...traded company that I have selected is Kroger. Kroger is a grocery retail chain in the US. It operates supermarkets and multi-department stores under a number of banners including Kroger, Harris Teeter, Ralphs, Fred Meyer, Food 4 Less, Fry's, King Soopers, Smith's, Dillons, Jay C, QFC and City Market. According to The (Kroger Co. SWOT Analysis, 2015), the company holds the largest or the second largest market share position in 41 of the 49 major markets in which it operates. It ranks among the largest corporations in the US. Kroger's size provides it with significant pricing power over food producers, giving the company economies of scale over smaller supermarket operators. Kroger follows a strategy which has evolved to incorporate more elements of differentiation on factors other than price. The company has tried to identify various factors that drive customer visits and loyalty and has made several targeted investments to achieve the same. One such move is the increase in gasoline stations. The company has increased the number of stores with fuel centers to 1,240 in FY2014 from 376 in FY2003. Having more than 1,000 fuel centers is a key advantage for Kroger, enabling the company to drive traffic to its stores. In 2010, the company partnered with Shell to roll out the grocer rewards program in Cincinnati, Dayton, Knoxville, Nashville and San Diego. This program allows customers in participating markets to earn points and redeem them for savings on gasoline at Kroger Fuel Centers...
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...Grocers: Kroger 1. INTRODUCTION: CASE OVERVIEW AND KEY ISSUES The case Attention Shoppers: Executive Compensation at Kroger, Safeway, Costco and Whole Foods situation explains the costs and strategies related to a companies growth and expansion. Kroger is the main focus of this case. In 2006 Kroger’s was the second largest seller of groceries by revenue with an estimated $60 billion. The success of Kroger Company began in 1883 and which became one of the first chain stores in the country. Kroger then expanded its stores by buying out local competitors with low prices when the economy was suffering. Throughout the twentieth century, Kroger implemented several innovations to throw itself above the competitive advantage. By the 1950’s Kroger had built a reputation of producing fresh good quality products and began to label products with “sell by” dates and nutritional facts. Kroger took on multiple acquisitions helping push its expansion to the West. Under the full leadership of David Dillon Kroger increased revenue and lowered its debt dramatically and also found new ways to increase customer frequency. Kroger also sustained a four-month strike by the United Food and Commercial Workers union, which impacted not just Kroger, but Safeway, and Albertson’s. Retail grocery sales represent a significant amount of the U.S. economy. The industry that Kroger competes in is highly competitive. This resulted in Kroger reducing its operating costs in order to maintain profitability...
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...PESTEL ANALYSIS 3.1 POLITICAL The company has no political pressures on it at present. The political framework of the country supports the Retailership businesses. Kroger took part in the campaign started by USO, which is a not for profit organization that aims to serve the US military troops and their families; this initiative was a collaborative effort by Kroger and P&G (WGSC org, 2011). 3.2 ECONOMIC The economic environment of the company is not performing up to the mark. The customers are increasingly cutting off their expenses by limiting the number of purchases and visits to the stores. The economic downturn has adversely affected the businesses and other operations in US. Kroger is no different from the other companies but due to its intense marketing and customer services strategies it has tried to maintained its position even in the period of recession. 3.3 SOCIAL Kroger is continuously trying to take part in the activities to promote the culture and social benefits to the people of country. Food safety is Kroger’s top priority. They have well-established, science-based practices in place to ensure that the food items sold in the stores are prepared and handled safely. Kroger recently began a new customer notification system for certain types of recalls. Using customer loyalty database, they are able to notify customers via register receipts about recalls of products they may have purchased. They use personalized communications to the customers (Kroger Sustainability...
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...The Kroger Company Mem o To: From: Date: Re: Matthew W. Ford Georgi E. Trifonov September 24, 2007 Distribution and supply chain management analysis for Wegmans and Kroger Co. Introduction As assigned, the distribution and supply chain management has been investigated for Wegmans and Kroger Co. A comparison on distributions and supply chain management choice has been made between the two. The comparison also focuses on what beneficial operational decisions can be adopted at Kroger and how they will affect the distribution and supply chains. Summary Comparison between Wegmans and Kroger. The comparison based on distribution strategy shows that Wegmans have implemented strategies that give them advantage over Kroger Co. Such are warehouse semi-automation and conveyor use, which results in decreased labor cost and increased speed and effectiveness. Working with vendors to improve packaging has reduced inventory loss at Wegmans. Information sharing through Global Data Synchronization will further increase their effectiveness. The planned replacement of SKU with ID-tag chips will further improve Wegmans’ supply chain operations. Opportunities for improvement at Kroger. Key opportunities for improvement at Kroger Co. are automation of the warehouse process through the use of conveyor belts that will reduce labor cost and improve effectiveness. Current and future recommendations for Kroger. Key recommendation for Kroger at this point besides automation is vendor relations...
