Internal and External Analysis of Franchise

Internal and External abstract of Franchisecent doubting doubting doubting doubting Thomas, an Ivey down with the mete out considerably of her daughter, who alike is an Ivey graduate, decides to bargain for a l nut casense to open a stain Slab franchise in the Gr release Toronto Area. After paying her fees of $25,000 to the comp both, she starts opinion of her foodstuffing plan for her aur eat one enterprise that she has two weeks to hand to the stain Slab head-quarters in Calgary . So she hired a marketing consultant (me) to admirer her. First, the corporate capabilities of the company had to be defined, financial capabilities, food for thought marketing capabilities, Operational capabilities and the unattached human resources. After comprehensively studying the internal capabilities of the company, the outside forces compound the business be analyzed. The two foreign forces categories discussed in the report atomic number 18 the economical factors in the be a, the social factors. Politic all in ally and technologically didnt stand an military group on the business. After that, the prep argon and mediate competitions of Thomas were examined and then plans were do to compete with them. The direct competitions were Baskin Robins and Dairy queen regnant. The indirect competitions were McDonalds, Star Bucks, grocery and thingummy stack a sorts. After care honorabley examining all these influential forces, a consumer analysis of the 3 best potential tar cling markets were wo hands, young adults and families was set up. And the tar catch up with Market of Women was found nearly suitable for Thomass business because women are the primary caregivers, rife shoppers in the community and they are much health conscious than males. erst the tar mother market was chosen, a marketing 4Ps plan was constructed. Product wise, stain Slab franchise had plenty of options to choose from, from milk shakes to grouch lap cakes. precisely the p rimary product that Thomas should use temporary hookup promoting the golden open up is the Childs size of it ice plectrum with ace mixin because it is popular and it appeals to womens concerns because it is small and winey. so sets were determined for just now supply, because marble Slab is a franchise and it wasnt allowed for Thomas to change any of the prices. She only had great power over the catering prices, so calculations of the break neverthe slight so points of the third different catering options were conducted and the best catering choice was the Sundae obstacle option. After that, the fix of the store was determined by studying to each one areas race and traffic. And the area that was chosen was the Toronto Annex area, although with a low population, it had a lot of foot traffic from students (al or so half of students being female) and near a meddling shop street. Following the location of the business, different progressional options (billboards, rad io, etc.) were examined and the most suitable, put up withable combination of promotions for the grand opening were chosen. In conclusion, this marketing note was studied comprehensively and the following results of the marketing report compute that the grand opening is going to be successful along with the geezerhood to acclaim.The marble Slab Creamery has been a well- cognise name in the market for ice glance over since it first opened in Houston, Texas in 1983. Now stain Slab has four hundred branches worldwide in which, Penny Thomas had been bless(prenominal)ed to be a part of when she buyd the right to open up a franchise in the Greater Toronto Area. Thomas is going to have a grand opening in May 2008 and needs a marketing plan to get enjoyd by the headquarters in Calgary, Alberta slightly how she go away adhesive friction the grand opening. The following marketing report breaks down the corporate abilities and the external analysis of Thomass company, also it discu sses the consumer analysis and the private-enterprise(a) analysis. After deciding on the right design market, the report discusses marble Slabs marketing plan which admit product, price, promotion and placement.Corporate Capabilities marble Slab enjoys many financial abilities, being one of 400 franchises Penny Thomas shares the identical purchasing power of the franchisor. This is rightfully helpful because Thomas would get a great deal of help from the stain slab company by providing penny with connections that she undersurface use to append the stores success and it would save her condemnation now that she got all the connection and purchasing power she needs. Another ability and privilege that comes with a franchise is that the financial risk of any financial disaster is trim back and the consequences wouldnt be as severe because the store is backed up by a large well-established company that acts as a safety pelf for Penny Thomass store, which is helpful and the stor e can have more secure. On the other hand, marketing budget was set at $10,000, which can cover all the costs of the grand opening adequately, which is salutary for the first company because budget is tight for any new project and efficiency is a key player in making the starting of this store follow more smoothly. Marketing capability wise, Penny Thomas enjoys stain Slabs already be prominent name, so the store isnt a new store that the target market must discover and view about. Therefore, the franchisor made Thomass promotional task easier, and many existing Marble Slab guests go forth come to this location. As well, Marble Slab is already known for its full(prenominal) shade products that many customers around the 37 Ontario locations enjoy and crave. Thomass operational activities offer a great deal of in general quality, freshly made ice- filling, with the option of letting the customer customize their purchases with a choice of toppings blended into their ice-cream flavour of choice, these choices include fruit pieces, candy and force nuts. These blends were made by a Marble Slab employee on a marble granite slab it also serves kosher, low-diet frozen yogurt, sundaes, floats, soft drinks and ice-cream cakes. All these activate differentiate Marble slab from any competition giving them a competitive advantage that leads to more sales. Moving on to human resources, Thomas is blessed with the degree from Richard Ivey give lessons of business, help of her daughter who also graduated from Ivey and valuable 25 old age worth of experience working for the Hudson Bay company and she was familiar with her lets past AW restaurant that he owned. This helps her greatly, because she knows what to expect and she is a in truth wise women in the