MGM5230 Entrepreneurial Marketing

CASE STUDY
COMPETITOR ANALYSIS AND THE DEVELOPMENT OF A BRAND

COMPLACENCY CAN BE THE BIGGEST ENEMY OF RETAILERS

"There's no need to ask the price - it's a penny" was the proud claim of Marks and Spencer a
hundred years ago. From the start, it had developed a unique position in its market - an
emphasis on low price, wide range and good quality. Over time, the Marks and Spencer
position has been steadily developed, along with its profitability. By the 1990s it looked
unstoppable as a retailer, as it progressively expanded its product range from clothing to
food, furnishings and financial services. The world seemed to be waiting for M&S to exploit,
and despite disappointing starts in the US and Canada, it developed steadily throughout
Europe and the Far East. Then, just like any star who has been put on a pedestal, the media
began to savage the company. After a sudden drop in profits and sales during 1998, critics
claimed that the company had lost its position in the market place. It appeared to be like a
super tanker, ploughing straight ahead with a management that had become much less
adaptable to change than its nimbler competitors.
100 年前，玛莎百货(Marks and Spencer)曾自豪地宣称:“没必要问价格——那是一便士。”从一开
始，它就在市场上确立了独特的地位——价格低廉、品种繁多、质量上乘。 随着时间的推移，玛
莎百货的地位和盈利能力稳步发展。到了 20 世纪 90 年代，作为一家零售商，它看起来势不可 挡，
因为它逐步扩大了产品范围，从服装到食品、家具和金融服务。整个世界似乎都在等待玛莎百货
的开发，尽管它在美国和加拿大的起步令人失望，但它在整个欧洲和远东地区稳步发展。然后，
就像任何被捧上神坛的明星一样，媒体开始猛烈抨击这家公司。在 1998 年利润和销售额突然下降
之后，批评家们声称该公司已经失去了它在市场上的地位。它看上去就像一艘超级油轮，笔直前
行，其管理层对变化的适应能力远不如其更为灵活的竞争对手。
Many observers had commented on the fact that the company did not have a marketing
department until 1998. Marketing, at least in terms of advertising the brand, had become so
important to its competitors, but had never been high on Marks & Spencer's agenda.
According to Media Monitoring Services, M&S's total media spending between Dec 1997-
Nov 1998 was just £4.7 million, almost a drop in the ocean compared to the spending of
Sainsburys (£42.1m); Tesco (£27.5m); and Woolworths (£21.5m). While other retailers had
worked hard on building a brand image, M&S has relied on the quality of its stock to do the
talking. The argument was that everyone knew what they were getting with M&S underwear
or shirts - good quality at fair, but not cheap, prices. Similarly with food, M&S's offering
was about quality rather than price. M&S believed its customers knew what the brand stood

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 MGM5230 Entrepreneurial Marketing

