring each rupee spent is validated by field action. And what if there's a discrepancy? The audit trail is as clear as glass.

A Model Built for Scale

This isn’t an experiment anymore. From modern trade chains to general trade outlets, from metro cities to Tier-3 towns, we’ve enabled direct disbursals across 650+ cities in India. Brands aren’t just saving time—they’re gaining the ability to run national-scale activations with granular control, while ensuring every field member feels seen and supported.

The Future

In the future of retail execution, transparency is not a choice—it's a necessity. Brands that demand agility, efficiency, and actual last-mile influence must free themselves from legacy trends. With direct disbursals, you don't merely eliminate middlemen—you eliminate doubt, delay, and dependency.

Ready to streamline your channel payments and mobilize your frontline teams?

Talk to Account Mein about how direct disbursals can power your next retail push.