The 4 P’s of Marketing (Product, Price, Promotion, Place) have been around since the 1950’s.  For chain store operators, PLACE is more critical than for other types of businesses.

A better term for PLACE is DISTRIBUTION, but of course it starts with “D,” so it never made it into the 4 P’s.  DISTRIBUTION is a term used to describe what is commonly called “the supply chain” and the facilities involved in distribution are “the supply chain network.”  These facilities include factories, distribution centers, and retail stores. Continue reading →