...Even in the highly competitive “chocolate” and “Spicy food” business, Cowgirl Chocolate has managed to offer a unique and a very high quality product which sets itself apart from other players. This has enabled Cowgirl Chocolate to penetrate into some very niche channels and access wide geographical markets. However, despite Marilyn’s international reputation and stellar product, she has been unable to fully capitalize on the opportunity due to a less than solid customer base. The unwillingness to modify her product (toning down the spiciness) to meet the customers preferences, in spite of receiving direct feedback from customers seems to directly affect the profitability of her operations. My marketing strategy will be focused on customer acquisition with the objective of increasing the bottom line profits as opposed to customer management (where there is already a strong customer base and the objective is to retain these customers). Based on this strategy, I recommend Cowgirl Chocolate to shift its focus from the very limited customer base in the hot and spicy market to the potential customers in the chocolate market. In order to do this, Cowgirl Chocolate should introduce a new variety of chocolate with a toned down level of spiciness and a unique flavor which would appeal to a greater number of end users. Customers: In the current state, it is clear that Marilyn does not have a holistic understanding of her customer base. One of the things she does know about her customers...
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...Cowgirl Chocolates – A Case Study Lillian Velasquez and Michael Johnson Wayland Baptist University Marketing Analysis MKTG 5302 Dr. Nick A. Lockard July 12, 2016 Cowgirl Chocolates– A Case Study Executive Summary Artists Marilyn Lysohir and husband Ross Coates are dedicated to their annual publication, High Ground. The magazine was a “labor of love” for the artists, but they needed funding to support it. Luckily for the couple. Marilyn worked for a candy shop as a teenager and the owner of the shop encouraged Marilyn’s creativity allowing her make sculptors out of chocolate. Marilyn found that, like spicy flavors, she had a love for chocolate and her brother encouraged her to combine the two so she could create a new, unique chocolate. After getting feedback, Marilyn and Ross decided to get the chocolates produced in big quantities and start the Cowgirl Chocolates company. As with many small businesses, this company was having a hard time launching in profitable markets despite the owner’s efforts to get into any receptive vendor. Now, there is another marketing initiative under examination to put in an ad in Chile Pepper magazine. The ad was eye-catching, but would it bring the volume of customers Cowgirl Chocolates needs to start turning a profit? The chocolates were offered in different varieties: a wrapped chocolate bar, a muslin bag, a tin, a gift box/bucket, and a simple plastic bag. The best seller was the chocolate bar, representing 50% of revenues...
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...Statement of Problem: Marilyn Lysohir and her husband, Ross Coates, started Cowgirl Chocolates in an effort to help fund one of their other business ventures, High Ground, a once-a-year arts magazine. The company had already won several awards in food competitions and received awards for the product packaging for their chocolates. The main issue facing Marilyn is how to price, promote and position her chocolates to become and remain profitable. The short term issue is becoming profitable quickly and using a robust pricing strategy to influence sales in a positive way. The long term issue is tailoring that strategy to sustain the company’s growth. Cause of Problem: The main issue at hand is to figure out how to turn her award winning chocolate into profits. Product considerations in pricing had to be taken into account as her chocolates have a shelf life and if she gets into a bad distribution sale like before she will run out of shelf life. Marilyn wondered how the price and size of the chocolate bar affected the consumers purchase decision, and how consumers evaluated the quality of each of the competing chocolate bars when making their purchase. Demographic, psychological, and price elasticity factors must be investigated in order to evaluate their pricing to consumers. She also thought that if her product would have been placed with similarly priced goods it would sell Kitchen Market New York. She just was not sure how her product should be priced compared to...
