Strategic Marketing in Aramex Company: A Case Study

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@ 2015 AYAT A. SALEH, submitted as a part of the 'Strategic Marketing' course in the
University of Warwick, United Kingdom
Strategic Marketing in Aramex Company: A Case Study
Aramex is a leading logistics and transportation company with revenues of more than
900 million USD and operations in more than 60 countries across the Middle-East,
Africa, Asia, Europe and North America. In 1997, Aramex successfully became the
first Arab company to trade its shares on the National Association of Securities
Dealers Automated Quotations (NASDAQ). Aramex provides different integrated
logistics solutions and supply chain services such as international and domestic
express delivery and freight forwarding (2014 Aramex Annual Report).
The purpose of this case study is to provide an analysis for the strategic marketing
development in Aramex Company using different marketing theories and concepts,
and provide a set of recommendations for the future.
The rest of this document is organized as per the following:
 Firstly, a summary for the company's profile;
 Secondly, an overview for the framework that was used in analyzing the
secondary data about Aramex Company;
 Thirdly, an illustration for the macro environmental analysis of the strategic
marketing in the company;
 Fourthly, an illustration for the micro environmental analysis in Aramex; and
 Finally, a set of conclusions and recommendations for the company.
1. Aramex: Company Profile
Aramex is a public company, specialized in logistics and transportation solutions
based in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. It was established in 1982 and has grown
rapidly and became part of a global alliance network of 40 organizations namely
Global Distribution Alliance (GDA). The company operates in 372 locations in more
than 60 countries, with more than 16,000 of direct and indirect employees. Table 1
shows a timeline for the major historical development for the company.

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The company has a very clear mission which is "to be recognized as one of the top
five global logistics and express transportation service providers" (2014 Aramex
Annual Report, p.18). It does that by having clear strategy in four aspects;
1. Growth in which Aramex focuses on entering new markets and developing
acquisition and franchising relationships across the globe;
2. Performance where Aramex works hard to sustain good financial
performance through investment in new infrastructure and new business
partners;
3. Innovation which includes strategies to create new e-commerce solutions;
and
4. Sustainability in which Aramex invests in people, environment and social
programs to be engaged with the local communities.
Table 1 Aramex Timeline
Sources: Aramex Company Profile, Available on the WWW at
(https://www.aramex.com/content/uploads/109/200/44006/Aramex%20comprehensiv
e%20profile.pdf)

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A wider look at the company's stakeholders and according to its annual report, the
company has six groups of stakeholders namely, employees, customers,
shareholders, community, environment and finally business partners from the airlines
companies, sea cargos, vehicles and even Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs)
(Aramex Annual Report 2014, p.104 and 109). In terms of customers, Aramex serves
over 74,000 customers by offering customized services and high- quality solutions.
The company provides five sets of core services which are:
1. International Express that includes documents and goods shipping all over
the world;
2. Freight Forwarding including a comprehensive network of land, sea and air
transportation;
3. Domestics Express which includes deliveries of small items on nationwide
level;
4. Integrated Logistics, Warehousing and Supply Chain Management; and
5. Publications and Distribution which covers shipping for catalogues,
documents storage, online tracking for air lines and managing travel
documents such as visas.
In addition to the core services, Aramex is working continuously to provide new
innovative solutions such as InfoFort (Information Management Solutions), Shop and
Ship, Cash on Delivery, Document Return, Aramex Solution Center, Aramex Bio,
Electronic Data Interchange (EDI), Import Express, “myaramex” on aramex.com,
REACH Customer Relations Management System, Sales and Tenders Support and
Global Case System (GCS).
According to the above, Aramex's value proposition consists of three elements;
customized solutions, public trust in their operations and reliable shipment tracking
system. More details about the competition, substitutes, and market position will be
addressed later.
2. Framework for Data Analysis
In order to analyze the strategic marketing in Aramex Company, secondary data
analysis was conducted over three steps. These data were published in public
communications and annual reports related to the company itself in addition to other
published reports. The reliability of this approach was ensured by using recent
content about Aramex Company, while the validity of this research was ensured by

