BA 3103 Critical Analysis Paper Pier 1

A genogram is a tool that is used in counseling to plot a client’s family of origin. Not only plotting like one would a family tree but also experiences that occurred within the family. According to Corey and Corey (2014) a genogram can start simple and then can become complex picture of a family and issues and struggles within a family.

Net sales of Pier 1 Imports declined by 8.63% in FY 2007, and the company attributed the decrease in sales to weak product merchandising and marketing mix. In additions, this has failed to attract consumers to stores. Kirkland’s has opened new

Chapter 25 discusses the United States and the Second World War from 1939-1945. The United States wanted to stay out of international affairs but the newly elected Roosevelt advocated for an active role in it. Though he wanted a role in this, his priority was to attack the domestic causes of the depression which appealed to many poor Americans who were suffering from the Great Depression and had just lost everything. During this time, fascist governments threatened military aggression and the rise of Hitler created a controversial and war-like atmosphere. Hitler had a goal to avenge the defeat of WW1 which lead to the accusations of Jews, and the eventual full-blown Holocaust. Neutrality acts were put into place during this time to prohibit the exchange of arms to nations during the war.

To assess the industry structure and profitability, a Five Forces analysis will be conducted on the department store-retail industry.

1) Complete summary of the case study that identifies the key problems and issues, provides background information, relevant facts, the solution employed, and the results achieved.

The intensity of rivalry and the threat of substitutes are strong components for J.C. Penney to consider as they continue to strive for increased revenue and market share. Their two primary competitors are Macy’s and Kohl’s, both of whom have fiercely competitive strategies to be strong retail operations. For instance, while Macy’s offers a multitude of promotional deals and is working hard to choose products based upon demographics and geographic segmentation, Kohl’s is attempting to reduce their inventory levels and improve their marketing strategies in order to become a stronger competitor in the department store segment of the retail industry. In order to compete with their competitors, J.C. Penney aims to focus on their previously successful promotions and home department segmentations by bringing in new reputable designers in order to attract a larger customer base. Due to the fact that the intensity of rivalry and threat of substitutes are both moderately strong in the retail department store industry, J.C. Penney ought to be diligent in their implementation of strategies in order to achieve success in the retail business.

1. Williams-Sonoma has experienced strong growth in the past year, but this is on the back of a strong economy and in particular a strong new home market. The furniture business is strongly correlated with the strength of the real estate market. In this respect, the company's strategy is largely irrelevant, because within the next five years the real estate bubble will burst and Williams-Sonoma will suffer a major downturn in its own results as a consequence. However, this reality shows that the company perhaps lacks sufficient differentiation, and can only be expected to perform roughly in line with the housing market. It is neither outperforming competitors nor is it underperforming. W-S has sufficient differentiation within the furnishings and home products segment, and has a fairly strong brand name in the segment. The company's status as a mass-market premium company allows it to grow strongly in strong economic times, but also makes it particularly vulnerable to economic downturn, because not only do consumers redecorate at greater intervals, but they will trade down to more affordable stores when they do.

Pier 1 Imports is a decorative home furnishings and gift retailer with its headquarters in Ft. Worth, Texas. They have over 1,000 stores located most in the United States and additional in Canada (MadDash, 2012). In the same video, Pier 1 recognizes itself as the “original global importer of imported decorative home furnishings and gifts”. The company has 22,200 employees as of the end of its 2014 fiscal year and a revenue of $1,771.7 million making it one of the largest corporations in the DFW Texas area (Pier 1 Imports, Inc, 2014). Though sales associates have a positive relationship with Pier 1, the company 's weaknesses and threats have proven to impact corporate executives and company profits.

Analyze Blockbuster's current position (based on its brick-and-mortar business model) using Porter's 5-forces model. What are the conclusions of your analysis?

currently ranks as the number one industry leader as they have extended their market outside of

“…Are the factors that need to be overcome by new entrants if they are to compete in an industry…” Home retail in the UK is very big, developed and competitive industry. It has well-known companies that are recognized for style, price, and costumer services. A new competitor can get easily to the market competing with better services, design products and price. But economic and legal aspects may be a reason for potential entrants to refrain to enter into the UK market as it represents a fairly large investment. Potential entrants need to penetrate into the market with a new kind of service or product. Example: Argos use catalogues to make sales through the market. IKEA, is known for selling ready-to-ensemble products.

Porters five forces will help us in analyse the industry amazon.com is in. Five Forces which will be analysed will be

The demand for consumer goods continues to increase throughout the U.S. Many shopping centers and malls are being built or refurbished in order to meet the demand for our nations crave on products. While visiting shops located within a mall, it can be tough for consumers to buy reliable and dependable merchandise without wasting their hard earned money. Today we will be comparing the two popular brands of clothing that have numerous locations throughout the U.S; Pac Sun and Forever 21. Both stores have many similarities such as their many choices and options within the store, but differ in the quality of the clothing and also the layout and set up of the stores.

In early 1980s, the aim was to bring warehouse retailing concept to the home center industry. This was considered to be the first successful company in Do-it-Yourself (DIY) segment and was famous for providing high quality products with the low prices. The Home depot was a part of large, rapidly growing and competitive home improvement industry during 1980’s. With two wage earners in each household, families were willing to spend more money on home improvement projects. Therefore, the DIY segment grew rapidly and the industry attached many competitors to give tough competitions to each others. In early 1990, Lowe’s became the largest competitor of Home depot as the sales and growth were at the top for Lowe’s stores which took Lowe to large-format warehouse stores.

Offer customers sufficient on-trend products and a broader range of coordinated decorator products than its competitors with strong stock inventory and outlets as a physical asset as support.