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...Case Study – Cowgirl Chocolates Analyze and record the current situation The environment – The industry – Chocolate industry Competitors: Seattle chocolate, lesser quality chocolates, vending machines Rivalry among existing competitors – Other chocolate, chocolate bars, chocolate/caramel sauce Other chocolates are made with lower quality chocolates; they did not have the spice and cowgirl image) Competitors like Settle Chocolates made ¾ of their sales during the fourth quarter while Cowgirl (in 2000) experienced higher sales during the first half of the year (seasonal sales op) Threat of new entrants – Threat of substitute products – Price is an issue when cowgirl products stand out next to lower priced products. Bargaining power of suppliers – Seattle Chocolates produced all products. They like the firm and are willing to and agreed to produce half batches (150 pounds that last Cowgirl 6 months at year 2000 sales). Packaging costs are expensive. Bargaining power of buyers – buyers can buy other cheaper chocolates. Some buyers do not like how spicy the chocolates are but like the brand. The organization – unique in offering spicy chocolate, clever branding and motto. Believes in using high quality chocolate, organic and local. Weakness is the lack of funds to advertise and do market research. Marilyn is a one-person marketing team. She is a renowned ceramic artist. Marketing Strategy – Target customers are people who like hot and spicy foods (15% of Americans)...
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...Cowgirl Chocolates Preliminary Report 3/29/16 MAR 331 Key Facts: * Chile Pepper magazine, the leading magazine for people who like fiery foods, would showcase Cowgirl Chocolates’ first advertisement for $3,000. Marilyn, the creator and owner of Cowgirl Chocolates, allowed herself one $3,000-6,000 mistake each year. * Last year, Cowgirl Chocolates had only $30,000 in revenue, which could not cover the $50,000+ expenses. * All Cowgirl Chocolates products were sourced from Seattle Chocolates. Seattle Chocolates produced Cowgirl Chocolates in half batches, lasting for 6 months at 2,000 sales rates. Before Seattle Chocolates could help manage the wholesale side of Cowgirl Chocolates, they would need to grow sales significantly. * The Moscow Food Co-op was Cowgirl Chocolates’ single best wholesale customer, accounting for 10-15% of annual sales. The co-op strategically placed these products on the shelves and sold them at a price lower than what they sold for at retail locations. Cowgirl Chocolates were also sold in local retail stores and upscale stores in major cities, however, the product never sold well in grocery stores that specialize in hot and spicy foods due to the premium price. * Marilyn was unsure of how many sales were from repeat customers, how customers evaluated Cowgirl Chocolates compared to competitors’, and if the size and price affected consumers’ purchase decisions. * The Cowgirl Chocolates website accounted for 1/3 of sales and most...
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...Ethel’s Chocolate Lounges: Back to the Future? Chocolate Lounges Taste Sweet Success Rosalind D. Perry Strayer University – White Marsh Campus Anyone who loves to taste the sweet blends of chocolates find it hard to just find the perfect chocolate. It is almost difficult to decide when there are several distributors trying to lure customers to their stores and taste what they have to offer. From the true lover to the part-time lover everyone is looking for the best chocolate and at the best prices. Yes, we would like to get the best chocolates for Valentine’s Day, Anniversary, or birthday; however, Ethel would want to take into consideration a few factors when operating her business. For Ethel, she had to take into consideration that during the period of 2002 to 2004 chocolates sales soared by twenty percent. Even though the figures were from a period well noted for sales, Ethel would still have to take into consideration – Who would be her competition? The competition factor comes from the likes for Godiva and Starbucks and Ethel knows in order to be successful she will have to do her research well. Ethel’s first choice was her decision as to where the store would be located; so she chose, Chicago. Chicago is known for the purest of chocolate loves because they hold The Chicago Chocolate Tours which attracts any chocolate lover. These tours are going on all year long and there are plenty of things...
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...HERSEY’S SWEET MISSION The mission statement of the Hershey Company brings to mind its signature chocolate bars and kisses: “Bringing sweet moments of Hershey happiness to the world everyday.” Living out that mission, however, comes down to more than candy. The company defines its mission in terms of its relationships with all stakeholders—consumers, employees, business partners (such as suppliers and distributors), shareholders, and the communities in which it operates. With regard to employees, the mission involves “winning with an aligned and empowered organization . . . while having fun.” “Aligned” employees should share values, be clear about how their work contributes to the organization’s mission, collaborate effectively, and be selected, equipped, and rewarded for meeting company objectives. These requirements, of course, call upon the skills of human resource management. With regard to values, Hershey has identified four and communicates them on its Web site: We are Open to Possibilities by embracing diversity, seeking new approaches and striving for continuous improvement. We are Growing Together by sharing knowledge and unwrapping human potential in an environment of mutual respect. We are Making a Difference by leading with integrity and determination to have a positive impact on everything we do. We are One Hershey, winning together while accepting individual responsibility for our results. All of these values play into the way Hershey addresses human...
