Given increasing competitiveness in their marketplace, JCPenney and Macy’s have both recently changed their strategies in order to increase penetration and profitability. As they currently stand, Macy’s strategy when quantified, is the most effective of the two. Both companies are part of the department store-retail industry and sell goods ranging from men, women, and children’s clothing, cosmetics, jewelry, all the way to home…
Kudler Fine Foods is a food store that prides them-selves on delivering quality goods and wines to their customers. The store has three locations throughout the San Diego area to better accommodate the customers availability and experience. According to the accounting records, in 2003 the company had over a $600,000 loss. Even though this is the year that the third store was opened, it is still detrimental to a company. A well planned marketing system can increase profits year round and make a great impression on its customers (Gordon, 2006). Kudler Foods has a descent marketing system right now but it could always be better.…
Kudler Fine Foods is a privately held upscale specialty food store, located in the metropolitan area of San Diego. Currently the company has three locations in La Jolla, Del Mar, and Encinitas. Kudler stores have a fine selection of bakery and pastry products, fresh produce, fresh meat, seafood, condiments, packaged food, cheese, and specialty dairy products. Each of the stores has a domestic and imported fare. The owners at Kudler are exploring ways to expand the organization and maximize profits. The three options for expansion are going public through and IPO, acquiring another organization in the same industry, and merging with another organization. This paper will list the three options and provide the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats of each approach.…
NICHOLAS LANDRY WILL MACHADO JO WEN JON WIKSTROM Van Horn’s Storied Past •National Convenience Stores • top 20 in U.S. in size • 725 stores in 6 cities: Houston, San Antonio, Dallas Ft. Worth, Austin, Los Angeles, Atlanta • gas, lottery, alcohol, & other high inventory turnover items • customers stop in for a few items and want fast service •President & CEO Pete Van Horn Strategy • superior quality products • remodel stores according to 3 demographics • eateries • value pricing strategy Liquidity Trouble •NCS liquidity trouble • mixed results from Van Horn’s Strategy • terms loans 1985 - 1988, E/D from 2.5 to 4.6 • asset sales and sale/leasebacks •Unforeseen Events • escalating costs of State of Texas worker’s compensation • Gulf War • gas price war between major oil companies • heavy rainfall, twice normal weather •Last Ditch Efforts • unable to sell California stores • unable to get equity infusions through strategic partners • was able to defer principal payments • defaults on $170 million in debt, loses vital trade credit Chapter 11 Reorganization •Chapter 7 Bankruptcy • usually involuntary, forced upon by creditors • Van Horn claims (threatens) that liquidating company will yield $83.610 million •Ch 11 is voluntary: needs cash for inventory • Bankruptcy Court, Debtor in Possession financing • $8 million line of credit…
Currently, North West employed a “push” strategy in which category managers at North West’s Winnipeg headquarters analyzed trends, placed orders and allocated products to stores. Typically, category managers worked with store managers to review the previous year’s lineup, orders and actual sales. Using historical averages and the next year’s forecast growth rate, category managers estimated demand for products at a company level. Category managers met frequently with suppliers to review the product lineup for the upcoming year, which often differed from year to year. The shift towards localization promised to tap into the local knowledge that resided with store managers, allowing them to better tailor product quantities to preferences in their communities. Under localization, product assortment decisions, which had been previously made at the category manager’s level at Winnipeg headquarters, would become the responsibility of North West’s 147 store managers.…
Today’s firms operate within various environments that economists refer to as market structures. These market structures forge each firm’s operational foundation, which essentially lays the groundwork to facilitate competitive marketing strategies. The factors that bolster a firm’s marketing tactics are vital is sustaining profitability as well as solidifying longevity within a particular industry. To comprehend these factors effectively, this paper will analyze Kudler Fine Foods through the eyes of a consultant and (a) evaluate Kudler’s strategic plan, (b) identify the Kudler’s market structure, and (c) assess how the market…
One current problem that Kudler Fine Foods has is that the strategic plan is not current, it does not fit the company’s current make up, and the owner is too involved in each store location to concentrate on the company’s long term survival. Kudler’s owner needs to reevaluate the company’s strategic plan, from 2003, and have the managers to buy-in to the plan. The new plan not only should include the managers but also all vital employees as well. With all key employees contributing to the plan it will be easier to implement and evaluate its effectiveness (Frey, 2011).…
