Pestel and swot analysis

GLOBAL MARKETING MANAGEMENT

BSM518

Module Handbook 2019/20:

· Coursework Details

· Assessment Information

· Reading List

Module Coordinator:

Name: Dr Evagelos Korobilis-Magas

Tel: 263489

E-mail: [email protected]

FACULTY OF MANAGEMENT

THE ROBERT GORDON UNIVERSITY

Robert Gordon University

School of Creative and Cultural Business

Session :

2019-20

Semester :

2

Module Number :	BSM518
Module Title :	GLOBAL MARKETING MANAGEMENT
CW (e.g. C1, C2, C3) :	C1 – One piece of Coursework
Sub deadline :	Monday 6TH of April 2020, by 1pm.
Module Co-ord :	Dr Evagelos Korobilis-Magas

HANDING IN ASSESSMENT WORK

Coursework should be submitted electronically via the designated Assignment Dropbox in the Module Study Area in CampusMoodle.

The University operates a Fit to Sit Policy which means that if you undertake an assessment then you are declaring yourself well enough to do so.

· Deferrals – If you are not fit to sit an assessment, you should complete a ‘Deferral Request Form’.

· Extensions – If you require a short extension, you should complete and submit a ‘Coursework Extension Form’.

These forms are available on the RGU website at: www.rgu.ac.uk/academicregulationsstudentforms or through the RGyoU Portal under the ‘My Results’ tab. You should submit the form through your RGU email account to your School-specific email address, which can be found at: www.rgu.ac.uk/academicregulations

Supporting evidence should be scanned and included with the email.

Coursework received late, without valid reason, will be regarded as a Non-Submission (NS) and one of your assessment opportunities will be lost.

PLAGIARISM

“Plagiarism is the practice of presenting the thoughts, writings or other output of another or others as original, without acknowledgement of their source(s). All material used to support a piece of work, whether a printed publication or from electronic media, should be appropriately identified and referenced and should not normally be copied directly unless as an acknowledged quote. Text translated into the words of the individual student should in all cases acknowledge the source.”

Before submitting assignments, you should check through it to ensure that:

· all material identified as originally from a previously published source has been properly attributed by the inclusion of an appropriate citation in the text;

· direct quotations are marked as such (using “quotation marks” at the beginning and end of the selected text), and

· full details of the reference citations have been included in the Reference List (in RGU Harvard format).

Students are encouraged to review their work using the Turnitin Plagiarism Detection Service via CampusMoodle before final submission.

For further information on academic honesty, please see:

http://campusmoodle.rgu.ac.uk/course/view.php?id=76611

For further information on academic writing, please see:

http://www4.rgu.ac.uk/energy/induction/page.cfm?pge=48530

For further information on RGU Harvard Referencing, please see:

http://libguides.rgu.ac.uk/rguharvard

WORD COUNT

If the word count of an assessment is considered critical, then this will be reflected in the assessment criteria for that assessment.

Generally, the title page, executive summary (or abstract), contents page, lists of tables and figures, glossary (if required), reference list, bibliography (if required) and any appendices are not part of the word count.

Everything in the main body of text, including headings, sub-headings, citations and direct quotes, is included in the word count.

 

Anything you consider essential for your marker to read should be in the main body of text. Anything that is supplementary or supporting material should be in the appendices. Regarding tables in the main body of text:

· A table containing mainly numeric content would not be considered part of the word count.

· A table containing mainly text content would be considered part of the word count.

VAUDE: The spirit of Mountain Sports

Introduction

Antje von Dewitz sits on her chair in her office. She gazes at the mountains, lost in thoughts. In 2009 she took over the family business. If you want to start talking about Antje von Dewitz, one should start with the new in-house kindergarden, or better kinder house. Outside: climbing wall, slide, and tunnel to crawl through. Inside: a corner for handicrafts, a little kitchen for children to play, a ball pool and a little pony made of straw. Antje von Dewitz did not only build this kinder house for her employees, but also for herself. When she started working at her father’s business and became pregnant, there was no childcare. Today VAUDE receives awards for being family-friendly. The pin board behind her desk is full of birthday cards from employees.

The head office of VAUDE is situated in a most idyllic scenery in the German Alps area between Ravenburg and Lindau. Antje von Dewitz’s father, Albrecht, started in 1947 with selling backpacks and tents. Today, Antje von Dewitz greets the visitors wearing a checked shirt, denim jeans and sneakers – she looks as if she came right out of a VAUDE catalogue. She greets with a bright “hi”, quickly puts on a warm jacket and the tour at VAUDE begins. VAUDE was established in 1974 and has since then been producing and selling outdoor equipment like functional outdoor clothes, backpacks and bags, sleeping bags, tents, shoes and camping equipment. The company employs 486 employees and is a 100% family business. The products of VAUDE stand for mountaineering, innovation and especially for a responsible behaviour towards society and nature.

VAUDE’s goal is to be Germany’s most sustainable outdoor supplier. Since 2001, the company works with a very strict environmental standard called blue sign, which controls the complete value-added chain. Apart from that, VAUDE has been awarded with several prizes for their social and environmental engagement. They have been the first outdoor business that have been certified after EMAS (Eco-Management and Audit Scheme). As a member of the Fair Wear Foundation they emphasise fair salary and good working conditions. In 2010, VAUDE developed its own rating system for environmental friendly outdoor products. They guarantee the development of environmental friendly products made of sustainable materials in a gentle production. Since 2011, they have established a cooperation with the Worldwide Fund for Nature WWF. The company supplies the WWF team with equipment and clothing for their missions in nature and, in return, WWF advices VAUDE in environmental topics. In 2015, they developed a modern concept for their office, including a green campus, a climbing wall, a biological cafeteria and much more. So now their sustainable and innovative concept is not only implemented in their products but also in their office premises.

