Premium Essay

Brannigan Foods Case Analysis

In:

Submitted By mlunde
Words 2849
Pages 12
BRANNIGAN FOODS:
STRATEGIC MARKETING PLAN

Mitchell Lunde
University of Maryland University College
MRKT 495
21/10/2013

Table of Contents

Executive Summary

Company/Product Analysis

Problem Statement and Underlying Symptoms
Bert Clark faces many challenges as vice-president and general manager of Brannigan Foods’ Soup Division, but nothing could have prepared him for what he recently read. A critical analysis of the entire soup industry indicated the situation as dismal and with no end in sight. Because of the increased health concerns amongst American consumers and the perception of most soups as being high in sodium and full of preservatives, many consumers have either stopped buying soup entirely, or have moved to fresher, healthier soups. Not only is the report slightly negative, but the company’s own market share, sales, and profitability has been slipping for the past three consecutive years indicating only one thing: new strategies had to be implemented in order to subside the downward spiral.
The people he depended most on in his division had all provided their own careful analysis and recommendations, but despite their efforts, there was no comprehensive solution amongst any of the recommendations. There was however one point which Clark felt was his division’s most pressing need: in order for the company to grow, it had to target products to a younger audience despite the fact older segments consumed a majority of condensed and ready to eat (RTE) soups. In order to acquire this group however, the correct marketing strategies had to be assessed and implemented, and fast.
Marketing objectives for Brannigan include the following:

* Increase profits by 3 percent every year for the next 5 years * Develop 2 new products internally over the next 5 years * Increase shelf space by 1 percent over the next 5 years *

Similar Documents

Premium Essay

Brannighan Foods

...Brannigan Foods is an international food manufacturing company. The Brannigan Soup Division is faced with declining profits and a quickly changing market. In the past 16 years since the current Vice President, Bert Clark started with the company he cannot recall a more complicated challenge within his division. Brannigan is the market leader with 39.8% market share. Brannigan Foods sells approximately 63% of its soup products via Supermarkets. While they maintain the largest market share, the market (all customers) is becoming more diverse and restrictive. The Market Analysis report put forth by Brannigan’s Analyst in 2012 highlights the United States trends in soup consumption and sales. The analysis provides no real customer feedback however, it does report extensive sales data for Brannigan as well as the industry. Brannigan has core customers and core products (Ready to Eat (RTE) soups both wet and dry) that have supported their research, development and new growth opportunities for many years. These core products are reported to contribute 86% of the current profits to the division. Brannigan reports declines in sales of 1-2% per year. Despite the decrease in the sales of their core products Brannigan was able to maintain the profitability by increasing the cost to the customer. They are now at the point that competitors private label growth is surpassing their sales for the “same” products. Their core business is at risk. Bert Clark, over the years had...

Words: 1512 - Pages: 7

Premium Essay

Brannigan

...Brannigan Foods Case Study Exercise 1. BRANNIGAN FOODS STRATEGIC MARKETING PLANNING IE Business School Juan Manuel Restrepo Davies Mª Concepción Aragonés Cabeza 2. IE Business School PROBLEM STATEMENT Bert Clark, vice-­‐president and general manager of Brannigan Food Soup’s Division, has to decide which of the four alternative plans his team members have proposed should be implemented in order to reverse the industry’s steady decline as well as the division’s sales, market share, and profitability decrease for the last three years. He has to move the division’s growth back to a 3-­‐4% at the end of the fiscal year. ANALYSIS OF THE SITUATION Company: Brannigan is a company that has been operating for over 100 years. It has a Soup Division which has experienced a decrease in its profitability and needs to create a new strategy to stop the declining sales and market share it has been experiencing. It is important to highlight that the soup division is the cash cow (according to the Boston Consulting Group product matrix) of Brannigan Foods, reaching up to 40% of the company’s total sales. The most profitable product category this division has is the Ready to Eat ...