for and advertising was much less important than ensuring that it could obtain the right
products at the right price.
许多观察家评论说，该公司直到 1998 年才有一个市场部。市场营销，至少在品牌广告方面，对竞
争对手来说已经变得如此重要，但从未在玛莎百货的议程上占据重要位置。根据媒体监测服务公
司的数据，1997 年 12 月至 1998 年 11 月期间，玛莎百货的媒体支出总额仅为 470 万英镑，与塞恩
斯伯里的 4210 万英镑相比，简直是九牛一毛。特易购(£27.5);和沃尔沃斯(£21.5 m)。当其他零售商
努力打造品牌形象时，玛莎百货却依靠其库存的质量来说话。他们的论点是，每个人都知道自己
从玛莎百货的内衣或衬衫中得到了什么——物美价廉，但不便宜。与食品类似，玛莎百货提供的
是质量而不是价格。玛莎认为，客户知道品牌的含义，而广告的重要性远远不及确保以合适的价
格获得合适的产品。
In 1998, M&S looked to marketing to help turn around its performance, describing its new
marketing division for UK retail as "a significant development in our retailing philosophy".
Many suspected that M&S's conversion to marketing had been encouraged by the example
set by the star of modern retailing, Tesco. There are many similarities between the problems
facing M&S and those which Tesco faced a decade previously. In the early 1990s Tesco was
a brand which looked like it had seen better days. The retailer's format was tired, its stores
poorly laid out and the positioning of the company was still based on its founder's principle
of 'pile it high and sell it cheap'. Its arch-rival, Sainsbury's, was regarded as the more
upmarket store for the middle classes, who shopped for quality food in a more pleasant
environment. Since then, Tesco had innovated with improved store designs, petrol stations,
coffee shops, a new fascia, the Tesco Clubcard and 24-hour store opening. The list of
Tesco's marketing initiatives seemed to be unstoppable, in an attempt to keep one step ahead
of its competitors.
1998 年，玛莎百货希望借助营销来扭转业绩，称其为英国零售设立的新营销部门是“我们零售理
念的重大发展”。许多人怀疑玛莎百货向市场营销的转变是受到了现代零售业之星特易购的鼓励 。
玛莎百货面临的问题与乐购 10 年前面临的问题有许多相似之处。在 20 世纪 90 年代初，乐购是一
个看起来风光无限的品牌。这家零售商的模式已经过时了，店面的布局也很糟糕，公司的定位仍
然是基于创始人的原则“堆得高，卖得便宜”。它的主要竞争对手塞恩斯伯里 (Sainsbury’s)被认为
是中产阶级的高档商店，他们在更舒适的环境中购买高质量的食品。自那以后，乐购不断创新，
改进了商店设计、加油站、咖啡店、新招牌、乐购会员卡和 24 小时营业的商店。乐购的营销计划
似乎是不可阻挡的，试图领先于竞争对手一步。
In contrast, M&S had failed to keep pace with customer service. In many issues of retail
development, such as out-of-town shopping centres, Sunday opening and loyalty cards, it had
lagged behind its main competitors. While it has stood still, the likes of Tesco and
Sainsbury's marched ahead until there was no longer much that felt exceptional about the
M&S shopping experience. Analysts argued that M&S had failed to make its store layouts

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 MGM5230 Entrepreneurial Marketing

help shoppers bring clothing together to make outfits. In a typical M&S store, all jackets
would be located in one area and all cardigans in another, for example. Its competitors had
made much greater progress in bringing together co-ordinated sets of clothing which would
encourage shoppers to spend more. M&S has also been criticized for making things difficult
for customers by not accepting payment by major credit cards.
相比之下，玛莎未能跟上客户服务的步伐。在零售发展的许多问题上，比如郊区购物中心、周日
开 业 和 会 员 卡 ， 它 都 落 后 于 主 要 竞 争 对 手 。 尽 管 它 一 直 停 滞 不 前 ， 但 乐 购 (Tesco) 和森 宝 利
(Sainsbury)等公司却一直在前进，直到玛莎百货的购物体验不再让人感到有什么特别之处。分析人
士认为，玛莎百货未能在店面布局上帮助购物者将服装组装起来。例如，在一个典型的玛莎百货
商店里，所有的夹克都放在一个区域，所有的羊毛衫放在另一个区域。它的竞争对手在整合协调
一致的服装方面取得了更大的进展，这将鼓励消费者增加支出。玛莎百货也因不接受主要信用卡
付款而使顾客感到困难而受到批评。
In response to its current troubles, the newly created marketing department of M&S launched
its first national campaign for retail towards the end of 1998. The ads followed an initial
attempt at regional TV advertising earlier in the year, which the company was said to be very
pleased with. The newly appointed Chief Executive claimed "It's not that people don't like
what we're selling, but that we haven't got the message across. There are an awful lot of
people who love us for our knickers, but they don't love our home furnishings because they
don't even know they are there." Many critics thought the problems were much more deep-
seated and blamed the store's problems on the fact that its autumn fashions were seen as dull
and uninspiring, and out of touch with consumers' preferences. Greater authority was pledged
to the marketing department when it came to new product design.
为了应对目前的困难，玛莎百货新成立的市场部在 1998 年底发起了第一次全国零售运动。今年早
些时候，该公司曾尝试在地区电视上投放广告，据说他们对此非常满意。这位新上任的首席执行
官声称，“不是人们不喜欢我们的产品，而是我们没有传达出这个信息。”有很多人喜欢我们的
内裤，但他们不喜欢我们的家具，因为他们甚至不知道它们的存在。”许多批评人士认为，问题
要严重得多，并将该店的问题归咎于这样一个事实:人们认为该店的秋季时装单调乏味，与消费者
的偏好脱节。在新产品设计方面，市场营销部被赋予了更大的权力。
In response to its pledge to listen to what its customers wanted, new designers were brought
in to try and give the company's ranges more sparkle. The company even thought the
previously unthinkable by proposing to stock manufacturers' own branded products, instead
of relying entirely on M&S's own label products. If customers wanted to obtain variety at
M&S, the new thinking was that the company must adapt and offer it. Another area
identified for development was direct marketing of fashion products - an area where the
company had begun to lag behind its rivals who had developed interactive web sites.

