dolution

You are the CEO of a new clothing company called “Tailor Swift” which has developed a new technology to create articles of clothing (shirts, pants, dresses, etc.) that match a person’s body shape and dimensions perfectly through a simple measurement process. Your technology also allows you to manufacture and produce this clothing very quickly to deliver to the consumer. The clothes are tailored to a customer’s exact specifications and can be delivered as early as next day (i.e. swiftly). Due to the nature of the bespoke products produced by your company and the lack of capital to create inventory, you and your executive team have decided to market and sell the products entirely online. However, all of your team does not agree on the exact digital strategy that should be used for the business. Your VP of Sales believes this product will take off as soon as consumers get access to it and he believes that the digital strategy should essentially be intensive in its distribution. “Everyone seems to start their online shopping experience at Amazon right now. We need to be there and in all the big online marketplaces for our company to succeed,” was his comment in the latest board room discussion. Your VP of Marketing does not necessarily agree with this. In her opinion, this product needs a great deal of special attention and should be exclusively sold through the company’s own branded website where the positioning of the product can be closely monitored. “We cannot allow our product to get lost in the clutter of all the millions of products available on sites like Amazon. The experience with the consumer needs to be controlled while we build long term brand equity and awareness” was her key point at the board meeting. Not one to usually get too involved in sales or marketing discussions, your VP of Operations having a background in supply chain and understands the power of strategic alliances had yet another opinion. “We need to partner with a key retailer that brings awareness to the product and supports our consumer targeting and customer service. There may be some retailers that are struggling with online sales that will see mutual benefits in an exclusive relationship with us.” Your investors are eager for your business to launch and have scheduled a meeting with your board for the final decision.

1. Please prepare the following information for that meeting: Name at least 2 pros and 2 cons of each of the strategies presented by your team

2. Make your recommendation on which of the 3 strategies are best for your product and why the benefits of that approach outweigh the others

** If your decision is to go with your VP of Operations recommendation (strategic alliance) then also make sure to recommend a specific retailer and why that retailer fits with the company’s overall strategy

3. Explain how you will use your digital strategy to overcome the fact that your product will not be sold in any physical store locations. How will you gain interest, convince consumers to try your product even though it is different, and how will you handle customer satisfaction/loyalty?