Organizations engaged in supply and trade intermediary. Trading and intermediary firms

Trade and intermediary activity- this is an activity in which intermediaries act as counterparties in the sale and purchase of goods; engaged in the study of supply and demand of goods and their purchase from producers, wholesale of goods by buyers.

At all stages of the development of the domestic economy, the choice of physical distribution channels belonged to the most urgent tasks solved in the field of logistics (LTO) of production. It was carried out mainly due to the separation of transit and warehouse deliveries. At the same time, significant differences arose in the motivation of the wholesale and production links accepted by intermediaries.

The position of intermediaries in warehouse supplies was determined mainly by the size of orders placed by consumers, the possibilities of their combination, the achievement of total volumes of warehouse supplies that ensure the level of income and the availability of funds for the development of the material and technical base. When solving the problem at the highest levels of management of the MTW system, the log-no approach was partially used - options were chosen that reflect attempts to optimize the levels of total stocks of products and costs in the delivery process, including transport services.

The production links, acting as consumers, considered it expedient for themselves to use warehouse delivery in cases where the funds allocated to them for material resources did not allow them to order products directly to manufacturing enterprises in accordance with the established norms of transit deliveries.

It should be noted that when motivating intermediary links and consumer enterprises, their interests in warehouse supplies coincided in some ways, which contributed to the development of this distribution channel. Therefore, there was a systematic increase in both the volume of warehouse deliveries and their share in the total turnover of products.

However, the absolute and relative volumes of warehouse deliveries clearly did not meet the requirements of intensive economic growth, since they were dictated mainly by the desire of consumers to "keep within the allocated funds."

As for manufacturers-suppliers, they were not only absolutely indifferent to the choice of distribution channels, but their attitude to the fulfillment of orders of intermediary organizations as third-rate customers made them unreliable. In turn, intermediaries showed no interest in making commitments to improve warehouse supplies.

The formation of market relations, bringing to the fore the problem of selling products, has changed the situation that has developed dramatically. The main stakeholder in the organization of rational distribution of goods was the manufacturer of products. In a market economy, its viability depends not only on the production of goods in demand, but also on the ways in which they can be offered and sold to buyers on a mutually beneficial basis.

The market is based on the high activity of the seller, his real interest in the continuous search for effective forms and methods to meet demand. Of course, the activity of the producer does not cause the passivity of the consumer of products - he himself also acts as a producer of goods, works, services. It is important that the consumer, when choosing the best option to meet his demand, has an active partner in the person of the product manufacturer, who is ready and able to offer both the necessary product and a profitable way to purchase it.

The results of the activity of enterprises in market conditions depend entirely on their own enterprise and ability to find and use in a timely manner all the reserves for increasing the efficiency of their production. But this alone is not enough. An important and organic addition to effective production activity is a wide range of active actions in the sphere of circulation, which implies the achievement of the ultimate goal - the sale of goods, which means the actual recognition on the market of the usefulness and rationality of the entire work of the enterprise.

The expediency of a manufacturer turning to an independent reseller arises, as a rule, in the production and sale of products of a fairly wide application, used by many consumers and in small quantities.

The manufacturer cannot do without the help of a reseller for two reasons:

1) the desire to maximize the expansion (or preservation) of its segment in the market in a competitive environment;

2) the impossibility, within the framework of the prices prevailing on the market, to keep their costs at an acceptable level when trying to satisfy a large number of small orders, they spontaneously arrive and fulfill them at the time required by the buyer.

But what is economically unsolvable (or solved with great losses) for the manufacturer is quite achievable for the reseller, who operates in the zone of maximum proximity to the consumer and turns large batches of products purchased into small ones, corresponding to individual demand. At the same time, a high level of service for small consumers is combined with the advantages of loading production from manufacturers with sufficiently large orders and using main transport for the delivery of manufactured products to consumption zones. In turn, resellers carry out large warehouse operations and are able to use vehicles efficiently in delivering goods to the consumers they serve.

Trade and intermediary the link, thus, with the help of other enterprises of the infrastructure, communicates the initial and final links and harmonizes their mutual and at the same time conflicting interests. But at the same time, the presence of an intermediary link in itself raises the problem of its own interests and the economic logic of behavior. This problem is as follows:

1. Choice of "economic niche", that is, an assessment of the content and scope of the possible activity of a reseller in the commodity market. These scales should be sufficient for cost-effective operation, taking into account market prices and projected own costs, which in turn depends on product specialization, the breadth of the range of goods sold, the number of customers served and the service area.

With the same scale of functioning of the intermediary, the area of ​​his activity is directly proportional to the level of his product specialization, while trading costs are inversely proportional to the level of specialization. Thus, narrow specialization implies, other things being equal, the need to expand the service area, but with its limitation depending on transportation costs.

2. Required level of commodity stocks. The fact is that in a trading enterprise, the funds invested in stocks have a much greater impact on the efficiency of its activities than in an industrial one. With approximately the same turnover of fixed production assets in the manufacture and circulation of industrial products, in industry their ratio to material circulating assets is 5-5.5: 1, while in trade in industrial goods it is 0.5: 1. So, if on industrial enterprises have a decisive impact on the overall rate of turnover of all invested funds, as a rule, fixed assets, then in trade and intermediary links - working capital. Therefore, resellers are faced with the problem of resolving the contradiction between their desire to maximize the satisfaction of demand and the maintenance of a sufficiently high level of commodity stocks in a wide range for this, on the one hand, and the need to ensure a high turnover rate of the funds at their disposal, on the other.

In an effort to find a way out of this situation, the intermediary may ignore some of the potential orders of buyers in order to reduce the level of commodity stocks by limiting the range of their purchases to only those types of goods for which lot sizes from manufacturers can be quickly realized. But this means a loss of clientele and a weakening of its position in the market. A more rational and practically real other way is to change the source of receipt of goods, that is, they are purchased not from the manufacturer, but from another reseller, who is more profitable to purchase them in large quantities. In this case, a new link appears in the chain of movement of goods, thanks to which, with a certain increase in costs, it becomes possible to expand the range of goods sold in the final sale link with a minimum level of their stocks.

The modern market with its inherent competitive relations creates conditions for expanding the scope of activities and developing the activity of resellers, who, like manufacturing enterprises, use the concept of marketing in their activities.

