MARKETS AND MARKETING REPORT

Markets and Marketing Report

Markets and Marketing Report

Summary

When you think of the discount retail industry there is no bigger name than Co-Op grocery retailer. Co-Op grocery retailer has built them selves into the industry leader in a very competitive market, and they continue to set the bar for every company. But as of late Co-Op grocery retailer's sales growth rate has been slipping, which is causing a major problem for them. For the past few years Co-Op grocery retailer has grown accustom to double digit sales growth rates, but recently they have been unable to match their previous success. Now Co-Op grocery retailer is faced with the challenge of regaining the success that they once had.

In order to recapture these high growth rates it is important to understand what lead Co-Op grocery retailer to these high growth rates in the first place. When analyzing Co-Op grocery retailer externally you find that its 5 forces tend to have a positive effect on the company. The company has high barriers of entry, a moderate threat of rivalry with Target and Kmart due to its expansion of super centers, and its......

Table of Contents

SUMMARY1

INTRODUCTION3

BRAND STRATEGY ANALYSIS OF CO-OP GROCERY RETAILER3

FUTURE BRAND STRATEGY9

CONCLUSION12

APPENDIX15

Introduction

Co-Op grocery retailer has been regarded as an industry leader in "testing, adapting, and applying a wide range of cutting-edge merchandising approaches" (Thompson & Strickland, 2008, p. 860). Executives proved to be a visionary leader and were known for his ability to quickly learn from his competitors' successes and failures. In fact, the founder of Kmart once claimed that Executives "not only copied our concepts, he strengthened them. Executives just took the ball and ran with it" (Thompson & Strickland, 2008, p. 859).

Brand Strategy Analysis of Co-Op grocery retailer

Co-Op grocery retailer executives continue to rely on many of the traditional goals and philosophies that Executives's legacy left behind, while simultaneously keeping one step ahead of the ever-changing technology and methods of today's fast-paced business environment. The organization has faced, and is still facing, a significant amount of controversy over several different issues; however, none of these have done much more than scrape the exterior of this gigantic operation. The future also looks bright for Co-Op grocery retailer, especially if it is able to strike a comfortable balance between increasing its profits and recognizing its social and ethical responsibilities. (Slezak 2007 25-27)

Why is Co-Op grocery retailer so Successful? Is it Good Strategy or Good Strategy Implementation? -- In 1962, when Co-Op's executives opened the first Co-Op grocery retailer store in Rogers, Arkansas, no one could have ever predicted the enormous success this small-town merchant would have. Co-Op's executives's talent for discount retailing not only made Co-Op grocery retailer the world's largest retailer, but also the world's number one retailer in sales. Indeed, Co-Op grocery retailer was named "Retailer of the Decade" by Discount Store News in 1989, and on several occasions has been included in Fortune's list of the "10 most admired corporations." Even with Executives's death (after a two-year battle ...