Marketing Assignment Essay

My chosen retailer is Pick n’ Pay which is a company owned by South African entrepreneur Raymond Ackerman in 1967. Pick n’ Pay was able to gain a large share of the market because Raymond Ackerman’s policy of putting offering customers the best value for their money before profit maximisation and various social responsibility programmes have made them a household in South Africa. Question 1 Pick n Pay bridges the following gaps: * Space. * Time. * Information. The space and time, value gaps are bridged by pick n’ pay, by establishing what the market really wants and providing consumer what they want at the right price in the right environment. -Information on products is readily available in stores during promotions and generally accessible in store. -Pick n’ Pay offers financial services like credit on large purchases like appliances. -Through bridging these gaps Pick n’ Pay has been able to establish long term relationship with consumers. Question 2 An organisation has to perform its primary & auxiliary marketing activities efficiently and in a timely manner to ensure that the needs/ of the customer are met. Pick n’ Pay also owns its own transportation fleet so they have more control over meeting demand on time. * Pick n Pay conducted detailed market research in order to properly serve its market as all store formats are as diverse as the geographic area they operate in, from the large hypermarkets to the express stores in petrol stations, they cater to all different market segments. Pick n’ Pay also own Boxer supermarkets which cater to low income groups such as rural areas. * They form of standardisation and grading is their policy of giving consumers double their money back on Pick n’ Pay products if they not satisfied with the quality, This policy enabled Pick n’Pay to gain the trust of consumer which translates into Customer loyalty. All other products offered by Pick n’ Pay have to follow certain regulations before being offered to the public. Pay has to take the necessary steps to ensure that products like fruits are available all year round which means such products need to be stored in fridges and other products have to be stored properly so they don’t get damage before getting to the actual store so they don’t incur any losses. * The risk of loss or damage is to be mitigated by the form of having insurance policy to cover the business. * Pick n’ Pay borrows money from banks to cover the day-to-day operations; Raymond Ackerman says many businesses that were destined for greatness failed because they didn’t have enough cash to run their daily operations. I would say Pick n’ Pay uses the societal marketing-oriented concept because of their environmental initiatives which have even gained the organisation a Sunday Times Top Brand Grand Prix award for the company that did the most to promote â€Å"green† issues and social upliftment of communities. Raymond Ackerman stresses the importance of doing â€Å"good† business which means implementing sustainable practices in the work environment and doing what the business is obligated to do in terms of social responsibility. Here are some environmental initiatives have introduced: * Green Products- Products that are 100% recyclable with active ingredients that are made from sustainable,natural ingredients. * Introduced limited edition eco-friendly bags to limit the use of plastic bags * Pick n’ Pay vehicles use a low sulphur content diesel and ozone-friendly lubrication oils. * Setting up recycling points at Pick n’ Pay stores * In 2009 they opened up 3 Pick n’ Pay express stores, starting a new era of green retailing. These type strategies will gain the business long term customers because of its awareness of contributing positively to the environment. Question 4 I would say my chosen retailer has evolved to this level because they the good relationship it has with its stakeholder that’s why they have been able to offer the market such good prices and within any business you need to maintain good relationship with your suppliers for example, this would ensure that everything is delivered in a timely time and with your employees to ensure that their product are product and know what’s expected of them. Pick n Pay has a number of policies and guidelines to govern relationships with its stakeholders so every interaction with its stakeholders is morally sound and is in line with the correct practices so that customers are satisfied and customers are retained. Question 5 5. 1 The micro environment of Pick n’ Pay is its internal stakeholders which would be: * Employees * Investors * Management The business has full control over this environment. The market environment is the outside of the business and the business can only control this environment to a certain degree. The market environment comprises of: * Suppliers * Competitors- Checkers,Spar,Woolworths. * Customers * General Public – Brand Perception and Brand awareness. 5. 2 Pick n Pay is a company that focuses a lot on physical environment and socio economic issues as it recognises the importance of sustainability practices in its business due to the fact that natural resources are not available in infinite quantities and the damage us humans are doing to the environment. Pick n’ Pay has also implemented programmes that challenge socio economic issues such as unemployment. Here some the changes and programmes implemented to adapt to changes/trends in the macro environment: * Setting up recycling points at Pick n’ pay which in turn provides employment. * â€Å"Green† products – 100% recyclable products with natural active ingredients that don’t harm the environment. * BEE programmes which allows people from disadvantaged backgrounds to own a Pick n’ Pay franchise store. * Pick n’ Pay company also recently extended its ‘Green Range’ of household products to include garbage bags made from 100% recycled material, 70% of which is post-consumer recycled materials.