Trade and intermediary activity in the conditions of developed market relations is characterized by the following features:

1. Motives and conditions of occurrence - the result of the action of the objective laws of commodity production and circulation, the formation of the real needs of business entities.

2. Role and place of mediation- this is an organic part of the trade and distribution system, effectively promotes the promotion of goods from the manufacturer to the consumer.

3. The subject of commercial mediation- any product is intended for professional use or resale.

4. Economic guarantees- an intermediary-entrepreneur shares the risk with the producers of goods in connection with their impossibility to sell or sell at prices that do not provide the necessary level of profit.

5. The main objectives of the mediator- the intermediary works for the benefit of its counterparties and in its own interests in order to obtain the corresponding profit.

6. Legal relation to the subject of mediation-Basically acquire ownership of goods.

7. Organizational conditions of functioning- diversity and dynamism of organizational forms of mediation, types of work and services.

8. Degree of freedom and activity limits- Free expedient specialization in the market segment where a qualifying advantage can be achieved.

9. Methods and techniques of working with consumers- a differentiated approach to different needs, focusing on specific consumer needs, carried out on the basis of marketing research of a segmented market.

10. Source of income- payment, determined by the socially necessary costs for the implementation of these works within the wholesale price of the manufacturer and the price of demand.

11. Remuneration of labor - based on the results of activities and the real contribution of each employee.

The activities of the trading and intermediary link should be based on a number of principles:

1. Increasing the role of strategic planning and management to ensure stable production and consumption of products in the national economy, creating on this basis conditions for a more stable and reliable functioning of the sphere of circulation.

2. Allocation of economic in stimulating material and financial flows to the most efficient sectors, based on the economic, political and social tasks solved by the country at each specific stage.

3. Worldwide mobilization of internal reserves, ensuring the rational use and economy of financial and material resources in each link of the national economic complex.

4. Increasing responsibility for the fulfillment of contractual obligations for the supply and transportation of products by all participants in the market turnover on the basis of mutual rights and obligations stipulated by economic agreements, contracts, orders.

5. The most efficient organization of the process of selling products manufactured by enterprises and purchasing material resources by consumers in the required assortment and in a form prepared for industrial consumption with minimal distribution costs and total stocks.

6. Creation of economic conditions and the use of marketing tools that make it possible to qualitatively and effectively meet the needs of buyers, flexibly maneuver material resources and accelerate their turnover in favor of stabilizing and growing the economy.

7. Creation of a modern highly technically equipped material and technical base with key elements of the market infrastructure in the commercial link, its continuous improvement for the proportional development of the sphere of circulation in accordance with the requirements of the sphere of production.

8. The use of scientific methods of material flow management based on modern logistics approaches and methods, the wide use of the possibilities of the electronic market, the Internet system in order to maximize and timely meet the market demands of buyers.

9. The use of forms and methods of social and ethical marketing to establish mechanisms for mutually beneficial agreements not only with market partners, but also in society through the active use of communication models, in particular public relations.

Compliance with the principles of the formation of commercial relations will allow the trade and intermediary system to actively influence production, identify discrepancies between supply and demand for certain types of goods and services, and form rational commercial relations between suppliers and consumers.

An intermediary firm is a person or firm that stands between the producer and the consumer of the product and promotes it.

An intermediary exists where there are civilized market relations. By identifying problems and helping to solve them, the mediator acts as a kind of catalyst.

Trade and intermediary firms include enterprises that are legally and economically independent of the manufacturer and consumer of goods. They operate in order to extract profits, which they receive either as a result of the difference between prices from producers and the prices at which these goods are sold to buyers, or in the form of remuneration for the services provided in promoting goods to the market.

Classification of trading and intermediary firms

The experience of developed market economies shows that a large number of various enterprises, organizations and individuals who perform trade and intermediary functions are involved in it.

Intermediary firms can be classified according to various criteria.

The main feature is functions performed. On this basis, there are:

• universal intermediaries - perform the whole range of services. Ego distributors, wholesalers-merchants;
• specialized intermediaries - perform separate functions, so they are divided into:
  • information and contact (contribute to the establishment of economic relations between suppliers and consumers),
  • informational (pure) - they do not have a product at their disposal and carry out the implementation according to the conditions of the manufacturer,
  • search engines (they are called sales agents) are, as a rule, agents of industrial firms that are looking for buyers in certain regions. They work on the basis of an agreement or instructions, facilitate the conclusion of transactions between the seller (commodity owner) and the buyer, concluding them on behalf of the commodity owner,
  • attorneys (importing agents) act on the basis of a commission agreement on behalf and at the expense of the principal. Agents conclude contracts, which stipulate their powers in terms of the technical and commercial terms of the transaction. Contracts signed by agents are executed by principals. Agents are rewarded for their services. Agents may be firms or legal entities licensed for this type of activity,
  • wholesalers-messengers carry out sales by mail, i.e. send catalogs for certain groups of goods, and orders are sent by mail,
  • wholesalers-travelers not only sell for cash, but also deliver goods to customers. Usually this is a limited range of short-term storage products (bread, milk, fruits),
  • wholesalers-organizers work with those that are characterized by the absence of containers (heavy equipment, timber, coal). They do not have stocks of goods, but, receiving an order from the buyer (retailers), they find a manufacturer who ships this product to the buyer.

Types of intermediaries

On the basis of subordination and the nature of the operations performed, intermediaries can be divided into three types:

• independent;
• formally independent;
• dependent (related to production).

Independent intermediaries

Independent intermediaries(both legal entities and individuals) act on their own behalf and at their own expense. In relation to the manufacturer, they act as buyers who purchase goods on the basis of a sales contract. They become the owners of the product and can sell it in any market and at any price.

Distinguish:

• full-service wholesalers who provide inventory, credit, delivery, and management assistance services. They can carry out operations with a different assortment;
• wholesalers with a limited service cycle, which provide customers with significantly less service. They can trade for cash, without delivery of goods, with usually a more limited assortment.

Independent intermediaries form the basis of the system of wholesale structures, since they cover a large number of retail trade enterprises and perform a fairly wide range of operations. This includes dealers, distributors, jobbers, wholesalers-merchants, wholesalers, trading houses, wholesalers-travelers, wholesalers-organizers, wholesalers-consigners, wholesalers-messengers.