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using trusted reports. For example, the company's annual report was developed as
per GRI (Global Reporting Initiative) framework and independently reviewed by
Earnest and Young Company. The other main sources of data were "Regional
Economic Outlook Report for the Middle East and Central Asia" published by the
International Monetary Fund (IMF) organization in October 2015, and a survey to
explore the change in the consumer's habits in the digital age conducted by PwC
(PricewaterhouseCoopers) and published in February 2015.
The analysis was conducted as per the following:
 Firstly, the macro-environmental factors that shaped the big picture of Aramex
were analyzed by critically evaluating the available body of literature around
the company. Two methods were utilized here: PEST analysis to identify the
Political, Economic, Social and Technological factors that affected Aramex
and the market, and Porter's five forces analysis to understand the five
powers that affected the competitive position of Aramex;
 Secondly, the micro-environment of Aramex was illustrated using the concept
of Service Life Cycle and service portfolio, followed by a practical employment
for Ansoff's matrix and BCG matrix; and
 Finally, presenting a set of recommendations for the different strategies that
Aramex can implement to pursue its mission. The recommendations were
generated using TOWS matrix (which is the different arrangements of the
words Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats).
These stages are visually illustrated in figure 1.

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Figure 1 Framework for Data Analysis
3. Macro Environmental Analysis
The macro analysis in this research was conducted using two tools: PEST Analysis
and Porter's Five Forces as shown below.
3.1 PEST Analysis
A summarized PEST Analysis for Aramex Company is shown in table 2, while the
rationales behind these points are shown in Appendix A.
Table 2 PEST Analysis for Aramex Company
Political Economical
 Unstable political situation
 Increasing in the number of
refugees
 Well- regulated industry
 Fluctuating oil prices
 Moderate inflation rate
 Budget shortfall for different
government
 Low investment in different vital
sectors
Social Technological
 High unemployment rate in the
public sector
 Rapid changing in shopping
habits
 Mobile and social networking
 E-commerce blooming
 Technological innovation

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3.2 Porter's Five Forces Analysis
A summarized Porters' Five Forces analysis is shown in table 3 and the detailed
forces are shown in Appendix B.
Table 0 Porter's Five Forces Analysis for Aramex Company
Threats of New
Entry
Buyers Power
Suppliers
Power
Threats of
Substitutes
Competitive
Rivalry
Low Low Low
Moderate to
High
High
4. Micro Environmental Analysis
The micro analysis were covered using three theories; Service Life Cycle, Ansoff's
Matrix and BCG Matrix.
4.1 Service Life Cycle
As highlighted before, Aramex provides five core services under four markets; Middle
East and Africa, Europe, North America, and Asia. The company achieved good
results in 2014 where there was 10% increase in revenues and 15% increase in net
profits versus 2013 (Aramex Annual Report 2014, p. 4).
In order to understand the Service Life Cycle and service portfolio, two types of
analysis were conducted. Firstly, the revenues per each service group were analyzed
and secondly, the revenues per each market. The detailed graphs are shown in
Appendix C.
As a summary for the Service Life Cycle analysis for Aramex Company:
 The highest revenues were coming from the international express service
(34%) and the freight forwarding service (34%), and the publication and
distribution service was almost contributing for nothing (0.3%);
 International express, freight forwarding, domestics and logistics services
were showing positive trends, while publication and distribution service
showed a negative one;
 Although the contribution of the other services was small (5.7% of the total
revenue), they were showing a positive trends. The other services included
the new e-commerce solutions that Aramex is continuously provide;

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 Middle East and Africa region represented the highest market in all services
with a positive trend between 2013 and 2014;
 The second highest market in the international express service was Asia
followed by Europe, while in the freight forwarding service, the second highest
market was Europe followed by Asia; and
 In the domestic service, there was a change in the trend, where the second
highest market after Middle East and Africa market was Europe followed by
Asia. In 2014, the results were flipped and Asia market became in the second
place.
4.2 Ansoff's Matrix
Aramex developed different strategies to meet customers' needs. Applying Ansoff's-
four strategies resulting in the following:
 Middle East and Africa region represents the exiting market for Aramex while
Asia, Europe, and North America are the new markets.
 International express, domestic express, and freight forwarding are the
existing services, while e-commerce solutions are the new services.
Accordingly, the strategies that Aramex follow are shown in table 4.

