| Course | BUS 320 Principles of Marketing |
|---|---|
| Module | Module 6 |
| Paper type | Channel evaluation paper |
| Length | About 1,017 words, 6 pages |
| Format | APA 7 student paper |
| School | Aspen University |
| Program | Business Administration |
| Updated | September 2026 |
Free sample paper for BUS 320 Module 6
Should Juniper Row Go Into Grocery Stores? Channels, Margins and Partners
Student Name
Business Administration Program, Aspen University
BUS 320: Principles of Marketing
Instructor Name
Month Day, Year
Should Juniper Row Go Into Grocery Stores? Channels, Margins and Partners
A regional grocery chain with 31 stores in New Mexico and Arizona has invited Juniper Row Coffee Roasters to place its coffee on shelves through the chain's approved distributor. The composite Albuquerque roaster now sells through its café, its website and subscription, and 22 wholesale accounts. Grocery placement would put the brand in front of thousands of shoppers who have never heard of it. This paper evaluates the offer by examining what channels do, what each of Juniper Row's channels earns and how a new channel would affect existing ones.
What Channels Do
Marketing channels are sets of organizations that make a product available to buyers. They perform functions that someone must carry out: holding inventory, transporting goods, communicating with buyers, extending credit, taking on risk and handling payment. Frazier (1999) emphasized that managing channels requires deciding who performs each function and designing relationships so that members cooperate, since conflict among channel members can undermine performance. Every intermediary that performs a function takes a share of the final price in return.
Juniper Row's Current Channels
The café and website are direct channels, in which Juniper Row sells to consumers and performs every function itself. Wholesale to restaurants is a short indirect channel, in which the restaurant serves coffee to its customers. Webb (2002) noted that adding direct online sales to traditional channels creates both opportunity and tension, because intermediaries may see the manufacturer as a competitor, and recommended managing the mix deliberately rather than letting it grow by accident.
Following the Money
The grocery proposal is a longer indirect channel: Juniper Row sells to a distributor, which sells to the chain, which sells to shoppers. The chain wants a shelf price of $15.99, lower than Juniper Row's own $18.50 retail, to compete with other premium grocery coffees. It requires a margin of about 33% of shelf price, so it would pay the distributor about $10.71. The distributor requires about 22% of its selling price, so it would pay Juniper Row about $8.35 a bag. The table compares all four channels using the new cost of about $8.90 per bag.
| Channel | Price Juniper Row receives | Variable cost | Contribution per bag |
|---|---|---|---|
| Website single bag | $18.50 | $8.90 plus $1.20 shipping | $8.40 |
| Café retail bag | $18.50 | $8.90 | $9.60 |
| Restaurant wholesale | $12.50 | $8.90 | $3.60 |
| Grocery through distributor | $8.35 | $8.90 | Loss of $0.55 |
What the Numbers Mean
At the proposed terms, every bag sold in grocery stores would lose money before counting slotting fees, promotions and unsaleable returns, which grocery chains commonly require. Grocery might still build awareness, but at a direct cost and with the risk that shoppers who find Juniper Row on a shelf at $15.99 would ask why the website charges $18.50.
Channel Conflict
The pricing gap would create conflict with Juniper Row's own direct channels and with its restaurant customers, several of which sell retail bags at their counters for about $18. If grocery shoppers can buy the same coffee for less, restaurants may drop the retail bags, and subscribers may question the value of their subscription. Frazier (1999) noted that channel designs that set members against each other on price tend to erode cooperation.
Omnichannel Customers
Customers today move among channels, researching online, buying in stores and subscribing later. Verhoef et al. (2015) described a shift from multichannel retailing, in which channels are managed separately, to omnichannel retailing, in which channels are managed together around the customer's experience across them. For Juniper Row, grocery could work only as part of an integrated approach, with pricing, packaging and messages that lead grocery buyers toward the subscription rather than competing with it.
An Alternative Proposal
Juniper Row should decline the terms as offered and propose an alternative: a 10-ounce grocery bag of Morning Blend only, priced at $14.99, delivered directly to the chain's six Albuquerque stores without a distributor. Direct delivery would raise the price Juniper Row receives to about $10.04 while its variable cost for a 10-ounce bag would be about $7.60, giving contribution of about $2.44. Each bag would carry a code for a first subscription month at half price. The chain gets a local product, Juniper Row gets awareness and a path to subscribers, and the distinct bag size limits price comparison.
Supply Chain Partners
Channels depend on upstream partners too. Its green coffee comes through two importers; if grocery volume grew, it would need longer-term contracts to secure supply at predictable prices. It should also confirm that its roasting capacity and delivery van could handle weekly store deliveries without disrupting subscriptions.
Evaluating the Trial
The six-store trial should run for four months with clear measures: bags sold per store per week, the share of buyers who use the subscription code, and any complaints from restaurant partners. Juniper Row will also track whether the café and website see new customers who first found the brand in a grocery store. If each store sells at least 20 bags a week and the subscription code brings in at least 40 new subscribers over the trial, grocery can be expanded; if not, the trial will end without the losses a full distributor arrangement would have caused.