Dealers- an individual or legal entity that buys goods from industrial enterprises and sells them to buyers, taking on service responsibilities (minor repairs, supply of spare parts). Their income is formed due to the difference in purchase and sale prices.

Distributors(eng. - distribution) - an individual or legal entity serving various industries, having warehouses and vehicles and carrying out commercial activities on its own behalf and at its own expense. Most often they are engaged in the sale of industrial products or sell imported goods in the country.

A distributor who purchases a product, stocks it, stores it, prepares it for final consumption, constitutes a “full service” (or regular type).

Distributors of the regular type work by specialization, have a clear number of positions for each group, so they can use specialized means of transportation, loading, unloading and storage. They are mainly in the mechanical engineering market (computers, televisions, cars).

Another group of distributors - " irregular type” (with an incomplete, limited set of services) only purchases goods from regular producers and sells them. This is a larger group. They are engaged in the sale of perishable agricultural products or small industrial batches of a diverse range on the principle of "buy - take away" ("cash and carry"), i.e. without services.

Jobbers- dealers who, at their own peril and risk, buy and sell goods on their own (in small lots).

Jobbers can also work on stock exchanges. These are exchange intermediaries who carry out their intermediary activities by buying large consignments of goods and immediately selling them to other jobbers or brokers, while earning on the price difference. They make transactions on their own behalf and at their own expense, influence the price level and bear the risk in full.

Formally independent intermediaries

Formally independent intermediaries appeared in connection with the desire of manufacturers to include these enterprises in their production and sales cycle through a system of contracts. For this, the following types of contracts are used:

• contract-commission, which is concluded with attorneys or sales agents;
• a commission agreement that defines the powers of commission agents (find partners, sign agreements with them on their own behalf, but at the expense of the seller or buyer);
• simple mediation agreement.

Dependent intermediaries

Dependent intermediaries are authorized sales agents (as if the sales department of the manufacturer) and work on the basis of fixed-term and open-ended employment agreements. Dependent intermediaries do not claim goods, working for a commission.

Broker- individuals or legal entities (brokerage houses) who find mutually interested sellers and buyers, bring them together, but do not participate in the transaction, neither on their own behalf, nor on behalf of the guarantor.

Their task is to find a buyer for the manufacturer's (seller's) products and a seller for the buyer and facilitate the signing of a contract between them.

Purchasing offices- independent commercial enterprises. Payment for their services is made at the rate of a certain percentage of annual sales.

Purchasing offices are close to brokers by the nature of their activities (provide their clients with information on price movements, information about potential partners, conclude transactions at the direction of their clients).

Rice. 12.2. Types of dependent intermediaries

Industrial agents- independent specialized firms that work with non-competing, complementary goods and have the exclusive right to sell them in a certain territory.

Sales agents- enterprises and individuals that perform, under an agreement with the manufacturer, the entire range of functions for the distribution of the entire range of products.

Sales agents- natural or legal persons who, on the basis of an agreement with the seller or buyer, have the right to facilitate the conclusion of transactions for a relatively long period. Sales agents act as representatives of sellers and buyers and receive remuneration under an employment contract depending on the performance.

Groups of sales agents:

• representatives of manufacturers - individuals or legal entities with whom the manufacturer enters into an agreement, which determines the pricing policy for the purchase and sale of goods, the territory, the boundaries of the agent's activities, the procedure for submitting orders, the service system, the size of commission rates;
• distributors;
• purchasing agents - representatives of buyers who take responsibility for the safety, quantity, quality and incoming goods. They act on behalf of the buyer and fulfill his conditions for the purchase of goods. For their work they receive remuneration as a percentage of the volume of purchased and delivered goods.

Intermediary commissioners operate on the basis of a commission agreement concluded with the commodity owner or buyer.

The owners of the goods for this type of operation are called the committent. He instructs the commission agent to make transactions on his own behalf and at the expense of the committent, who bears all the commercial risk.

Commissioners act as sellers of goods to third parties and are responsible for the safety of products. They are not responsible for the execution of transactions by a third party, payment obligations.

Consignee- a wholesaler (enterprises or individuals) who receives goods from the guarantor to his warehouse and sells them on his own behalf, but at the expense of the supplier-manufacturer by a certain date. He offers non-food items, sets the price himself. He sends a van to the store, and the representative equips the display of goods on the trading floor.

The activity is based on a consignment agreement. Consignment agreement - a special type commission agreements.

Consignees act mainly in foreign trade transactions. The consignee makes payments to the consignee for the sale of goods. Goods not sold by the deadline may be returned to the exporter.

Trade brokers operate as distributors of a regular type, but have a narrower profile of activities and are associated with bulky goods, the transportation and transfer of which is very laborious.

There are so-called informal intermediaries - as a rule, these are individuals who have personal connections in various fields, acting on their own behalf. They rely on their reputation, knowledge, experience and personal relationships. As a rule, they do not bear material obligations, but receive a certain remuneration for their services, and are not bound by legal contracts and obligations.

In recent years, especially in Western countries, a category has appeared "virtual" intermediaries who use the Internet for their activities. The seller or buyer places his websites on the Internet, where he indicates the type of his activity, the goods or services offered.

Factors influencing the choice of intermediary

There are many factors that go into choosing a mediator. These include:

• legal security of the intermediary, i.e. the presence of the necessary and legally correctly executed documents, giving the right to provide intermediary services;
• the competence of the intermediary, i.e. knowledge of the essence of the tasks that he needs to solve, knowledge of the consumer properties of the goods, the ability, if necessary, to promptly assist in the transportation, storage, preservation of the goods, timely payment for the goods according to the agreement;
• financial security, i.e. the ability of the intermediary to fulfill its obligations and bear material liability in accordance with the agreements concluded by the interested parties;
• the reputation of the intermediary, i.e. the opinion of those who have already used or use its services, correctness in drawing up and fulfilling their obligations and agreements.

