In 1982 the Institute of Grocery Distribution in the UK estimated that retailers were responsible for about 32 percent of final deliveries to stores. After decades of restructuring relationships with their suppliers, and cutting out the role of the wholesaler, almost 100 percent of deliveries are made to stores through retailer’s own distribution centres. This hasn resulted in a step change of cost reduction-for both manufacturers and retailers. One UK consultancy, Logistics Consulting Partners, estimates that logistics costs fell in real terms by 70 percentover a 25-year period. This increased the grocery multiples’ competitive advantage, placing even more pressure on high-street retailers