Introduction to Business covers the scope and sequence of most introductory business courses. The book provides detailed explanations in the context of core themes such as customer satisfaction, ethics, entrepreneurship, global business, and managing change. Introduction to Business includes hundreds of current business examples from a range of industries and geographic locations, which feature a variety of individuals. The outcome is a balanced approach to the theory and application of business concepts, with attention to the knowledge and skills necessary for student success in this course and beyond. This is an adaptation of Introduction to Business by OpenStax. You can access the textbook as pdf for free at openstax.org. Minor editorial changes were made to ensure a better ebook reading experience. Textbook content produced by OpenStax is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
This book honours the contributions of Professor Michael J. Baker to marketing thought and practise in his twenty-fifth year as a Professor of Marketing at the University of Strathclyde and in the 25th year of Strathclyde University's Department of Marketing, which he founded. It contains a series of essays by distinguished colleagues of Michael, addressing the theme of evolution of marketing thought and practice. Contributions examine the nature of modern marketing in relation to international business, channel management, innovation and marketing education.
Getting Multi-Channel Distribution Right provides a comprehensive treatment of modern distribution strategy that is analytically solid, clearly written, and relevant for managers as well as MBA and executive MBA students, and the professors who train them. It covers concepts, metrics, tools, and strategic frameworks for managing distribution in physical and digital channels. Focusing on the challenges of managing multiple channels of distribution in an evolving marketplace—rather than the process of designing a distribution channel from scratch—it leans more heavily on metrics and tools and incorporates perspectives from academic research, as well as in-depth case studies from marketing and general management practice. Introduces an organizing framework of pull and push marketing for how suppliers work together with their channel partners. Integrates across physical and digital, independent and company-owned, routes to market. Maps the functions of traditional and newer intermediaries in the channel ecosystem and identifies the root causes of conflict between them. Provides tools and frameworks for how much distribution coverage is required and where. Shows how product line, pricing, trade promotions, and other channel incentives can help to coordinate multiple channels and manage conflict. Illustrates how push and pull metrics can be combined into valuable dashboards for identifying positive feedback opportunities and sustaining the channel partnership. With the help of Getting Multi-Channel Distribution Right you’ll discover how to successfully develop, execute, and adapt distribution strategy to the evolving marketplace.
Retailer’s buying power has significantly increased in recent years as a result of a process of market concentration. As vertical relationships in marketing channels have strengthened their influence over the shape of the industry, the producer-distributor relationship has become more central to an understanding of both marketing practice and the conduct and performance of consumer goods industries. This comprehensive and detailed book covers the theory and practice of national and international retail and marketing channels. It provides a structural overview of the producer-distributor relationship as well as analyses of specific aspects of channel control and management. Finally, the book assesses the implications of new developments in the evolution of marketing channels. First published 1989.
Millions of small, family operated nanostores are the main source of consumer packaged goods in many neighborhoods of large cities across the developing world. In many of these countries, well over half of consumer goods are sold via the nanostore channel. Understanding this channel is critical for anyone selling or intending to sell into these large and fast growing markets. Tackling the logistics complexities of serving millions of nanostores is a challenge that many face, yet few master. In this book, we discuss logistics distribution and commercial route-to-market concepts for this channel and present best practices from Latin America, Asia, and North Africa. The book serves to inspire managers in marketing, sales, supply chain, distribution, logistics, and general management to develop their understanding and their business success in these growing markets. This book includes a unique set of case studies focusing on companies that have successfully created forward-looking approaches to retail operations over the world. The case studies included provide readers with a range of best practices, useful insights, and commercial and logistics strategies for serving diverse distribution channels. The authors (with extensive experience within these markets) and editors (from premier research institutions in Europe and the US) have done extensive field research over multiple years to develop the insights that are shared in this book. With the growth of convenience stores in the developed world, the insights also serve as an inspiration for those in Europe and North America that are confronted with a rapid proliferation of retail outlets as proximity shopping is becoming the norm. In the final chapter, the editors reflect on recent developments, particularly in China, where electronic commerce and nanostores are partnering to become a strong rival for the organized retail channel. "As the world population tends to concentrate more and more in urban environments, the two fastest growing channels for consumer goods distribution are online sales and convenient, proximal nanostores. Remarkably, this trend applies to both the most and the least developed economies. This book is a valuable resource that covers the realities and the challenges of serving nanostores, a subject much less widely covered than the "sexier" online e-commerce channel, but equally important for understanding the evolution of the world's fast moving consumer goods markets." - Sergio Barbarino, P&G Research Fellow and Chairman of The European Technology Platform for Logistic Innovation, ALICE
FMCG companies today face immense distribution related challenges owing to the complex supply chain structures and intense competition. Surviving is impossible without continuous distribution channel innovation. Companies with exceptional quality distribution systems are able to outperform their competitors, being able to provide higher customer satisfaction, while the rest perish. Some of the topics covered in this book include effective distribution channel strategy and its importance, distribution channel issues and challenges, real-life case studies relating to management and solution of distribution channel challenges, and much more.
