Retail is… What are retailers and retailers? Wholesale and retail - the difference. accumulation, sorting and placement of products. Wholesale functions
It has long been known that competition is the engine of progress. In our time, numerous competition in the product sales market forces sellers to resort to different ways attracting customers in order to increase sales efficiency and increase sales of products.
What is the difference between selling and selling? There are several points of view, according to one of them, sales and marketing is absolutely different concepts. Selling occurs when you try to sell a product using various methods and marketing tools. Even when the client did not even think about buying, your task is to interest and convince him of the need for this particular purchase. Selling happens when customers discover your products on their own, and you don't use public speaking and don't put much effort into attracting customers. According to another point of view, sales are a type of marketing. But in any case, the goal is the same - an effective increase in the sale of goods.
One of effective ways Increasing sales is building relationships with customers. The best way to connect with potential clients is through face-to-face meetings. When you see a person, look into his eyes and smile, you set the client in a positive mood and thus create a friendly atmosphere for communication and cooperation. In turn, you have more chances to influence the client and achieve his consent to the transaction.
Equally effective are presentations that are aimed at acquainting a wide range of potential buyers with the useful properties of the proposed product. This marketing tool will help to profitably present beneficial features products, their purpose and features of use, and also contributes to the establishment of personal contacts and further long-term cooperation. To position the audience, it is important not only to prepare an informative report and present it in an interesting way, but also to look good accordingly.
Telephone conversations have always been and remain a relevant means for promoting products on the market. Of course, it is quite difficult to get a client over the phone, as this is blind communication. Therefore, the most valued professionals who have the skill of using the so-called cold calls, the end result of which is to achieve a personal meeting with the client and subsequently persuade him to buy. They got this name due to the fact that, having called for the first time and offered cooperation, the manager usually encounters a number of obstacles, including cold communication and unwillingness to continue the conversation with a stranger. How to convince a person who begins to object to you and deny the need for a purchase? The task is not easy. First of all, you need to fully listen to the client and agree with him, so you can win over the person and start a conversation, and then offer him a good deal and influence a positive decision. Understanding the psychology of sales will help persuade a person to mutually beneficial cooperation. The buyer is, first of all, a person who has his own desires and goals, and the motives of his behavior are explained by the desire to achieve these goals and satisfy urgent needs. Knowledge of personality psychology, the ability to identify needs and correctly present useful information about the goods always promise a positive completion of the transaction.
Every manager understands that sales performance depends on how the sales department is built, in other words, on a team of managers who must have the appropriate personal qualities and professional skills. Among them are activity, sociability, initiative, flexibility, perseverance, as well as the ability to beautifully present information about a product, find and attract customers, knowledge of the basics of marketing, psychology, etc. Moreover, the staffing of the department with specialists is of no small importance, so that there are not many and not few, but a sufficient number according to the approved staff, depending on the size of the enterprise.
Wholesaling is any activity of selling goods or services to those who purchase them for the purpose of resale or professional use. A wholesaler is a company that purchases large quantities of goods from various manufacturers and organizing their movement into retail trade, or direct sale to the consumer. Wholesalers are different from retailers. First, the wholesaler pays less attention to the stimulation, atmosphere, and location of his outlet, as he deals primarily with professional clients rather than end-users. Secondly, in terms of volume, wholesale transactions are larger than retail ones, and the wholesaler's trading area is usually larger than that of a retailer. Third, with respect to law and taxes, the government approaches wholesalers and retailers from different angles.
It is beneficial for manufacturing firms to use the services of wholesalers, because even with sufficient capital, it is preferable for them to direct funds to the development of production, rather than to the organization wholesale trade. And in turn, it is beneficial for wholesalers to maintain good relations with all firms, if only on the grounds that this provides them with the most important weapon of wholesale efficiency - a wide assortment, a wide selection of goods. The fundamental difference between the wholesaler and the sales service of the company is that he receives income and profit from the sale of goods of any company, and not just his own. But the tastes and preferences of consumers are different. Accordingly, than more choice The wholesaler will have the goods, the higher his income and profit.
