Having a direct business with a good product and deep relationships with the customer is, on balance, more valuable than an API/channel-driven business. One does not preclude the other—if you build a good product, partnership opportunities will naturally come to you, but there are very few examples of companies starting as an API and building a direct platform (namely Stripe and Twilio).
Some markets are not large enough for a channel-only business. For example, you might run out of partnerships to make in the industry.
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When to Set up Channel Partnerships
You should set up channel partnerships when it helps your business access new customers while filling an existing need for the partner and not competing with your direct business.