The Coop
Case Outline
The "Chicken Coop"
Problem Statement
Daryl Buckmeister, CEO of The Chicken Coop, must decide whether to invest in market research, how much money to spend, and which programs to fund. His two vice presidents (of quality and marketing) have presented very different proposals.
Decline in sales
For the first time ever, the "Coop" is experiencing a decline in sales by 6% in 20 of 76 "Coop" restaurants even though the overall growth rate was steady for the chain. These same stores were carrying about 32% of the company's retail sales.
Weak to no Market Research
The CEO of the company has maintained a steady visit to some of his stores but this was not really any type of market research. These visits were more of an internal quality assurance program. He did speak with customers and received valuable feedback during his visits which certainly can be market research.
Deviating from Mission
Trevor Wallace has led the company away from the "We are chicken" campaign into other areas that may not reflect the image of what Buckmeister intended. Even though the "chick-pizza" is successful, this could also be the reason why sales are declining in many of the outlets. They could be diluting the brand image Lackluster Performance of 4 P's
The Coop has no major market research to go off of in order to effectively position them in a changing market. R&D doesn't seem to be supported by good research in the market segments.
No Competitor insights
The Coop is depending on a marketing VP with experience in the hotel industry and not any real experience in fast food. They have no current research so they have no way of knowing the effects that their competitors are having on the retail sales.
Poor Sales Strategy
There is no focus of a sales strategy. The current strategy is not working. This is probably due to the fact that there is no research being done on the market yet.
No Target Market or Segmentation
The only segmenting they have done is towards the age
The "Chicken Coop"
Problem Statement
Daryl Buckmeister, CEO of The Chicken Coop, must decide whether to invest in market research, how much money to spend, and which programs to fund. His two vice presidents (of quality and marketing) have presented very different proposals.
Decline in sales
For the first time ever, the "Coop" is experiencing a decline in sales by 6% in 20 of 76 "Coop" restaurants even though the overall growth rate was steady for the chain. These same stores were carrying about 32% of the company's retail sales.
Weak to no Market Research
The CEO of the company has maintained a steady visit to some of his stores but this was not really any type of market research. These visits were more of an internal quality assurance program. He did speak with customers and received valuable feedback during his visits which certainly can be market research.
Deviating from Mission
Trevor Wallace has led the company away from the "We are chicken" campaign into other areas that may not reflect the image of what Buckmeister intended. Even though the "chick-pizza" is successful, this could also be the reason why sales are declining in many of the outlets. They could be diluting the brand image Lackluster Performance of 4 P's
The Coop has no major market research to go off of in order to effectively position them in a changing market. R&D doesn't seem to be supported by good research in the market segments.
No Competitor insights
The Coop is depending on a marketing VP with experience in the hotel industry and not any real experience in fast food. They have no current research so they have no way of knowing the effects that their competitors are having on the retail sales.
Poor Sales Strategy
There is no focus of a sales strategy. The current strategy is not working. This is probably due to the fact that there is no research being done on the market yet.
No Target Market or Segmentation
The only segmenting they have done is towards the age