Threat of New Entrants The barriers to entry in the retail industry are manageable and possible to overcome. However, independent retailers, those businesses that started from scratch, might find it hard to compete with established retail giants. This makes the retail industry attractive for retail giants but unattractive for independent retailers Bargaining Power of Suppliers In the retail industry, suppliers tend to have very weak bargaining power. Retail giants tend to drop suppliers if their demands are not met. Also, the success of a brand may depend on how they are placed on the shelves of these retail giants. So naturally, suppliers can be at the mercy of retailers. Bargaining Power of Buyers Since prices in most types of retail stores are fixed, buyers tend to have very little, to none at all, bargaining power with retail stores. In department stores, for example, a customer cannot haggle the prices for a product with the sales agent. However, retailers must not abuse this situation as they might drive away even their most loyal customers. Threat of Substitutes Since most retailers provide a wide range of products and services, there is a big possibility that products and services offered by one retailer can also be found in another retailer. Unless a retailer carry exclusive products and services, or can compete heavily on prices, then consumers will have little to no switching costs. Competitive Rivalry Rivalry in the retail industry is high since there are numerous competitors sharing the same market. Even retail giants find themselves in competition with traditional stores, because they are people’s go-to when they run out of something, especially if they need it right away and they do not need a large amount of it.... ... middle of paper ... ...12 stores located in China and the Middle East. The company’s overseas distribution includes China, Middle East and Indonesia. Stores Specialists Inc. Stores Specialists Inc (SSI) is responsible for bringing the world’s top lifestyle brands in the Philippines, such as Aerosole, Bally, Anne Klein, Bass, Gucci, Diesel, Kenneth Cole, Nine West, Prada, Michael Kors and Superga, to mention a few. It is under the Rustans Group of Companies, owned by the Tantoco family. Apart from the aforementioned brands, SSI also established a number of specialty retail and concept stores such as Beauty Bar and Makeroom. The company sells over 50 brands in more than 250 freestanding boutiques and concession outlets throughout the country. Works Cited http://mba-lectures.com/management/strategic-management/1006/strategic-group-mapping-of-retail-chains.html Euromonitor International
Levy, Michael, Barton A. Weitz, and Dhruv Grewal. Retailing Management. ed. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill Education, 2014. Print.
The large retailers have many options when it comes to selecting suppliers. The scale of operations of Walmart, for example, give it tremendous bargaining power, and this has enabled its cost leadership in the industry. As will be discussed further in the next question, Trader Joe’s has an extensive supply of private labels; it is argued that private labels enable strategic bargaining power of supermarkets. The retailers are able to imitate the national brands under a lower-priced private label, thus the national brand manufacturers must provide better negotiation terms with the retailers (Meza and Sudhir, 2009). Technology may also strengthen the supermarkets purchasing power, as their point-of sale data provides information on what is not selling, or what is selling. They are able to purchase the popular items in larger amounts, possibly strategically negotiating prices and obtain the low-selling items at reduced
Some dominant economic features of this industry include the number of rivals, the number of buyers, vertical integration, and supply/demand conditions. The number of rivals in this industry varies on the scope of how large or small the firm is. Larger rivals include Whole Foods and Walmart and smaller rivals include Lucky’s Food Market and Pathmark. For example, Walmart has a highly differentiated product selection. it offers various forms of products that are ‘identical’ to better convenience its consumers. Walmart also has large channels of distribution where its “shippers are always on the lookout for ways to speed product from source through supply chains to the consumer” (Walmart, 2014 Pg.1). The number of buyers in this industry is consumers who are buying large volumes of products, where these buyers do not necessarily have any buying power. The majority of of grocery stores are in the retail industry, where larger involvement occurs from integrating operations, and suits the industry as a competitive
In this wholesale retail industry, the major key players are Costco, Sam’s Club, Walmart, and Target. Other e-commerce businesses like Amazon are also considered the rivals of Costco and other primarily brick-and-mortar businesses. The level of rivalry among existing players is high due to many reasons. First of all, it is easy for the customers to switch their memberships if they are unsatisfied with the company’s products or services. Since the annual fee of membership at Sam’s Club is ten dollars lower than that of Costco, Costco customers can switch their membership to Sam’s Club anytime they want. Many wholesale retailers have similar items, which means that there are no product differentiations among the companies. In addition to that,
Many researchers have made efforts to study retail change, based on the assumption that they can gain an...
