The Sales Market : The Total Boxed Chocolate Market

The premium chocolate industry is a large market in the United States and continues to grow around 10% annually. It is also populated with very strong

Haigh’s chocolate currently has over 300 employees and 13 retail stores; six in Adelaide, six in Melbourne and one in Sydney (Haight's Chocolates). They manufacture 200 different products and also produce a number of products whose sales supports various charities. (Soong-Kroeger, 2011)

The basic characteristics of the marketing concept that could be identified in Clare’s Chocolates are as follows:

Butler’s Chocolates is an Irish, family owned company set up in the year 1932. It was founded by Marion Butler, a pioneer who began creating her own luxury chocolates by hand in Lad Lane in Dublin and named it ‘Chez Nous Chocolates’. Marion Butler was originally born in India but moved to Ireland when she was very young where she set up this company and ran it until 1959. She then sold it to Seamus Sorensen and the Sorensen family are still running this business to date. (About Us: Butlers Chocolates, n.d.).

Hershey’s and Cadburys are moving towards the premium chocolate market through the acquisition or upmarket launches (Zietsma, 2007). The profit potential present in this sector supported by its 20% annual growth rate make it very attractive for large organizations to come forward and avail this opportunity. There is a low threat of new entrants prevailing in this chocolate industry because of the high capital requirements and expected retaliation by current manufacturers. Current players in the industry also possess some barriers to entry for new entrants by maintaining economies of scales with their large production capacity and keeping their product differentiation with their specialized and novelty chocolate products. Even though there are low switching costs and easy access to distribution channels, but still the brand loyalty of the customers including the Rogers’ Chocolate itself make it harder for new firms to come into the competition.

While Europe and the United States account for most chocolate consumption, the confection is growing in popularity in Asia and market forecasts are optimistic about the prospects in China and India (Nieburg, 2013, para 9). According to the CNN Freedom Project, the chocolate industry rakes in $83 billion a year, surpassing the Gross Domestic Product of over a hundred nations (“Who consumes the most chocolate,” 2012, para 3).

Businesses are facing a dichotomy between wanting to chalk out an all-time structure and strategy for their organization, and recognizing that their world is in a constant state of flux [3]. For most of the 20th century they were largely focused on the static elements of this dichotomy. However, in the last decade changes have become more frequent and more dramatic, so much so that a whole branch of management is now devoted to the subject of change itself.

The transportation cost of chocolate was high and small mom and pop stores commonly supplied chocolate made locally. Today you would be hard-pressed to find local chocolate in the United States, with the shelves dominated by four major brands. The

In the article “ Are We Running Out Of Chocolate?” by Kathy WIlmore it states that the demand for chocolate in the world is becoming higher and higher and creating problems across the globe. For one thing, the demand for chocolate is rising around the world. According to the article “cocoa prices have risen by more than 60% since 2012. When manufacturers have to pay more for raw materials [such as cocoa the main ingredient in chocolate], sooner or later they pass the costs onto consumers”(Wilmore 9).

The premium chocolate industry is having an intensive competition in Canada with the strong growth potential. Industry growth opportunity imposes increasing competition from rivals and threats of new entrance that adds pressure on overall profitability. Even though Roger’s has been able to establish its place in the chocolate industry with its strong brand recognition and products’ quality, it still needs to be on top of ever- going market changes, by continuously

The possibilities for product differentiation are numerous in that there are many different ways to make chocolate, many different items to add to chocolate, and many different ways to use chocolate. Having so many different options to market chocolate could present an open door for competitors, creating their own niche to draw customers. A large number of products to choose from could also make it difficult for Roger’s to draw customers to its own products, decreasing their profit potentials.

Week 3, the lecture on Managing Change describes organizational changes that occur when a company makes a shift from its current state to some preferred future state. Managing organizational change is the process of planning and implementing change in organizations in such a way as to decrease employee resistance and cost to the organization while concurrently expanding the effectiveness of the change effort. Today's business environment requires companies to undergo changes almost constantly if they are to remain competitive. Students of organizational change identify areas of change in order to analyze them. A manager trying to implement a change, no matter how small, should expect to encounter some resistance from within the organization.

Change has become necessary for every organisation there is. World is moving rapidly towards better technologies, efficient systems, new techniques, compact profits, different friendlier environments and organisations are always in the race to reach new heights by thriving effectively in this competitive environment (Kotter, 1996).

Before spending an additional $3,000 on an advertising campaign Marilyn Lysohir needs to strategically consider how to reach her goal of becoming a profitable company by analyzing consumer perceptions, pricing strategies, identifying and gaining access to effective distribution channels and efficient use of its Web site.

‘’organisations exist and function within society and consequently are subject to a variety of social influences. These influences, which include demography, social class and culture, can change over time and affect both the demand and supply side of the economy. Marketing organisations recognise and make use of these factors when segmenting markets for consumer goods and service’’ Worthington, I (2009) p.135.