American retailer Kohl’s has become a prevalent fixture for the purchase of discounted clothing and home goods in the mid-west for over twenty-five years. The history of the company however has roots much more modest than present day market dominance would suggest. Dating back to a Wisconsin supermarket in 1946, founder Max Kohl grew his small business to the most successful chain of supermarkets in the Milwaukee area (12). By 1962 Kohl opened his first department store in Brookfield, Wisconsin where an eclectic selection of merchandise, from sporting goods, motor oil and candy, was sold (11). In 1972, the Kohl’s Company which by then consisted of 50 grocery stores, six department stores, three drug stores and three liquor stores, sold 80 percent of its interests to the American subsidiary of British American Tobacco (BAT), p.l.c., BATUS, Inc. The Kohl’s family ended participation in the operations of the company after soon after the sale (11).…
Kathy Kudler used gourmet cooking as a way to relieve stress. But when she found shopping for the ingredients she needed entailed traveling to different locations, Kathy decided to open her own specialty food store that offered the convenience of purchasing the products needed for this type of cooking in one place and providing them at a reasonable price. In this paper we will discuss the importance of marketing research in the development of Kudler Fine Food’s marketing plan and tactics. In this paper we will also identify areas in which there is a need for additional research and analyze the importance of competitive information and analysis in regard to the development of Kudler Fine Food’s marketing plan and tactics.…
Porter’s five forces suggest that overall the discount-variety store is not a very attractive industry for newcomers, due to prohibitive forces like access to distribution channels, threat of substitutes and rivalry…
Dollar General’s strategic objective is sustainable and profitable long-term growth. The extreme-value retail industry includes companies such as Dollar General, Family Dollar, Fred’s, and 99 Cents Only. The industry is fragmented outside the two largest firms, Dollar General and Family Dollar. An analysis of the industry shows that the highest threats are rivalry of existing competitors and customer buying power. These threats are due to the industry being highly price competitive and selling of undifferentiated products. In addition, the target market is low to middle income families who are price sensitive. The critical success factors are achieving a low-cost business model, economies of scale, merchandising, convenience, and effective customer service. The internal analysis of Dollar General shows that the company relies on serving a focused assortment of branded and generic goods to low-, middle-, and fixed-income families…
J.C. Penney’s new strategy—which some deem visionary while others question its wisdom—challenges many of the assumptions behind the modus operandi of many fashion retailers. And whereas most media and analyst attention has been focused on jcpenney’s new pricing, another more fundamental aspect of J.C. Penney’s strategy has been largely overlooked. This issue is the retailer’s desire to be “a store for all Americans—rich and poor, young and old, rural and suburban.”[i] While this goal cannot be faulted for lack of ambition, it goes against the conventional wisdom that it is difficult to succeed by trying to be everything to everybody. In fact, many companies have failed because of their unwillingness to “give up” serving some customers in order to better fulfill the needs of others. The question then is: Will J.C. Penney be able to succeed where others have failed, or will it soon…
Mr. Harrison’s plan is to leverage the company’s buying expertise to provide exciting new brands with excellent sales support. Mr. Harrison has identified that giant discounters provide attractive lines to customers, and maintaining qualified sales personnel as key objectives in his transition plan. In order to compete in the modern age, Harrison Brothers will need to provide new exciting private brands from wall to wall, sold by highly capable sales personnel and a modern…
Wal-Mart, Target, and Sears have long been icons in the retail industry. These stores have outlasted other stores such as Burdines’s, Mervyns’, and Zayer’s. Granted Sears has been around more than 100 hundred years, but one does not have longevity without knowledge to operate a successful business. Some lessons were learned after the completion of this analysis.…
Table of contents 1.EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 2.INTRODUCTION 3.HISTORY 4.CORE VALUES 5.BUSSINESS OVERVIIEW 5.1.Market 5.1.1.Specialist 5.1.2.Mainstream/lifestyle 5.1.3.General merchandise retailers 5.2.Market participants: retailers 5.3.Market participants: wholesalers/brand competitors 5.4.List of Major Competitors in the industry (Australian stores New Zealand stores) 6.CUSTOMER TRENDS 7.BUSINESS MODEL 8.MARKETING ACTIVITY AND PRODUCT STRATEGY 8.1.Marketing activity 8.2.Brand planning 8.3.Customer research 9.BRAND HIGHLIGHTS 9.1.Brand recognition 9.2.A market leader in Australia and New Zealand 9.3.Technical products with wide market appeal 9.4.Distinct advantages from Vertical integration 9.5.Attractive and stable margins 9.6.Significant store rollout potential 10.FUTURE VISION 10.1.New store rollout 10.2.Upgrade existing store network 10.3.Target stores 10.4.Introducing new products 10.5.Grow and Maximise the Customer Database 11.CUSTOMER CATEGORIES 11.1.Young Go-Getters 11.2.Adventurous Families 11.3.Older Outdoor Enthusiasts 12.OPERATIONAL EFFICIENCIES 13.RESOURCES / CAPABILITIES 14.COMPANY.S PRODUCTS 15.GOVERNANCE SYSTEM 15.1.Board Charter 15.2.Code of Conduct 15.3.Continuous Disclosure Policy 15.4.Securities Trading Policy 15.5.Audit and Risk Committee 15.6.Remuneration and Nomination Committee 15.7.Communications Strategy 16.ANALYSIS 16.1.Key investment risks on the company and Challenges 17.SPONSORSHIPS 18.CONCLUSION 19.REFERENCES / BIBLIOGRAPHY 1. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY…