Dillard 's Inc. Case Study

There are several different types of stores within the discount retail industry, and for comparison's sake, the industry is further broken into many segments. DG is in the market segment known as the dollar store category. As a result, competitors such as Wal-Mart are in the same industry but not the same peer group. Comparisons will be made throughout this report to Wal-Mart and other big firms because they tend draw some of the same customers.

Ross Stores, Inc. is an American off-price department store, which has two different stores: Ross Dress for Less and dd’s DISCOUNTS. Ross Dress for Less has around 1,340 stores in 36 states in the United States, and dd’s DISCOUNTS is much younger image than Ross and has 193 stores in 15 states. Its headquarter is located in Dublin, California, and it is the second largest off-price retailer in the USA after TJX Company. Ross offers trendy name brand and designer apparel, accessories, home furniture, footwear, and snacks for everyone from young children to old seniors. Ross Dress for Less and dd’s DISCOUNTS sell products at 20% to 70% off from the regular prices to target people who have limited income but also want to have new products every season. They not only focus on business but also focus on social responsibility. Since they want to know more and be closer to their consumers, they are focusing on four different areas to touch their target customers.

David Jones (DJs) is a leading up-market department store chain, which is a public company, founded in 1838. It is one of the most recognised retailer brands in Australia that emphasizes on quality and style. While the retailing business changed in many ways, DJs maintained its commitment to provide high quality merchandise with the introduction of new brands. Through the continuing refurbishment of stores and continuing opening new stores across four major states in Australia, it currently has 37 modern, stylish stores located in most Australian states and territories. It also has its own factory at home which manufactures a large variety of goods from clothing to furniture. Apart from its home branded merchandise, it also

Costco Wholesale Corporation operates an international chain of membership warehouses, which carries quality, brand name

There are many retail giants that have had an active presence on the market for sometime. A few that come to mind are JCPenny, Macy’s and Nordstorm’s. However, one major retail chain that has spread across the country was started right here in the state of Arkansas. Dillard’s first department store was opened in 1938 in Nashville, Arkansas by its founder William Dillard. Since its inauguration, Dillard’s has turned into one of the more prominent retailers in the United States. With an ever growing market base and clientele, Dillard’s has seen successful since the early 1950s. This success, however, leaves people with a few questions about the Arkansas native retail giant. What does Dillard’s current market look like? How does Dillard’s compare

Through the 70’s the company continued to grow. In 1974 annual sales hit $130 million. By 1980 Nordstrom was the third largest specialty retailer in the country. Sales hit $407 million and in the next few years, sales continued to rise. Nordstrom’s success was due to many factors. Shoes accounted for about 18 percent of total sales. In addition Nordstrom consistently maintained huge inventories and selection, which were usually twice the size of other department stores. Anchor malls seek the company, as a cornerstone of downtown renovation projects or as an added jewel for high end shopping customers. By being able to expand not only by adding locations, but also by expanding merchandise sold, Nordstrom became a dominant force in the industry and strengthened their market share position.

A. The company’s corporate office is headquartered in Little Rock, Arkansas. I found this information on Dillard’s website in the non-selling location directory.(F-3)

Nordstrom’s is classified as one of the biggest U.S. department stores. Along with Sears, Macy’s, and JC Penny’s, Nordstrom manages each department in their stores as an individual buying center. Every group functions separately from one another, and is administered by a buyer who is in charge of all varieties and styles of merchandise sold. Promotions that can be used in the stores are included, as well. “The company has also benefited from a new computerized inventory system that gives buyers and salespeople the necessary data to make smarter decisions about what is needed in the stores—and what isn’t.” (Lamb, Hair, McDaniel 569). This new and improved system allows the department store to market a greater amount of full priced items, which ultimately increase sales. The buyer is also able to easily determine what items to obtain and exhibit in the store by using this system.

Macy’s Department Stores Incorporated or Macy’s is an American based retail chain of departmental stores. It is currently operating under two brand names the Macy’s and Bloomingdale in over forty five states of America. The company specializes in the range of products including jewelry, furniture, house hold items, footwear, clothing and other related items.It also offers online shipping services to the clients in large numbers of countries. The company currently operates in four business segments including Macy’s, macy.com, Bloomingdale’s and Bloomingdales.com (one source, 2011).

In the ever-evolving world of manufacturing and marketing, companies are required to adapt to maintain relevancy or remain competitive. Adaptation techniques in business includes inventing a completely new product, revolutionizing an already existing product, or merging with an existing powerhouse company to extend the reach of one’s services and/or products to a larger customer based globally or domestically. Kohl’s has stood the test of time for over 70 years and has maintained relevancy with its customers by consistently reinventing itself to keep up with the needs of the consumers.

John Lewis is a British department store that operates in the United Kindom and is well known for its ‘Never Knowingly Undersold’ policy that brings quality products to the UK high streets and online shopping. A SWOT analysis is intended to analyse the organisation 's current status and its potential for the future. Morrison (2011, p. 158) states that a “SWOT analysis is a strategic tool used by businesses to assess the organisation 's strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats.” Using a SWOT analysis will encompass a detailed evaluation of the organisation for John Lewis, which could be used to benefit the company in the future. As Wetherly & Otter (2008, pp. 24-25) says “The capacity of a business to take advantage of opportunities and resist threats will depend on its internal strengths and weaknesses.” But if John Lewis has the internal strengths to undertake a change a SWOT analysis will help as it was “designed to enable an organisation to take into account internal and external factors that may affect its strategic planning decisions and thus improve its prospects of success” (Harrison, 2014, p. 6).

Like any business, Wal-Mart has to continually assess their strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats in order to continue to be competitive. Awareness by the executives to what is happening locally and globally will further the expansion of Wal-Mart.

DEBENHAMS is a famous department store in the UK, primarily providing clothing, accessories, beauty and furniture. DEBENHAMS performs as a leader in UK market in clothing and premium health and beauty. Moreover, it also owns an online shop and operates stores across 27 countries overseas.

Moreover, there is strong conflict of interest between the company and its wholesalers since Daloon is also maintaining direct contact with the target groups within the catering market. The fact that Daloon's products constitute only a small portion of the wholesalers' catalogue makes it more pressing for the company to exert extra effort for the wholesalers to promote and distribute its products.

Ben and Jerry’s, founded in 1978, is a market leading distributor of super-premium ice creams, frozen yogurts, and sorbets, and has built a reputation on being a socially minded company. They were pioneers in the policy of “caring capitalism” and place heavy importance on the concept of social responsibility, a practice which many companies have since adopted. They have enjoyed long-term success as a result of their progressive methods of doing business and novel ideology regarding how a company should be ran. However, due to increased competitive pressure and declining financial performance, they have now been confronted by the threat of a takeover. Recently four