Section 7. TRADING AND INTERMEDIARY ACTIVITIES
IN THE COMMODITY MARKET

7.1. Principles of organizing trade and intermediary activities
in the commodity market

Trading and intermediary activity is an activity in which intermediaries act as counterparties in the sale and purchase of goods; engaged in the study of demand and supply of goods and their purchase from producers, wholesale of goods by buyers.
At all stages of the development of the domestic economy, the choice of channels for the physical movement of goods belonged to the most urgent tasks that are solved in the field of logistics (MTB) of production. It was carried out mainly by distinguishing between transit and warehouse deliveries. At the same time, significant differences arose in the motivation of decisions that are made by intermediaries of the wholesale link and production links.
The results of the activities of enterprises in market conditions depend on their own entrepreneurial spirit and ability to timely find and use all the reserves to increase the efficiency of their production. But only this is not enough. An important and organic addition to efficient production activity is a wide range of active actions in the sphere of circulation, which provides for the achievement of the ultimate goal - the sale of goods, which means the actual recognition on the market of the usefulness and rationality of the entire work of the enterprise.
The expediency of a manufacturer turning to an independent reseller arises, as a rule, in the production and sale of products of a fairly wide application, used by many consumers and in small quantities.
The manufacturer cannot do without the help of a reseller for two reasons:
- the desire to maximize the expansion (or preservation) of its segment in the market in a competitive environment;
- the impossibility, within the framework of the prices prevailing on the market, to keep their costs at an acceptable level when trying to satisfy a large number of small orders that spontaneously arrive and their implementation at the time required by the buyer.
But what is economically unsolvable (or solved with great losses) for the manufacturer is quite achievable for the reseller, who operates in the zone of maximum proximity to the consumer and turns large batches of products that he buys into small ones, corresponding to individual demand.
The trading and intermediary link, thus, provides, through other infrastructure enterprises, the connection of the initial and final links and the coordination of their mutual and at the same time conflicting interests. But at the same time, the presence of an intermediary link in itself raises the problem of its own interests and the economic logic of behavior. This problem is as follows:
1. The choice of an "economic niche", that is, an assessment of the possibilities and scale of the likely activities of a reseller in the commodity market. These scales should be sufficient for cost-effective functioning, taking into account the prices that develop in the market and projected own costs, which in turn depends on the product specialization, the breadth of the range of goods that are sold, the number of customers served and the service area.
With the same scale of functioning of the intermediary, the area of ​​​​his activity is directly proportional to the level of his product specialization, while trading costs are inversely proportional to the level of specialization. Thus, narrow specialization allows, ceteris paribus, the need to expand the service area, but with its limitation depending on transportation costs.
2. Required level of inventory. The fact is that in a trading enterprise, the funds invested in stocks have a much greater impact on the efficiency of its activities than in an industrial one.
The modern market with its inherent competitive relations creates conditions for expanding the scope of activities and developing the activity of resellers, who, like manufacturing enterprises, use the concept of marketing in their activities.
Trade and intermediary activity in the conditions of developed market relations is characterized by the following features:
1. The motives and conditions for the emergence are the result of the action of the objective laws of commodity production and circulation, the formation of the real needs of business entities.
2. The role and place of mediation is an organic part of the trade and distribution system, which effectively promotes the promotion of goods from producer to consumer.
3. Subject of reseller - any product intended for professional use or resale.
4. Economic guarantees - an intermediary entrepreneur shares the risk with the producers of goods in connection with their impossibility to sell or sell at prices that do not provide the necessary level of profit.
5. The main objectives of the intermediary - the intermediary operates in the interests of its counterparties and in its own interests in order to obtain an appropriate profit.
6. Legal relation to the subject of mediation (mainly acquire the right of ownership of goods).
7. Organizational conditions of functioning - a variety of organizational forms of mediation, types of work and services.
8. The measure of freedom and the boundaries of activity - free expedient specialization in that segment of the market where a qualifying advantage can be achieved.
9. Methods and techniques of working with consumers - a differentiated approach to different needs, focusing on the direct needs of consumers, carried out on the basis of marketing research of a segmented market.
10. Source of income - payment, which is determined by the necessary costs for the implementation of these works within the limits of the wholesale price of the manufacturer and the demand price.
11. Remuneration of labor - based on the results of activities and the real contribution of each employee.
The activities of the trading and intermediary link should be based on a number of principles:
1. Increasing the role of strategic planning and management to ensure stable production and consumption of products in the national economy, creating on this basis conditions for a more stable and reliable functioning of the sphere of circulation.
2. Allocation of economic priorities in stimulating material and financial flows to the most efficient sectors, based on economic, political and social tasks.
3. All-round mobilization of internal reserves, ensuring the rational use and saving of financial and material resources in each link of the economic complex.
4. Increasing responsibility for the fulfillment of contractual obligations regarding the supply and transportation of products by all participants in the market turnover on the basis of mutual rights and obligations arising from economic agreements, contracts, orders.
5. The most efficient organization of the process of selling products manufactured by enterprises and purchasing material resources by consumers in the required assortment and in a form prepared for industrial consumption with minimal distribution costs and total stocks.
6. Creation of economic conditions and the use of marketing tools that make it possible to qualitatively and effectively meet the needs of buyers, flexibly maneuver material resources and accelerate their turnover in the interests of stabilizing and growing the economy.
7. Creation of a modern highly technically equipped material and technical base with key elements of the market infrastructure in the commercial link, its continuous improvement for the proportional development of the sphere of circulation in accordance with the requirements of the sphere of production.
8. The use of scientific methods of material flow management based on modern logistics approaches and methods, the wide use of the possibilities of the electronic market, the Internet in order to maximize and timely meet the market demands of buyers.
9. The use of forms and methods of social and ethical marketing to establish mechanisms for mutually beneficial agreements not only with market partners, but also in society through the active use of communication models, in particular public relations.
Compliance with the principles of the formation of commercial relations will allow the trade and intermediary system to actively influence production, identify discrepancies between supply and demand for certain types of goods and services, and form rational commercial relations between suppliers and consumers.

