Perceptions of Wholesaler Functional Role Prescriptions in Marketing Channels

The role concept has been largely ignored in recent marketing channels literature. The authors address this issue from the wholesaling perspective, conceptualising the wholesaler′s role in terms of six marketing functions that they perform for manufacturers. Findings from a large sample mail survey of wholesaler and manufacturer members of the National Association of Wholesaler‐Distributors empirically support the authors′ expectations that wholesalers are perceived as important performers of each function by both wholesalers and manufacturers; that both wholesalers and manufacturers think the reliance on wholesalers to perform these functions has been increasing and will increase even further in the future; and that wholesalers perceive themselves to be more important performers of each marketing function than do manufacturers. The implications of these findings for channel roles,power, and conflict issues are then discussed.