| Retailing and Wholesaling 395
Chapter 13 | Retailing and Wholesaling 395
reps, catalog, and Web site, Grainger links customers with the supplies they need to keep their facilities running smoothly— everything from light bulbs, cleaners, and display cases to nuts and bolts, motors, valves, power tools, test equipment, and safety supplies. Grainger’s 600 branches, 22 strategically located distribution centers, more than 18,000 employees, and innovative Web sites handle more than 115,000 transactions a day, and 98 percent of orders ship within 24 hours. Grainger’s customers include organizations ranging from factories, garages, and grocers to schools and military bases. Customers include notables such as Abbott Laboratories, General Motors, Campbell’s Soup, American Airlines, and the U.S. Postal Service.
Grainger operates on a simple value proposition: to make it easier and less costly for customers to find and buy MRO sup- plies. It starts by acting as a one-stop shop for products needed to maintain facilities. On a broader level, it builds lasting rela- tionships with customers by helping them find solutions to their overall MRO problems. Acting as consultants, Grainger sales reps help buyers with everything from improving their supply chain management to reducing inventories and streamlining warehousing operations. So, how come you’ve never heard of Grainger? Perhaps it’s because the company operates in the not- so-glamorous world of MRO supplies, which are important to every business but not so important to consumers. More likely,
Wholesaling: Many of the nation’s largest and most important wholesalers—like Grainger—are largely unknown
it’s because Grainger is a wholesaler. And like most whole-
to final consumers. But they are very well known and much
salers, it operates behind the scenes, selling mostly to other
valued by the business customers they serve.
businesses.
Why are wholesalers important to sellers? For example, why would a producer use wholesalers rather than selling directly to retailers or consumers? Simply put, wholesalers add value by performing one or more of the following channel functions:
• Selling and promoting: Wholesalers’ sales forces help manufacturers reach many small customers at a low cost. The wholesaler has more contacts and is often more trusted by the buyer than the distant manufacturer.
• Buying and assortment building: Wholesalers can select items and build assortments
needed by their customers, thereby saving much work. • Bulk breaking: Wholesalers save their customers money by buying in carload lots and
breaking bulk (breaking large lots into small quantities). • Warehousing: Wholesalers hold inventories, thereby reducing the inventory costs and
risks of suppliers and customers. • Transportation: Wholesalers can provide quicker delivery to buyers because they are
closer to buyers than are producers. • Financing: Wholesalers finance their customers by giving credit, and they finance their
suppliers by ordering early and paying bills on time. • Risk bearing: Wholesalers absorb risk by taking title and bearing the cost of theft, dam-
age, spoilage, and obsolescence. • Market information: Wholesalers give information to suppliers and customers about
competitors, new products, and price developments. • Management services and advice: Wholesalers often help retailers train their sales-
clerks, improve store layouts and displays, and set up accounting and inventory con- trol systems.
396 Part Three | Designing a Customer-Driven Strategy and Mix
Parts
» | Marketing: Creating and Capturing Customer Value 3
» | Marketing: Creating and Capturing Customer Value 11
» | Marketing: Creating and Capturing Customer Value 13
» | Marketing: Creating and Capturing Customer Value 25
» | Marketing: Creating and Capturing Customer Value 29
» | Company and Marketing Strategy: Partnering to Build Customer Relationships 37
» | Company and Marketing Strategy: Partnering to Build Customer Relationships 41
» | Company and Marketing Strategy: Partnering to Build Customer Relationships 43
» | Company and Marketing Strategy: Partnering to Build Customer Relationships 51
» | Company and Marketing Strategy: Partnering to Build Customer Relationships 55
» | Company and Marketing Strategy: Partnering to Build Customer Relationships 57
» | Company and Marketing Strategy: Partnering to Build Customer Relationships 63
» | Analyzing the Marketing Environment 65
» | Analyzing the Marketing Environment 71
» | Analyzing the Marketing Environment 73
» | Analyzing the Marketing Environment 77
» | Analyzing the Marketing Environment 79
» | Analyzing the Marketing Environment 81
» | Analyzing the Marketing Environment 85
» | Analyzing the Marketing Environment 87
» | Analyzing the Marketing Environment 89
» | Managing Marketing Information to Gain Customer Insights 97
» | Managing Marketing Information to Gain Customer Insights 99
» | Managing Marketing Information to Gain Customer Insights 103
» | Managing Marketing Information to Gain Customer Insights 109
» | Managing Marketing Information to Gain Customer Insights 111
» | Managing Marketing Information to Gain Customer Insights 113
» | Managing Marketing Information to Gain Customer Insights 115
» | Managing Marketing Information to Gain Customer Insights 127
» | Managing Marketing Information to Gain Customer Insights 131
» | Consumer Markets and Consumer Buyer Behavior 133
» | Consumer Markets and Consumer Buyer Behavior 137
» | Consumer Markets and Consumer Buyer Behavior 141
» | Consumer Markets and Consumer Buyer Behavior 143
» | Consumer Markets and Consumer Buyer Behavior 159
» | Consumer Markets and Consumer Buyer Behavior 163
» | Business Markets and Business Buyer Behavior 165
» | Business Markets and Business Buyer Behavior 175
» | Business Markets and Business Buyer Behavior 179
» What is Eaton’s value proposition?