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 MGM5230 Entrepreneurial Marketing

为了回应其倾听客户需求的承诺，公司引入了新的设计师，试图让公司的产品系列更有活力。该公司
甚至想到了以前想都不敢想的办法，提议储备制造商自己的品牌产品，而不是完全依赖玛莎百货自己
的品牌产品。如果顾客想在玛莎百货获得多样化，新的想法是公司必须适应并提供多样化。另一个有
待开发的领域是时装产品的直接营销——在这一领域，该公司已开始落后于开发交互式网站的竞争对
手。
Serious questions remained about the company. How quickly could it change in response to
its changed environment? The company had not been known for speedy decision making, so
probably a major structural overhaul was essential before it could get down to the serious
business of adapting to customers' changing needs. Also, there was a great danger of
changing the company's position too far and too fast, thereby alienating its traditional
customers without gaining sufficient new ones. As a warning of how not to change, M&S's
rival Laura Ashley had repositioned itself so radically from its original format that it now
failed to gain the support of any major group. M&S had itself tried to become more fashion
conscious during the mid-1980s with similar effect, and had to make a hasty retreat to its
traditional, more staid image.
关于公司仍然存在严重的问题。它能以多快的速度响应环境的变化?这家公司并不以快速决策著称，
所以在它能够认真地适应客户不断变化的需求之前，可能需要进行一次重大的结构调整。此外，
该公司的地位很有可能改变得太远、太快，从而疏远其传统客户，而得不到足够的新客户。作为
对如何不改变的警告，玛莎百货的竞争对手劳拉•阿什利(Laura Ashley)对自身的定位与最初的模
式截然不同，以至于现在未能获得任何大型集团的支持。在上世纪 80 年代中期，玛莎百货也曾试
图以类似的效果增强自己的时尚意识，但不得不迅速退回到其更保守的传统形象。
CASE STUDY REVIEW QUESTIONS
1. What do you understand by positioning, and what tools are available to Marks and
Spencer to give it a positioning advantage?
2. There has been a lot of debate bout whether the existence of a marketing department
can actually be harmful to services companies because it absolves everybody else of
marketing responsibilities. What then, do you make of M&S's decision to introduce a
marketing department?
3. What are the dangers to M&S of moving its market position too far and too fast?
4. How can it try to alleviate these problems?

1.你对定位的理解是什么?玛莎百货有什么工具可以让它获得定位优势?
2.市场营销部门的存在是否真的对服务公司有害，因为它免除了其他所有人的市
场营销责任，一直存在很多争论。那么，您如何看待玛莎百货决定设立营销部门
的决定呢?
3.对 M&S 来说，将市场定位调整得太远太快有什么危险?如何缓解这些问题?

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 MGM5230 Entrepreneurial Marketing

The company had already said that this year it wants to focus on profit margins and generating
cash, rather than sales.
Bolland pledged to grow profit margins in M&S's clothing arm by 1pc. The interim results show
the company has already bettered that, growing margins by 1.5pc.