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...Table of Contents 1. Introduction & Methodology Tasked to determine if Treats Inc. is correctly priced, the team first determines the intrinsic value using the Corporate Valuation Model and compares it with the current price. Next, financial ratios of Treats are compared across its peer groups to determine its relative performance in the industry. Lastly, a Sensitivity Analysis is conducted to understand the impact of deviations of assumptions made in the model. 2. Assumptions On top of the given assumptions found in Appendix 1, we assume (1) Depreciation expense each year is calculated by straight-line method with reference to previous year’s Fixed Asset book cost. (2) Treats Inc. is a company engaged in business retailing of food, general merchandise and it operates a series of hypermarkets and supermarkets around the world. (3) The return of the MSCI ACWI is taken as the market benchmark return. 3. Deriving the Intrinsic Value per Share (i) Using SLOPE function in EXCEL, β=0.55943882 (ii) WACC=rD*1-TC*DV+rE*EV rE=rf+βrM-rf=0.072466329 WACC=0.06632138 (iii) CFFA=OCF-NCS-ΔNOWC Year | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | CFFA ($, In 000s) | 1,099,500 | 1,052,438 | 996,743 | 931,457 | 855,517 | (iv) Terminal value represents value of firm at the point that growth becomes constant. TV=CFFA2019WACC-gCFFA=855,5171.0150.06632-0.015=$16,919,842,000 (v) Discounting Treats’ CFFA and TV by WACC, PV of Treats’ future operating cash flows=$16...
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...THE KROGER COMPANY Company Analysis BY Wayne Hurt 6/27/12 Abstract: The purpose of this paper is to run a complete company analysis. This includes the company background, the industry structure including practices of economic theory to create value, ethical issues, regulatory agencies, the macroeconomic and microeconomic environment of corporate operations, and a conclusion. Table of Contents The Kroger Company’s (KR) Background…………………………………….3 KR’s Structure………………………………………………………….............4 Ethical Issues…………………………………………………...........................9 Regulatory Agencies………………………………………………………….10 Environmental Issues………………………………………………………....12 Macroeconomic and Microeconomic Environment………………………….14 Conclusion.........................................................................................................17 Appendix 1 Table 1…………………………………………………………..21 Appendix 2 Chart 1…………………………………………………………..21 Bibliography…………………………………………………………………22 Background of The Kroger Company (KR) The Kroger Company (KR) is one of the leading companies in the grocery sector of the nation. It is the nation’s leading pure grocery chain. As of now, it operates about 3620 stores, which includes 2435 supermarkets and multidepartment stores, under two dozen banners, in almost 30 states. It also runs 775 convenience stores under the brand names such as Quik Stop and Kwik Shop. Its subsidiary Fred Meyer Stores operates about 125 supercenters which offer wide range of products...
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...within organization’s can cause miscommunication and misunderstanding between management and employee and sometimes require the intervention and protection of employment laws. Human resources management is the bridge that helps to guide and enforce these laws (Cascio, 2010). Throughout this paper, the writer will discuss the role human resources management plays in the unionized company and the nation’s number one pure grocery chain, Kroger. 21st Century Organizations and Unions The Kroger Company was founded in 1883 by Barney Kroger who invested his life savings to open the grocery store in downtown Cincinnati, Ohio. Today the chain operates 2,500 supermarkets in 31 states with sales of $70 billion and is considered the nation’s current largest retailer and is known as a unionized company (Corporate News, History,). A union is explained as being a group of workers who organize and come together to make valuable decisions about the conditions of their work environment, if they should be improved, eliminated, or kept the same. Union membership includes: ways employees can improve and impact wages, company benefits, work hours, and workplace health and safety. A union can meet its duties by representing everyone in the bargaining unit...
