2. Company (Background)
■ Started in 1938 as mail order service.
– Founded by Charles E. Schmidt Sr.
■ Training Programs: Hire employees with farming experience.
– Knowledgeable enough to assist customers in purchase decisions.
– Continue training employees on management skills.
■ $86.54 stock
■ Not just selling tractor parts
Values:
Ethics, Respect, Balance, Winning Attitude, Communication,
Development, Teamwork, Change, Initiative, Accountability
4. Collaborators
■ Partner with many local and national organizations to offer a wide array of outreach
opportunities.
■ UPS partnership to ensure a more efficient distribution of merchandise bought online.
■ Offers a wide array of brands including:
– Carhartt
– Cub Cadet
– John Deere merchandise
– ...and more
5. Competitors
■ Other stores in the same market.
– Ex. Rural King
■ Stores that offer similar products but are more focused toward the home
improvement target market.
– Ex. Lowe’s, Home Depot
■ Stores that offer many of the same products but are more focused on industrial
farmers.
– Ex. John Deere
6. Customers (Target Market)
■ Recreational farmers
– Farming is not their full time job - “Hobby farmers”
– Most customers have other jobs in major metropolitan areas
– Many inherited their farms
– Need help from knowledgeable store workers
7. Retail Mix
■ Location
– Retail corridor or rural community
– Old buildings; 15,000-24,000 Sqft.
■ Price
– Low to Moderate
■ MerchandiseAssortment
– Private and national brands
– Items in apparel, outdoors, home
improvement, pets, and tools
■ Communication Mix
– TV, Radio, Newspaper
■ Store Design and Display
– Employees wear highly visible red
vests
– Basic, special displays for products
■ Customer Service
– Low to Modest, but emphasis on
training programs
8. SWOT Analysis
■ Strengths
– NiceTarget Market
– Stock Price (Performance)
– Loyal Customers
■ Weaknesses
– Relies on Manufacturers
– Limited Location
■ Opportunities
– E/M-Commerce
– Customer Service
■ Threats
– Manufacturers
– Rising Labor Costs
Strengths Weaknesses
Opportunities Threats
S W
O T
Internal
External
NegativePositive
10. Issues/Opportunities
■ NicheTarget Market- naturally exposed to less opportunity for sales
■ Sustainable competitive advantage?
■ More Services – in store
■ Online commerce
12. What are TSC’s options?
Stay the
Course
Location
M/E-
Commerce
Private
Label
Extension
13. Stay the Course
■ Pros:
– No cost
– No time commitment
– Less risky
– Continue to focus on employee training
program
■ Cons:
– Already losing business to suppliers
– Cannot compete with low prices
14. Location
■ Pros
– More convenient for customers
– Increased brand awareness
– New buildings designed specifically for
their retail mix
– Customized product assortment for express
stores
■ Cons
– Costly
– Time consuming
– Potential to be ineffective
15. Improve M/E-Commerce
■ Pros
– Capture growing trend
– Greater Accessibility
– SmartTargeting
– Enhance Multi-channel experience
■ Cons
– Expensive to develop
– Need to heavily promote
– Continual maintenance and
implementation period
16. Private Label Extension
■ Pros
– Vertically Integrate
– Increase quality and customer loyalty
– Market share opportunities
– Control: pricing, size, package, design,
production, and distribution
– Offer 1 umbrella private brand → Great value,
high price
■ Cons
– Retailers lack direct control
– Less innovation
– Time consumption
– High risk
– Perceived as down marketing
VS
