South Dakota is one state where agriculture is carried out significantly. Over the centuries, agriculture has been a mainstay in the state. It was traditionally the home of the Sioux people and this practiced agriculture and hunting. Thus, the plain and fertile land made agriculture a readymade profession for the European settlers.

With income from tourism, the processing of agricultural products, and manufacturing, the state has been able to maintain a substantially balanced economy. Though not much manufacturing goes down in Southern Dakota – much of daily essential supplies are still imported – there has been a continual focus on the most important product to life: food.

The population in South Dakota is quite compact. There are about 890,000 (estimated) people in the state. This is still a fairly large market for retailers. Since the state does much in agriculture, it is expected that prices of food items wouldn’t be as costly as it would in other states.

Just like every other American state, there are essentials that are needed daily by Americans. Food, shelter, toiletries, clothes, electronic gadgets, transportation, and a whole lot of essentials are needed by the average human being for existence in the 21^stcentury world.

The retail trade is one that connects directly to the consumers. It is the trade that lays emphasis on how to get the consumer to get the product from a particular retailer and to establish a relationship with that retailer. However, a retailer, most times, does not get the goods directly from the manufacturers or get the goods produced herself. There is the existence of the retail distributor in the supply chain.

Retail distributors are essential links in the supply chain. When manufacturers produce their products, they need distribution for the product. There are several situations where the manufacturer does the distribution to retailers. This is direct store delivery. However, not all manufacturers have the capacity to do their own distribution to retail outlets. For instance, a new brand still seeking market recognition does not have a name in the market and will need to be significantly promoted and pushed. A retail distributor can do a better job of getting the product to several hundred or even thousands of stores.

With about 20% of the working population in South Dakota into retail and wholesale trade, there is an impressive amount working in the supply chain. However, there is more to the supply chain than the number involved. There are general goods everyone is interested in but there are specialized products like adult goods, sports goods, smoking goods, and some others.

Trade associations are very useful and can be good platforms to network. Retailers, retail distributors, wholesalers, agents, and many other players in the supply chain subscribe to these associations to widen their network. One of these associations is the South Dakota Retailers Association.

A retail distributor in the state is the Southern Glazer’s Wine and Spirits. They have a large capacity to work with large retail chains as well as small ones.