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...THE ETHICS OF JOB DISCRIMINATION: SEXUAL HARASSMENT Student Name: Course Title: School Affiliation: Due date In one of the largest sexual harassment verdict in California, the Kroger Company was stunned to learn that the company had to pay for the mistakes of one of the employees of the Ralphs’ supermarket chain they had just acquired. The Kroger Company, which operates 2500 supermarkets in 32 states, had acquired the Ralphs’ chain of supermarkets when they bought Fred Meyer Inc. in 1998. On April 5th, 2002, The Kroger Company- with a well known written policy forbidding sexual harassment and zero tolerance for sexual harassment since the 1980s-was asked to pay compensatory and punitive damages totaling $30.6 million for the sexual harassment case against Roger Misiolek, a Ralphs’ employee. Problem Statement Six women who were employees of a Ralphs’ branch in California were accusing Roger Misiolek, a Ralphs’ store manager, of sexually harassing them between 1995 and 1996. The six women, namely Dianne Gober, Sarah Lange, Terri Finton, Peggy Noland, Suzanne Pipiro and Tina Swann filed a harassment suit against Ralphs in 1996. Analysis During the trial that began in 1998, the six women testified that immediately Roger Misiolek took over a store manager in 1995, he began harassing them by touching inappropriately, verbally abusing with profanity, shoving shopping carts at them and throwing, among other things, objects like phones, clipboards, and even a mailbag. The...
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...Individual Case Analysis Stage 2: PUBLIX Founded in 1930 by George W. Jenkins, it is an employee-owned, privately held corporation. Publix is currently ranked No. 86 on Fortune magazine's list of 100 Best Companies to Work For 2010[4] and was ranked No. 9 on Forbes' 2009 list of America's Largest Private Companies and is the largest in Florida.[5] The company's 2009 sales totaled US$24.3 billion, with profits of over $1.2 billion,[2] ranking #99 on Fortune magazine's Fortune 500 list of U.S. companies for 2010. Supermarket News ranked Publix No. 7 in the 2009 "Top 75 North American Food Retailers" based on 2008 fiscal year sales.[6] Based on 2006 revenue, Publix is the fifteenth-largest retailer in the United States.[7] Publix's current stock price is $19.85 per share though it is privately held and not available to the public.[8]...
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...'micro-environment' and the 'internal environment'. [pic][pic][pic][pic][pic] The micro-environment This environment influences the organization directly. It includes suppliers that deal directly or indirectly, consumers and customers, and other local stakeholders. Micro tends to suggest small, but this can be misleading. In this context, micro describes the relationship between firms and the driving forces that control this relationship. It is a more local relationship, and the firm may exercise a degree of influence. The macro-environment This includes all factors that can influence and organization, but that are out of their direct control. A company does not generally influence any laws (although it is accepted that they could lobby or be part of a trade organization). It is continuously changing, and the company needs to be flexible to adapt. There may be aggressive competition and rivalry in a market. Globalization means that there is always the threat of substitute products and new entrants. The wider environment is also ever changing, and the marketer needs to compensate for changes in culture, politics, economics and technology. [pic][pic][pic] The internal environment. All factors that are internal to the organization are known as the 'internal environment'. They are generally audited by applying the 'Five Ms' which are Men, Money,...
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...24 September 2012 Operations Whole Foods Market Inc. was established in Austin, Texas in 1980, and is “the world’s leader in natural and organic foods and America’s first national “Certified Organic” grocer with over 310 stores throughout North America and the United Kingdom” (Whole Foods, 2012). Whole Foods consists of one operating segment, natural and organic foods supermarkets. Whole Foods is the “largest retailer of natural and organic foods in the U.S. and the 10th largest food retailer overall based on 2010 sales rankings from Progressive Grocer” (Whole Foods, 2012). Over the last 3 years, Whole Foods has seen substantial growth in revenues from 8.0 billion in 2009, 9 billion in 2010 and 10.1 billion in 2011, and “from 2010 to 2011 this represents a 12.24% sales increase and a 39.37% increase to net income which was 342.61 million for year-end 2011” (Hoover’s Pro, 2012). Whole Foods offers a large selection of natural and organic products with the majority of sales being from perishable foods. Whole Foods “product selection includes, but is not limited to: produce, seafood, grocery, meat and poultry, bakery, prepared foods and catering, specialty (beer, wine and cheese), coffee and tea, nutritional supplements, vitamins, body care, educational products such as books, floral items, pet products and household product” (Whole Foods, 2012). Whole Foods also offers products under their primary store brand called “365 Everyday Value®, along with a grouping...