Analysis: With one of their main issues being sustained profitability, Wal*Mart is at a critical time in their life. They are no longer the hero, a place commonly reserved for competitors striving to be number one, because Wal*Mart is number one. No one can debate how effective they have been in getting here. Through their focus on superior technology and low cost leadership, Wal*Mart reigned supreme. They are redefining Porter’s five forces model in the discount retailing industry, and are in the enviable position of having first mover’s advantage. Yet this blessing is also a curse. By virtue of their efficient, effective system and its proven success, companies like Kmart and Target are watching closely and both emulating and improving upon this system. An analysis of the five forces model will show Wal*Mart’s main competitive advantages in supplier power and barriers to entry. A look into their distribution centers and how they have been instrumental in reducing supplier power will be followed by an analysis of how effective first mover advantage has been and where they must take it next.
There is a high degree of diversity between retailers, with dedicated shoe retailers competing with apparel retailers and large supermarket chains.
Primark has a huge customer base for being one of the largest clothing retailer in the UK. Nonetheless, the bargaining power of buyers is relatively high due to the large quantity of competitors in the industry. Buyers are price sensitive and they will probably seek for the lowest price before purchasing an item. There is no switching cost in the market so customers are likely to buy products in other store once they discover a cheaper price.
In recent years there has been major growth in the wider business world surrounding the overall influence that the retailing industry holds and because of which, retailing and the issues that surround it have become a vital influence in today’s global economy. (Fisher & Raman, 2001)
For a retail manager determining location for an organisation, it must be decided whether the business holds ‘’competitive advantage’’ and whether there is opportunity to outperform competitors and capture a share an existing market. (Kim, W. C., Mauborgne. R. 2005) If a retail manager was to determine that little to no existing competitors in a location it could prove massively influential on where to base a business. (Kim, W. C., Mauborgne, R. 2005)
Wal-Mart’s competitive environment is quite unique. Although Wal-Mart’s primary competition comes from general merchandise retailers, warehouse clubs and supermarket retailers also present competitive pressure. The discount retail industry is substantial in size and is constantly experiencing growth and change. The top competitors compete both nationally and internationally. There is extensive competition on pricing, location, store size, layout and environment, merchandise mix, technology and innovation, and overall image. The market is definitely characterized by economies of scale. Top retailers vertically integrate many functions, such as purchasing, manufacturing, advertising, and shipping. Large scale functions such as these give the top competitors a significant cost advantage over small-scale competition.
The retail industry is as old as human civilizations, and it’s worth noting the retail sector is much better geared to change than most sectors. Over the past couple of decades there has been a wide range of changes in the retailing business. The retail sector dates back to the early 1800’s when the first local corner store sold common household items and basic groceries. As its name states, the corner store was just that, stores strategically placed on corners on high foot traffic areas for easy access. As society started to grow so did the need for new consumer goods and how a consumer would reach those goods. Department stores became popular simply because they were able to offer an assortment of categories and a variety of items within those categories all under one roof. The first two cities to start developing large scale department stores were New York City, and Chicago. In New York in 1846, the first building was built offering a variety of goods at fixed prices that were shipped from Europe. Department stores moved away from the idea of bartering and all items sold were considered fixed. However, department stores did offer discounts and coupons as a way to get customers in the door. In 1862, the largest department store was built during this time in New York City. The department store was on a full city block with eight floors and nineteen departments of dress goods, furnishing materials, carpets, fine china, toys and sports equipment. All these items were arranged around a central glass-covered court. The glass windows quickly became a staple in the department stores design. The act of window shopping was introduced and quickly all department stores had floor to ceiling windows advertising the newes...
Threat of substitutes in market as best quality is not always a priority for some customers as they are price sensitive.
Department stores do not manufacture products nor create their own brands of merchandise, their products are not differentiated. As a result, consumers have low switching costs, customer loyalty is low, as they can easily purchase similar products elsewhere. These lower the barriers to entry, allowing new entrants a chance to gain customers.
The group has extensive global network of over 48 offices covering about 32 countries and territories around the world. The group's network extends outside Asia and into other markets like North America, Europe and South Africa. The group sources from around 10,000 internal supplies. Global network enables the group to source its goods from various locations and distribute it in different countries mitigating its exposure to any particular economy.