Words: 5198 - Pages: 21

Premium Essay

Brannigan Foods

...BRANNIGAN  FOODS   STRATEGIC  MARKETING   PLANNING                             IE  Business  School   Juan  Manuel  Restrepo  Davies   Mª  Concepción  Aragonés  Cabeza   IE  Business  School   PROBLEM  STATEMENT     Bert   Clark,   vice-­‐president   and   general   manager   of   Brannigan   Food   Soup’s   Division,   has   to  decide  which  of  the  four  alternative  plans  his  team  members  have  proposed  should   be   implemented   in   order   to   reverse   the   industry’s   steady   decline   as   well   as   the   division’s  sales,  market  share,  and  profitability  decrease  for  the  last  three  years.  He  has   to  move  the  division’s  growth  back  to  a  3-­‐4%  at  the  end  of  the  fiscal  year.     ANALYSIS  OF  THE  SITUATION     Company:  Brannigan  is  a  company  that  has  been  operating  for  over  100  years.  It  has  a   Soup   Division   which   has   experienced   a   decrease   in   its   profitability   and   needs   to   create   a  new  strategy...

Words: 5173 - Pages: 21

Free Essay

Brannigan Case

...Brannigan Foods – Case Study 1 Brannigan Foods is the leading brand in the soup industry, but has been experiencing declines in every aspect of their division. The primary problem is that Brannigan Foods sales, market share, and profitability has slipped in the last three years. One of the only reasons they have been able to keep up their sales is due to them increasing their product prices, resulting in a plateau of sales. The secondary problem consists of Brannigan foods not reaching out to other target markets besides the Baby Boomers (1946-1964) and they are completely missing the Millennials (19-30). There are a few conventional alternatives that would work best for Brannigan Foods, the first being from Srikant Tipha, Director of the Simple Meals unit consists of reinforcing awareness of the new items and introducing trial by upping the advertising investment in Fast & Simple soup meals and the Heart Healthy soup line, providing promotional couponing and sampling of the hot new flavors in the dry mix of Gazpacho and Teriyaki Beef Fast & Simple meal, which will help Brannigan break into and grow in the Asian soups category. The last part of her plan is to continue to promote dry soups even if they will cannibalize RTE soups. Another alternative comes from Bob Pugh, VP Sales and Marketing of Brannigan Soups. He believes a good alternative would be to take a five cent price-per-can cut on the core ready-to-eat wet soups, increase the A&P budget by $20MM to restore...

Words: 715 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

Brannigan Foods

...Brannigan foods had been a major player in the food industry, but with the recent downward trends in sales and profit margins, a rapid change in the operations and management of the company is needed. As the division head, finding a strategy, which will not only increase sales and profit margins but also reduces the risk levels in the company is my top priority. With the help of the four division managers, I am confident that I will be able to implement an effective and successful strategy for the company. The case presented by Claire Mackey one of the division managers will be of great contribution to the strategy that the firm will use to rebuild its sales and profit margins. Mackey’s report focuses on the problems that Brannigan is facing currently and specifically the declining sales volume and lower profits that the company has been recording for the past three years. Mackey is confident that by handling the current customer desires for healthier and more convenient products, the company will be in a position to increase its sales volume. His report also focuses on how the company can manage to penetrate other markets, which it has not managed to do for the past three years as well as improve the performance of the low performing markets like Southeast Asia and China. Since the report focused on the actual challenges the firm is experiencing now, it will not only be a good consideration before making the final decision on the implementation but will also assist in making...

Words: 653 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

Awdsdsa

...BRANNIGAN  FOODS   STRATEGIC  MARKETING   PLANNING                             IE  Business  School   Juan  Manuel  Restrepo  Davies   Mª  Concepción  Aragonés  Cabeza   IE  Business  School   PROBLEM  STATEMENT     Bert   Clark,   vice-­‐president   and   general   manager   of   Brannigan   Food   Soup’s   Division,   has   to  decide  which  of  the  four  alternative  plans  his  team  members  have  proposed  should   be   implemented   in   order   to   reverse   the   industry’s   steady   decline   as   well   as   the   division’s  sales,  market  share,  and  profitability  decrease  for  the  last  three  years.  He  has   to  move  the  division’s  growth  back  to  a  3-­‐4%  at  the  end  of  the  fiscal  year.     ANALYSIS  OF  THE  SITUATION     Company:  Brannigan  is  a  company  that  has  been  operating  for  over  100  years.  It  has  a   Soup   Division   which   has   experienced   a   decrease   in   its   profitability   and   needs   to   create   a  new  strategy...