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...Toggle SGML Header (+) Section 1: 10-K (10-K) UNITED STATES SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION Washington, D.C. 20549 FORM 10-K (Mark One) ANNUAL REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934 For the fiscal year ended February 1, 2014. OR TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934 For the transition period from to Commission file number 1-303 THE KROGER CO. (Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter) Ohio (State or Other Jurisdiction of Incorporation or Organization) 1014 Vine Street, Cincinnati, OH (Address of Principal Executive Offices) Registrant’s telephone number, including area code (513) 762-4000 Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act: Title of each class Name of each exchange on which registered 31-0345740 (I.R.S. Employer Identification No.) 45202 (Zip Code) Common Stock $1 par value NONE (Title of class) New York Stock Exchange Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act: Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act. Yes No Indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Act. No Yes Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding...
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...Andrew Wash GBA 490-321 Written Case 1 February 12, 2014 Table of Contents Issue #1 ……………………………………………………………………………… 2 Issue #2 ……………………………………………………………………………… 3 Issue #3 ……………………………………………………………………………… 4 Recommendation ……………………………………………………………………. 5 Dominant Economic Characteristics ………………………………………………... 7 PESTEL Analysis …………………………………………………………………… 8 Five Forces Analysis ……………………………………………………………….. 10 Drivers of Change in the Industry …………………………………………………... 12 Current Strategy …………………………………………………………………….. 13 Competitor Analysis ………………………………………………………………... 15 SWOT Analysis …………………………………………………………………….. 17 Financial Analysis ………………………………………………………………….. 19 Issue #1 Trader Joe’s first problem is that information is occasionally leaked regarding the identity of their private label suppliers. Trader Joe’s thrives off keeping the identity of their suppliers a secret to all consumers and media in order to maintain the integrity of their products. Since 80 percent of the products sold at Trader Joe’s are private label, the identity of the supplier is not known because the product is sold under the Trader Joe’s brand name. Information leaks regarding Trader Joe’s suppliers could damage their brand image because it could cause Trader Joe’s to lose its charm to consumers and because it could make other companies wary of supplying their goods. First, information leaks could cause Trader Joe’s to lose its charm in the eyes of the consumer. There were news reports spread within...
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...Executive Summary Jim Collins, already established as one of the most influential management consultants, further established his credibility with the wildly popular Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap...and Others Don’t, originally published in 2001. The book went on to be one of the bestsellers in the genre, and it is now widely regarded as a modern classic of management theory. Collins takes up a daunting challenge in the book: identifying and evaluating the factors and variables that allow a small fraction of companies to make the transition from merely good to truly great. ‘Great,’ an admittedly subjective term, is operationally defined according to a number of metrics, including, specifically, financial performance that exceeded the market average by several orders of magnitude over a sustained period of time. Using these criteria, Collins and his research team exhaustively catalogued the business literature, identifying a handful of companies that fulfilled their predetermined criteria for greatness. Then, the defining characteristics that differentiated these ‘great’ firms from their competitors were quantified and analyzed. The resulting data are presented in Good to Great in compelling detail. Over the course of 9 chapters, Collins addresses a number of management, personnel, and operational practices, behaviors, and attitudes that are both conducive and antithetical to the good-to-great transition. One overarching theme that links together virtually all...
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...Final Exam – Trader Joe’s Case Study 1. Supermarket Industry Analysis In 2013, the traditional supermarket industry is unattractive because of: a) Existence of powerful substitutes in the form of large discount retailers (Wal-Mart, Target), warehouse clubs (Costco, Sam’s Club, BJ’s, and pharmacy chains (CVS, Walgreen’s) that have increased emphasis on grocery sales. * Because increased traffic leads to increased sales of higher margin items in retail stores, there is growing attractiveness for retail stores to enter grocery industry * Retail leaders such as Wal-Mart and Target run highly efficient operations. Coupled with a large volume sale philosophy, both are able to take market share from traditional supermarkets through significant price cuts. As such traditional supermarket share has dropped in last year from 67% to 51% with the growth of retailers participating in grocery sales * Lack of differentiation across products and brands gives consumers a high degree of bargaining power because they incur little to no switching costs between rival competitors and brands (see below) and because of the growth of substitutes. Customers who want to do all their shopping both retail and grocery supplies either in small volume purchases or in bulk have many options to choose from (Wal-Mart vs Schnuck’s vs CVS vs Costco) b) Strong competitors across all segments of supermarkets, which can be broken down into traditional, premium, and discount stores...
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