There is a lot of pressure on wholesalers to offer a full range and maintain sufficient inventory for immediate delivery. But this can have a negative impact on profits. Today, wholesalers select only the most profitable product groups for themselves. Preventing "internal" competition, wholesalers prefer, on the one hand, to refuse product advertising, and on the other hand, they retain the traditional network of traveling salesmen who maintain personal contacts with the firm's clientele.
Almost all wholesale deals use credit. For example, firm A has the same good product as firm B. Both have a good reputation, high readiness for product service, and equally well-established sales relations. Who will the wholesaler prefer when all odds are even? Of course, the company that will offer him a more reasonable price for a similar product. Well, if everything is the same here, then whoever gives the buyer the best loan terms will win. The reverse situation is, of course, also not uncommon in business practice. Credit support from large trading firms is often used by start-up, but promising industrial firms.
Wholesalers usually buy goods in bulk from manufacturers and then resell them. industrial enterprises or in the service sector (restaurants, shops). Thus, the wholesaler acts as an intermediary. Quite often the question arises, why do we need this intermediate link in the circulation of goods?
The wholesaler, on the one hand, helps manufacturers to regulate the sale of products, speeding up the payment of the cost of goods, and on the other hand, it provides an important service to retailers, relieving them of the difficulties associated with the creation of inventories; from the need to make significant investments and to have knowledge related to the quality of products, the choice of suppliers and the functioning of the market at home and abroad.
Warehousing of goods is one of the characteristic aspects of the wholesaler's activity. This aspect of activity finds its material embodiment in the form of a warehouse, a room in which goods coming from enterprises are placed, divided into batches, packaged, and only after that they are delivered to consumers. The wholesaler regulates the supply of goods by synchronizing production and consumption wealth. In addition, he assumes the financial obligations associated with the immobilization of funds invested in the creation of commodity stocks.
The wholesaler supplies retailers and small sellers with goods in a form that meets their needs. This means that he must split the goods into batches convenient for customers, form an assortment and ensure the delivery of products at a convenient time. Goods are released from the warehouse in fairly small batches in accordance with the possibility of selling to consumers in a very short time, which facilitates the financial situation of customers. A retailer asks for a very diverse set of products, which may include several thousand items.
The activity of the wholesaler facilitates and makes the transportation of products less burdensome. The number of shipments of goods and related operations decreases as goods pass through the wholesale warehouse
The need for the services of wholesalers in the non-food sector arises from the “dispersion” of demand from retailers who need small lots of various goods. From here, the main functions of the wholesaler are warehousing and the formation of an assortment (haberdashery, mosquito, hardware, pharmacy and other goods)
Therefore, it is especially important to ensure the exchange of reliable information between manufacturers and retailers, to create better conditions for the operation of retailers and other industries that are customers of wholesalers.
An intermediary in the field of wholesale trade in industrial and technical products can perform the following functions.
1. Sales and promotion of the product
Sales promotion, as a section of marketing, is carried out in various forms. So, for example, we can talk about the target advertising company, holding various events that promote the quality characteristics of products, its advantages compared to other similar types of materials or products.
2. Procurement and formation product range for a consumer enterprise
At the request of the buyer, the intermediary can:
- - to carry out the functions of studying the market situation, to quote market prices for the necessary products;
- - identify rational options purchases in terms of the amount of transportation and procurement costs, the reliability of the supplier and the quality of the required resources.
In addition, intermediary services may include:
- - analysis of the assortment composition of the required material resources;
- - drawing up a list of potential materials or substitute products in case of a shortage for certain items of assortment needs.
Here it is also possible to obtain information about new types of material resources and their sources.
3. Splitting large lots of goods into smaller ones
A commercial intermediary can create inventory in its warehouses and, thus, purchasing goods in large quantities, then sell them in quantities convenient for the buyer. At the same time, the sold products can be brought to a high degree of technological readiness for use in industrial consumption.
4. Warehousing
A commercial intermediary maintains inventory in specialized warehouses, ensuring their safety. Therefore, the buyer can transfer the material resources coming to his address for safekeeping or rent the warehouse space necessary for storing the resources.
