BOARDWALK FASHION LINE


            Boardwalk Business Ventures Inc. started as a manufacturing garments company in 1989. Boardwalk products include clothing apparels, footwear, bags, belts and fashion accessories for men, women and children. It has diversified into direct sales and multi-level marketing and now has 26 branches and 30 satellite offices strategically located in major cities of the country. Boardwalk promises livelihood and financial stability to its direct sellers and has survived a number of financial crisis through its direct selling and networking strategy.


            While Boardwalk assumes a position of success in the fashion retail business, owing to its aggressive marketing and networking strategy, the company is not insulated from a number of problems: waiting-time of customers, poor quality and expensive marketing cost.


            Time Delay. Boardwalk customers have several choices to get their products. They can buy and select their merchandise from Boardwalk stores or through direct selling agents or place their orders online. While the former poses no problem for customers and granting that the products are available, the latter is problematic. Customers wait for at most two weeks to get their products, which is quite a long time for waiting. The time lapse kills the excitement and suppressing the urgent need of the customer of a specific product.


            Poor Quality. The products are relatively cheap compared to other retail fashion merchandise. Their styles are trendy and attractive but what is sacrificed for the cheap price is poor quality. One dissatisfied customer spread a bad review online. She bought a pair of sandals for her child, the product arrived two weeks after the order was placed and paid. After less than a month of using, the soles of the rubber sandal thinned out and eventually the sandals wore itself out.


            Expensive Endorsement. An aggressive marketing campaign in the form of advertising is necessary to attract the market. Boardwalk Ventures Incorporated hires more than a dozen famous celebrity endorsers. Marketing is the area where the company prioritizes spends millions for the prohibitive endorsement fees of famous celebrities putting a brunt on the company’s financial condition.


            Suggestions. A more innovative marketing strategy is necessary to cut the cost of marketing. Some fashion retail business attracts more market by innovative advertising strategy with the use of ordinary peoples from all walks of life as models and endorsers whom the customers can very well relate to. Celebrities are attractive but they are very expensive, customers look up to them but not necessarily identify with them. In the long-run customers stick to products that are appropriate to their socio-economic status. Celebrities are too rich to be even wearing the cheap and poor quality of Boardwalk products.


            It is also suggested that Boardwalk instead put the budget on a more needed area such as research. Research is necessary to improve the quality of the products without necessarily putting the brunt of the cost on the customers. This has a long term effect on customer retention. While cheaper products are attractive to poorer customers, who are more in number, quality products attract both poorer and better customers because people in the long run would want to get value for their money. The problem with waiting time in the order can be addressed by putting in a more efficient communication system and ensuring an adequate inventory of products and expanding store locations and offices nationwide from the major cities to small cities.


            Boardwalk Ventures Incorporated can find its leadership in the fashion retail industry by prudent and more practical strategies. First by putting priority on quality products  more than cheap price, and realigning its business objectives from being a fashion retail company offering cheap products to a fashion retail company offering “value for money” to its customers with its quality and trendy products. Second, marketing costs can be reduced by reducing the number of celebrity endorses and shifting into a more innovative marketing and advertising strategy using ordinary people as endorsers rather than paying millions for famous celebrity endorsers. Boardwalk can also intensify its direct-selling and networking efforts to make its products known to more people. Boardwalk can also use the internet technology to spread good words about its products through blogs, and other social networking sites. Finally priority should be placed on meeting the demands of the customers on time without delay. To reduce the waiting time, more branches are desired to make Boardwalk products known and accessible to customers in the small cities.


            Boardwalk Ventures Incorporated has a long way to go in the fashion retail business. While it is still early, Boardwalk will have to focus itself on addressing its weaknesses as identified above: quality, time and inventory and advertising.


 


REFERENCE


Boardwalk Business Ventures Incorporated. [online] Available at: < http://www.boardwalk.com.ph/about.html> [Accessed 12 May 2011].


 



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