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... Cadbury India Limited is the biggest chocolate importer and manufacturer in India since 1948 (Cadbury, 2007), launching series of chocolates for the various segments and strata of people in India’s large and diverse population. Exploiting the monopoly of Cadbury’s market can be highly beneficial and profitable by launching our product, Cadbury Choco Slim, a diet chocolate which will specifically serve the needs and wants of the higher income group who are more health conscious and can afford to pay for a product that serves their purpose. Throughout this project we will cover particular segments and the marketing mix strategically implemented for this selected segmented in order to achieve maximum profit and customer satisfaction. Personal interviews of various customers and their families have seemed successful for the acceptability of Choco Slim. The use of internet has been very helpful in obtaining various data which were further implemented in our project to describe our suggested product in much more detail. The use of graphs and charts has been made for a more vivid visual experience of the results that were fetched via our research. CHOCOLATE Let’s get familiar with our taste buds. What is chocolate? Where does it come from? What is it made of? These questions are some of the basic ones that we usually forget to ask ourselves as we are mesmerized with chocolates and its sweet, soothing and insatiable taste. Chocolate is a delicacy, a desert, a sweetener or...
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...confectionery company owned by Mondelēz International Inc. and is the industry's second-largest globally after Mars, Incorporated.[3] With its headquarters in Uxbridge, London, England, the company operates in more than 50 countries worldwide. The company was known as Cadbury Schweppes plc from 1969–2008 until its demerger, in which its global confectionery business was separated from its US beverage unit (now called "Dr Pepper Snapple Group").[4] It was also a constant constituent of the FTSE 100 from the index's 1984 inception until its 2010 Kraft Foods takeover.[5][6] History 1824–1900: Early history In 1824, John Cadbury began selling tea, coffee, and drinking chocolate, which he produced himself, at Bull Street in Birmingham, England. He later moved into the production of a variety of cocoa and drinking chocolates, made in a factory in Bridge Street and sold mainly to the wealthy because of the high cost of production. John Cadbury became a partner with his brother Benjamin and the company...
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...Assignment 1 Hershey’s Sweet Mission Jay Jenks Professor Jesse Garcia Human Resource Management HRM 500 25 October 2012 Strayer University Washington DC Recommend the redesign of Hershey’s performance management system to appeal to the diverse groups that it employs. First of all, any performance management system redesign must recognize that all employees are motivated differently by different things, but many can be affected by certain concepts. So it is imperative to know what motivates the majority of your employees. The redesign of Hershey’s performance management system to appeal to the diverse groups that it employs will need to involve management as well as the employees to make the effort successful. I feel that Hershey currently has a very good diversity program. Hershey has redesigned its performance management system appealing to the younger generations who show an eagerness for challenge, and results. Therefore I would employ a system that is in line with Hershey’s core values, and we can start by educating the workforce through training and the utilization of seminars, team huddles, and mentoring sessions and also, by soliciting feedback from the workforce in order to give employees a feeling of inclusion (Hershey Company 2012). The employees should be clear about the organization’s mission and be rewarded for doing what their job description entails. Also, human resource management will train other employees on the proper etiquette of...
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...Chocolate are one of candy or dessert for most of the people. There are many reasons why people eat chocolate, the most common reason are because they simply enjoy the taste of chocolate. But there are more reason after some research, eating chocolate can make an individual feel happy. According to a Ph.D. holder Mark, chocolate ‘stimulates endorphin production, which gives a feeling of pleasure (Mark 2009). Nowadays, people live under stress in the urban city, stress from work place or school; eating chocolate might be one of the methods to reduce stress. James had mentions ‘chocolate is known to be a mild mood elevator, stimulating brainwaves and pushing your stress levels down’ (James 2006). This probably are the reasons people eat chocolate when they are unhappy. Certain kind of chocolate are benefit to our health, like dark chocolate. A small bar of dark chocolate helps high blood pressure patient to reduce their blood pressure (Mark 2009). In mostly, consumers consume product according to their image, styles or self- concept. According to Pettigrew, ‘consumers attempt to enhance their self-concepts by using product’ (Pettigrew 2002). Cadbury have advertise a ‘Chocolate is Cadbury’ campaign on its product, Cadbury Dairy Milk (Cadbury 2007) that have great emphasis on taste. They had create a Cadbury’s chocolate is the chocolate king image and the concept of Cadbury’s chocolate have the original chocolate taste. Consumer may just consumer Cadbury’s chocolate because...
