Retail Visit for Gucci

Gucci is one of the most exclusive Retailers out there. It is a very prestigous Brand . My adventure at the gucci store was a very interesting one . I noticed that most people who go into the store are not there to window shop they know exactly what they want. I have to say the customer service is very good  as soon as i walked into the store i was asked if i wanted to be assisted .... i ended up buying a belt all black the experience was amazing i felt like the enviorment was a customer friendly enviorment perfect for Buisness. Gucci has also expanded their stores all around the world recently they are now all over the place and treat all kind of people from all over the world. This explains why there company is doing so well at this moment. I feel like costumer service is very important to the Success of your Company  without happy costumers your buisness will not go anywhere and that i think is a good aproach by Gucci.

Consumer decision making

So that Gucci can be aware of consumer decision they research if people shop online, people's personality, social class, culture, what they value and what they expect from a product.Alot of the people that buy their product come from the high society and are involved in the fashion World. Gucci puts its products online as carefully as possible. They want people to see what their products looks like online and the product's quality.  Gucci also tries to understand how a consumer thinks and chooses products to their liking they wanna know whats the trend now a days and what people like to wear. Gucci also understand that some people have a bigger involment on how they select their products than other customers, therefore Gucci's marketing manager take very serious the decision of how a product is going to be introduce to a market. They know that how a person values the product is very important and is the key to retailing a product.

Global Vision

This will give you a better understanding of  Gucci's Global vision

Weaknesses

The weaknesses of Gucci include instability in management and financial base. The instability of its management can affect the group’s corporate strategy and vision.
The financial base is weak and alarming, with a long term debt increase from $17 million in 1998 to $143 million in 1999 and to $1.3 billion in 2003. Some brands in the Gucci group’s portfolio are still not profitable, and there is a need to promote and market them aggressively.

Opportunities

Opportunities for Gucci abound especially in the emerging luxury markets in growing economies from Asia such as India and China. People who come from these places who recently amassed huge wealth due to the excellent performance of the economy would definitely want to try luxurious brands such as Gucci.
There is opportunity in the consolidation of other brands too. The opportunity exists in creating competitive advantage in different business segments. There are various business segments Gucci can venture into should the need to expand and create more luxurious products arise.

Threats

The luxury goods carry premium products designed for very wealthy individuals. This demanding market spares on expense to get the best product in terms of quality, style and design. Price, therefore, is not a basis of competition in this kind of industry.
Competition largely exists on how potent and valuable the brand image has become. This is the focus of Gucci’s thrusts. Its competitor Louis Vuitton may have made its mark in size with more than 50 luxury brands in its belt and sales of 12.6 billion euros in 2004 alone but it is not exactly the single dominant player in the market.
This is because in the luxury products market, companies can carry several brands and business segments which could change their positions depending on the segments such as leather & shoes, cosmetics, jewelry & watches, wine and spirits and others.
Competition is also effectively minimized by the intense rivalry of established luxury goods. New firms would definitely find it next to impossible to penetrate such an exclusive market. The cost of maintaining and promoting this image are also prohibitive.
Companies are forced to invest huge money in brand promotions in order to maintain their image. Expenses such as advertising and marketing expenses, acquisition of competitors, control of the distribution channel and other strategies take the bulk of company’s operating budget.
The barriers to exit in this industry are low which means that survival is for the fittest. If the company cannot compete with other players in the industry then it has to fold or sell to other bigger firms which make exit quite easy and quick.
In this industry, the barriers to entry are really high and the barriers to exit are low, therefore only the select few can maintain their position in the market, while others could give up altogether or are bought by bigger firms.
Also, luxury goods do not have direct substitutes like other ordinary goods but the threat could come from imitation. Counterfeits often penetrate the market. This could take away a portion of the sales that should go to luxury goods companies.
There is also the threat of substitutes to contend with. These are products that are considered ordinary or the medium brands but can eventually expand their product lines to premium brands in the future such as Zara and Gap.


Read more at Suite101: The Marketing Strategies of Gucci: SWOT Analysis for House of Gucci http://www.suite101.com/content/the-marketing-strategies-of-gucci-a100826#ixzz11JaFv5lT

Social irresponsibility

social irresponsibility on nike


Nike says that its corporate social responsibility (CSR) campaign is no longer just "a risk and reputation management tool," but a core "business objective." Labor rights activist Jeff Ballinger is skeptical. "In the 15-year battle over labor conditions for the 800,000 factory employees -- primarily Asian women younger than 24 -- who have helped turn Nike into a $14.9 billion company, Ballinger argues the activists won Round 1 and Nike staged a comeback in Round 2. The company's Code of Conduct was skimpy, its monitoring of factory conditions ineffective, but the attendant PR campaign was brilliant," reports The Oregonian. Now, Nike "is finally conceding monitoring hasn't worked," but claims "it needs more time." Nike wants until 2011 to eliminate excessive overtime. Ballinger points out that "Indonesian newspapers were writing about it [the overtime problem] in 1988." Nike spends $15 million on CSR annually, when "paying another 75 cents for each pair of shoes -- a yearly outlay of $220 million -- would solve the wage problem."

Marketing Enviotment for Gucci

Gucci's marketing is for people around the ages of 17 to 60 they have all sorts of clothes for all sorts of people although for the ages 17 to 30 you will find a greater portion of variety. The brand is a well known brand and known to be quite expensive . So normally you won't see middle age people buying gucci. I never said they can't it just wouldn't be in their best financial interest

Country of origin list

new era fitted - made in china

ae shirt - made in china

taverniti jeans - made in egypt

nike penny 2's - made in china

Ethics and Social responsibility

As people may know ethics and social responsibility is very important to a company success. This allows them to build a better relationship with their costumers while at the same time seek new profitable opportunities. An act of social responsibility is Gucci's made in Italy production. This production ensures its employees as well as costumers that 100% percent of their ready to good wears as in shoes , leathers , goods are still produced in Florence workshops. Ms. Ravagli is the Corporate Social and Environmental Responsibility Manager at Gucci in Fiorenze, Italy. In June 2010 Gucci launched a completely new range of packaging, created by Frida Giannnini, that is 100% recyclable. In all of our stores worldwide this packaging will offer a bold new image of luxury that is sensitive to the environment. They took off the laminated plastic And replaced with beater dyed paper. The paper is also only taken from certified forest