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The Role of Wholesale Brands for Buyer Loyalty: A Transaction Cost Perspective

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Impulse für die Markenforschung und Markenführung

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Marketing channels are changing dramatically as the world economy becomes networked. Buyers who are likely to only have limited insight into a wholesaler’s sourcing decisions may be uncertain about product and/or service quality. This study is the first to show that a credible quality signal provided by the wholesaler, the wholesale brand, can effectively reduce buyer uncertainty. Using structural equation modeling methodology in the context of 569 buyers across 52 locations of a home improvement wholesaler we investigate the key mediating role of transaction costs for the effect of wholesale brand knowledge on buyer loyalty.

Our results suggest that wholesaler brand knowledge effectively reduces ex-post transaction costs incurred by the buyer. These lower quality control costs and price verification efforts increase buyer loyalty.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Zeppelin University, Friedrichshafen

    Peter Kenning (Prof. Dr.)

  2. Marketing Centrum Münster, Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität Münster, Münster

    Christian Brock (Assistent und Doktorand)

  3. Carlson School of Management, Marketing and Logistics, Management South, Minneapolis, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis

    Stephan Grzeskowiak (Prof. Dr. Gastprofessor)

  4. International Center of Franchising & Cooperation (F&C), Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität Münster, Münster

    Martin Ahlert (Dr. Direktor)

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  1. Peter Kenning
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  2. Christian Brock
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  3. Stephan Grzeskowiak
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  4. Martin Ahlert
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Carsten Baumgarth Gülpınar Kelemci Schneider Bahar Ceritoğlu

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Kenning, P., Brock, C., Grzeskowiak, S., Ahlert, M. (2008). The Role of Wholesale Brands for Buyer Loyalty: A Transaction Cost Perspective. In: Baumgarth, C., Schneider, G.K., Ceritoğlu, B. (eds) Impulse für die Markenforschung und Markenführung. Gabler. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-8349-9938-2_10

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