- 5. Transportation (delivery) of goods from main transport
- 6. Financial participation in settlements for the purchase and sale, responsible storage of consignments and acceptance of the risk of the owner of the goods
- 7. Provision of commercial information and advice
Intermediary enterprises trading in the field of wholesale trade in goods for industrial purposes, depending on the nature of the functions performed, are usually divided into several groups:
- - independent wholesale intermediaries (distributors);
- - organizations of agents and brokers;
- - wholesale branches of industrial enterprises.
Merchandising - system process bringing goods from enterprises producing goods to consumers.
Merchandising- is the activity of planning, implementing and controlling the organization of contacts between sellers and buyers, the physical movement of materials and finished products from their places of origin to their places of use.
Merchandising is a complex organizational, economic and material (technological) process, since at each stage numerous means and tools are used (commercial buildings, structures, trade and technological equipment, vehicles etc.), and many people are involved in its implementation. The basis of the organizational and economic side is commercial activity, carried out by the links participating in it - wholesale and retail trade enterprises and including various operations and processes.
There are 2 forms of distribution:
1) Transit - goods get into trading network directly from commercial enterprises;
2) Warehouse - through one or more links of intermediaries.
A distribution channel is a set of firms or individuals that assume or help to sell, transfer to someone the ownership of a product or service on their way from producer to consumer.
concept "sales" in the literature is used in two aspects: in a broad sense - as a holistic process of bringing goods from the manufacturer to the end consumer (transportation, warehousing, storage, refinement, promotion to wholesale and retail links, pre-sales preparation and the actual sale of goods), and in a narrow sense - like a sale.
In other words, marketing is a system of all activities that are carried out after the release of products from the gates of the enterprise. What is the relationship between sales and sales? As follows from the definition, the sale is a whole system of processes, and the sale completes the process of selling the goods. A sale is a personal communication between a seller and a buyer, aimed at making a profit from the sale and requiring knowledge, skills and a certain level of sales competence.
The distribution system covers a significant area of the company's business, starting from the warehouse finished products to the points of sale of manufactured goods.
Traditional marketing system(Figure 1) consists of an independent manufacturer, one or more wholesalers, and one or more retailers and a consumer. All participants in such a distribution system find each other in the free market, do not bind themselves with long-term obligations, are independent and beyond the control of other participants in market relations, pursue the goal of maximizing profits, primarily in their section of the marketing system, and they are not interested in profit optimization issues in the marketing system. generally.
 |
Rice. 1. Traditional marketing system:
R - market, free market relations.
Let's consider what are the qualitative differences between the existing systems of marketing distribution, how these systems cooperate, interact, conflict, compete with each other.
So-called conventional (symbiotic) The marketing channel (MCC) operates on the principle of symbiosis and includes independent manufacturers, wholesalers (or sellers) and retailers. Each of them is engaged in his own business, striving to maximize his own profit, even if this does not allow maximizing the profit of the system as a whole. None of the partners in the KMK has the possibility of complete or even substantial control over the rest of its members. Their interaction is essentially fragmentary, the zones of agreement are limited, figuratively speaking, "arm's length", and the agreements relate mainly to sales volumes, but otherwise their behavior is autonomous.
Vertical Marketing System (VMS)- relatively new form distribution channels, acts as one system because it includes a manufacturer, one or more wholesalers and one or more retailers who share common goals and interests; one of the participants takes the leading role. Such a sales system and organization of relations between a manufacturing enterprise and sales entities is possible and effective based on the high reputation of its brand, its high authority as business partner and evidence of the effectiveness of his coordinating activities as a production and commercial entity of the system.
Vertical systems can be of three types (Fig. 2):
- corporate(within a single organizational structure one firm, united by the status of ownership);
- contractual(within the framework of contractual relations and coordinating programs), subdivided in turn into voluntary associations (chains) of retailers under the auspices of wholesalers; retailers' cooperatives; franchising - received on commercial terms the right to use trademark firms under the obligation to comply with the technology and principles of production or provision of services; organizations of privilege holders (a system of retail privilege holders under the auspices of a manufacturer, a system of wholesalers - holders of privileges under the auspices of a manufacturer, a system of retail privilege holders under the auspices of a service firm);
indirect influence, which are formed under the influence of the size and financial power of one of the participants and his authority in the market.