Words: 5173 - Pages: 21

Premium Essay

Brannigan Foods

...Brannigan Foods: Strategic Marketing Planning Advanced Marketing Management October 26, 2014 Table of Contents Introduction………………………………………………………………………………………..3 Soup Industry……………………………………………………………………………………...3 Brannigan Foods…………………………………………………………………………………..5 Competition………………………………………………………………………………………..7 Buyer Behavior……………………………………………………………………………………8 Segment Analysis………………………………………………………………………………….9 SWOT Analysis………………………………………………………………………………….11 Product Life Cycle……………………………………………………………………………….12 Growth-Share Matrix…………………………………………………………………………….14 Srikant Tipha, Category Manager - Simple Meals, “Heart Healthy” Soups Dry Soups………...15 Claire Mackey, Director of Finance and Planning……………………………………………….17 Anna Chong, Chief Innovation Officer………………………………………………………….20 Bob Pugh, VP Sales and Marketing……………………………………………………………...21 Ansoff Matrix…………………………………………………………………………………….22 Exhibits………………………………………………………………………………………..…25 References………………………………………………………………………………………..35 Introduction The following is an analysis of Brannigan Foods’ Soup Division. The analysis begins by giving the overview of the industry and Brannigan’s position within the industry. Next, a thorough breakdown of all pertinent factors is conducted to highlight the main issues regarding the soup division. The analysis concludes with a focused statement presenting Brannigan’s most significant problem. The Soup Industry Overall soup consumption in the U.S. is on the decline....

Words: 5907 - Pages: 24

Premium Essay

Life Is Great

...Order Now Discounts Contact Us Our Guarantees Brannigan Food Case Brannigan foods had been a major player in the food industry, but with the recent downward trends in sales and profit margins, a rapid change in the operations and management of the company is needed. As the division head, finding a strategy, which will not only increase sales and profit margins but also reduces the risk levels in the company is my top priority. With the help of the four division managers, I am confident that I will be able to implement an effective and successful strategy for the company. The case presented by Claire Mackey one of the division managers will be of great contribution to the strategy that the firm will use to rebuild its sales and profit margins. Mackey’s report focuses on the problems that Brannigan is facing currently and specifically the declining sales volume and lower profits that the company has been recording for the past three years. Mackey is confident that by handling the current customer desires for healthier and more convenient products, the company will be in a position to increase its sales volume. His report also focuses on how the company can manage to penetrate other markets, which it has not managed to do for the past three years as well as improve the performance of the low performing markets like Southeast Asia and China. Since the report focused on the actual challenges the firm is experiencing now, it will not only be a good consideration before making...

Words: 663 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

Brannigan Foods

...Case: Brannigan Foods: Strategic Marketing Planning 1. Problem Statement November 2012: Following three consecutive years of slipped sales, market share and profitability, Bert Clark, vice-president and general manager of Brannigan Foods’ Soup Division, is given a high priority task: He must decide on which marketing strategy shall the company take in order to: * achieve short-term numbers needed * US Soup Division profit growth of 3% in 2013 * strengthen the long-term direction of both company and its most reputable brand 2. Situation Analysis – Market Summary Regarding customer behaviour and market trends, important insights arise from analysing Julian DeGennaro’s (Brannigan Market Analyst) summary report. Starting with customer behaviour it can be said that, at least, 3 out of 4 consumers recognise canned food as useful to have at home, point cold weather as a trigger for eating soup and agree that soup is part of a healthy diet. Moreover, soup consumption in U.S. household averages 1.4 cans per week, with the segment of 18-24 average rising up to 2.1 cans/week. Concerning market trends, it can be said that soup is still regarded as a seasonal buy and a low-innovation product. Yet, it is noteworthy that Healthy-living solutions have been pointed as a need for children, among whom obesity concerns are especially important. Senior consumers, who have been described as brand loyal and heavy soup users, also show growing health concerns and tend to...