7.2. Determining the volume of trade and intermediary activities

The main determinant indicator of the performance of trade and intermediary enterprises is the turnover. Its indicators reflect the scale and intensity of the intermediate and final exchange of goods. The value of trade turnover is prone to significant fluctuations with changes in market conditions, price levels and tariffs, and other external conditions.
Being the main estimated indicator of the volume of activity of a trading enterprise, turnover also serves as a determining indicator of the formation of its resource potential (the volume and composition of labor, material and financial resources) and resource costs (the amount and composition of distribution costs). At the same time, in a market economy, the turnover is subordinate to the profit of the enterprise from trade and intermediary activities.
In the general composition of the trade turnover of a trading enterprise, the following types of it are distinguished:
1. Retail turnover - characterizes the sale of consumer goods to the population and other end consumers, completing the process of their circulation in the consumer market.
2. Wholesale turnover - characterizes the sale of goods that have undergone certain technological processing at a given enterprise (transportation, storage, sorting, etc.) to various wholesale buyers who organize the process of their subsequent sale to end consumers. As part of the wholesale turnover of a trading enterprise, the following forms are usually distinguished:
1) sale of goods to wholesale buyers of their region - regional turnover;
2) sale of goods to wholesale buyers in other regions of their country - interregional trade;
3) sale of goods to wholesale buyers of other countries - foreign trade turnover for export;
3. Trade and intermediary turnover - characterizes the volume of intermediary operations for the purchase and sale of goods carried out by a trading enterprise without any technological processing. As part of the trade and intermediary trade turnover, there are:
circulation on the exchange market;
circulation in the over-the-counter market.
1. The total volume of trade - characterizes the volume of sales of goods in the context of certain types of trade. According to this, the total volume is allocated:
- retail trade;
- wholesale trade;
- trade and intermediary trade. The sum of the total volume of all types of sales characterizes the gross volume of trade.
2. Composition of trade - characterizes the structure of the total volume of trade of certain types in the context of its various forms. So, as part of the volume of retail trade, the following are distinguished: the volume of sales of goods to the population and the volume of small-scale wholesale sales; the volume of sales of goods with immediate payment and the volume of sales of goods on credit, etc.
3. The structure of turnover - characterizes the commodity-group composition of the sale of goods.
The main goal of managing the turnover is to ensure high rates of development of the trade enterprise and meet the demand of the customer contingents served.
In the system of managing the turnover of a trading enterprise, the assessment and forecasting of the volume of trade is of great importance. The main prerequisites for developing forecasts of wholesale turnover are:
1) forecast for the development of retail trade;
2) information about potential manufacturing partners, the range of manufactured goods, their properties, prices, terms of delivery, stock quotes;
3) information about market conditions, commodity markets, demand and buyers;
4) orders-applications for goods served by retail trade enterprises and other enterprises and organizations;
5) predictive calculations of commodity resources in the context of sources that may be involved in the turnover;
6) an order for the supply of goods for state needs;
7) prospects for the development of production in the area of ​​activity of the wholesale enterprise;
8) focus on ensuring the necessary profitability;
9) analysis of the dynamics of the volume and structure of wholesale trade, the state of commodity stocks and commodity supply.
The functioning of a wholesale enterprise in the market is associated with restrictions that determine the boundaries of its activities, in particular, wholesale trade. These restrictions are:
- resources (material, labor), that is, the forecasts of trade turnover cannot be more than the available resources;
– financial (solvency);
- temporary, due to inflation, which allows for a slowdown in turnover;
- the volume of consumer demand - the volume of sales is always equal or less than the volume of demand.
The nature of these restrictions depends on the state of the country's economy, the level of independence of the enterprise, the level of market transformations.
Trade enterprises cannot independently, in full form the level of prices for goods, implementing their pricing policy in the consumer market. The basis of pricing policy in the consumer market is formed by its manufacturer, choosing one or another marketing strategy.
Trade enterprises are forced to largely focus on the pricing policy of the manufacturer.
Unlike the manufacturer, trade enterprises in the vast majority of cases form a pricing policy not for specific varieties of goods, but for a certain assortment of them. Thus, at trade enterprises, the pricing policy is not single-commodity, but poly-commodity.
In addition to the commodity element itself, the level of trade services also has a significant impact on the pricing policy of trade enterprises. This is due to the fact that the level of prices at which goods are sold at trade enterprises is integral to the specific level of service offered to customers at these enterprises.
The price system at trade enterprises is, as a rule, more rigid than at manufacturing enterprises. For example, retail does not even use the concept of a "basic price" that is "negotiable" during the sale process. And even the system of price discounts used by individual retailers is standard in relation to individual price situations or categories of buyers. This makes it difficult to implement the pricing policy at trade enterprises.
Trade enterprises do not apply the price strategies of manufacturers associated with a long-term unfavorable situation in the market for a particular consumer product. As a rule, the conditions of trading activity allow the trading enterprise to quickly leave such a product market, that is, stop purchasing and selling this product, while the manufacturer must actively fight for the return of funds invested in production.
The subject of the pricing policy of a commercial enterprise is not the price of the goods, but only one of its elements - the trade markup. It is this element of the price of goods that characterizes the price of trading services offered to the buyer when it is sold to trading enterprises. And only this element of the price, taking into account the conjuncture of the consumer market, the conditions of its economic activity, the level of the producer's price and other factors, the trade enterprise forms independently.
The possibility of using price discounts when purchasing and selling products is hard to overestimate. Providing a discount to the recipient of the goods is a kind of incentive for quick payment for the purchased goods. The use of a discount means that the consumer can reduce the cost of delivery when settling with a wholesale intermediary within a stipulated period. It is beneficial for the wholesaler to provide a discount, since the consumer’s quick payment for receiving the goods gives him the opportunity to use the funds received to pay for various expenses without attracting his own sources of financing.
The use of discounts provides consumers with significant benefits, which are as follows:
no need to finance operations from internal reserves;
decrease in the cost of a unit of goods;
increase in average profit.
When purchasing products from a supplier, the wholesale intermediary, as well as its consumers, seeks to maximize the benefits of discounts. The use of discounts allows him to reduce the cost of operating expenses by up to 30%. Such savings are more profitable than external financing.
Section 3. ROLE OF COMMERCIAL AND INTERMEDIATE ORGANIZATIONS
IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF INFRASTRUCTURE

3.1. Agency firms

Agent - a person independent of the principal, is not in an employment relationship with him, carries out commercial activities independently. The agency agreement regulates three types of relationships:

between principal and agent;
between the principal and a third party;
between an agent and a third party.

