Task 1 - Describe the distribution process through different channels from the manufacturer through to the customer for the following; an independent retailer and a multiple retailer. (P2)
A channel of distribution is a network of organisations that, combined, perform all the functions required to link producers with consumers. Retailers need to offer right product at the right place at the right time. If the product that a consumer wants is not available then 31% of consumers will buy from a different store, 26% will buy a different brand and 24% will delay their purchase, or not purchase at all.
There are many possible distribution channels. All begin at the manufacturer and end at the customer. For example;

Independent retailer …show more content…

Customer service is a system organized to provide a continuing link between the first contact with the customer, through to the time the order is received and the goods and services delivered and used, with the objective of satisfying customer needs continuously. To provide excellent customer service Tesco will have to invest heavily in business infrastructure. So there has to be a trade-off between customer satisfaction and product delivery. If Tesco decided to hold large stock of inventory to meet the demands of customers the related costs of holding large amounts of inventory increases exceptionally.
Every day about 200 20ft containers full of clothing, TV sets, barbecues and shopping trolleys are shipped out of Kwai Chung Container Port (better known as the Port of Hong Kong) and other nearby harbors, all bound for Tesco stores around the world. More than 60pc of all clothing and 40pc of other non-food products sold in Tesco's UK stores, as well as most of the non-food items sold in the 12 other countries Tesco operates in, are procured via the retailer's global sourcing office in Hong Kong. This trading outpost is responsible for designing, sourcing, overseeing production, quality controlling, and sorting out the customs documentation for 50,000 Tesco product lines. The operation's scale