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Table 4 Ansoff's Matrix for Aramex Company
Service Growth
MarketGrowth
Existing Service New Service
ExistingMarket
Market Penetration
International express service in the
Middle East and Africa market
Domestic express service in the
Product Development
e-commerce solutions such as
Information Management Solutions
(InfoFort) and Shop and Ship in Middle
East and Africa market
Joint Venture with InPost to introduce
parcel lockers network solutions to
NewMarket
Market Development
Acquisition a in key markets in Asia-
Pacific and Africa (such as Mail Call
Couriers in Australia, Leo Global
Logistics in Asia and PostNet in
Africa)
Franchising contracts with Cyprus,
Pakistan, Angola and Burkina Faso
markets
Diversification
e-commerce solutions such as
Shop and Ship and Import Express
Service in Europe, North America and
Asia market
4.3 BCG Matrix
Due to the unavailability of relative market share and market growth rate, BCG matrix
was analysed based on the graphs that are shown in Appendix C. Further
improvement can be done by having accurate market research.
According to the matrix, the investment decisions that Aramex did are summarized in
table 5.

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Table 5 BCG Matrix for Aramex Company
Relative Market Share
MarketGrowthRate
High LowHigh
Domestic express service in Asia
Market
All services in North America and
Europe
E-commerce solutions in the five
market
Low
International express, freight
forwarding and domestic express
services in the Middle East and
Africa
Publication and distribution service in
all markets
As a summary for this macro and micro analysis, the political situation and the
changes in oil prices play key roles where Aramex operates, and positive projection
for the increase of the overall demand of e-commerce services is expected.
Moreover, the logistics market has strong competitive power and moderate threat of
substitutes' power.
The last section in this document will present the conclusion and the recommended
strategies for Aramex Company.

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5. Conclusions and Recommendations
Multiple sources of information about Aramex Company were analysed as per the
previous framework in Section 2. The micro- stage analysis helped to understand the
market and the forces that may control it, while the macro- stage analysis helped to
understand the Service Life Cycle and the growth strategies using Ansoff's matrix
and BCG matrix. Life Cycle analysis showed the trends in each service groups and
the revenue breakdown per each market, Ansoff's Matrix showed how Aramex
utilized the four marketing strategies to sustain its position and finally, BCG matrix
classified the service portfolio of Aramex into Star, Cash Cow, Question Mark and
Dogs. The two stage of analysis were used to formulate a set of strategic
recommendations for Aramex using TWOS matrix as shown in Appendix D.
As a conclusion, the main recommended strategies that Aramex Company may
consider in the future can be grouped under four buckets which are:
5.1 Growth
 Seek acquisitions and franchise relationships with partners in Asia and Africa
markets.
 Phase- out the publication and distribution service (which is its Dog) in order
to use the money in other services especially the e-commerce one.
 Utilize the revenues generated from the Middle East market (which is its Star)
to finance the e-commerce services (which is its Question Mark).
5.2 Performance
 Implement lean six sigma program to reduce delivery time, costs and ensure
more efficient operations in order to meet the expected growth in the market.
 Develop business continuity plans for the stressed countries.
 Seek financial support to cope with the fluctuating oil prices.
5.3 Innovation
 Utilize the good knowledge in building new innovative solutions especially in
the e-commerce side.
 Establish detailed advertisement strategies to meet the rapid changes in
consumer habits.

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5.4 Sustainability
 Sustain the good image by investing more in sustainability and engage the
company’s team with more projects with the local communities.
 Develop strong relationships with different business partners (such as NGOs,
governments, transportation providers in terms of airlines, sea cargos, vehicle
leasing…etc) to ensure a good back up and support in case of global
consolidation or changes in regulations.
 Utilize the sustainability projects to create new employment opportunities.
 Cut expenses in publication and distribution service to fund other projects that
can help the refugees and reduce the unemployment rate.

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References
Ghandour, F. (2011). How I did it: the CEO of Aramex on turning a failed sale into a
huge opportunity. Harvard Business Review, 89 (3), p 43 - 47.
www.pwc.com. Total retail consumer survey. Available on the WWW at
(http://www.pwc.com/totalretail). [Accessed in 15th October 2015].
Saadi, D. (2015). Aramex seeks e-commerce acquisitions to boost profit. Available
on the WWW at (http://www.thenational.ae/business/economy/aramex-seeks-e-
commerce-acquisitions-to-boost-profit). [Accessed in 25th November 2015].
Williams, J. (2013). Ordering off the menu: Entrepreneurship Arab-Style. INSEAD
Knowledge Publications, special section, pp. 1- 4.
www.aramex.com. Year 2014 annual report. Available on the WWW at
(https://www.aramex.com/news/item.aspx?id=ea38ac71-6017-4cd3-88c6-
ba0d7a0c829a). [Accessed in 10th October 2015].
www.imf.org. Regional economic outlook: Middle East and central Asia for 2015.
Available on the WWW at
(https://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/reo/2015/mcd/eng/pdf/menap1015.pdf).
[Accessed in 25th November 2015].

