H & M : Business Development

Because of this rapid growth several challenges can present themselves. A primary challenge that can present itself is the lost of the boutique feel because of the hundreds of locations. Even though each boutique is different and personalized, opening too many locations may cause the retailer to lose its niche in the market. Another challenge is the many changes the company has gone through in upper level management. Because of the changes investors have been discouraged, as mentioned before, and shares were down 16% after the changes.

I believe that H&M’s future growth depends a lot on how they will expand online and their sustainability. H&M launched their online store in the US in 2013, but has had some negative response. They offer free shipping, but the costs for the returns will be deducted from the credit of the returned merchandise. Costumers believe that returns should be free or that they should have the possibility to return in stores, which at the moment is not possible. For H&M this is an issue because of the high volume and costs of returns. To stay true to their sustainable image,

As two separate companies, they have established a different approach towards the market, however with the right research and evaluation, Rousteing and The Bay have beautifully managed to make both sides collide with success. They have managed to design ready-to-wear for different target groups, for example, women’s outerwear shoes, men’s business attire, jewellery, as well as the latest Balmain Army collection inspired by Rousteing himself. They have made the price range of the products in the listed categories reasonable and affordable for premium quality clothing, accessories and footwear for both genders that are quality and price conscious. Also, in Toronto and Vancouver, The Bay has launched a showroom called “The Room” that features some of Balmain’s hottest but not-so-retail-friendly designer clothing from Rousteing’s runway collection. With the stratospheric prices, these items are obviously in display for the more sophisticated young female adults that completely disregard the price tag when they see something they genuinely adore. However, this was also an intelligent way for Rousteing and The Bay to promote their collection by giving the people of middle-class families to feel and take a closer glimpse of some high-quality handiwork. This makes the women of the demographic target market want to know what else Balmain has in store at The Bay, that is of similar quality, but with a more affordable

That being said, suppliers can have some power in regards to choosing the number of stores where their product can be purchased at. This allows the suppliers to regulate their sales and stay away from the “red tape”. The bargaining power of customers impacts HBC as customers are able to influence pricing based on their buying habits. Of course, customers do not choose the retail prices offered to them, however, if inexpensive clothing were to lead the industry, retail stores would adapt to this consumer demand and offer an abundance of inexpensive clothing due to consumer preferences. These forces lead to rivalry among competitors due to the many options offered to consumers to grant their desires. These forces combine to cause strategic implications for HBC. HBC must differentiate itself from its competitors who, similar to HBC, have large annual revenue, strong and profitable supplier agreements and large amounts of capital. As well, due to competitors large sale volumes, competitive pricing is an implication which faces

H&M cruelly underlined the continuity of its expansion strategy in long-term perspective (Regnér and Yildiz, 2014), which means continuing to open stores ultimately (Barman and Petersson, 2002). It is planned that H&M will establish another 300 new stores, especially China, the United States and the United Kingdom as the largest growing market. Despite the countries mentioned before, South America, Latvia, Indonesia, Bulgaria and Thailand will be involved (Regnér and Yildiz, 2014).

* Procurement: As it is the second Europe’s cloth retailer company, for the production H&M uses a lot of material and workers so its mains recourses are material, labour and energy. That is why small changes in prices can affect the company’s profit a lot, and the fact that it does not own any manufactories causes some problems in controlling the production’s prices. However, not owning the factories can be an advantage in some cases. Indeed, if a problem appears, H&M can easily change its suppliers. Moreover, due to its huge size, H&M can easily manipulate with its suppliers to have the best quality at the lowest production’s price.

Fashion is everything to society and the media. The fashion industry has transformed into a necessity in the life of people. Everyone wants to look good, feel fabulous and feel as if we belong with everyone else. The envy and desire to wear certain things and look a certain way all come, from wearing the latest fashion handbags, accessories, dresses, shoes, and the list goes on. But, when is considering fashion into an individual’s life going too far to the extreme? Many do not consider the whereabouts of fashion materials and how the environment is affected by the mere existence of certain garments. Some may believe these objects grow on trees. But that is clearly not the case. Even though it would be nice. The fashion industry as a

A Case Study Running head: A CASE STUDY - STRATEGY AT H&R BLOCK, INC. A Case Study - Strategy at H&R Block, Inc. Capella University OM 8012 Strategy Dr. Perry Hahn Dec 21, 2005 1 A Case Study 2 Abstract This paper will include an analysis of the company from the four strategy perspectives provided in the project deliverable which are: Strategy as rational thought - strategic planning and decision-making, Strategy as revolution - what is referred to as disruptive innovation, Strategy as resource allocation and accumulation in the firm, and finally Strategy as technology leadership viewed as a unique competitive advantage.

Even though H&M follows a strategy which differs significantly from Inditex’s approach it is the closest competitor from the financial point of view. H&M differs from Zara because it outsources all of the production, it is more price oriented and spends more money on advertising. But both companies are based in Europe, are fashion forward at lower price retailers, and have a strong international expansion strategy. Exhibit 6 indicates that the financial results of Inditex and H&M seem to

With H&M’s many strengths come many weaknesses. Although buying in large amounts keeps prices affordable, it can also lead to overstocking, and later the lowering of an already affordable price, as well as a lack of control over product production. Uncontrollably, their target customer base is highly affected by the changing macro economic conditions. They are new to the United States online store compared to their competitors (Gap, Zara, Forever 21). Their clothing is usually not original due to how they follow the trends of luxury brands on

One the main features of H&M is the rapidity of shifts in demand and respond to customers’ needs. In fact when necessities of customers change, in only three weeks H&M can create new items. A normal clothes company needs six months to create new collections or articles. That’s why H&M does many researches all the time to find out new tendencies or variations of styles, giving shoppers last tendencies clothes.

In spite of the considerable role that fashion designers and the entire fashion industry plays, designers are often unable to completely and comprehensively

Case Study 1.2 “Geoffrey B. Small is Big on Quality, Customers, Community” is about a leading fashion designer that does not want his customers to think about the brand name, color, style or price of the fabrics they wear. Small’s wants his customers to be “thinking about the quality and origins of the fabrics you wear, their impact on the environment, and your own view of social responsibility as a customer.” Even if the customer cannot afford his clothing he wants them to understand his mission as a designer.

As a clothing store which is focusing on local designed and European designed clothes, our products are going to be high-end, fashionable, green and unique.

H&M sells in department stores, offering clothes for men, women and children of different ages, so it does not focus on a single market segment.