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Importance of the retail industry to the world economy
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The retail sector is very crucial to the health of any countries economy. In the United States the retail sector is huge and is the biggest contributor to the country’s economy. As per 2013 census bureau report, the sales revenue from retail business in US is accounted for more than 4 trillion. The retail industry is a sector of the economy that is contained of individuals and businesses engaged in the selling of finished products to end user buyers. They purchase commodities from manufacturers for resale it to consumers for profit. The domestic retail industry is well established and extremely competitive. The retail industry has several categories which includes discount store, warehouse store, Boutique, mall, Specialty store, department store etc. Fragmentation of the retail industry depends on the type of business, for example pharmacies are greatly concentrated, while convenience stores are greatly fragmented (Jeffrey & Mark, 2007). In US, retail industry is the top contributor to countries gross domestic product and it is estimated that two thirds of the countries gross domestic product comes from retail industry (Source: U.S. Census Bureau). Hence, any new business openings and closings is the one of the indicator of the performance of the country’s economy is. The retail business has been around for centuries in the United States. It started with a small general shop where people of the community would shop for items of requirement (John, 1990). During that period, due to the limited population and connectivity issue specialty stores were not needed. But as the societies progressed with population increase, new advanced technologies gave rise to interconnectivity, as well easy communication between distanced cities and soc... ... middle of paper ... ... During recession lots of people lost their job and job creation was at minimum. This made retail job market very competitive at all levels. In 2013, retail represented 27% of nominal US GDP, This is an increase of 0.2% up from 26.8% in 2012 (U.S. Department of Commerce). Real GDP raised by 1.9 percent in 2013, compared with an increase of 2.8 percent in 2012. Please refer Appendix C for 2012 Real Gross domestic product from retail business. Retail industries help to improve standard of living. It helps families to make ends meet by providing a wide range of budget friendly goods, like electronics, clothes, shoes etc. It will also provide the continuous supply of items such as fresh fruits and vegetables. Providing people with all the necessary goods under one roof, from grocery, medicine, banks, salons etc are one of the special characteristics of retail industry.
Associated Wholesale Grocers (AWG) came into being more than eight decades ago when several independent retailers decided that the power of a cooperative far outweighed the influence of any one individual retail grocer. AWG provides distributor services to independent grocers in over 30 states with nine distribution centers throughout the South and Southeast regions of the country. In addition to their wholesale foods department, AWG offers a myriad of services from new store design, construction, marketing, product placement and “world class” logistical consultation (cite 11). AWG faces many of the same logistical challenges that other similar wholesalers face to include rising fuel costs, inclement weather, stringent timelines and an ever evolving need for stringent quality. One method to exploit a business’s positive and negative attributes is through the use of a Strength-Weakness-Opportunity-Threat analysis, or SWOT analysis (Cite 11). If used correctly, the analysis results can give insight into potential market areas of expansion and expose vulnerabilities to senior leadership so that they can be mitigated. AWG looks at its Supply Chain Management (SCM) as an integral part of its core business offering multiple services such as logistics to new co-op members. The team members of AWG are positioning themselves for sustainable success, now and in the future.
Levy, Michael, Barton A. Weitz, and Dhruv Grewal. Retailing Management. ed. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill Education, 2014. Print.
The US employment rate has improved over the past years creating a leveled economy market allowing for society to have a more stable income than they have had in recent years. This improvement helps the retail industry to have a growth in the market.
The retail industry is an important indicator for the overall situation of the Canadian economy. Being one of the biggest employers, according to the latest census conducted in 2011, it was ranked first in terms of share of total employment at 11.5%, with more than 1.9 million workers, which clearly demonstrates the strength of the sector.
Over the years, the American department store has developed and evolved as not only a commercial business but also a cultural institution. While it has weathered many storms and changes since its inception and throughout history, its most predominant enemy has been a change in the lifestyle of the American people (Whitaker, 2013). As the customer’s needs and wants have shifted, department stores have struggled to keep up with demands. It has been argued that the decline of the department store has been ongoing for the last 50 years (Whitaker, 2013). This dissertation aims to understand how the department store has historically played a role in consumer culture and spending, and additionally, how this has evolved and changed in today’s retail market. Although department stores may not be able to take all the credit for inventing modern shopping, they certainly made its conventions and conveniences commonplace. They set a new standard for the way the consumer should expect to be treated, the type of services that should be provided, and the convenience that should attend the process of acquiring the necessities and niceties of life all in one place. They made shopping into a leisure pastime. This environment meant shopping was a means of freedom to look around, pick up objects with no obligations to buy. As one historian remarked, department stores: “encouraged a perception of the building as a public place, where consumption itself was almost incidental to the delights of a sheltered promenade in a densely crowded, middle-class urban space” (Whitaker, 2006). Although this perception and view of the department store has changed over the years, this paper aims to follow the trail of how and why that happened.