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Appendix A: PEST Analysis for Aramex Company
PEST Analysis for Aramex Company is shown in table A.1.
Table 0A.1 PEST Analysis for Aramex Company
Political Economical
 Unstable political situation
 Increasing in the number of
refugees
 Fluctuating oil prices
 Moderate inflation rate
 Budget shortfall for different
government
 Low investment in different vital
sectors
Social Technological
 High unemployment rate in the
public sector
 Rapid changing in shopping
habits
This analysis was done based on information (history and projection) from four
sources.
First: IMF Report
The report provided analysis and expectations for the situation in the MENAP region
(Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan, and Pakistan). The main points are:
1- IMF report highlighted that the risk in MENAP region is increasing due to
political conflicts and fluctuating oil prices. This risk makes the growth in the
region slower and the report described it as "Intensifying conflicts and
depressed oil prices are weakening growth prospects and raising risks across
the region, a situation compounded by the recent bout of global financial
market volatility. Growth is expected to decelerate over the near term, but
only moderately, as countries use fiscal buffers and financing options where
possible" (IMF Report 2015, p. 17).
2- The report addressed the increase in the number of refugees and the risk that
they add to the hosting countries and to the home countries themselves:
"Deepening conflicts and the rise of violence, including by non-state actors
such as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), have caused a sharp

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increase in the number of refugees in the MENA region" (IMF Report 2015, p.
34).
3- In terms of inflation rate, the current rate is reasonable: "Inflation in most
countries of the region is moderating, with decelerating food price growth and
the appreciating U.S. dollar, to which many countries effectively tie their
currencies" (IMF Report 2015, p. 18)
4- The report expects that there will be budgeting problems in different
government which is a result of the oil prices: "Because oil prices are already
low and most MENA governments are projected to post a budget deficit, a
further drop in oil prices would accelerate fiscal adjustment, with adverse
implications for growth" (IMF Report 2015, p. 19).
5- The report predicts an increase in the unemployment rate in the public jobs:
"Lower oil prices will eventually force governments of oil exporters to hire
fewer public servants. In the GCC (excluding the United Arab Emirates), more
than 2 million nationals are expected to join the workforce by 2020. If private
sector job growth were to follow past trends, and public sector employment
growth is consistent with the current fiscal projections, more than half a million
job market entrants will end up being unemployed" (IMF Report 2015, p. 27).
6- The report discussed the impact of the political situation on the investment
options in the region, where they concluded that only reluctant efforts are
done in terms of investing in domestic services, trade, production and even
the tourism sector: "Bigger rebounds in domestic investment and production,
trade, and tourism are obstructed by continued security risks, social tensions,
and spill overs from regional conflicts" (IMF Report 2015, p. 37).
Second: PwC Survey
A recent survey by PwC for to measure consumers' response from more than 19,000
people around the world was conducted in 2015. The target was to get their
response in questions related to their online shopping behaviours. The survey
concluded that the traditional or physical retail store is being changed due to the
revolution of new technologies (such as smart phones, mobile applications, and
social network), the payment system is changed, and the level of engagement is
changed due to the social media. As a result there are changes in the shopping
habits. The report described this as "Grow at the expense of store visits, the premium
in the future will be on creating unique, brand-defining experiences that keep
customers coming back— whatever the channel" (PwC survey 2015, p. 2)

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Third: The National Business
According to an article by Dania Saadi in the National Business (Online journal based
on Abu Dhabi) in August 2015, E-commerce is expected to be increased in the Arab
world in general and the Gulf region in specific. She said: "The e-commerce market
in the Middle East was forecast to be worth US$15 billion this year, according to a
2013 report released by the electronic payment platform PayPal in conjunction with
the research company Ipsos" (Saadi 2015).
Fourth: Aramex Annual Report for the year 2014
Companies in this market should adhere to a lot of international and national laws
and regulations. Aramex annual reports mentioned part of them such as "The World
Economic Forum’s Partnering Against Corruption Initiative (PACI), UK bribery act,
U.S foreign corruption practice act (FCPA), Accountability principles standards
AA1000, International Labour Organization (ILO)" (Aramex Annual Report 2014,
p.100). In addition, the company should follow human rights laws, environmental
standards, and health and safety regulations. Aramex's report highlighted also the
need to follow the recent technological advancement in this field (Aramex Annual
Report 2014, p. 13).

