Client Spotlight: Revitalise Under Performing Export Markets
Let’s take a look at a well-known dry goods brand; a category king with $1 billion+ annual revenue, which can be found on shelves in almost every country around the world.
Whilst they have a regional office, they identified that they had gaps in knowledge and relationships in certain ASEAN markets and engaged with Incite to lift their efforts in two underperforming countries; Singapore and Hong Kong.
Pain points included:
difficult existing distributor relationships, making cumulative and ongoing issues challenging to rectify
lack of visibility on supply chain costs, therefore no understanding of what was a reasonable retail price point
costs were out of control – the Advertising and Promotion (A&P) spend was not focussed in the right areas and cut deeply into profits
Through the completion of Incite’s Market Analysis service for both markets, we advised what stores the products should be distributed in, at what price (including at each point within the supply chain) and engaged more appropriate distributors who were a better fit for their business.
Within 6 months, Business Plans were put forward by target distributors and the client was presented with a clear pricing, promotion and distribution strategy by each to realign the business with sales goals and sustainable growth.
The leading candidate was then officially appointed in each country.
The 4 key success factors for revitalising these underperforming export markets were:
The client participated in setting the strategy through the whole process
The strategy focussed on adapting to the requirements of each country, rather than trying to implement a “one size fits all” strategy
Establishing set review periods to monitor performance and ensure sustainable long-term sales
The development of open and transparent relationships with Distribution Partners so all parties have skin in the game.
This strategy also works for brands who are new to exporting. Taking the time to do it right the first time will save you time and money and allow you to develop long-term sustainable sales into new export markets.