field of business. She is also enjoying the expertise and network of the Marble Slabs company, that helps her get started with the help of her network and make her avoid defective decisions that were made in the past. Marble Slabs employees must be well trained to handle all the machines and blending techniques so they can fulfill the whole Marble slabs experience that the customer expects. Employees are also highly hygienic because the work requires lots of hand work.External Analysis The economy this year is going through a difficult nook in the United States. Which raises fears on how the Canadian economy result get affected later with the decline in Canadian exports and the commodity prices, only one wonders how the recession will hit Canada. But the consumer glide bying and the Canadian GDP are still growing. This instability raises fears for the business, maybe hurting it in the future because if the recession does hit, less consumers will be able to bear up under the quality of Marble Slab so sales will decline. Also because Marble Slab deals with dairy products, cocoa and sugar commodities, in which al personal manners fluctuate in price and never stable depending on supply and demand of the market. That may hurt or help the business because prices capacity fall to less than expected, increasing the marginal profit or increasing to more than expected, lessen the marginal profit. Socially, Thomass business is expected to decline in pass months, because of Canadas long harsh winters, because less wad get a craving for not bad(predicate) ice cream in the winter months than in the summer. Ice cream is also became a popular collation within the bulk, with the average Canadian consuming 8.4 litters annually in 2007. Also, the companys good quality products give the store an advantage of having people to like to fate off in a right smart Marble Slabs ice cream period they are eating it with their friends. Also, in that location is growing health a trend growing that pushes people to look for healthier ways to chomp such as frozen yogurt, in which Marble Slabs serves their customers.Competitive Analysis Marble Slabs direct competitions in the mark et are Baskin Robins and Dairy Queen. Baskin Robins always had a strong presence in the Canadian Market. They have their stores open in good locations with high traffic for customers dodge. They serve 31 original high quality flavours, with the same price contrive as Marble Slab. Baskin Robins also enjoys a fortune of resources and promotional power. though Baskin Robins has all these features, they dont give their customers the option of customizing their purchase like Marble Slab does. Marble Slab can compete with them by keeping the prices in the same slog while emphasizing to the target market the option for customers to customize their purchases. This way Marble Slab would have a competitive advantage over Baskin Robins. Baskin might respond to this by introducing the same option we offer or diminish their prices. The other direct competition to Marble Slab is the world-wide restaurant of Dairy Queen, which served the same category of products with the option of customized purchase to their customer as marble slab does, save Dairy queen also sells hot food items such as hotdogs, burgers and fries. On top of that, they targeted the family markets because they also offer friendly-kid options. Dairy Queen is present in high traffic areas such as malls. Marble thunder in that locationfore, has to try to avoid competing with Dairy Queen by targeting a market other than families, and at the same time focus on the quality of Marble Slabs products and return customers that they may be paying more only when the quality they are gaining is much more than Dairy Queen. Dairy Queen might respond to this by increasing the quality of their products and focusing on the hot foods that they serve and advance it more to attract more customers. For competitive positioning map (see deliver 1).In addition to Marble Slabs direct competition, Marble Slab has three indirect competition McDonalds, Starbucks and Grocers and convenience stores. McDonalds is the worlds lar gest fast food chain restaurant. Other than hot foods, they offer soft-serve dessert items such as ice cream, milk shakes and the Mcflurry. McDonalds is present in high traffic areas and offers a feat thru for customers in a hurry. They have cheap prices that anyone can afford in Canada, but also serve low quality products. McDonalds may seem like tough competition but it is not because it serves peculiar(a) options for its customers. Marble Slab should focus on their quality and the unique Marble Slab way of making their products and making it more accessible for customers by adding a drive thru option. McDonalds wouldnt respond because their main goals arent about frozen desserts, they care more about their hot foods. A second indirect competition to Marble Slab is Starbucks, which is a premium retailer of coffee dessert and fresh food items. Starbucks gives its customer a cozy air travel and wireless internet. Like Marble Slab, it offers high quality products for premium price s. Marble Slab already serves better quality choices and options of ice cream which gives a competitive advantage to Marble Slab. Marble Slab can also compete with Starbucks by giving the same cozy atmosphere in the restaurant but also suitable for younger children. Starbucks will respond to this by introducing new drinks which will appeal to children. The third indirect competition is the mass produce ice cream companies that distribute to grocers and convenience stores. These products appeal to a lot of people because they vary in prices and they are really accessible for customers because they are sold in grocery or convenience stores. Problem with this is that they are not always fresh and full of ingredients that keep the product fresh which can be harmful to the customer. Marble Slab can compete with this by selling their mixes and their ice creams at a number of grocery and convenience stores in the future. For competitive positioning map(see Exhibit 1).Consumer Analysis Ther e are three target market options that will probably appeal to Marble Slab, families, young adults and women. Families with children under 15 eld of age are the best potential customers. Children represent the bottom of the population pyramid, which means that they are more than any other target market. Families eat ice creams when they go out with their children and the children ask their parents to buy them ice cream to satisfy their sweet tooth. Families are willing to buy mostly on weekends at locations near parks while taking the kids