» | Customer-Driven Marketing Strategy: Creating Value for Target Customers 189
» | Customer-Driven Marketing Strategy: Creating Value for Target Customers 193
» | Customer-Driven Marketing Strategy: Creating Value for Target Customers 197
» | Customer-Driven Marketing Strategy: Creating Value for Target Customers 203
» | Customer-Driven Marketing Strategy: Creating Value for Target Customers 205
» | Customer-Driven Marketing Strategy: Creating Value for Target Customers 207
» | Customer-Driven Marketing Strategy: Creating Value for Target Customers 209
» | Customer-Driven Marketing Strategy: Creating Value for Target Customers 211
» | Customer-Driven Marketing Strategy: Creating Value for Target Customers 213
» | Customer-Driven Marketing Strategy: Creating Value for Target Customers 219
» | Products, Services, and Brands: Building Customer Value 223
» | Products, Services, and Brands: Building Customer Value 225
» | Products, Services, and Brands: Building Customer Value 229
» | Products, Services, and Brands: Building Customer Value 237
» | Products, Services, and Brands: Building Customer Value 245
» | Products, Services, and Brands: Building Customer Value 247
» | Products, Services, and Brands: Building Customer Value 249
» | Products, Services, and Brands: Building Customer Value 251
» | Products, Services, and Brands: Building Customer Value 257
» | New Product Development and Product Life-Cycle Strategies 259
» | New Product Development and Product Life-Cycle Strategies 271
» | New Product Development and Product Life-Cycle Strategies 273
» | New Product Development and Product Life-Cycle Strategies 279
» | New Product Development and Product Life-Cycle Strategies 281
» | Pricing: Understanding and Capturing Customer Value 289
» | Pricing: Understanding and Capturing Customer Value 291
» | Pricing: Understanding and Capturing Customer Value 295
» | Pricing: Understanding and Capturing Customer Value 299
» | Pricing: Understanding and Capturing Customer Value 305
» | Pricing: Understanding and Capturing Customer Value 307
» | Marketing Channels: Delivering Customer Value 339
» | Marketing Channels: Delivering Customer Value 347
» | Marketing Channels: Delivering Customer Value 351
» | Marketing Channels: Delivering Customer Value 367
» | Retailing and Wholesaling 373
» | Retailing and Wholesaling 377
» | Retailing and Wholesaling 379
» | Retailing and Wholesaling 393
» | Retailing and Wholesaling 395
» | Retailing and Wholesaling 397
» | Retailing and Wholesaling 401
» | Retailing and Wholesaling 405
» | Communicating Customer Value: Integrated Marketing Communications Strategy 407
» | Communicating Customer Value: Integrated Marketing Communications Strategy 411
» | Communicating Customer Value: Integrated Marketing Communications Strategy 413
» | Communicating Customer Value: Integrated Marketing Communications Strategy 415
» | Communicating Customer Value: Integrated Marketing Communications Strategy 429
» | Communicating Customer Value: Integrated Marketing Communications Strategy 433
» | Advertising and Public Relations 435
» | Advertising and Public Relations 439
» | Advertising and Public Relations 441
» | Advertising and Public Relations 443
» | Advertising and Public Relations 445
» | Advertising and Public Relations 447
» | Advertising and Public Relations 449
» | Advertising and Public Relations 453
» | Personal Selling and Sales Promotion 463
» | Personal Selling and Sales Promotion 469
» | Personal Selling and Sales Promotion 471
» | Personal Selling and Sales Promotion 481
» How is the sales force at Nestlé Waters structured? outsells its top competitors.
» | Direct and Online Marketing: Building Direct Customer Relationships 495
» | Direct and Online Marketing: Building Direct Customer Relationships 499
» | Direct and Online Marketing: Building Direct Customer Relationships 507
» | Direct and Online Marketing: Building Direct Customer Relationships 509
» | Direct and Online Marketing: Building Direct Customer Relationships 515
» | Direct and Online Marketing: Building Direct Customer Relationships 525
» | Creating Competitive Advantage 527
» | Creating Competitive Advantage 529
» | Creating Competitive Advantage 537
» | Creating Competitive Advantage 549
» | The Global Marketplace 551
» | The Global Marketplace 553
» | The Global Marketplace 561
» | The Global Marketplace 573
» | Sustainable Marketing: Social Responsibility and Ethics 581
» | Sustainable Marketing: Social Responsibility and Ethics 583
» | Sustainable Marketing: Social Responsibility and Ethics 587
» | Sustainable Marketing: Social Responsibility and Ethics 595
» | Sustainable Marketing: Social Responsibility and Ethics 603
» | Sustainable Marketing: Social Responsibility and Ethics 605
» | Marketing by the Numbers A21
» | Marketing by the Numbers A27
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