Industry Analysis & Industry Trends
Over the past five years, the industry has struggled to grow as price deflation and volatile economic conditions have eroded demand and profitability. Price competition has been a persistent obstacle to growth due in part to the presence of large retailers with the ability to attain scale economies and pass on cost savings to consumers. This has intensified competition within the industry and supported growth in group buying activities, which pool the negotiating power of smaller players to access the same range of products and discounts available to larger retail chains. Price deflation has also occurred due to the ongoing decline in printing and the shift towards technology related office supplies such as tablets and computers, which have also declined in value... purchase to read more
Industry Report - Industry Locations Chapter
The industry's products are used across all areas of business and are also used by consumers. It is therefore unsurprising that the spread of industry establishments across states closely mirrors the spread of business activity and population.
However, within states there are clear differences in business locations according to business models. Big-box retailers provide a large range of products and have a large retails footprint. The volume of business required to make these stores economical means that they are located in densely populated areas such as capital cities.
Industry players who sell products using online platforms require even more density to run distribution centres and warehousing operations. These players also tend to target businesses over households... purchase to read more