I don't like the first paragraph. "For example, if you are manufacturing staplers, all you need to do is to calculate cost of production and distribution, slam

I don't like the first paragraph. "For example, if you are manufacturing staplers, all you need to do is to calculate cost of production and distribution, slam 20% margin on it and there you have the price you can sell your shiny stapler machines for." That's called Cost Based Pricing and is one of many options. That's a decision that was made. You can argue that's the wrong way to price. If you make something in the US and charge 20% on top of costs and have a competitor making Staplers in China, you're out of business. Boom. Roasted.