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Appendix B: Porter's Five Forces Analysis for Aramex Company
Porter's Five Forces analysis for Aramex Company is shown in table B.1.
Table 0 Porter's Five Forces Analysis for Aramex Company
Threats of New
Entry
Buyers Power
Suppliers
Power
Threats of
Substitutes
Competitive
Rivalry
Low Low Low
Moderate to
High
High
The details are:
1- Threats of New Entry (Low Power)
New entry to the logistics and supply chain field is possible, however, in order
to compete; a company should provide huge investments in terms of
warehousing, vehicles, information system and even aviation systems.
Although Aramex’s asset-light business model heavily relays on different
international and local suppliers, total assets by 2014 was 873 million USD
(2014 Aramex Annual Report, p. 9 and 15). This huge number, even under
the given business model, represents a barrier for an easy entry to this
market.
2- Buyers Power (Low Power)
Aramex provides huge efforts to sustain its customers, reputation and brand.
According to its annual report for the year 2014 "The reputation of the Aramex
brand depends on the general public’s trust in our service integrity.
Customers need to be able to trust the credibility of the information they are
given. Official authorities such as customs and security officials should be
able to trust in Aramex’s legal and regulatory compliance, discipline and
diligence" (2014 Aramex Annual Report, p. 36). The switching cost in this
industry is low, however, trust, credibility and even information privacy are
priceless factors and are developed over time, which make the switching
option is very difficult for any customer.
3- Suppliers Power (Low Power)
Aramex has multiple suppliers in terms of oil, fleet, spare parts, packaging
materials and Information Technology solutions and it depends on local

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resources most of the time (2014 Aramex Annual Report, p. 16). The
company is a major player in the Middle East and continuously mentioned as
one of the top companies in Forbes Middle East Magazine (which is available
at http://www.forbesmiddleeast.com). Accordingly, its suppliers will seek a
win-win relationship rather than a negative one.
In addition, Aramex’s business model is to have a light asset business where
it doesn't own the fleet; instead it depends on multiple suppliers internationally
and locally. (Aramex Annual Report 210, p.16)
4- Threats of Substitutes (Moderate to High Power)
E-mail replaces the post e-mails and an online shopping replaces the
traditional shopping. These are just examples for the substitutes that
happened in this market. One substitute can create a positive impact on the
companies in that market, and one can create a negative impact. For
example, the evolution of on-line shopping increased the need for delivery
companies, but e-mails reduced the need for documents shipping. In order to
sustain a leading position, Aramex continuously adjust its services to meet
the new changes and growth (Aramex Annual report 2014, p. 12).
5- Competitive Rivalry (High Power)
There are a lot of local and international companies in the logistics and freight
industry. The Middle East in general was not considered as an attractive
investment due to civil wars and bureaucracy in a lot of countries there
(Ghandour 2011), therefore, the competition in this market depends on the
country itself, pricing, local regulations and many more. Some of the
international companies who are completing in this market are" United Parcel
Service (UPS), Federal Express (FedEx), Japan Post Service, Royal Mail,
and DHL. On the local side, there are different competitors such as Agility
Logistics, Al-Futtaim Logistics, and Gulf Agency Company.

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Appendix C: Service Life Cycle and Services Portfolio in Aramex Company
First: Revenues per Each Service Group
Table C.1 shows the breakdown of revenues for the last five years.
Table 0.1 2014 Revenues in Aramex Company
2010 2011 2012 2013 2014
Revenues
International express 689,111 832,370 968,673 1,054,126 1,230,531
Freight forwarding 924,101 1,073,301 1,169,037 1,233,524 1,247,260
Domestic express 331,153 373,120 592,899 644,929 755,058
Logistics 103,764 110,760 138,284 169,648 197,976
Publications & distribution 30,035 28,318 25,630 20,272 9,547
Others 133,832 152,844 177,064 198,244 209,130
Total Revenues 2,211,996 2,570,713 3,071,589 3,320,742 3,649,502
Shipping costs 1,021,830 1,219,022 1,417,247 1,521,764 1,646,771
Gross profit 1,190,166 1,351,691 1,654,341 1,798,979 2,002,731
Source: Aramex Annual Report 2014, p. 8 (All numbers are in Thousands UAE
Dirhams)
Below is the graphical analysis for these numbers.

