General Mills BCG Matrix
BCG Matrix Analysis on General Mills Canada
General Mills is a company that has many brands in the food industry, however, they are more famously known for their individual brands. Their primary brands include Cheerios, Nature Valley, Pillsbury, Green Giant, Old El Paso, Hamburger Helper, Betty Crocker and Yoplait (General Mills Canada). When these brands are organized into different categories, General Mills’ product mix is the result. Taken right from General Mills Canada website and how they organize their brands for consumer friendliness, their product mix includes: baking products, cereals, dough/pastries, fruit, ice cream, meals, organic/natural, pasta, pizza, snacks, soup, vegetables, and yogurt. Each individual type in the product mix is known as a product line. For example, the cereal product line includes: Cheerios, Chex, Lucky Charms, etc... Using the Boston Consulting Group’s Growth-Share Matrix to analyze General Mills’ products, one product line from those listed above will be identified with one of the four quadrants of the BCG Matrix.
The Cash Cow
For General Mills, the cereal product line is the cash cow. In order to be classified as a cash cow, it has low growth and a high market share. Based on the company’s 2014 Annual Report, it shows that out of their five global categories, cereals have the lowest expected growth of about 5% (refer to Appendix C), and based on their net sales in the U.S. for the past year, cereals have the greatest share of sales with 22% (refer to Appendix A). This can be coupled with the Fiscal 2014 Net Sales by Platform, indicating that cereals have a market share of about 20% (refer to Appendix B) to support the fact that cereals are indeed the cash cow. Cereals such as Cheerios, Chex, Lucky Charms, are the company’s well-known staple products, and they will always sell and make a profit.
It is not foreseeable for the cereal product line to become a dog or a star. The cereal product line is extremely stable and has
General Mills is a company that has many brands in the food industry, however, they are more famously known for their individual brands. Their primary brands include Cheerios, Nature Valley, Pillsbury, Green Giant, Old El Paso, Hamburger Helper, Betty Crocker and Yoplait (General Mills Canada). When these brands are organized into different categories, General Mills’ product mix is the result. Taken right from General Mills Canada website and how they organize their brands for consumer friendliness, their product mix includes: baking products, cereals, dough/pastries, fruit, ice cream, meals, organic/natural, pasta, pizza, snacks, soup, vegetables, and yogurt. Each individual type in the product mix is known as a product line. For example, the cereal product line includes: Cheerios, Chex, Lucky Charms, etc... Using the Boston Consulting Group’s Growth-Share Matrix to analyze General Mills’ products, one product line from those listed above will be identified with one of the four quadrants of the BCG Matrix.
The Cash Cow
For General Mills, the cereal product line is the cash cow. In order to be classified as a cash cow, it has low growth and a high market share. Based on the company’s 2014 Annual Report, it shows that out of their five global categories, cereals have the lowest expected growth of about 5% (refer to Appendix C), and based on their net sales in the U.S. for the past year, cereals have the greatest share of sales with 22% (refer to Appendix A). This can be coupled with the Fiscal 2014 Net Sales by Platform, indicating that cereals have a market share of about 20% (refer to Appendix B) to support the fact that cereals are indeed the cash cow. Cereals such as Cheerios, Chex, Lucky Charms, are the company’s well-known staple products, and they will always sell and make a profit.
It is not foreseeable for the cereal product line to become a dog or a star. The cereal product line is extremely stable and has
References: Anderson, J. (2013, June 10). General Mills to debut 200 products this summer. MinnPost. Retrieved November 1, 2014. General Mills Canada. (2014). Retrieved October 20, 2014.