Charles Chocolates

Arenas:
- Active in retail and wholesale

Vehicles:
Diamond Strategy - Working in the wholesale category allows for
Charles Chocolates to acquire more resources in
order to succeed

Differentiators:
- Great brand image with personally wrapped
packaging
- Positive relationship with customers due to high
end chocolate

Staging and Pricing:

- Speed of expansion would be very quick with
opening of new stores

Economic Logic:
- Company should target customers that match
brand quality. Premium chocolates should lead
to premium customers.
2
 Macro Environmental
Analysis (PEST)

Political
Recent environmental issues have led to a focus on packaging and labor issues.

Economical
The Chocolate industry had seen steady growth. $19.5M in revenue and 6.6% increase in retail Chocolate in 2011.

Social
The brand image gives the company a great look and maintaining personal aspects like the packaging keeps CHarles Chocolates
operating within the market.

Technological
Charles Chocolates follows the typical website selling method which returns online sales.

3
 Six Force Analysis

Threat of New Entrants

The threat of new entrants is pretty low due to the investment level required to enter the market. If a competitor does join the market, it would affect both the price and cost of the existing competitors.

Threat of Substitutes
The threat of substitutes is very high as customers can flock to other products that provide the same quality. All Charles Chocolates can do is to continue focusing on customer relationship and prioritizing their
needs.

Power of Suppliers
The supplier power is low as there are many options within the market.

Power of Customers
The buyer power is high due to the market providing buyers tons of options to buy from. If they lose interest in a company then a replacement can be quickly found.

Rivalry
This is a very competitive market and any factor could play a large role. Market share is going to very hard to get a hold of so having any sort of competitive advantage would be very beneficial for Charles
Chocolates.

4
 VRIO Framework

Value
The customer loyalty that came from their products and services proved to be the best value for the company in the Chocolate
market.
Rare
The packaging and processes for their company was very rare within the market. The commitment and authenticity separate
Charles Chocolates from the rest of the field.
Imitation
Charles Chocolates did not have many issues in terms of imitation. It would be very difficult for other companies to follow the
path due to the investment level.
Organizationally Exploited
Charles Chocolates did a good job in maintaining high quality products and service. Their finances seemed to be in order as well.

5
 Recommendations
- Shift focus to online sales to allow for more reach to
households
- Maintain uniqueness of packaging but improve the
manufacturing process
- Expand market from premium buyers to children as well