Under an agency agreement, one party (agent) undertakes, for a fee, to perform mediation and other actions on behalf of the other party (principal) on its own behalf, but at the expense of the principal or on behalf and at the expense of the principal.
On a transaction made by an agent with a third party on its own behalf
and at the expense of the principal, the agent acquires rights and accepts certain
obligations, but in a transaction made by an agent with a third party on behalf of and
at the expense of the principal, the rights and obligations arise directly from
principal.
The principal is obliged to pay the agent remuneration in the amount and in the manner established in the agency agreement. If this agreement does not specify the amount of the agency fee and cannot be determined based on the terms of the agreement, then the fee is payable in the amount provided for by the relevant legal document. In the absence of conditions in the agreement on the procedure for paying the agency fee, the principal is obliged to pay the fee within a week from the moment the agent submits to him a complete commercial report for the past period (unless a different procedure for paying the fee follows from the essence of the agreement or business practices).
For its activities, the agency firm receives a commission as a percentage of the amount of concluded transactions, and regardless of the final results of these transactions for the principal. The agency firm is obliged to act within the powers specified in the agency agreement, however, its activities should not be subject to supervision, direct control by the principal.
According to the nature and volume of commercial activity, agency firms are divided into:
- universal - can perform any legal actions on behalf of the principal;
- special - make only transactions specifically indicated in the power of attorney issued by the principal;
- general - have the right to conclude any transactions in the field of activity of the principal.
The agency firm may be endowed with exclusive rights and be the only intermediary organization that has the right to conclude contracts of a commercial legal nature in a given territory in the interests of a partner. Such agency firms work in import-export trade and in the field of trade in services. The agent can assume the duties of a delcredere, that is, to guarantee the execution of the transaction to the principal he represents. In the event that a third party (legal or natural) fails to fulfill its obligations under the transaction, the agent assumes compensation for the principal's financial losses. If this ultimately became the reason for the non-fulfillment of a commercial legal transaction, the agent is released from his obligations.
The following types of agency firms operate on the commodity market of Ukraine:
a) producers' agents - they work at several enterprises that produce marketable products, have the right to sell specific products in a certain territory, deal with complementary, non-competitive goods. They represent several manufacturers complementing each other's goods. In the agency agreement with each manufacturer, the price policy, territorial boundaries of activity, the procedure for passing orders, services for the delivery of goods, warranty obligations, commission rates, etc. are agreed.
b) marketing agents - they have commercial and economic relations with medium and small enterprises, they are engaged in the sale of all their commercial products. They replace the principal's sales and marketing apparatus and work on prices, loans, the volume and range of supplies, marketing, rationalization of economic relations, product distribution, etc.
c) agents-commission agents - enter into physical possession of the goods, then independently sell them on their own behalf, but at the expense of the principal. They have their own or rented warehouse space for receiving, storing and dispensing goods. They provide relevant services to the subjects of the commodity market: consulting, information support, the formation of a product range, the preparation and conclusion of agreements and contracts, the rationalization of commodity circulation, etc. As a rule, such agency firms do not work under a long-term agreement with the principal. Their services are used by enterprises when it is urgent to sell medium and large volumes of commodity surpluses.
Intermediary agency firms operate under the supervision of the relevant services of the supplier - manufacturer of products, which strive to create an environment of mutual understanding between the manufacturer and the agency firm, to instill in the latter a sense of loyalty and pride both for the manufacturer and for their company.
Working with intermediary agency firms requires providing them with assistance, as well as putting forward strict requirements regarding the main strategic line pursued by the manufacturer of goods in all matters of selling their products. At the same time, the manufacturer must avoid undesirable conflict situations and not hamper the agency firm's initiative in commercial work.
The manufacturer, well versed in the market situation, systematically takes various measures to encourage and stimulate the work of the intermediary.
The agent firm must know what key indicators of its performance are estimated by the manufacturer of the goods. These may include: sales volumes for a certain period, timely mutual settlements, the degree of participation in advertising costs, the level of technical service of the sold products and their warranty service, customer satisfaction, the development of the material and technical base of the intermediary company, etc. One of the best options – joint development of the main criteria for evaluating the work of an agency firm.
The key to the successful activity of agency firms is confidence in further long-term cooperation with suppliers-manufacturers in the commodity market.

3.2. Dealer and distribution firms

Distributors (from the English Distributor - distributor) play a significant role in the commodity supply of market entities, which are engaged in the sale of goods.
The distributor receives the exclusive right to purchase, store, sell, determine the list of goods and services in a particular market.
Distribution firms are independent, relatively large commercial and intermediary organizations that have at their disposal their own or rented warehouse space, which sell goods on the basis of wholesale purchases at their own expense of marketable products directly from manufacturers, deliver them to a warehouse, organize storage and shipment ( vacation) to buyers.
The distribution firm is closely associated with the commodity producer, but is not its subsidiary, although it shares a certain commercial risk with it. A variant of the existence of a general distribution company is possible, which organizes the sale of goods through its own grassroots distribution network. The subjects of the commodity market often use distribution companies to actively promote their products to the markets, especially to other regions.
Distributors are conditionally divided into two groups:
1) distributors of "regular type" - carry out a full range of services, both commercial and intermediary, and production nature;
2) distributors of "irregular type" - carry out a limited list of commercial and intermediary services. Such distributors mainly work with small and medium-sized merchants, consumer services enterprises, the population that buys goods in small volumes.
Distribution firms distribute marketable products in two ways:
direct sale method;
multi-level (network) marketing method. In this case, the distributor should not only be a seller, but also act as a psychologist, consultant, organizer and mentor.
A distribution firm that operates on the basis of the exclusive distribution of the manufacturer's goods in a certain market area is called an exclusive (general) distributor.
From the point of view of economic efficiency, distributors are characterized by a high level of specialization, which allows the creation and rational use of appropriate facilities for the storage and transportation of marketable products.
Depending on the nature of the product specialization, there are:
1) multi-product distributors - those who do not have a strictly defined specialization and sell diversified products;
2) specialized distributors. It is easier and more reliable to work as such a distributor, since he finds his “niche”, owns a certain “know-how” in it, determines and presents on a particular market the commercial products that potential consumers need now, which is accompanied by appropriate services.
An important part of the work of a distribution company is the establishment and development of relationships with dealers.
A dealer (from the English dealer - trader, agent) is an independent, relatively medium and small entrepreneur (individual or legal entity), who carries out professional trading operations, consisting in the acquisition at his own expense from various sellers (manufacturers, agents, distributors) in bulk of goods , which are in mass demand, for further resale. When buying goods, the dealer becomes their owner for a while, and then resells them on his own behalf in any market for a certain price to individual buyers in the form of small wholesale or retail trade.
Such firms act as intermediaries between manufacturers, brokers; their main activity is the resale of goods with their provision to consumers in the required quantities, sets, batches. The dealer company itself chooses the goods, sellers, buyers and at the same time can have commercial and economic relations with several subjects of the commodity market.
A characteristic feature of the work of dealer companies is the need for a quick turnover of invested funds. Due to the lack of their own large funds, dealer firms are often forced to resort to the use of borrowed capital. Not having, as a rule, their own warehouse space, dealer firms, in order to reduce the costs of maintaining a leased warehouse, strive to sell marketable products as quickly as possible. Rent for warehouse space, high interest on bank loans force these firms to minimize the time it takes to sell goods to consumers. Consequently, dealer firms are characterized by the execution of trade transactions quickly, within a strictly specified time frame. It is no coincidence that such firms are called "just in time".
They can provide both producers and consumers of goods with a wide range of services, namely:
marketing research;
advertising of commercial products;
pre-sales service;
centralized delivery of goods to customers;
installation, assembly, adjustment, running-in of machines, mechanisms, equipment;
after-sales technical service;
organization of repair of the most complex and expensive units;
collection, generalization and provision to the commodity producer of information about defects, design miscalculations identified during the operation of machinery and equipment.
Taking into account the services provided, manufacturers often provide a dealer company with a discount on the sale price of the goods. The profit of a dealer firm consists of the difference between the price at which the product was purchased and the price of its sale to the subjects of the commodity market, as well as income from the services provided.