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... Executive Summary People are identified by their name, the way they look, their voice and personality. In the same way a product is presented so that a consumer will always be able to recognize it as distinct from any other similar product. Critical to the success of any product is the creation of the right identity. Identity means that a product is easily recognizable and differentiates from the offerings of competitors. Our store takes the concept of a traditional chocolate shop and adds the element of creativity and health. Our customers will have the opportunity to come into our store and concoct their own chocolate tailored to a customer’s desire that is health conscious. Cadbury Diet will be reinventing itself by producing a low-calorie dark chocolate which will be tagged as a healthy snack in contrary to the recent issues that the confectionery industry has faced. Cadbury chocolate bar has been tagged as the “People’s Chocolate Bar” manufactured by the Cadbury Company and founded by John Cadbury in 1824.Cadbury is a British confectionery company owned by Kraft Foods and is the industry's second-largest globally after Mars, Incorporated. With its headquarters in Uxbridge, London, England, the company operates in more...
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...to demerger. In 2008, the beverage site of the business (Schweppes) became Dr Pepper Snapple Group and confectionery (Cadbury) was bought by Kraft Foods the very next year. Cadbury Schweppes: Capturing Confectionery Introduction The purpose of this document is to analyze the existence of Cadbury Schweppes. This paper will describe the history and background of the company. In addition, the document will identify and discuss the global initiatives of Cadbury Schweppes. And finally, the document will discuss the recommendations for the corporation. History and Background Cadbury Schweppes began its journey in 1969 with the merger of a beverage company started by Jacob Schweppe in 1783 in Geneva, Switzerland and a chocolate business started by John Cadbury in Birmingham, U.K. in 1824 (Hill and Jones, 2010, p. C311). Cadbury Schweppes was the world’s oldest profitable family owned business till the early 2000’s. With origins stretching back over 200 years, Cadbury Schweppes became the international beverage and confectionery company...
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...Part 1. Feasibility Study My service will be providing a dessert and coffee bar that specializes in unique and fun variations of desserts. I will provide products such as "dessert nachos" where the customer will have the chance to experience nachos made from dessert items. Among the other interesting items, will be a dessert breakfast where the customer will have sunny side eggs made of white chocolate and giant m&m's, chocolate covered bacon, and apple slice "hash browns", along with cinnamon pita bread "toast". The child that is fond of cheeseburgers and fries for dinner can now have a cupcake and cookies in that same form. These things are for the playful and heart. For the sophisticated pallet, there will be special coffee blends, decadent hot chocolates with flavor variations such as cookies-n-cream and s'more, and endless iced coffee combinations. To accompany these more grown-up tastes, rich desserts like Italian Cream Cakes, Turtles, and much more. The mission of my business is to create a profitable business that allows customers to enjoy the product and the atmosphere. I want to provide my customers with quality products that they cannot get at any other places, and they do not mind paying for. The customer should leave feeling like they were welcomed and they got a quality product. My hope is for this business to become one that is well respected and loved by all. I want people to want to spend their money with me because they know they will be served a quality...
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...premature infant who could tolerate neither his mother’s milk nor any of the conventional substitutes and had being given up for lost by doctors. The value of the product was recognized after it saved the child’s life. Henri Nestle showed an early understanding of the power of branding as he adopted his very own coat of arms as the company’s logo and refused to allow Nestle in various countries to have different logos. The coat of arms reflected his name; which meant little nest in his dialect as it consisted of a birds’ nest with a mother bird and her three little chicks. The company expanded its product base very quickly, with the collaboration of Daniel Peter whose company figure out the mix of milk with cocoa powder to make milk chocolate. They also merged with Henri Maggi’s whose company created powdered soups and bouillon cubes, sources and flavorings using legumes. Data Collection and Intended Use active data (such as name, mail address, e-mail address, telephone/fax numbers, credit card details, password, etc.) when voluntarily submitted by visitors for registration, contests, on-line order placement, etc.; and Passive data (such as browser type, IP address, page reference, etc.) From time to...
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