Merchandise is carried out through distribution channels (goods movement Channel of goods distribution (distribution) they call the path, sometimes quite complicated, from the producer to its consumers. On this way, the goods may pass through a number of intermediaries - firms or individuals who transfer the goods from hand to hand. These intermediaries, as well as producers, sellers and buyers of goods are called channel members.
The set of stages, actions and methods for determining, selecting and attracting consumers, identifying rational ways and means of supplying goods in accordance with the terms of the contract, justifying the methods and types of storage of these goods is distribution process.
Sales channels are:
Direct (without intermediaries).
Indirect (with intermediaries): one-level, two-level, three-level, four-level.
Horizontal (based on competition and individual achievement of profit).
Vertical (based on corporate cooperation and corporate profit).
Channel level - This is any intermediary that performs a particular function to bring the product closer to the consumer. Because the certain work performed by both producers and consumers, they are also part of any channel.
Channel length (channel length) - this is the number of intermediate levels (intermediaries).
Channel width - this is the number of intermediaries at a separate stage of the distribution of goods.
With a narrow distribution channel, the enterprise uses one or a few intermediaries, with a wide distribution channel, a large number of intermediaries. Depending on the number of intermediaries, there are four types of traditional distribution channels: zero, one-level, two-level and three-level.
Zero channel (direct marketing channel) consists of a producer and a consumer, i.e. commodity circulation is carried out without intermediaries. It is expedient to use this channel at a small share of the market. Direct marketing is carried out through company stores, mail order, peddling and other methods.
Single level channel: manufacturer? retail? consumer. Includes one intermediary. In consumer markets, this is usually a retailer, and in industrial goods markets, a sales agent or broker.
Bi-level channel: manufacturer? wholesale? retail? consumer. Includes two intermediaries. In consumer markets, these intermediaries are wholesalers and retailers; in the markets of industrial goods - an industrial distributor and dealer.
Three-level channel: manufacturer? wholesale? chalk-co-wholesale trade? retail? consumer. Includes three intermediaries. So, in consumer markets, in addition to wholesalers and retailers, small wholesalers take part in distribution, who buy goods from large wholesalers and transfer them in small lots to retailers. In the markets for industrial goods, the functions of small wholesalers are performed by agents.
In addition to the above, businesses may use multiple distribution channels if they enter different market segments or expand their sales activities. Such a distribution system is called mixed.
The existing distribution channels involve the use of three main methods of distribution:
1. direct , which lies in the fact that the manufacturer sells its products through the sales department or through sales branches directly to the consumer. The direct marketing method allows the manufacturer to maintain contact with the consumer and thereby control the marketing of their products. In this case, trade margins and commissions for trade enterprises and intermediaries are excluded;
2. Indirect (through an intermediary). The method of sale through trade involves the sale by the manufacturer of his products to wholesale or retail trade. Inclusion of trade is advantageous when the manufacturer does not have a dominant position in the market, when the product needs to be introduced into the full range of the trade enterprise, or when the trader has extensive experience in the field of trade and has influence on the market;
3. Combined (mixed).
If the company delivers goods directly to the retail trade or to the final consumer, then trade margins disappear, but the company's costs increase due to the assignment of trade functions (storage, transportation, sale). In this case, under equal market conditions, direct marketing is profitable if the saved selling margins are higher than the incremental costs of distribution.
With indirect marketing, the benefits are very difficult to determine, since the market channel is almost unmanageable, the creation of a strategy and its change is conservative and time-consuming, and the availability of supplies and the presence of the manufacturer cannot be guaranteed, and there is also no direct contact with the clientele.
The choice of specific distribution partners also largely depends on which actual method of distribution is preferred for the manufacturer:
1. Intensive (when the company's product should be almost everywhere),
2. Electoral (selective), based on the criteria of territorial, group requirements, features;
3. Exceptional (exclusive), if these requirements are extremely individualized or the cost of production is very high.
With intensive sales, the manufacturer has to deal with all possible sales intermediaries. As a rule, in this case, intermediaries are not chosen by quality. However, large manufacturers can afford not to deal with small merchants and not seek to bring their goods to them, relying on the fact that large intermediaries will provide them with the necessary share of sales anyway. But even in this case, it is important that these intermediaries are geographically located at an optimal distance from each other.
