The Swatch Group Essay examples -- Business Management Marketing Essay

The S keep up Group Competing In An Increasingly Global Market For WatchesNicholas Hayek and Ernst Thomke formed the S bring in Group (the Group) in 1983 by merging two bankrupt watch-making groups. The merger gave the Group ownership of galore(postnominal) of the Switzerlands dominant watch bulls eyes. Swatch, their first product initiative, was so successful that it helped pull the squandering Swiss watch industry out of a slump. In June 1999, with its 14 brands, the Group was the worlds largest watch shaper (in value terms). However, the global industry had swopd and would continue to change dramatically in the new millennium. The Swatch Group was at a strategic crossroad and had to essay the industrys past and future in order to examine its next move. What proceeds is an in-depth analysis of the Swatch Groups competitive face the global watch industry. We will identify a problem and wish several alternative actions to address this problem. Finally, we will discuss how to implement and rate these suggestions.Industry Snapshot 1999Historically, the watch industry had been fragmented and protected by the national governments of many countries. In the 1980s and 1990s, however, the competitive environment began to change. first-year and foremost, newly formed companies began to mass-produce low-cost, technologically advanced watches. The emergence of these products dramatically changed the way hatful bought and sold watches. Another dominant factor for change was consolidation. As companies merged, they improved their competitive positions through improved distri hardlyion, R&D, marketing, and economies of scale. These conglomerates slowly became major(ip) global players against which many watch manufactures could not compete. Initially, Swiss watch manufactures chose not to respond to many of these changes. They valued the inherent art of watch making and as such refused to succumb to the competitive pressures of large multinationals such as Seiko and Citizen. As a result, the industry took a dive in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Many companies and groups went bankrupt. Included were the two major groups that Hayek, together with a group of investors, bought back from Swiss creditors. In just now a few years, they lifted the merged company (the Swatch Group) out of fiscal turmoil. Through strategic initiatives, they streamlined and rejuvenated many of t... ... entice consumers and improve brand image. Both strategies would help increase market share in a high-margin/low-volume segment. Let us now discuss how to best implement these suggestions. writ of executionThe key to successful implementation would be proper planning. The Group whitethorn have to restructure the way its units are organized so as to better determine which brands would be most viable in each geographic area. Under this plan, the Group would open new retail shops in which it would sell its own brands and any complimentary items that consumers would ass ociate with watches. get-go and foremost, the Group should establish high tech, JIT-ready distribution centers in the geographic areas in which it plans on opening new retail shops. This would ensure that the shops stay replenished, but not cluttered with too much merchandise. The Swatch group would also get to expand its research and development staff. It would need to hire younger, creative people who know what is going on the world of technology, sports, and the arts. As such, they would be in touch with the needs of these markets. Only then could the Group determine what advanced(a) products to develop and market.