I am a student doing a report on the booming energy drink industry that is in search of opinions on a typical pricing structure, from the cost of manufacturing to the retailer, for an energy drink that retails for $1.99.
- What is an approximate cost of manufacturing
for a case of 24 cans that sells for $1.99?
- Price manufacturer sells a case to a
distributor?
- Price distributor sells a case to retailer?
- Who pays for shipping at each step?
- How much does the typical pricing structure
vary among different brands?

Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thank you all for your time and consideration.

Tough question to answer with much accuracy as many factors play into the equation e.g. Type of Distributor (Full Service vs. Non Service), order quantity, POS needed, etc...

But for the sake of giving you an idea see below:

FOB - less than 1 (40') container
Per Case Price - $21.80

Retail Case $33.00
Can $1.38
Shelf $1.99
Retailer Profit $0.61
Retailer % 44%
Distributor Profit $11.20
Distributor % 33.9%

Now a manufacturer and or the distributor will offer incentive deals e.g. 1 on 3, to help the retailer or sometimes to help themselves get in the door in this overly saturated marketplace.

Hope this helps.