Import Distributors, Inc. (IDI), imported appliances and distributed them to retail appliance stores in the Rocky Mountain states. IDI carried three broad lines of merchandise: audio equipment (tuners, tape decks, CD players, etc.), television equipment (including videotape recorders), and kitchen appliances (refrigerators, freezers, and stoves that were more compact than U.S. models). Each tine accounted for about one-third of total IDI sales revenues. Although each line was re-ferred to by IDI managers as a "department," until 1994 the company did not prepare departmental income statements.

In late 1993, departmental accounts were set up in anticipation of preparing quarterly income statements by department starting in 1994. In early April of 1994, the first such statements were distributed to the management group. Although in the first quarter of 1994 IDI had earned net income amounting to 4.3 percent of sales, the television department had shown a gross margin that was much too small to cover the department's operating expenses (see Exhibit l).The television department's poor showing prompted the company's accountant to suggest that perhaps the department should be discontinued. "This is exactly why I proposed that we prepare departmental statements?to see if each department is carrying its fair share of the the accountant explained. This suggestion led to much discussion among the management group, particularly concerning two issues: First, was the first quarter of the year representative enough of longer-term results to consider discontinuing the television department? And second, would discontinuing television equipment cause a drop in sales in the other two departments? One manager, however, stated that "even if the quarter was typical and other sales wouldn't be hurt, I'm still not convinced we'd be better off dropping our television fine."

EXHIBIT 1 TELEVISION DEPARTMENT income Statement `For the First 3 Months of 1994 Percent : Net sales revenues $1,612,403 100.0 Cost of sales.. . . 1,422,473 88.2 Gross margin 189,930 1 1.8 Operating expenses: Personnel expenses (Note 1). 10,140 Department manager's office 12,393 Rent (Note 2) 50,107 Inventory, taxes, and insurance 37,274 Utilities (Note 3) 3,006 Delivery costs (Note 4) 32,248 Sales commissions (Note 5) 80,621 Administrative costs (Note.6) 40,310 Inventory financing charge (Note ?) 23,708 Total operating expenses 289,807 18.0 Income taxes (credit) (34,957) (2.2) Net income (loss) $ (64,920) (4.0) Notes: 1. These were warehouse personnel. Although merchandise in the warehouse was arranged by department, these personnel per- formed tasks for all three departments on any given day. 2. Allocated to departments on the basis of square footage utilized. IDI had a five-year noncancelable lease for the facilities. 3. Allocated to departments on the basis of square footage utilized. 4. Allocated on the basis of sales dollars. A delivery from IDI to a retail store typically included merchandise from all three departments. 5. Salespersons were paid on a straight commission basis; each one sold all three lines. 6. Allocated on the basis of sales dollars. 7. An accounting entry that was not limited solely to the cost of financing inventory; assessed on average inventory in order to : motivate department managers not to carry excessive stocks, This charge tended to be about three times the company's actual out of-pocket interest costs