Copyright © 2016 Pearson Education, Ltd.
Chapter 13
RETAILING AND WHOLESALING
MARKETING STARTER: CHAPTER 13
BEKO: The Leading Wholesaler from Turkey
Synopsis
Founded in 1955, Arçelik Group is the leader of the Turkish consumer durables sector and a key
player in the international arena. BEKO is the international brand of Arçelik Group and is one of
the top ten home appliance brands in the world. The BEKO brand continues its steady growth in
global markets, especially in Western and Eastern Europe. It is the leading oven/cooker, cooling
and freezer brand in the UK and one of the fastest-growing washing machine and dishwasher
brands. BEKO stands to be a consumer focused brand delivering technology and efficient solutions
with functional design. Supporting this approach BEKO has received many international awards
acknowledging both their flare for innovation and energy efficiency. Some of the awards include
the Energy Saving Trust award, Plus X award, iF and RedDot Design awards. What is behind this
spectacular success? First, contrary to many global firms, BEKO puts its human resources at the
center of its strategy. Second, BEKO is very respectful of its customers. In addition, the success
of BEKO relies heavily on innovation and the possibilities for distinguishing BEKO from the
competition. Suppliers want to share BEKO’s philosophy, business rules, and ethics (including a
list of prohibited materials) to collectively and mutually benefit from the BEKO organization.
Suppliers are also expected to comply with a code of conduct that complies with the European
Committee of Domestic Equipment Manufacturer. BEKO and its suppliers mutually sign
“purchasing contracts” to define working conditions.Despite BEKO’s incredible success over the
past two decades, it faces some huge challenges ahead as many markets other than developed
economies in the West are opening up rapidly.
CHAPTER OVERVIEW
This chapter is a continuation of the prior chapter on marketing channels; it provides more detail
on retailing and wholesaling, two very important concepts in the value delivery network.
Retailers can be classified according to several characteristics, including the amount of service
they offer, the breadth and depth of their product lines, the relative prices they charge, and how
they are organized.
The major decisions retailers make are centered on target market and positioning, product
assortment and services, price, promotion strategies, and where they are located.
The wheel of retailing concept says that many new retailing forms begin as low-margin, low-price,
low-status operations. They challenge established retailers, and then the new retailers’ success
leads them to upgrade their facilities and offer more services. In turn, their costs increase, and
eventually they become like the conventional retailers they replaced. The cycle begins again.