òòò½Íø Journal:
Microeconomics
ISSN 1945-7669 (Print) | ISSN 1945-7685 (Online)
The Modern Wholesaler: Global Sourcing, Domestic Distribution, and Scale Economies
òòò½Íø Journal: Microeconomics
vol. 17,
no. 1, February 2025
(pp. 1–40)
Abstract
Half of all transactions in the $6 trillion market for manufactured goods in the United States were intermediated by wholesalers in 2012, up from 32 percent in 1992. Seventy percent of this increase is due to the growth of "superstar" firms—the largest 1 percent. Estimates based on detailed administrative data show that the rise of the largest firms was driven by an intuitive linkage between their sourcing of goods from abroad and an expansion of their domestic distribution network to reach more buyers. Both elements require scale economies and lead to increased wholesaler market shares and markups.Citation
Ganapati, Sharat. 2025. "The Modern Wholesaler: Global Sourcing, Domestic Distribution, and Scale Economies." òòò½Íø Journal: Microeconomics 17 (1): 1–40. DOI: 10.1257/mic.20210015Additional Materials
JEL Classification
- D22 Firm Behavior: Empirical Analysis
- D24 Production; Cost; Capital; Capital, Total Factor, and Multifactor Productivity; Capacity
- F14 Empirical Studies of Trade
- L15 Information and Product Quality; Standardization and Compatibility
- L60 Industry Studies: Manufacturing: General
- L81 Retail and Wholesale Trade; e-Commerce