Market-leader Frito-Lay sells so many snacks to U. S. stores that it operates the country's seventh-largest private fleet of trucks and vans. It also uses its fleet to haul raw materials like fresh potatoes from farms to production facilities across the country. At the Frito-Lay plant in Casa Grande, Arizona, potatoes arrive by truck, vegetable oils arrive by rail, and corn arrives by rail. From the time they arrive in their raw state to the time they're processed and packaged as snacks, ready to be trucked to stores and warehouses, potatoes spend less than 36 hours at the plant. In all, the Casa Grande plant turns out 90 million pounds of snacks every year, including Sun Chips, Cheetos, Fritos, potato chips, and tortilla chips.
One of Frito-Lay's distribution strengths is a strategy it calls "direct store distribution." To ensure that snacks arrive fresh and in good condition, Frito-Lay has its truck drivers deliver snacks directly to individual stores on a regular basis. For specialty snacks geared toward smaller target markets, however, Frito-Lay is experimenting with distribution through wholesalers that sell to delicatessens and other small stores. Frito-Lay fills wholesalers' orders with stock stored in its regional warehouses.
Put yourself in the shoes of a marketer helping to plan for supply-chain and channel management at Frito-Lay. Assume that Frito-Lay is a channel captain. Does the following statement describe activities that Frito-Lay should undertake as channel captain?
Offer special pricing to retailers who make high-volume purchases during promotional periods.
A. True
B. False