Page 231 - DMGT408DMGT203_Marketing Management

Marketing Management/Essentials of Marketing

Notes Transport and Advertising Function: Retailers also help in transport and advertising function.
The larger assortments are transported from wholesaler’s point to retailers point by retailer’s
own arrangements and many times, the retailer delivers the goods at final consumer’s point. So,
retailers provide assistance in storage, transportation and advertising and pre-payment
merchandise. The percentage that a retailer gets from the sale price depends on the number of
function that the retailer does for the manufacturer.

9.6.2 Strategic Issues in Retailing

To enter retailing is easy and still easier to fail. To survive and be successful in retailing needs
catering to customers. Their costs and profits depend on their type of operation, product lines,
and level of service. Personal consumers make purchases for a variety of reasons. Sometimes the
reasons seem to be obvious, and at times seem to be non-rational, vague and may be just social
or psychological in nature, such as to escape boredom, to socialise, to kill time, or to learn if
there is anything interesting or new. Retailers particularly consider target market and retail
store location; merchandise variety and assortment; store image and atmospherics; services,
price level and promotion.
Self Assessment

Multiple Choice Questions:
16. The word ‘retail’ comes from a French word that means:
(a) To sell (b) To interact
(c) To resell (d) To break bulk

17. …………………… is the largest retail store in the world.
(a) Wal-Mart (b) Carrefour
(c) Target (d) Home Depot

18. Which of these is not a specialized retailer?
(a) Café Coffee Day (b) Crossword
(c) Music World (d) Shoppers Stop

9.7 Wholesaling

Wholesaling is concerned with the activities of individuals and establishments that sell to retailers
and other merchants, or to industrial, institutional, and commercial users, but do not sell in large
amounts to ultimate consumers. Wholesaling excludes those engaged in production, farmers
growing agricultural products, and retailers. Unlike retailers, wholesalers are not much concerned
with promotional activities, store atmospherics, and location because usually they deal with
business buyers rather than ultimate consumers. Wholesalers usually handle large transactions,
and operate in a larger market area. The wholesaling activities are just variations of marketing
activities, such as gathering and providing information, buying and selling, grading, storing,
transporting, financing, and risk sharing etc. Wholesalers add value for customers and suppliers.
All through, wholesalers have dominated marketing channels in underdeveloped, developing,
and developed countries. The factors that favour their importance in distribution channels
include distant locations of producers from final customers; most products are manufactured
before specific orders from customers, and intermediaries and final consumers demand varying
quantities in terms of packages, and forms. According to Harry G. Miller, effective functioning

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