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Department Stores
See also:
Costs of Distribution Channels
Department Stores are categorized by chain retailers, such as WalMart, stock a wide range of products - from Consumer durables (such as fridges and televisions) to items such as Apparel and Kitchenware.
Department Stores are very broad and may often specialize in budget or exclusive items. Such stores appeal to people who wish to complete all of their purchases for the week in one stop. They are increasingly being built in sites surrounded by a mall of smaller satellite stores, which provide many of the other customers requirements. The typical shopper at a department store is a family out on Saturday or Sunday afternoon. Often the customers do not have a definite purchase in mind when they enter the store, but in walking around may see something that takes their fancy. The busiest time of year for the Department store is just before Christmas when Christmas presents enter everyone’s thoughts.
In terms of support, department stores seem to offer little to the bike manufacturers who formed part of this analysis. They do not have salespeople who are bike experts to give the customers information, nor do they take part in many of the promotions that the manufacturers propose. They typically stock a wide range of mid-priced bikes, stocking competing brands side by side.