Words: 2604 - Pages: 11

Premium Essay

Branigan Case Study

...Case: Brannigan Foods - Strategic Marketing Planning Define the Problem: Decision Case: Clark, vice-president and general manager of Brannigan Foods’ Soup Division, had to decide which of the four strategies presented by his four key manager he should follow to improve the division’s sales, market share, and profitability, which has been falling for the last three years. List any outside concepts that can be applied: The impact of developing new products (incremental) and extending the line of products in order to increase market share, profitability and/ or sales, as well as to gain shelf space. The power of using a recognized brand name to reduce risk, although it could also devaluate the brand. Cannibalization: developing these new products could result in cannibalization of the existing ones, for this, product developers and managers must take into account cannibalizations when they assess the value of the new products. Promotion: which covers all efforts (advertising, branding efforts, introductory coupons, and so on) the importance of investing or allocating resources in promotion in order to increase sales and market share. Pricing strategy: one of the proposed strategies talks about reducing the price of the can soups, the impact t of reducing the price of a product has on customers must be considered by the managers, consumers tend to question whether the quality of the product was put on stake or not in order to reduce price The product life cycle and the...

Words: 1054 - Pages: 5

Premium Essay

Brannigan Case Pros and Cons

...MKT2401 Brannigan Foods Case Analysis Option 1: Invest in the growing sectors What - Increase investments on growing categories of dry soups, healthier soups, and fast meals so as to improve brand image and drive long-term growth - 4 ‘P’s; Product: Fast & Simple soup line (sales growing at 12% per year) positioned to meet the needs of working mothers and professionals; Heart Healthy soups positioned to address concerns of over-50 consumers - Dry soups category is expanding; 2 dry mix packs can be sold in the space of one can, increasing sales potential by 180% - 4 ‘P’s; Promotion: Increase advertising investment in Fast & Simple soup meals and Heart Healthy soup line so as to reinforce awareness and induce trial - 4 ‘P’s; Promotion: Promotional couponing and sampling of hot new flavours, e.g. dry mix Gazpacho (for warmer months) and Teriyaki Beef Fast & Simple meal (for Asian soups category) - Increase advertising and promotion spending of $18 million Pros - $18 million increase will stop slide in sales and market share Cons - $18 million increase will reduce next year’s profits; pressure from CEO, board, stockholders - Spending more on these small lines might not produce the projected sales; breakeven sales? - Competition: Tipha’s products had lower gross profit than the core products - “On-trend” initiatives may not become large category for Brannigan’s because consumers may choose not to change their eating habits (i.e. to eat healthier) ...

Words: 1049 - Pages: 5

Premium Essay

Marketing Case Report: Brannigan Foods

...BRANNIGAN FOODS STRATEGIC MARKETING PLANNING Juan  Manuel  Restrepo  Davies   Mª  Concepción  Aragonés  Cabeza   IE  Business  School   AGENDA 1. Problem statement 2. Situation analysis Five C’s Porter 5 forces SWOT 3. Alternatives 4. Recommendations Implementation plan Marketing strategy Marketing Mix Digital marketing 5. Take aways 1. PROBLEM STATEMENT GOAL INCREASE 3-4% PROFIT Industry Decline Brannigan’s sales, market share, and profitability decline 2. SITUATION ANALYSIS FIVE C’S ANALYSIS BRANNIGAN SOUPS Cash  cow,  40% of  total  sales   Products   RTE   Dry  Soups   Healthier  Soups  and   Fast  &  Simple  Meals     Anabelle     Brand  awareness  and  value  percepKon  behind   compeKtors     CUSTOMERS -­‐  Baby  Boomers,  Younger  &  Working  Mothers   -­‐  InnovaKons  and  new  flavors   COMPETITORS -­‐  New  small  compeKtors     Roarin’  Cajun  Foods   Red  Dragon  Foods   Brothers  Gourmet   -­‐  Private  Labeled  soups  increasing  their  sales  by  5%     Less  shelf  space  -­‐3%   COLLABORATORS -­‐  Decreasing  Brannigan’s  shelf  space   CONTEXT -­‐  Sector  sales  have  been  decreasing     -­‐  The  loyal  populaKon  (baby  boomers)...

