L.L. Bean

Although retailers such as Walmart and Target do have loyal customer bases, they are not sitting idle as Amazon and other eCommerce firms obtain a greater market share. They are expanding their online profiles and offering similar shopping experiences. However, they hold one major advantage over Amazon. Every store can serve as a distribution center. Walmart is a perfect example. It has expanded its online profile to provide eCommerce services to its customers (Thau, 2014). Because every store serves as a distribution center, customers can receive their order much faster than Amazon can deliver it.

8. How well is Costco performing from a strategic perspective? Does Costco enjoy a competitive advantage over Sam’s Club? Over BJ’s Wholesale? If so, what is the nature of its competitive advantage? Does Costco have a winning strategy? Why or why not?

Bean operated on premise that profits are an outcome of strong customer service, and was a byproduct of such. The lack of corporate focus on targeting specific strategies to increase profits was a glaring weakness. Their business model had never been challenged externally, and the company was still operating with a focus on catalog sales instead of refocusing efforts on the growing wave of retail and ecommerce. The company recognized they were in desperate need of employees who could process data and bring the web presence up to par with other competitors in the outdoor lifestyle industry.

Due to a strong commitment to customer service and the outdoors, L.L. Bean is recognized as a quality manufacturer and retailer of quality outdoor apparel. Likewise, the company’s focus on the stakeholders begins with caring for employees who in turn serve the customer which ultimately results in profits. L.L. Bean serves customers through multiple channels, but originally began, and continues to excel, in catalog sales. However, due to a changing operational environment, the organization needed to invigorate their business model. Using the total rewards program, the company was able to disperse new strategic goals throughout the organization leading to much needed change and revitalization.

The supply chain management is considered as a management concept from past two decades as the customers are concerned about timely and safe delivery. The competitiveness has been increasing among the companies to deliver the products as quickly as possible to the customers all around the world. This has made the supply chain management as a vital tool for the management. This is also measured as a competitive parameter for the companies.

L.L. Beans approach to a one shot order increases the risk of lost sales due to insufficient inventory as well as increases the risks of higher costs due to excessive inventory. The case indicates that lead times are significantly long from their suppliers (in the order of 8 to 12 weeks). We are not clear on the size of these orders but assuming these are mostly a one shot batch, it is feasible to estimate that these lead times would be reduced for a smaller quantity per order and more frequent orders. Although this approach would increase the transactional costs with suppliers (because a higher volume of individual orders would be placed at the supplier) it might generate significantly more impactful benefits such as:

Barilla, the leading pasta manufacturer in Italy, faces increasing problems related to demand fluctuation. Their distributors also suffer from high inventory holding costs and low service levels on the other hand. This report explains, why the company and their distributors are troubled with this situation and how Barilla intends to solve it. The problem Barilla experiences is called the “Bullwhip Effect”, i.e. that demand variability increases when moving up the supply chain. Several factors enforce this Bullwhip Effect, e.g. high lead times, poor demand forecasting, and batch ordering. In this report we will point out, that exactly those aspects can be identified as the underlying reasons for Barilla’s problems. In a

1. What is their business strategy to grow profitably and compete over the long term?

The customers, wholesalers and retailers may order in large quantities with the expectation that they will receive a greater allocation of products that are in short supply. The impact on the supply chain is significant as the forecasted demand is greatly, and unrealistically, increased with these inflated orders. Eventually orders disappear and cancellations pour in, making it impossible for the manufacturer to determine the real demand for its products

Supply-Chain Management is the activities that procure materials and services, and transform them into intermediate goods and final products and deliver them, through a distribution system (Heizer & Render, 2011, p. 452). DELL is a computer technology corporation that develops sells, repairs and supports, computers and computer related products. DELL has realized that supply chain is becoming more and more important for the success of today’s business world and they work accordingly to keep a competitive advantage in the market. This study will examine to what extent Dell has used supply chain management to gain and retain a competitive advantage in the computer market.

1. From a strategic management standpoint, why do you think that corporate management at Alcoa delayed taking action for five years as the plant continued to lose money and deteriorate in other operational measures?

1. Although demand is currently unpredictable the odds are the retailers have point of sale data which could and should be shared with Legs and Wings. Better co-operation would be beneficial and open up possibilities for longer lead times

3. Describe the competitive strategies used by each of Williams-Sonoma’s competitors. Which of these are most effective?

3. Most managers of Wings & Legs see the exchange of tactical information about (price)

3: How can supply chain strategy help John Wolf reduce investment and space requirements while maintaining adequate service levels?