We present a model to explain why a manufacturer may impose a minimum resale price (min RPM) in a successive monopoly setting. Our argument relies on the retailer having non-contractible choice variables, which could represent the price of a substitute good and/or the effort the retailer exerts...

The study of the transformation of retail chain stores (RCS) due to the impact of digitalization on them is a new problem. The main part of modern scientific research is devoted to separate directions of digitalization and does not consider conceptual aspects of these processes. The purpose of...

We study how the introduction of private-label brands (PLs) affects retailers’ prices, demand, and profits, explicitly accounting for assortment adjustments of national brands (NBs) in retail stores. Using a detailed dataset on the U.S. beef market, we find that, when PLs are added to the...

The search literature offers several mechanisms by which a multiproduct retailer's offering of a larger variety affects consumers' search behavior and hence prices. Among them are (1) higher sales to be generated when lower prices discourage consumers' further search; and (2) more pricing power...