The development of department stores in Canada gave way to a new modern era of Canadian society. Through the development of mass retail in 1890 and 1940, Canada experienced a spur in the retail industry as large stores such as Eaton’s, Simpson’s and HBC emerged. Donica Belisle's book “Retail Nation: Department Stores and the Making of Modern Canada”, is useful to understand the expansion of the retail industry as it examines department stores activities along with the responses of consumers, employees, governments and critics to gain insights on the evolution of consumer capitalism in Canada through a feminist perspective. In this essay, I will give a brief summary of the book as well as a review based on my opinions of the book and author.
In recent past across the United Kingdom, many prominent retail chains have closed down their business operations at a high rate of more than 30 stores per day, as the economic depression continued. The United Kingdom’s high street went suffering from the declining consumer confidence and spending as a consequence. Some retail outlets have been put under receivership as well as under administration. High-profiled administrations included retail giants such as Woolworths, Comet and Blockbuster.
Due to the good establishment of the business, it has huge market national. The company has therefore opened many retail shops and stores all over the country to ensure that their products are accessible to the customers. The entity provides a favorable environment, and many clients view the place as a fun shopping place to be. The retailer has targeted a big pool of customer because of the variety of products it sells. The stores products vary from kitchen goods, jewelry, and electronics clothes to hardware
Exploring the profitability of this industry, domestically retailers are struggling to maintain high profit margins. The solid industry growth expected for the coming years is highly supported by the economic turnaround in 2011, however many small retailers are feeling the pressure of low-cost imports . Reduced imports and the continued shifting of manufacturing operations to low-cost countries, creates a trickle down effect onto the fragmented market of companies, with a mix of small and large participants (see Exhibit 2). Increases in price-setting control of wholesalers, are causing downst...
The industrial revolution changed all that. During the mid-nineteenth century produced conditions which allowed the retail industry to flourish. It was this expansion, however, which prompted divergence in the development the retailing environments in Canada. The industrialization process required concentrations of large numbers of individuals in single geographic areas (cities) and the development of intra-city transportation systems (such as trolleys and bicycles) to transport individuals to the newly formed factories (and subsequently, to large retailers). Furthermore, a direct outgrowth of the industrialization process was the growth in discretionary income which became available to a large percentage of the population. As the result of the industrial revolution, the social and economic environments of affected areas became ripe for the development of large new retailing enterprises, such as the department store. Timothy Eaton recognized this void, and was the first to introduce the department store concept to Canada. Basically, a department store was an entire building that was structured for the purpose of shopping by selling items such as food products,
“The retail landscape has shifted toward e-commerce, but there are opportunities for department stores to capitalize
On the other hand, most factors prove otherwise. The retail industry does not have high Economies of Scale to be exploited in general . Yet, it is impossible to run department stores like Metro on a small scale . A large retail space, inventory, and warehouse are necessary to host a specialized portfolio of brands and products to better attract both customers and suppliers. Heavy capital requirements and operational expen...
As reported by Janow and Guerreiro (1991) that retailers were selling goods and service to the ultimate consumer. At the time they have also provided service in terms of the information sources for customers, and encouraged a need in order to apparel merchandise. In the United States has the retail store about 2 million. Moreover, about these retail stores were approximately 135,000 retail stores that have specialized in apparel and accessories, and about 70,000 retailers have involved apparel and accessories in their selling mix (Frings, 1991).
The Indian retail industry has emerged as one of the most dynamic and fast-paced industries due to the entry of several new players. It accounts for over 10 per cent of the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and around 8 per cent of the employment. India is the world’s fifth-largest global destination in the retail space.
Retail work is best known for low pay, difficult customers, and long shifts. Although this is at times true, retail work can teach people valuable lessons and skills that are used on and off the job. As a Sears sales associate, I spent my last summer working in retail, enduring both tiresome hours and demanding buyers. Through this experience, I learned tricks and skills that are useful to survive a job in retail.