It certainly does. The offset can be a disconnect of hands-on support for the product. But in these days, I think that's increasingly less important for the majority of users/buyers.On topic: Kona is going back to a distributor model:
Kona switches to distributor model in the UK & Ireland
Kona is transitioning to a distributor model for sales in the UK and Ireland after 13 years of working direct with dealerscyclingindustry.news
I saw an article on Hostess, who make the famous Twinkie bar; when going direct to shops a third of the company outlay was distribution costs. Presumably going to a distributor saves quite a lot.
Glad to see this out in the open; it's been on the cards for a while.