Words: 1395 - Pages: 6

Premium Essay

Marketing

...“Marketing…is the whole business seen from the point of view of its final result, that is, from the customer’s point of view. Concern and responsibility for marketing must, therefore, permeate all areas of the enterprise.” - Peter F. Drucker, People and Performance, 1977 Required Textbook • Managing Marketing in the 21st Century: Developing and Implementing the Market Strategy, 3rd ed., by Noel Capon (www.axcesscapon.com, 2012). Available through www.axcesscapon.com (as a PDF file or in paperback), as well as Amazon.com or BN.com in either paperback or electronic format and in paperback through the University Bookstore. Required Cases • Harvard Business School Cases: listed in course outline. Cases are available for purchase online through Harvard Business School Press (Coursepack Link for purchasing cases listed below with list of cases). Introduction and Overview In their never-ending search for the ultimate secret to business success, many businesses continue to overlook the most fundamental premise of all business. While their search for the ultimate “secret to success” has provided some interesting and useful concepts and theories, the ultimate secret to business success is not as secret or complex as some would have us believe. Success in business comes from creating satisfied customers. This is, or should be, the essence of all marketing activities. Yet each day, we personally encounter—or the press brings news of—CEOs...

Words: 3188 - Pages: 13

Premium Essay

Business Strategy

... Course description Business and marketing strategy are critical components of business success since strategic issues and possibilities arise in all sectors. Important aspects are not only the company’s positioning in relation to its market, but also the technological development, the supply of labour, political developments in society and other factors relevant for how organizations manage their business. 1 2013 Fall semester To a large extend strategic work is about understanding these factors and reinterpreting them so that they become assets rather than restrictions. Business strategy and marketing management concepts and techniques are studied. The course serves as an opportunity to develop skills for environmental and market analysis, understanding of the major business and marketing strategy issues, formulating business and marketing strategies and tactics. Course aim Students are going to discover knowledge and apply skills enabling them to help organizations to meet and manage significant threats and challenges. Students will learn how to analyse environment and company’s resources, generate strategic alternatives and to select the most appropriate alternative for particular circumstances. Students will learn and apply provide students the fundamental knowledge of strategic and marketing...

Words: 3923 - Pages: 16

Premium Essay

Research Paper About Job Satisfaction

...A DESCRIPTIVE STUDY OF JOB SATISFACTION AND ITS RELATIONSHIP WITH GROUP COHESION by Mark G. Resheske A Research Paper Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Master of Science Degree With a Major in Applied Psychology-Industrial Organizational Concentration Approved: 4 Semester Credits __________________________________ Research Advisor: Dr. Mitchell Sherman The Graduate College University of Wisconsin-Stout May, 2001 1 The Graduate College University of Wisconsin-Stout Menomonie, Wisconsin 54751 ABSTRACT Resheske Mark G. A DESCRIPTIVE STUDY OF JOB SATISFACTION AND ITS RELATIONSHIP WITH GROUP COHESION Applied Psychology American Psychological Association Dr. Mitchell Sherman (APA) 05/2001 48 pages___ Manual used in this study___ This study investigated job satisfaction among full time faculty of the College of Human Development at a Wisconsin University. The research method used an anonymous survey that was voluntarily completed and returned to the researcher. The population of the study was the full time faculty of the College of Human Development at UW-Stout. Thirty-six full time faculty members participated in the study. The UW Employee Satisfaction Survey was used to measure the level of job satisfaction. The results indicate that overall the faculty of the College of Human Development at UW-Stout are satisfied with their current employment. The study determined that group cohesion does play a role in overall job satisfaction. Measures of...

Words: 8937 - Pages: 36