The Metropolitan Area Location Decisions of Wholesale Trade Firms

This study uses information from a survey of 536 wholesale trade firms to analyze the importance of the traditional industrial location factors in their choice of a metropolitan area location. The conclusion of this analysis is that the location decisions of many wholesale trade firms are affected by some of the same factors that influence the choice of manufacturing firms. While market considerations were the dominant factors in the location choice of the overwhelming majority of the firms surveyed, an area's business climate and resource cost considerations were also identified as important factors by a majority of the respondents. The importance of the regional location factors vary by the firm's market scope, search activity, company structure, and expansion plans but, with several exceptions, doesn't appear to vary by firm size.