Kudler\'s Future Success. The Importance

¶ … Kudler's future success. The importance of marketing research in the development of Kudler Fine Food's marketing strategy and tactics will be discussed. The areas where additional market research is needed will be overviewed. The importance of competitive intelligence and analysis in regards to the development of Kudler Fine Foods' marketing strategy and tactics will be reviewed. And each of the four elements of the marketing mix will be discussed along with how each one impacts the development of the organization's marketing strategy and tactics.

Kudler Fine Foods

Kathy Kudler, the founder of Kudler Fine Foods, was passionate about gourmet cooking and found it tiresome to have to travel all over to get ingredients she needed. As a result, she envisioned a store where a wide variety of the freshest ingredients could be found, along side tools gourmet cooks would need. Her vision including a one-stop shopping experience coupled with reasonable prices.

In 1998, shoe brought her vision to fruitions with the opening of her first store in La Jolla, California.

Kudler Fine Foods focuses on providing the finest selection of the very best foods and wines possible, to their customers. The La Jolla store was an immediate success. Two years later, Kudler Fine Foods opened their second location in Del Mar. And, in 2003, a third location was opened in Encinitas.

Each store houses its own European Style Bakery, featuring baked goods made from the finest ingredients.

Kudler carries the finest dairy products, domestic and important wine and spirits, and their produce departments offers more than 350 fresh fruits, vegetables, spices and herbs ("Kudler Fine Foods," n.d.). Their meat and seafood are obtained from certified organic producers. The company is now looking for a fourth location to facilitate future growth.

This paper will concentrate on four key issues that are critical to Kudler's future success. The importance of marketing research in the development of Kudler Fine Food's marketing strategy and tactics will be discussed. The areas where additional market research is needed will be overviewed. The importance of competitive intelligence and analysis in regards to the development of Kudler Fine Foods' marketing strategy and tactics will be reviewed. And each of the four elements of the marketing mix will be discussed along with how each one impacts the development of the organization's marketing strategy and tactics.

The Importance of Marketing Research in the Development of Kudler Fine Foods' Marketing Strategies and Tactics:

As Semon (2006) notes, there is a significant difference between information and knowledge.

Information, or familiarity with a large number of facts, may be the basis for knowledge, but is not sufficient. Knowledge is the actual understanding of these facts, their meanings and their interpretations. When effective, marketing research not only focuses on the accumulation of information, but also on the analysis and interpretation of this information.

For Kudler Fine Foods, marketing research is a critical component of the development of their marketing strategies and tactics.

The company has geared their product offerings to a very specific demographic - consumers who desire gourmet cooking tools and foodstuffs.

This very narrow market niche means that they must have successful strategies and tactics in place, in order to be successful. Although they are marginally diversified with the offering of cooking tools and food items, the inability to react quickly to changes in the gourmet segment overall would be disastrous to the organization.

Only through marketing research can the organization hope to position their company with the correct marketing mix. "A fundamental fact is that quality research of all types is, and will continue to be, key to successful marketing" (Garvin, 2005). Marketing research gives Kudler Fine Foods the information and knowledge they need to make the best possible marketing decisions, that in turn ensures that they remain competitive in the marketplace.

Areas Where Additional Market Research is Needed:

There are areas where additional market research is needed for Kudler Fine Foods to ensure their continued growth and success. The company is currently looking for their fourth location. Currently there stores are all located in Southern California, just north of San Diego, including: La Jolla, Del Mar, and Encinitas. Although these three stores have been successful, it is likely that this specific geographical market is becoming saturated. For this reason, additional market research is needed that can determine if there are other geographical areas where Kudler will be successful.

Kudler may want to focus their market research still within the confines of Southern California, in order to facilitate more efficient distribution. Affluent areas such as Manhattan Beach or Beverly Hills may be locations that are far enough away from existing stores as not to compete with the new store, while also being close enough to allow for efficient and effective management.

In addition to market research to identify new areas, market research regarding changing consumer needs is also critical.

Because of the narrow market niche that Kudler operates within, they must constantly stay on top of emerging trends in the gourmet food and cooking market.

Consumer tastes and demands are in a constant state of flux in the industry.

Increasing demand for organic products is likely to drive Kudler sales in the near future; however, this demand could change, especially as more traditional grocers are carrying more and more organic products. Changing dietary needs and fads will also continue to be a factor for Kudler to monitor via market research.

The Importance of Competitive Intelligence and Analysis in Regards to the Development of Kudler Fine Foods' Marketing Strategies and Tactics:

Competitive intelligence "is a necessary, ethical business discipline for decision making based on understanding the competitive environment" ("Frequently asked," n.d.).

It is the process that organizations use to gather and analyze information regarding their external competitive environment. It is this external environment that can affect the organization's plans, their decisions, and their operations.

This ethical and legal gathering of information is used during the business decision making process ("Competitive," 2007).

The use of competitive intelligence is key to Kudler Fine Foods. As noted, because of the organization's very narrow market niche they will be even more sensitive to external environment changes than an organization that is more diversified across several industries.

By using competitive intelligence, Kudler can identify the emerging opportunities in their industry, to ensure that they are well positioned to take advantage of them as quickly as possible. In addition, understanding the potential threats that exist within the external environment that they operate within will help them take measures to minimize those threats, via their strategies and tactics.

Marketing Mix Elements and How Each Impact the Development of the Organization's Marketing Strategy and Tactics:

There are four elements of the marketing mix: product, place, price and promotion.

Each of these four elements must be blended to formulate marketing strategies.

Product, obviously, refers to the product or service that the organization is offering to consumers. Place is the geographic region where the product is being offered.

Price is the price point the organization sets for its customers. And, promotion includes the distribution channels the organization utilizes to distribute their product.

The two easiest facets to alter for organizations are the product and the price.

The product has a large impact on the Kudler's marketing strategies and tactics. They have pre-defined themselves as an organization that offers gourmet foods and gourmet cooking tools.

Within these narrowly defined categories, however, there are a considerable amount of variables. Kudler must determine which product mix is going to be most effective for their client base. By adjusting their product mix they can take advantage of the changes in the marketplace.