Managing Wholesale Partners
Restaurant partners should hear about the trial from Juniper Row before they see the coffee in stores. The grocery bag is a different size and blend, and restaurants will keep their own retail bags and pricing. Explaining this directly, and offering partners a small display card noting that they serve Juniper Row coffee, protects relationships that took years to build. A partner who feels surprised by a new channel is far more likely to reduce orders than one who was consulted first.
Conclusion
The grocery offer looks attractive for awareness but would lose money on every bag and create conflict with Juniper Row's profitable direct channels and restaurant partners. Following the money through each intermediary made the problem clear. A limited, direct-delivery trial with a distinct bag and a path to the subscription would test grocery as part of an integrated channel strategy rather than as a separate, money-losing outlet.
References
Frazier, G. L. (1999). Organizing and managing channels of distribution. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 27(2), 226-240. https://doi.org/10.1177/0092070399272007
Verhoef, P. C., Kannan, P. K., & Inman, J. J. (2015). From multi-channel retailing to omni-channel retailing: Introduction to the special issue on multi-channel retailing. Journal of Retailing, 91(2), 174-181. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jretai.2015.02.005
Webb, K. L. (2002). Managing channels of distribution in the age of electronic commerce. Industrial Marketing Management, 31(2), 95-102. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0019-8501(01)00181-X
BUS 320 Module 6 instructions, in plain terms
Channels and supply chain partners are part of what Aspen's BUS 320 covers, and a distribution choice with real margins attached makes the ideas concrete. As the precise Module 6 prompt is delivered through the course, this example weighs one grocery offer. Explain what channels do and why intermediaries earn margins. Describe the company's current channels. Follow the price from the final shelf back to what the company receives, showing each margin. Compare channels on the same measure, such as contribution per unit. Consider conflict with existing channels and partners. Place the decision in an omnichannel view of customers. Recommend an option with measures and say how partners should be informed.
How the BUS 320 Module 6 example is put together
The paper opens with a regional chain's invitation. It explains channel functions with Frazier's emphasis on cooperation. Current direct and indirect channels are described, with Webb's warning about online sales and intermediaries. The money section works from a $15.99 shelf price through a 33% retail margin and a 22% distributor margin to $8.35. A four-row table shows contribution by channel, including a loss in grocery. Sections cover slotting fees, conflict with restaurants selling bags at $18 and Verhoef and colleagues' shift to omnichannel retailing. The counterproposal offers a 10-ounce bag delivered directly to six stores with a subscription code. Supplier contracts, trial measures and partner communication close it.
Where the marks sit in the BUS 320 Module 6 rubric
Channel papers are assessed on understanding channel functions, accurate margin analysis, attention to conflict and a sound recommendation. This example calculates what the company would receive at each step, which reveals the problem clearly. Its APA references are Frazier's Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science article on channels, Webb's Industrial Marketing Management article on electronic commerce and Verhoef, Kannan and Inman's Journal of Retailing introduction to omnichannel retailing. The counterproposal shows creativity grounded in the numbers. Setting measurable thresholds for expanding or ending the trial, and informing partners first, shows practical management. The paper declines a flattering offer on evidence, which is the kind of judgment the module aims to build.
BUS 320 Module 6 help: mistakes that cost marks
Students often praise a new channel's reach without checking what the company earns through it. Work backward from the final price through each margin. Another weakness is ignoring existing partners who may react. Consider conflict and how to manage it. Look at channels together, as customers experience them. Offer an alternative if the proposal as given does not work. Set measures and a decision point for any trial. If you do not know typical margins in your industry, say so and use reasonable ranges from trade sources rather than guessing a single figure, and show how the conclusion changes across the range. If the recommendation holds at both ends, say so; if it flips, explain what information would settle the question.
Write yours, or have the desk draft it
This paper is an original model document written by our desk, not a submitted student paper and not an official Aspen University document. Read it for the moves, then write your own to the instructions in your classroom. If you want one built to your exact prompt and rubric, the first custom sample is free and arrives in 24 to 48 hours.
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BUS 320 Module 6 questions, answered
What does BUS 320 Module 6 usually ask for?
Aspen's BUS 320 covers channels and supply chain partners, so a paper evaluating a company's channels or a new distribution option is typical. Follow your classroom prompt.
What is channel conflict?
Disagreement or competition among members of a distribution channel, often caused by different prices or overlapping customers in different channels.
What is omnichannel retailing?
Managing all channels together around the customer's experience as they move among them, rather than running each channel separately.
Where can I find a free BUS 320 Module 6 sample paper?
See the full paper above, which traces margins from a grocery shelf to the roaster, compares four channels in a table and proposes a direct-delivery trial.
Why do intermediaries take a share of the price?
Because they perform channel functions such as storing, transporting, selling and financing goods, which the producer would otherwise have to perform.