Retail companies have their own VFP, and it is not the merchandise they sell. By definition, the VFP is what a person produces, and retail companies do not produce the merchandise itself. Retailers "produce" the availability of a product to the customer. Trading and retail activities always entail providing a certain selection of goods at a particular location, plus some additional services. That is why in retail it is so important to assess the selection of goods provided in relation to the location. Duane Reade[5] stores offer their customers a limited range of everyday products conveniently located so that they could drop in during their commute. Macy’s[6] department stores offer their customers a wide selection of inexpensive clothing and household goods. You do not stop there on your way home. You go there to buy a summer dress and end up leaving tired, with stuffed shopping bags that barely fit in the back seat of your car. Both of these are in the retail business but they have very different VFPs. And what’s interesting, is that in both examples the function of selling the merchandise is practically nonexistent, as they are self-service stores. It would be erroneous to state that the VFP of these stores were “sold goods” when they don’t take effort to sell, i.e. to exchange goods for money. By selling, I mean conscious actions of a salesperson that lead to a customer making a single purchase or purchasing more items. Yet, these stores consistently and successfully create a selection of goods wanted by their customers and correctly present them so their customer can easily find the right product by himself. They ensure that the store’s location is convenient, and that the product’s price and quality meet clients’ expectations.

If you haven’t been to the Apple Store on 5th Avenue in New York, you should stop by and you’ll see that nobody sells anything there either. The store’s staff offer advice, demonstrate products, answer customers’ questions, do the checkout, and hand over purchases to the buyer. However, they do not persuade the customer to buy the product or handle their objections. Apple has created such a compelling product, that during the Christmas season, customers have to squeeze through the crowded store to stand in a humongous line for the treasured box with a new iPhone or iPad. This store is a hybrid of a showroom and a warehouse. The difference from a showroom lies the large number of consultants and being able to pay for merchandise right on the sales floor.

Another example of a special VFP in a retail company, similar to the Apple store, is B amp;H Superstore of digital equipment in Manhattan. They have solved the problem of selling a large variety of sophisticated digital equipment in a relatively small space. The way the shop is set up, a client can get familiar with the equipment, get expert advice from the employees, as well as quickly pay and get the products they want. To display an array of equipment without overloading the area with stored goods, B amp;H installed a conveyor belt right below the ceiling of the sales area. It quickly delivers the desired items from the warehouse into the customer’s hands. It’s surprising that B amp;H has not yet become a well-known franchise. The volume of the VFP of these stores is something to truly admire. What is the VFP of such a store? Not of the company as a whole, but of a store, specifically? The VFP will definitely include wording such as, “assistance with making a choice", "speed", and "a certain selection of goods".