Abstract
The retail industry is today a huge market where competitors are a lot. In order to overview the market of the retail industry, we will list the main actors in the world: Wal-Mart, Carrefour, Ahold, Kroger, Metro group, Target, Albertsons, Kmart and Tesco. However in order to seize more deeply the question about "Key success factors in the retail industry" we will have to define what is a retail industry in its first meaning.
Retailers purchase items from a supplier or wholesaler for re-sale at a profit. The retailer earns his living by making a profit on the re-sale. To do this the retailer may offer only one type of product, where there is little competition, and use a substantial markup (such as an auto dealership), or the retailer may offer many different products or models, so customers will be certain to find an item to buy in this store and not in a competitor's store (such as a convenience store). Some retailers earn a small profit on many items and rely on the volume of sales (such as grocery stores), or turnover, to account for their profits.
