Determinants of supplier‐retailer collaboration: evidence from an international study

TLDR

The study seeks to identify social and technical factors and supply chain architecture that enable successful supplier‑retailer collaboration and improve performance. Five supplier‑retailer pairs in Taiwan were examined, collecting data on eight relationship variables and developing a comprehensive model linking interdependence, intensity, trust, long‑term orientation, supply chain architecture, and collaboration to performance. All variables except duration were critical to collaboration, with relationship intensity—not duration—driving the retailer‑supplier relationship, confirming the model’s links and suggesting that managing these factors enhances collaboration and performance.

Abstract

Purpose This paper aims to increase the understanding of social and technical factors contributing to successful supplier‐retailer collaboration. The objective is to identify the necessary supply chain architecture for supplier‐retailer collaboration, and demonstrate how it influences supply chain performance. Design/methodology/approach Five pairs of suppliers and retailers in Taiwan were studied with each pair serving as a unit of analysis. In each case, data pertaining to eight relationship variables critical to collaboration between supplier and retailer were collected and analyzed. A comprehensive supplier‐retailer relationship model is developed with five specific research positions: supplier‐retailer business relationship (interdependence, intensity, trust) affects long‐term orientation; supplier‐retailer business relationship affects supply chain architecture (information sharing, inventory system, information technology capabilities, coordination structure); long‐term orientation affects supply chain architecture; supply chain architecture affects the level of supplier‐retailer collaboration; and supplier‐retailer collaboration enhances supplier‐retailer performance. Findings Overall, with the exception of duration, all variables are found to be critical to supplier‐retailer collaboration. It is the intensity, as opposed to the duration, of the relationship that influences the retailer‐supplier relationship. Originality/value The proposed model demonstrates how eight critical social and technical variables are directly and/or indirectly related. This knowledge will enable the management of supplier‐retailer networks to produce better supply chain collaboration and performance.