Economies of scope

Economies of scope are "efficiencies formed by variety, not volume" (the latter concept is "economies of scale"). In the field of economics, "economies" is synonymous with cost savings and "scope" is synonymous with broadening production/services through diversified products. Economies of scope is an economic theory stating that average total cost (ATC) of production decrease as a result of increasing the number of different goods produced. For example, a gas station primarily sells gasoline, but can sell soda, milk, baked goods, etc. and thus achieve economies of scope since with the same facility, each new product attracts new dollars a customer would have spent elsewhere. The business historian Alfred Chandler argued that economies of scope contributed to the rise of American business corporations during the 20th century.