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Figure 0.1 Breakdown for Aramex Revues in 2014
Figure 0.2 Aramex Revenues from International Express Service

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Figure 0.3 Aramex Revenues from Freight Forwarding Service
Figure 0.4 Aramex Revenues from Domestic Express Service

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Figure 0.5 Aramex Revenues from Logistics Service
Figure 0.6 Aramex Revenues from Publication and Distribution Services

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Figure 0.7 Aramex Revenues from Other Services
Second: Revenues per Each Market
Table C.2 shows the geographical breakdown of revenues for 2013 and 2014 years.
Table 0.2 Geographical Breakdown of Revenues 2013 -2014
Description International
Express
Freight
Forwarding
Domestic &
Others
Total
Company
2014 Year
Middle East & Africa 1,352.0 76.3% 985.1 66.1% 902.6 76.2% 3,239.7 72.8%
Europe 164.4 9.3% 400.3 26.8% 136.0 11.5% 700.7 15.7%
North America 69.5 3.9% 35.8 2.4% 0.9 0.1% 106.1 2.4%
Asia 187.2 10.6% 70.0 4.7% 145.3 12.3% 402.4 9.0%
Elimination (542.5) (243.9) (13.0) (799.4)
Total 1,230.5 100% 1,247.3 100% 1,171.7 100.0% 3,649.5 100%
2013 Year
Middle East & Africa 1,177.8 77.4% 1,015.8 67.8% 848.3 81.3% 3,041.9 74.9%
Europe 132.5 8.7% 373.7 24.9% 121.8 11.7% 627.9 15.5%
North America 48.7 3.2% 39.9 2.7% 3.9 0.4% 92.6 2.3%
Asia & Others 161.7 10.6% 69.5 4.6% 69.7 6.7% 301.0 7.4%
Elimination (467.3) (265.4) (10.8) (743.4)
Total 1,053.5 100% 1,233.5 100% 1,033.0 100.0% 3,320.0 100%
Source: Aramex Annual Report 2014, p.9 (All numbers are in Thousands UAE
Dirhams)
Below is the graphical analysis for each service under each market:

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Figure 0.8 Revenue from International Express Service per Market
Figure 0.9 Revenue from Freight Forwarding Service per Market

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Figure 0.10 Revenue from Domestic & Others Service per Market

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@ 2015 AYAT A. SALEH, submitted as a part of the 'Strategic Marketing' course in the University of Warwick, United Kingdom
Appendix D: TOWS Analysis for Aramex Company
Table 0.1 Aramex TOWS Matrix
Strengths Weaknesses
 Good performance in the last five years
 Light- asset business model
 Excellent know-how knowledge
 Customized e-commerce solutions
 Excellent image and credibility
 Good performance in sustainability
development
 Diverse team
 Trust in their information security system
 Light-asset model might complicate the
financial transactions with banks who are
reluctant to deal with low-asset
companies
 Limited advertisement budge
 The publication and distribution service
group contributes to less than 1% of the
total revenues
Opportunities SO Strategies WO Strategies
 Rapid changing in shopping habits
 Promising and growing market
 Growing market in Asia and Africa
especially in the domestic service
 Utilize the good knowledge to build new
innovative solutions especially in the e-
commerce side
 Sustain the good image by investing more in
sustainability and engage its team with more
projects in the local communities
 Seek acquisitions and franchise relationships
with partners in Asia and Africa markets
 Utilize the revenues generated from the Middle
East market (which is its Star as per BCG
matrix) to finance the e-commerce services
(which is its Question Mark as per the same
matrix)
 Implement lean six sigma to reduce delivery
time, costs, and ensure more efficient
operations in order to meet the expected growth
in the market
 Phase- out the publication and distribution
service (which is its Dog as per BCG
matrix) in order to use the money in other
services especially the e-commerce one
 Establish a detailed advertisement
strategies to meet the rapid changes in
consumer habits

