A " store " is essentially a place where products are stored and then distributed, either in a town through a store or internally in a company.
Its use may have been popular in the past, but today it was replaced by shops or markets in cities. However, it remains in force for the internal warehouses of products of large industries.
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Meaning
The Royal Spanish Academy defines "supplier" as the position or occupation of the person who provides. In any case, the most common is its second meaning, this being the house where supplies are kept and distributed.
It can be said that in a sense, the supply stores were the predecessors of the current stores, warehouses or mini markets, which later gave rise to supermarkets or wholesale businesses.
In those old shops, not only food or drinks were sold, but also fuel was sold, since they were times when service stations were not abundant.
In addition, these stores were characterized by selling "loose" merchandise, that is, without packing or packaging, so one of the essential elements of a supply store was the balance or scale to be able to weigh and sell the product according to what the customer needed.
The grocery stores were very popular in rural areas and, for example, in Latin America, with the advancement of cities, they became grocery stores, which in addition to selling products, had tables so that people could have a drink.
A sustainable model
Within the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) programs of some large supermarkets there is the concept of "supply store", which aims to satisfy the demand of low-income employees, retirees and their families.
Generally, these work under the zero profit scheme, so that the only one who benefits in this circuit between consumer and supplier is the first, since prices are significantly lower than in the rest of the stores.
Another example is the "Emporium of Solidarity", a Caritas program that operates in several cities in Italy and is based on giving food to people who do not make ends meet, whether they have a salary or not.
For this it will be necessary to have an identification and once they arrive at the box, they continue to the exit without paying.
Large-scale suppliers
As we mentioned, today it is the markets that took the place of the supply stores but they still exist within the industrial world. These are places where the necessary inputs to carry out activities, machinery spare parts or inventories are kept.
There are also supply stores within a community, owned by the local minority. There the process of acquisition, reception, custody, delivery and distribution of different goods that the various departments that make up the municipality are planned, organized, programmed, coordinated and carried out.
In addition, the supply stores are also key departments and places of an army, an automotive factory or refineries, among many other areas.
Functions of a supply department
-Take and carry out the application procedures for the necessary goods or services.
-Make a complete registry of suppliers.
-Control that suppliers comply with the requirements of the company.
-Plan, execute and have control of the goods or services acquired, which in some cases may be through public tenders or direct purchases.
-Being the channel between the suppliers of the supply and the recipients of the good or service in case of quality failures, claims or complaints.
References
- General Directorate of Procurement. Recovered from: munilacruz.go.cr
- Procurement. (2019). Dictionary of the Royal Spanish Academy. Recovered from: dle.rae.es
- Recovered from: epm.com.co
- Free supplier (2019). "Gondolas without prices: a free market for those who do not make ends meet". Recovered from: ahoraroma.com.