Introduction:
Most consumer goods are palletized for storage and subsequent distribution to the purchaser. However, the methods of selling and delivering these consumer goods are varied and changing. Some methods, such as "warehouse club" stores, are logistically very pallet or unit-load intensive from product manufacturer-supplier to the club store. The distribution system of catalog or internet-based purchasing includes "case-based" doorstep or home delivery of individually packaged items, which seems to rely less on unit-load logistics and palletization. Between these apparent extremes of palletization and the retailing methods are the mass merchandisers such as Wal-Mart, K-Mart, or Target. In this paper, retailing trends are reviewed. The logistic systems of each retailing method are described and inferences are made regarding the relative impact of current and future changes in retailing methods on unit-load handling practices and pallet use.