The document discusses various retail intermediaries and their functions in distributing goods from manufacturers to consumers. It defines dealers, distributors, wholesalers, buying agents and selling agents. Dealers buy goods to resell, distributors provide promotional support and services to suppliers, and wholesalers buy and resell large quantities of goods. It also explains the functions of retailers in providing goods to consumers, creating time and place utility, and serving as a link between manufacturers and customers.

1. SESSION 9
LEGAL ENVIRONMENT OF
BUSINESS
1

2. RETAIL INTERMEDIARIES & THEIR
FUNCTIONS
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3. DEALERS
Individual or firm that buys goods from a
producer or distributor for wholesale and/or
retail reselling
A dealer is a principal and not an agent
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4. DISTRIBUTORS
An entity that buys non-competing products or
product lines, warehouses them, and resells them to
retailers or direct to consumers
provide strong manpower and cash support to the
supplier or manufacturer's promotional efforts
usually also provide product information, estimates,
technical support, after-sales services, credit to the
customers
4

5. WHOLESALERS
Person or firm that buys large quantity of
goods from various producers or vendors,
warehouses them, and resells to retailers
Wholesalers who carry only non-competing
goods or lines are called Distributors
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6. Buying Agent
Individual or firm that locates supplies at best
prices and terms, and (if required) warehouses or
consolidates them as one shipment on behalf of a
local or foreign buyer
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7. Selling Agent
Selling agent or sales agent
a person/firm who renders sales services to the
manufacturer or the supplier
may provide support in terms of marketing,
promotion, and other allied activities
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8. RETAILERS
Retail : Derived from the French word
“retaillier” = to cut off a piece or to break bulk
Retailer : A business or person that sells goods
to the consumer, as opposed to a wholesaler or
supplier, who normally sell their goods to another
business
Retailing : The last stage in movement of goods
or services to the consumer
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9. RETAILERS
Retailing  all activities involved in the marketing
of goods and services directly to the consumers
for their personal, family or household use
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10. RETAIL : THE INDUSTRY
Largest private industry in the world
In Western economy it accounts for 8% of GDP
Has generated a 19% return for the shareholders
between 2004 - 06 where banks generated 9% and
insurance generated 15.2% return
Largest corporation in the world – Wal-Mart
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11. RETAIL : THE INDUSTRY
Almost 50 retail organizations in the world
feature in the list of Fortune 500 companies.
The world over retail is not only the oldest but
also one of the most advanced user of technology.
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12. Functions of a RETAILER
 From customers point of view, retailer serves by
providing goods that he needs in the required
assortment and at the right place and time.
 From an economic standpoint the role of a
retailer is to provide real added value or utility to
the customer.
 This comes from five different perspectives
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13. Functions of a RETAILER
1. Provides finished goods and services in the form
that is acceptable to the customer
2. The retailer performs the function of storing the
goods, and providing us with an assortment of
products in various categories
3. The retailer creates time utility by keeping the
store open when the consumers prefer to shop
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14. Functions of a RETAILER
4. By being available at a convenient location he
creates place utility
5. Finally when the products are sold ownership
utility is created
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15. Functions of a RETAILER
All these are real benefits which the Retailer offers
by:
 Being close to potential customers
 Fully understanding the motivating factors that
drive their customers
 By serving the consumers by way of functioning
as a marketing intermediary and creating time,
place and ownership utility 15

16. Functions of a RETAILER
The Retailer also serves the manufacturers by:
 Performing the function of distributing the goods
to the end users
 Creating a channel of information from
manufacturer to the consumer
 By serving as a final link in the distribution chain
 Recommending products where brand loyalty is
not strong or for unbranded products
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17. buying selling
dealer distributor wholesalers agents agents retailers
takes the title of
the goods
provides credit
provides
manpower
provides
promitional
support
n t
provides product
m e
info
ig n
ss
provides estimates
provides technical
support A
provides after-sales
support
warehousing
facility
upstream
downstream 17