Debenhams Swot Analysis

Debenhams…

Debenhams is a British public limited retail company that is motivated by profit so this business aims to maximise their profits. Debenhams was a small, private limited company back in 1813. Now, Debenhams is one of the most recognised retail stores in the UK and around the world, it is a public limited company. Debenhams is famous for being the retailer of well-known brands such as Jeff Banks, Ted Baker and Lipsy. Debenhams has continued to grow and they offer famous brands at reasonable prices and they are committed to keeping up with the latest fashions. Debenhams’ ownership is a public limited company.

Customers, employees and suppliers are a few examples main key stakeholders for Debenhams.

A customer is an individual who

purchases any goods from the business organisation. All customers want to buy finished goods which are sold at reasonable prices and they also look for quality assurance. No customer would like bad quality clothes or any clothing that has some faulty issues with it like – bit of thread coming off. Customer service is very important for customers and businesses. All businesses want loyal customers and they want to maximise their profits. Debenhams’ main aims are to break – even, profit maximisation, competition/survival, recession and growth.

Break-even means there is a point where the income and costs received are equal, which means there neither profit or loss.

Growth means when the business is expanding and more income and investments are being funded.

Competition is one of the main key factors that can either influence or ruin a business’ reputation. All businesses want to have earned a lot of money, to their full potential and sell as much as they can. There is a lot of competition in the retail industry and there are so many different stores like – House of Frasers, Gap, River Island and Next.

There are different types of goods and they are normal goods, complementary goods and substitute goods. Normal goods means when there has been an increase in income (when employers/people receive their wages/benefits) and they are more likely to buy more finished goods from different stores, the demand for the goods will increase.

Complementary goods are goods that complement each other, for example: a suit from Debenhams and cuff links or an evening dress with a matching handbag.

Substitute goods are goods that have other alternatives. A classic example of substitute goods is Coca Cola and Pepsi. If the price of Pepsi goes up, customers are more likely to buy Coca

Cola.

If a customer finds an alternative good, also known as a substitute good at a different store other than Debenhams, they are more likely to turn to the other store and Debenhams are losing their customers and their profits. For example – if Debenhams sells a Calvin Klein perfume for £34, House of Frasers might sell that same perfume for £30. They are losing their customers’ loyalty because they have found another store that sells the same goods for a cheaper price, which is more affordable for other customers.

Recession is when for about two quarters in a row, the value of the finished goods sold in the economy will decrease. A quarter is a period of three months. When a recession occurs, customers are more likely to reduce the amount of money that they spend and they will save their money. The company’s profit will increase towards the end of the month when their customers, who works, get paid. Pay day in any organisation stores such as Debenhams is really important because the customers are more likely to buy something to treat either themselves or someone else that they know.

Customers are one of the main stakeholders that influence Debenhams.

Customers have to make a decision – they can either continue buying finished goods from Debenhams, or they can go to a different store and buy other substitute goods/goods that meets their needs and wants. The customers want good customer service and quality goods to be sold at a reasonable, affordable price. If a customer doesn’t receive any of those, they will go to a different store and all their money will go to a different store instead of Debenhams. For example – if a customer asked a sales assistant at Debenhams at the Menswear department but the sales assistant didn’t satisfy the customer or help them properly. The customer will be unhappy because the service provided by Debenhams doesn’t satisfy them and they will go to another store, like Top Man. Debenhams will lose their loyal customers and the profits that they receive will go

down.

Customer stakeholders and employee stakeholders work together. If a customer is happy with happy with the customer service that they receive from the sales assistant, they are more likely to return to Debenhams and go to the sales assistant that they have met before because the customer prefers the customer service they receive from that assistant. The sales assistant might encourage the customer to buy more finished goods; this means that the customer will have the “feel good” factor and the profit for Debenhams is increasing.
If the manager sees how their employer is doing, the manager is more likely to give them an incentive or promote them to sales adviser/supervisor.