26
@ 2015 AYAT A. SALEH, submitted as a part of the 'Strategic Marketing' course in the University of Warwick, United Kingdom
Table 0.1 Aramex TOWS Matrix
Strengths Weaknesses
 Good performance in the last five years
 Light- asset business model
 Excellent know-how knowledge
 Customized e-commerce solutions
 Excellent image and credibility
 Good performance in sustainability
development
 Diverse team
 Trust in their information security system
 Light-asset model might complicate the
financial transactions with banks who are
reluctant to deal with low-asset
companies
 Limited advertisement budge
 The publication and distribution service
group contributes to less than 1% of the
total revenues
Threats ST Strategies WT Strategies
 Business consolidation
 Unstable Political Situation
 Increasing in the number of refugees
 High unemployment rate
 Fluctuating Oil prices
 High bargaining power of competitors
 Develop business continuity plans for the
stressed countries
 Develop strong relationships with different
business partners (such as NGOs,
governments, transportation providers in terms
of airlines, sea cargos, vehicle leasing…etc to
ensure a good back up and support in case of
global consolidation or changes in regulations
 Utilize the sustainability projects to create new
employment opportunities
 Seek financial support to cope with the
fluctuating oil prices
 Cut expense in publication and
distribution service to fund other projects
that can help the refugees and the
unemployed people.

27
The detailed rationales behind this matrix are shown below:
Strengths
 Aramex did very well in 2014 where revenues increased by 10% and profit by
15% in 2014 vs. year before (2014 Aramex Annual Report, p. 4).
 Aramex’s asset-light business model heavily relays on the supply chain of
international and local suppliers (Aramex Annual Report 2014, p.15).
 Aramex has strong technical knowledge in this industry because of its old
experience with Airborne Company, which was acquired later by FedEx
Company (Ghandour, 2011).
 Aramex provides customized e-commerce services to meet the different
needs of its customers (Aramex Annual report 2014, p.39)
 Aramex has excellent image and credibility since it was the first company
from the Arab world to trade in NASDAQ (Ghandour, 2011).
 Aramex always seeks to implement sustainability projects where 90% of its
locations are engaged with sustainability initiatives (Aramex Annual Report
2014, p. 49).
 Aramex has a strong team where its workforce grew by 17% in 2014 reaching
16,273 employees and representing 91 nationalities (Aramex Annual Report
2014, p. 22).
 Aramex is working continuously to ensure high information security practices;
as a result Aramex got deeper trust with its customers and in its brand
(Aramex Annual Report 2014, p. 37).
Weaknesses
 Light asset model may create trust issues with big financial institutions as per
an article by Jane Williams in INSEAD Knowledge (Williams 2013).
 Aramex spends small amount on direct advertisement as per the annual
report which says: "Our continuous efforts resulted in a deeper trust with our
customers and in our brand, and have enabled us to limit our advertising
efforts for our services and focus more on direct interactions with customers
and prospects" (Aramex Annual Report 2014, p. 37).
 The publication and distribution service contributes minimally in the total
revenues as shown in Appendix C.

28
Opportunities
 "Rapid changing in shopping habits, Mobile and social networking, E-
commerce blooming, and Technological innovation" are opportunities for
Aramex as shown in Appendix A.
 Promising and growing market as shown in Appendix C where the analysis
shows growing market in Asia and Africa especially for the domestic service
 The transport and logistics sector in the Middle East region is growing and
creates more attractive investment opportunities.
 Aramex provides high focus on Asia and Africa. "Both Asia and Africa will
continue to play important roles in Aramex’s aggressive expansion plans
across emerging markets. The Asia-Pacific region is home to over 4.2 billion
people, and accounts for nearly 60% of the world’s population." (Aramex
Annual Report 2014, p. 5).
Threats
 Business consolidation threat as illustrated by Ghandour in an interview with
Harvard Business Review (2011) is a probable threat. "The global logistics
industry was consolidating: FedEx and UPS had acquired companies such as
Gelco and IML in Europe and Asia; Emery and Purolator had merged. FedEx
bought Flying Tigers—an all-freight airline. In addition to expanding our
presence geographically, we diversified our revenue stream by becoming a
one-stop shop for freight forwarding; shipping by air, sea, and land; and a
variety of logistics services across the region." (Ghandour, 2011).
 Unstable Political Situation, Increasing in the number of refugees, and Well-
regulated industry, Fluctuating Oil prices and High unemployment rate in the
public sector as discussed in Appendix A.
 High bargaining power of competitors as shown in Appendix B.

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Strategic Marketing in Aramex Company: A Case Study

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Strategic Marketing in Aramex Company: A Case Study