ABSTRACT
New emphasis on a systems approach in marketing by wholesalers supports the traditional argument that wholesaling adds value to products and services. Current business experience, however, supports the movement toward expansion of the wholesaler's role as purchasing agent for the pharmacist. It is a strategy described by management consultants as 'forward integration'. Pharmacists and their wholesalers are working together more closely. This change for the better comes during a period of unusual dynamism in the distribution industry. The casual observer of marketing channel practice may wrongly assume that wholesaling is a low growth, unnecessary function that adds an unjustified cost factor to the price paid by retailers and consumers. Some of the respondents questioned integrity of the wholesaler's pricing structure, and failed to make the connection between increased discounts and reduced delivery frequencies, a 'fact of life' in competitive markets. Pricing decisions are considered by many to be more important in the determination of marketing strategy than any other factor.