3.3. Brokerage organizations

A broker (from the English broker - commission agent) is an intermediary in the commodity market, whose main responsibility is a set of counterparties on the commodity exchange. Broker - an individual registered on the commodity exchange as an entrepreneur who has a contractual relationship with a brokerage organization. This is a pure intermediary who does not have goods at his disposal even temporarily, and does not have serious powers to independently conduct trading operations without the power of attorney of clients. The broker cannot act as a buyer or seller of goods; is not a representative of the parties to the transaction; is not in a contractual relationship with either the seller or the buyer, but acts on the basis of their separate powers of attorney; receives remuneration in the form of commissions.
The broker must be a specialist in market conditions, know the specific market in detail, feel the psychology of sellers and buyers, own the specifics of the sale of different types of goods, as well as legal rules and conclusions on trading operations.
Brokerage organizations are created in the form of firms and offices - resellers in the process of organizing and making transactions for the purchase and sale of inventory items on commodity exchanges. Brokerage operations provide for the establishment of contact between the seller and the buyer with the help of an intermediary broker.
The broker must be, first of all, a specialist in market conditions, know the specific market in detail, confidently determine the possibilities of purchasing and selling marketable products, feel the psychology of sellers and buyers, be familiar with the specifics of the sale of various types of goods, as well as legal rules and techniques for concluding commercial transactions. Its activities are paid based on the marketable products sold or purchased through its mediation.
A brokerage organization - an exchange intermediary operating in the commodity market, can be a brokerage firm, a brokerage office. The brokerage firm is an independent enterprise,
etc.................

When organizing sales through a trade and intermediary link, the exporter solves the problem of selecting an intermediary firm. The right choice of an intermediary largely determines the degree of efficiency of the transaction. When choosing an intermediary, the degree of solidity of the company is analyzed, it is considered how conscientiously it treats its duties, its business credibility, the possibility of maintenance, the professional level of engineering and technical services, and the availability of material and technical base.

The choice of an intermediary firm is also determined by how large the circle of customers served by it is, since the exporter prefers to turn to an intermediary for whom he is the only principal for the sale of this product.

trading and intermediary firms include firms that are legally and economically independent of the producer and consumer of goods. They operate for profit. Profits can be earned in two ways:

As the difference between the prices for the purchase of goods from exporters and the prices at which these goods are sold to buyers;

In the form of remuneration for the services provided to promote goods to foreign markets.

The main activity of trading and intermediary firms is commercial activity. However, the largest of them in some cases also carry out production activities (processing of purchased and sold goods), transportation of goods, and insurance. These functions help to carry out trading activities.

Trading and intermediary firms, depending on the nature of the operations performed, are divided into trading, commission, agency, brokerage.

trading firms carry out resale operations at their own expense and on their own behalf. They work mainly with regular suppliers, with whom relationships are built on a long-term basis. By the nature of the operations carried out, there are trading houses, export, import, wholesale, retail firms, distributors, stocks.

Trading houses, as a rule, are transnational corporations of a conglomerate type, which, along with a foreign trade company, include manufacturing, banking, insurance, transport, retail and other firms. The trading house does not limit its activities to any one product group. It carries out at its own expense export-import barter and other foreign trade operations for a wide range of goods and services and implements a whole range of transactions interconnected in terms of efficiency, interest of partners, mutual settlements with the simultaneous use of various forms of foreign economic relations.

Trading houses perform the following functions:

Buy goods from manufacturers or wholesalers in their country and resell them abroad;

Acquire foreign goods abroad and resell them to local wholesalers or retailers, industrial consumers;

Carry out separate commission assignments;

Providing services in the field of insurance, repair and maintenance, warehousing, engineering, finance;

Invest in production, buy full ownership of the enterprise, lease equipment (leasing), provide loans;

They carry out investment cooperation with foreign partners in the construction of facilities.

Export firms are trading enterprises that purchase goods at their own expense in the domestic market, and then resell them on their own behalf abroad. They sometimes carry out commission assignments, while acting as commission agents for foreign firms.