IN certain cases a manufacturing firm prefers to have a single, exclusive sales agent who sells the goods of this firm exclusively. For such an advantage on the part of the merchant, as a rule, Additional services, compliance with certain conditions, for example, the established sales volume, etc.
On fig. the most noticeable features of the considered competitive concepts in the field of sales are presented.
Rice. Characteristics of competitive concepts in the marketing system
Form of distribution- This is an organizational technique, which is a variety of ways to promote goods from the manufacturer to the consumer.
There are 2 forms:
- transit when goods are delivered to the retail trade network directly from manufacturing enterprises, bypassing the warehouses of intermediaries;
- warehouse- through one or more warehouse links of intermediaries.
Types of marketing activities:
1. Wholesale- sale of large quantities of goods for subsequent professional use or resale.
2. Retail- the sale of goods by the piece or in non-large, non-standard, disparate batches.
Wholesale and retail trade - types of sale of goods that affect the relationship of the manufacturer with suppliers, intermediaries and consumers in the system of distribution and promotion of goods (services).
Allocation decision criteria
The following can be used as decision-making criteria in the implementation of marketing policy measures: the value of turnover; market share; distribution costs; the degree of branching of the distribution network, which is characterized by the level of preservation of the product in the process of its sale from the manufacturer to the end consumer; the image of distribution channels; the level of cooperation of subjects in the distribution system, which ensures the reduction of conflict and commercial risk; flexibility and survivability of the distribution network.
The criteria for the effectiveness of distribution channels are:
1. Manageability - the ability to implement a volitional decision;
2. Providing guarantees;
3. Quality of customer service;
4. Consultations;
5. Conflict resolution;
6. Flexibility - the ability to quickly create and change the channel;
7. Availability and good location of the product;
8. Readiness for deliveries and delivery time;
9. Customer proximity and distribution reliability.
Restrictions for the formation of distribution channels:
Current legislation (for example, the sale of medicines only through pharmacies);
Restrictions on product quality (responsibility, expiration date);
Technical (storage, transport and service capacities);
Whatever definitions for the concept of "trade" are printed in "smart books", in fact it is always the exchange of some goods for money or a corresponding amount of other goods in order to obtain benefits. Today it is both an independent branch of the economy, which ensures the movement of goods from the producer to the consumer, and the type economic activity, which is an intermediary service and includes whole line related processes, such as direct customer service, delivery of goods, their storage and preparation for sale, etc. But, most importantly, trade is, on the one hand, a significant source of tax revenues, and on the other hand, the most important social and political factor , which means that state attention to this area is inevitable and tangible. Especially in our country.
Russia, having passed a difficult path from the respected merchants of the 1st (richest), 2nd and 3rd guild, through, who had a special position in the era of socialist scarcity, workers of Soviet trade, despised by all speculators and traders to spontaneous "shuttle traders", came eventually in our time to a more or less civilized market. However, the legislation in this area is still so imperfect that it would seem a simple question - what is the difference between wholesale trade and retail trade, can make even an experienced accountant "spread the tree".
In terms of simple common sense, wholesale- this is trade in consignments of goods, and retail - respectively, the sale of goods by the piece. It follows from this that wholesale is an intermediary between the manufacturer and retail, and retail, in turn, serves the demand of the end consumer. Thus, retail prices are formed from the purchase prices that the manufacturer sets, plus the trade margin. In all civilized countries, the approach is exactly the same. In Russia, it also underlies pricing and the "philosophy" of trade, but with significant legislative variations.
