Abstract
In the 80's, manufacturers began to spend money to better understand consumers, and P&G more than anyone. However, they never really asked, if these needs were the same in retailers. It was the period when P&G decided, to change the sales department into a more strategic department named Customer Business Development. The objective was to indicate that they wanted to work more strategically with retailers than before. If they wanted to make the difference on the point-of-purchase, instead of trying to sell the maximum, they had rather to work differently with retailers. They wanted to show that Procter wasn't only the shampoo seller, but could be also, a partner which can help them to optimize sales.
They relied on Trade Marketing theories that were popular in the 90's. Trade Marketing was defined as "a methodical procedure carried out jointly by suppliers and retailers, whose objective is to better serve customers' needs and expectations, increase profitability and competitive position, while taking into account each other's constraints and specificity" (Randall, G. 1994: 115).