The improvement in margins is being hailed as a sign that

M&S's clothing business is recovering. It backs up Bolland's
claims that M&S is improving the quality and style of its
fashion, but also that it is gradually weaning itself off the
drug of discounting.
"What we are seeing is the consistent execution of strategy
and is starting to deliver results," the M&S boss said.
However, this strategy also suggests that M&S has lost its
obsession with protecting its market share.

M&S, which was founded as a penny bazaar at Leeds Kirkgate market in 1884, is still
Britain's biggest clothing retailer by market share.

However, its market share, much like Tesco, is a historical position that was established
before the influx of international and online competition. Therefore, it was bound to
come under some sort of pressure.

Rather than attempting to maintain its market position by being all things to all people -
an impossible task - M&S appears to be trying to refocus its brand by moving
upmarket.

This direction of travel is also apparent by the fact that M&S is not opening any extra
clothing space. Indeed, it is closing stores. In the 26 weeks to September 27, M&S
closed six stores in the UK and the number of high street stores it runs fell from 232 to
229 .

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 MGM5230 Entrepreneurial Marketing

This story clearly sits well for Bolland, who after four years has still not driven an
improvement in M&S's clothing sales.

But this strategy is not necessarily a bad thing. Firstly, there is a famous saying in retail
about sales being "vanity" and profits "sanity".

Secondly, M&S can look no further than its food operations for evidence of a business
that is thriving thanks to a specialist and clear brand positioning.

M&S is never going to be Britain's biggest food retailer - it is too expensive on

everyday items - but the company is significantly outperforming the traditional
supermarkets in terms of sales and profits.

Thirdly, this approach has served M&S's rival Next well. Lord Wolfson, chief
executive of Next, focuses on shareholder returns over like-for-like sales. Indeed, Next
does not even report like-for-like sales.

Of course, M&S and its shareholders want the company to grow sales. An improved
performance in womenswear is another of the company's four priorities for the year,
alongside boosting margins, growing its food business, and keeping a tight control of
costs, capex and cash.

Ultimately, the moves that M&S has made to its brand positioning and supply chain
should improve sales as well as margins - if they work correctly.

For example, by increasing the percentage of products that M&S designs itself to 25pc,
and delivering clothing to stores more frequently, the company should be able to boost
availability in stores and introduce new fashion ranges more frequently.

Bolland proclaimed on Wednesday that M&S now had its Limited and Indigo brands in
every store across the UK. Products advertised in M&S commercials, he added, are
also nationwide.

"When we tell a story, we want everyone to see it," Bolland said.

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 MGM5230 Entrepreneurial Marketing

For many retailers this would be a prerequisite, but M&S has operated with a
notoriously cumbersome logistics network. It has become increasingly clear that
M&S’s problems are not rooted in the quality of its fashion and products, but the
network behind it. The company has too often failed to get the right products in the
right place at the right time.

That is why the City has breathed such as sigh of relief at the latest set of results - they
show signs of progress in the supply chain.

Bolland says there are "clear indicators" of the progress M&S is making and that
"things are now coming together".

However, while the M&S boss is talking positively, some critics are not convinced the
company is on the right path in terms of strategy or its execution. According to them,
these results are not the turning point that the company is portraying.

Freddie George, analyst at Cantor Fitzgerald, said: "There has, we believe, been an
improvement in the autumn/winter ranges but the branding and the demographic and
age profile of its customer being targeted remains unclear."

Himanshu Pal, analyst at Kantar Retail, said the continued falls in M&S clothing sales
will fuel calls for Bolland to step aside as chief executive.

Pal said: "A mild autumn period has adversely impacted sales but there are
fundamental issues that are plaguing M&S’ fortunes.

"Pricing issues, due to a focus on improving gross margin, in-store service failures –
such as an increasing number of out of stock items – and a website that is still suffering
problems in search and functionality are all increasing shopper angst.

© Oxford University Press, 2012. All rights reserved.