They relate mainly to the civil law sphere and, of course, to taxation. Retail regulated by Article 492 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation "Contract of Retail Purchase and Sale". In particular, it states: “Under a retail sale and purchase agreement, a seller engaged in entrepreneurial activities in the sale of goods at retail undertakes to transfer to the buyer goods intended for personal, family, home or other use not related to entrepreneurial activity.” The definition of wholesale trade was found in Art. 2 federal law dated December 28, 2009 N 381-FZ: “Wholesale trade - type trading activities associated with the purchase and sale of goods for use in entrepreneurial activity(including for resale) or for other purposes not related to personal, family, household and other similar use. Hence, the defining role of such a concept as “the purpose of acquiring goods” arises, and its quantity is not taken into account at all. In the case of a purchase by a private person of a whole batch of any product for personal needs, such an operation will be considered retail! If the goods are acquired by a legal entity to ensure its activities, then the sale of even one ballpoint pen from point of view Russian legislation will be a wholesale deal.
Accordingly, the design of such sales is also different. For retail enough cash or sales receipt. For wholesale, supply contracts, invoices, receipts are required. cash orders etc. Considering that it is not the responsibility of the seller to clarify the purpose of the purchase of goods, it turns out that in Russia all trade transactions with individuals are retail, and with entrepreneurs or legal entities- wholesale. And it does not depend on the quantity of the purchased goods!
Tax legislation has gone even further. When registering an enterprise, the application must indicate the types of economic activity that the organization or entrepreneur will be engaged in. IN all-Russian classifier types of economic activity (OKVED) all are described in detail possible types trade, but - With clear division for wholesale and retail. A production that officially sells wholesale cannot sell its goods at retail - this will be considered a violation and fraught with a fine. A retail trade enterprise, located, for example, on UTII loses its right to an imputed tax in wholesale transactions, since this special regime applies only to retail-related activities. Of course, it is not forbidden to indicate both types of classification, but this will complicate accounting, reporting and taxation.
Nevertheless, market relations dictate their own laws, and in the field of pricing, factors such as the purpose of purchasing a product or processing a transaction, as well as the status of the buyer, have no effect on the result. The manufacturer sells goods at certain prices, based solely on considerations of their profits, as well as the volume and frequency of purchases of products by a specific buyer. The more often and more a partner buys, the more profitable contracts are concluded with him, and he can count on a bigger discount. In retail, it is similar - almost everywhere regular or large customers are offered more low prices, discount cards and other bonuses designed to attract and retain a client. Trade is trade - the price is the price, and this is called wholesale or retail, it is important only to the fiscal authorities!
The sale of goods can be carried out in such forms as sales and sales. What are they?
- a systemic, orderly process within which the sale of goods produced by the enterprise is carried out;
- the procedure for the transfer of goods from the seller to the buyer through established mechanisms, sustainable channels;
- a set of activities of the company related to the maintenance and operation of channels for the transfer of goods for customers and buyers.
All of these types of sales, as a rule, do not involve active actions of the company's management aimed at creating and maintaining the work of a permanent mechanism for the sale of goods. Such as, for example, searching for customers and negotiating with them in order to conclude contracts for the purchase of the company's products. If such actions are carried out, sales turn into sales (more precisely, into one of their subspecies). Let's study their features.
What are sales?
Under sales can be understood:
- the activities of the company aimed at the formation of sales - in any of the 3 interpretations we have considered above, through various communications with the client, advertising promotion, PR and other tools;
- well-established legal mechanism for concluding transactions between the seller and the buyer (in which the parties determine their rights and obligations, taking into account the provisions of the law).
If the word in question is used in singular(as a “sale”), then it can also be understood as a single transaction for the sale of goods. But regardless of the use of the concept of “sales”, they are carried out on the condition that the responsible managers and employees of the company perform certain actions aimed at creating a permanent mechanism that allows the company to consistently generate revenue.
Comparison
The main difference between sales and sales is that the first procedure does not involve the implementation by the management and employees of the company of actions aimed at stimulating revenue. As part of the sale, the actual delivery of goods under existing contracts is carried out. If negotiations with customers are conducted, then, as a rule, they relate to organizational issues of supply - related to the cost of delivery of products, payment, service support for the sale of goods.
In turn, sales are aimed precisely at ensuring that the relevant contracts are successfully concluded and form the company's need for organizing effective sales - through negotiations with customers, advertising, PR.
Having determined the difference between sales and sales, we will reflect the conclusions in the table.
