Wholesale versus Retail Markets and Values

Wholesale versus Retail Markets and Values


For most products and services, there are both “wholesale” and “retail” markets and prices.

The primary difference between these two markets is that the buyers in the wholesale markets buy products/services at a value less than what a retail buyer would pay with the intent of making a profit by selling the product/service to a retail customer or end-user.

Generally speaking no two buyers in either the wholesale market or retail market pay exactly the same amount for product or service.


Fair Market Value (FMV) is a term in both law and accounting to based on an estimate of what a buyer would pay a seller for any piece of property. A Fair Market Value is valid if it is applied, and worthless if not (applied). For example, the opinion of 1,000 people about their intention to buy a product has no meaning if nobody buys the product. On the other hand, if there is one single person interested in a product, it is a one-person market. In this case, the price offered by the one person would be a Fair Market Price. Fair Market Value is usually subjective due to the circumstances of its valuation, including place, time, the existence of comparable precedents, and the evaluation principles of each involved person. Opinions on value are always based upon subjective interpretation of available information at the time of assessment.