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The Little Entrepreneur
Who Could
In the news, you've surely read or heard about how the big chains are
pushing the "mom and pop" or small businesses out of the market.
There are many reasons why this happens, and I explain a basic reason
below.
I'll give you the example of the mega-bookstore. How many of you have
been to a Barnes and Noble, a Books-A-Million, or a Waldenbooks? These
companies sell such a large volume of products that they can buy supplies
at a much lower cost than can a small business. Generally, the more
goods a company buys at one time, the better price the supplier gives
the company.
So, if Books-A-Million can buy merchandise at less cost, it can sell
it at a lower price AND can offer greater variety than a small business.
Whose store is the consumer going to shop? Mom and Pop have the same
goods, but the discount book store, because of its buying power,
can sell the products at a lower cost and still earn a good profit.
The small book store is just one type of business that has been highlighted
in the media. Other types of businesses have felt the same crunch. How
do large chains selling the same products compete against each other?
What other types of large retailers are out there? Can you think of
some small businesses that sell the same type of product and compete
against these big businesses?
In
this lesson, we are going to learn about Fred's Grocery-- a small, neighborhood
food store. One day, a big grocery chain arrived on the block. Was Fred's
able to survive? Click on the link, Fred's Grocery below to find out.
Fred's Grocery
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