out, and inside malls while obtain. The second target market are young adults that age from 15-24 years of age who have some or full independence, and can spend their disposable income on social interactions. preteen adults find ice cream a popular later on a long sidereal day at work or at school or just apparently to chill out. Young adults are influenced to buy from Marbles by comprehend famous people or their idles eat Marble slabs Ice cream. Young Adults would purchase an ice cream from obtain centres while they are shopping or beside a high school or a college when they are on break or after class. As good as the young adults target market sounds, it is very competitive because there is already a lot of ice cream outlets targeting this group. Which leads to the last target market Women, which are the best target Market for Thomass Marble Slab creamery. Because women are the caregivers and paramount grocery shoppers in our gild, they also do more shopping than men in general, and they are more health conscious, which is good for the stores low-fat snacks. Women are influenced to purchase from Marble Slab when seeing skinny models satisfying their taste buds by enjoying their tasty Marble Slab snack, while still keeping their bodies fit. Women are everywhere, they can purchase from shopping malls, streets, gyms, parks and colleges at any time of the day, any day of the week, but mostly weekends. And women spend alot of time at malls so Marble Slab would be a great snack for them.4Ps Product Marble Slab is a franchise that differentiates itself from other ice-cream outlets because it serves their customers high quality, top of the line products. With the option of customizing their purchases by choosing different flavour blends and mixins which included, fruit pieces, candies and specialty nuts. Mixins were blended by employees on a marble granite slab. Also Marble Slab offers Kosher for the Jewish customers and a wide variety of different milkshakes, frozen yogurt, sundaes, milkshakes, floats, ice cream cakes, soft drinks and newly added fat-free frozen yogurt. The product that Thomas should focus and promote the most is Childs size ice cream because it is fairly popular and it appeals to her target market which is women, because it is a small portion with less calories and very tasty. footing Marble Slab is a franchise therefore it doesnt have any power of changing of prices.(For unit co ntributions of products see exhibit 3) It requires Thomas to sell 7764 units of Childs size ice cream to break even and start making a profit. (see exhibit 2). Childs size ice cream is the product that will be promoted with the promotion of the grand opening, because it appeals to womens needs its small and tasty. But the company gave Thomas the flexibility of prices in catering. Thomas should choose the Sundae bar catering option because it gets the most profit selling less units to break even than the other options. Sundae Bar needs 57 customers to breakeven the costs while the Ice Cream social needs 59 customers to break even and start making a profit.(see exhibit 4) The portable Slab option is unaffordable because there is only $685 left from the $10,000 budget that was set for the promotion, and $2,500 are needed for redundant equipment.(exhibit 5) Thomas should keep her price at the average which is $6.95 per person because price wars may lead to bankruptcy and because she is located in a busy area beside a university and a shopping street. Therefore, will get a lot of catering offers because it is where a lot of students and women who are either shopping or hanging around or at university would probably come and party on birthdays and other occasions.Placement Thomas should open her Marble Slab restaurant in the Toronto Annex Area. Although it has a smaller population of any of the four options, The Annex area has a lot of traffic from the university that is there and it is very close to Bloor Street, which is a major shopping street. This location is the most appropriate for the Creamery because Thomass target market is women. And women are the primary shoppers in society and the university probably has a high percentage of females attending it. So this location is located in the heart of where many women walk for either shopping or going to class. The location will also help have a more successful grand opening because it is exposed to people who go thru that busy area. PromotionTo effectively promote the new store for the grand opening, Thomas should spend $2,120 on two street aim media unit, in the Toronto Annex area , because the street media would be exposed to the people shopping and in university, showing them that a light, low fat snack from Marble Slab would be delicious while shopping or after class. In addition, Thomas should purchase two 1020 feet billboards cost $2950 that would be located in high traffic roads. These billboards and street media should show a visual image of the creaminess, lightness and taste of a tops(p) premium Ice cream, preferably a childs size ice cream with one mixin, because it is small in calories and it would be best to promote. The advertisement will have a beautiful athlete physically-fit model eating from it. That way it will appeal to the target markets taste buds and show that you can preserve healthy and fit while still eating delicious food. Thomas should also spend $645 on a day time radio commercialised for 30 seconds and $650 on a radio commercial at eat time. Thomas should purchase those times because morning time is the most time that people tune in to listen to the radio while they are eating breakfast or driving to work. And the other commercial at daytime is effective, because it is when most people are awake and thinking of things to eat to get on with their day. Both types of promotion should emphasize the good quality, lambency and low fat in Marble Slabs products. All this adds up to $9315, which is less than the budget of $10,000 with an excess of $685. (See Exhibit 5)Confidently, this report will satisfy Penny Thomass wants and needs. This report discussed in detail the corporate capabilities, consumer analysis, competition analysis and the external analysis of the franchise. And from studying all these factors, the most suitable product, location, price and promotion were chosen for the grand opening of this franchise within the budget of $ 10,000. In conclusion, this marketing plan was designed to boost the businesss success from the start of the grand opening and for the many years to come. Surely, the Marble Slabs headquarters will approve of this report and would be anxious to see the results when the grand opening is on May 2008.