Research on bargaining power in vertical relationships is scarce. It remains particularly unclear which factors drive bargaining power between the two negotiating parties in a vertical structure. We use a demand model where the consumer demand determines the total pie of industry profits....

We study how informal buyer-supplier relationships in the German automotive industry affect procurement. Using unique data from a survey focusing on these, we show that more trust, the belief that the trading partner acts to maintain the mutual relationship, is associated with both higher...

Based on data from a comprehensive benchmarking study on buyer-supplier relationships in the German automotive industry, we show that more trust in a relationship is associated with higher idiosyncratic investment by suppliers and better part quality - but also with more competition among...