Export firms, depending on the functions performed and the range of goods, are divided into:

Specialized, which trade in any one product or products that are similar in terms of nomenclature. At the same time, transactions for any one group of goods account for over 50% of sales. Sales goods are mainly goods of light and lіsopaperovoї industry;

Universal, selling a wide range of mass consumer goods and exporting products from several industries. These firms buy goods from many enterprises located in different areas and sell them to several countries. Agreements are concluded with samples of goods available to them;

Firms exporting agricultural products (grain, cotton, wool, tea, rubber, coffee, silk, etc.). These firms operate in markets (most often in developing countries), where consumers and producers, due to their diversity and numbers, are not able to organize their own network of distribution channels. They resort to the services of intermediary producers, connecting them with direct producers (farmers). Intermediaries-purchasers control a significant merchandising network: from buyers who purchase goods directly from individual producers at local bases, to packers who resell them to export firms.

Import firms are trading enterprises that buy goods abroad at their own expense and then sell them on the domestic market to industrial, wholesale and retail traders. These firms have inventories in warehouses and, on demand, carry out immediate deliveries to the domestic market.

The largest part of import firms in industrialized countries is occupied by firms specializing in the purchase and sale of a limited number of the same type of raw materials and food products (tea, coffee, tobacco, sugar, spices, textile raw materials). their functions are not only import, but also sorting, assortment, packaging, packaging. The purchase of goods by import firms directly from foreign exporters is carried out through: commodity exchanges; auctions; permanent purchasing offices opened by import firms abroad.

The importance of import firms in the trade of machinery and equipment is growing, as they take over after-sales maintenance. Many import firms have at their disposal a wide network of dealers who directly sell machines and equipment to consumers and provide after-sales service.

Wholesale firms are enterprises that act as intermediaries between industrial or procurement enterprises and retail trade firms. They buy at their own expense goods abroad in large quantities and sell them on the local market to individual consumers in smaller quantities, profiting from the difference in price.

Retail firms are enterprises that usually carry out export-import operations themselves. They carry out their activities through the creation of their own foreign branches in the form of retail stores, as well as through the organization of representative offices and agencies for the purchase of goods from small local producers. Large retail firms have at their disposal a wide network of their branches, subsidiaries and purchasing offices abroad.

There are also reference retail firms that accept orders from foreigners and citizens living outside their own country.

Distributors are firms that are usually located in the country of the importer and carry out mainly import operations for the sale of goods on their own behalf and at their own expense on the basis of an agreement on granting them the right to sell.

Stocks are firms in the importer's country that carry out export and import operations on the basis of a special agreement on a consignment warehouse. This agreement serves as an addition to the main agreement on granting the right to sell, agency agreement, commission agreement. Stockists have their own warehouses at their disposal, buy and sell goods at their own expense and on their own behalf, their function is sometimes one of the additional functions of a wholesaler.

Activity commission firms associated with commission, intermediary operations. They carry out one-time assignments of consignors on their own behalf, but at the expense of consignors. Depending on the type of transactions performed and the nature of the relationship with the principal, export and import commission firms are distinguished.

Commission export firms act as representatives of the seller or buyer.

The commission firm - the seller's representative - fulfills the instructions of the domestic exporter to sell his goods on the foreign market. Her responsibilities include timely delivery of goods to the buyer, financing and documentation of the transaction, fulfillment of all formalities in the buyer's country, warranty maintenance (as agreed by the parties), organization of storage of goods in their country or abroad (on behalf of the committent). The firm receives a commission from the exporting manufacturer.

The commission firm - the representative of the buyer fulfills the order of the foreign buyer for the purchase of goods on the market of his country and places orders of foreign importers with the producers of his country. The responsibilities of the company also include transportation and insurance of goods, signing the contract and making payments on behalf of the buyer. The firm receives a commission from the buyer.

Among the commission firms-representatives of the buyer, the most important place is occupied by confirmation houses. their characteristic feature is to take the risk of the credit they make to buyers on behalf of the exporting manufacturer, and they charter, insure and lend to the importer when he so requests, making cash payments for the goods supplied by the exporter.

Commission import firms are representatives of buyers of their country and place orders with foreign manufacturers on their own behalf at the expense of domestic consignors. They also provide various services to the committents, for example, compiling informational reviews of the conjuncture of goods markets, monitoring the shipment of goods, maintaining contact with suppliers, for which they have their representatives abroad, and can receive goods on consignment from foreign manufacturers.

Agency firms perform agency operations and act on behalf and at the expense of the principal. They can enter into transactions themselves on his behalf and at his expense, or only be an intermediary in concluding transactions. Characteristic features of agency firms are long-term representation, close contact with the principal and legally complete independence from him. Most agency firms are of Western European origin. their subsidiaries specialize in the import-export of finished products and services from independent suppliers. These firms are most active in markets with limited capacity. Agency firms have a stable position in the Western European export of goods and services in developing countries, their share in these operations is 10-20%.

Depending on location, agency firms are classified into:

a) agents in the country of the principal, which include:

An export agent is a trading firm acting on behalf of one or a small number of industrial firms of its country on the basis of an agency agreement concluded between them. Such a firm receives samples, catalogs, price lists from industrial firms and, on their basis, is looking for buyers. Large firms use their foreign offices and sales agencies to obtain import orders. The transportation costs of the agency firm are reimbursed by the industrial enterprise;

Import agent - a trading company located in the country of the principal and carrying out import operations at his expense. These firms can provide additional services for the storage of goods of foreign suppliers in their warehouses in anticipation of receipt of orders, as well as for advertising to promote goods on the market;

b) agents in a foreign country, which include:

Foreign sales agent - a company that has been granted the right by a company of another country to act on its behalf and at its expense in a certain territory in a foreign country according to the established range of goods. These firms organize the sale of the principal's goods on the market, carry out maintenance of machinery and equipment, create spare parts warehouses, demonstration sites for displaying equipment, and organize advertising. Large firms are characterized by the presence of an extensive network of their own branches, branches and offices on the territory of their country;

A foreign purchasing agency firm that purchases goods abroad for its principals. its services are used by importers who do not have their own branches abroad and do not send their representatives there.

brokerage firms perform brokerage operations. These are intermediary firms that bring together counterparties of an international trade transaction. Under the laws of a number of countries, brokers cannot act as buyers or sellers of goods that they are instructed to sell or buy. Specialists of brokerage firms are characterized by high professionalism, good knowledge of the product, commodity prices, market conditions, sufficient awareness of the needs of buyers and the capabilities of suppliers. These firms maintain strong ties with banks, which allow them to sometimes finance transactions and issue guarantees for the creditworthiness of buyers (delcredere).