Being a social venture bears lots of challenges for the founders. Social businesses try to solve problems in the society while remaining a profitable business. The company has already built a significant international presence and experience over the past five years. They currently successfully supply their sustainable and eco-friendly products in the following international markets: Austria, Belgium, Canada, France, Netherlands, Switzerland and the UK. In the last couple of months, they have been seeking opportunities for a further international expansion. The front runner is Italy for a number of reasons. First and foremost, the Italian market is large and there is considerable demand for outdoor products. Furthermore, it is very close to Germany geographically. In general, the business environment in Italy seems to be attractive albeit not as stable as it should have been (political and economic problems have been tantalising the country for the past decade creating instability). Another major threat is that competition in the Italian outdoor market is quite strong. Antje is not sure yet, whether she should take the next step towards expanding to the Italian market or not. Even though the market has some good potential there are still high risks and threats involved that need to be considered carefully before the right decisions are taken.

The Outdoor Market in Italy

The Italian outdoor market is among the biggest ones in Europe next to Germany, France and the UK. The market features many big and well-known brands like “Camp”, “La Sportiva”, “Grivel”, “Moncrel” and “Stone Island”. Competition is fierce with many new start-up companies putting pressure on the well-established ones. Consumers also have the possibility to buy outdoor clothing and equipment at discounters and supermarkets that are not specialists in the outdoor market. Furthermore, research indicates that the consumer preferences and fashion trends change much faster compared to the past. The conclusion from all the above is that the Italian outdoor market is quite turbulent and “overheated”.

In 2017, the sales were divided into five categories. The clothing sector was clearly the biggest category with 53.4% of the total sales. It was followed by shoes with a turnover of 24.2% and hardware with 17.7%. Sleeping bags and tents had the lowest sales revenue share of 2.9% and 1.8% respectively. The total sales of the outdoor market in Italy declined from 1.79 billion Euro in 2014 to 1.77 billion Euro in 2018. After years of stagnation, sales have started to slightly increase again in 2019. This trend is supposed to continue and it is expected to rise to 1.98 billion Euro total sales in 2020. The average revenue per user is currently 344.07 Euro.

Digitisation has been growing exponentially as more and more Italian consumers use the internet to compare and purchase products. In 2016 5.26 million people who used e-commerce to buy outdoor articles and this number is predicted to rise to 8.3 million in 2021.

Furthermore, sustainability seems to be very important to Italian consumers. Fairness, longevity, resource conservation and quality are some the main facets Italian consumers focus on. Therefore, companies competing in the outdoor market in Italy should not only focus on the production of sustainable and high quality products – they should also focus on promoting their image as a sustainable company. All in all, a simple product is not enough anymore. The customer wants a product with a story – a fascinating story if possible and/or one about societal deeds and contribution. Creative and effective branding is the key to success in the Italian outdoor market.

The Marketing Strategy of VAUDE

VAUDE has a clear and holistic sustainability strategy that works for the whole company. They have won many awards and in 2015 they were presented with the “Germany’s Most Sustainable Brand” award. Therefore, they are one of the pioneers when it comes to sustainable outdoor textiles. They have high quality standards for their eco-friendly products like a green shape seal they have invented. The VAUDE ecosystem consists of clever development, environmental friendly and sustainable materials that are fairly produced, durable, repairable, recyclable and reusable. They even participate in voluntary initiatives and political activities which seek to raise awareness for the necessity of sustainability and environmental protection in textile production.

When it comes to corporate social responsibility VAUDE sets the bar very high. Their main production sites in China and Vietnam are visited regularly by CSR teams to ensure that all the people who work for the company are provided with a fair job. This means a safe and healthy workplace, an environment free of discrimination and one in which every employee is heard. In order to be completely transparent they even upload videos of their production sites thus, making them available to every customer who wants further information. They are also very careful when they choose their partners as they want to make sure that their partners share the same practices and can keep up with the high their standards.

Even though VAUDE has a substantial competitive advantage, their product prices are on a middle range. When compared, for example, with Patagonia, Deuter or Jack Wolfskin their prices are almost identical for the same or similar products. VAUDE’s distribution channels are separated as follows: a) specialised stores 70%, b) internet retailers (including vaude.com) 22%, c) retailers – outlets 5% and, d) VAUDE franchise stores 3%. They also enjoy a very high customer loyalty as 10% of their customers account for 60% of their sales.

In general, VAUDE’s communication strategy is divided into three channels. In the direct channel they use adverts, PR, sponsorship, collection flyers, their website, newsletters and social media. For the retailers, they use films, shop windows and events. In specialist shops they have training documents, product has tags, point of sale marketing and shop in shop concepts. Furthermore, they use a transparency strategy when they communicate with customers so that their customers know that they buy sustainable products. On their product labels customers can see the fibre content, care instructions, country of origin, date of manufacture, blue-sign system, green-shape concept, and percentage of materials of animal origin.

Epilogue

In general, the business environment in Italy seems to be attractive. For example, its high affinity to human, nature and social businesses seems very appealing to VAUDE. Furthermore, Italy is geographically very close. Antje is not yet sure whether she should take the next step towards penetrating the Italian market or not. She would like to consider all potential risks and threats before moving forward.

CASE STUDY TASKS

Using the information already provided in the case study as a starting point, you will also need to conduct your own research** (which should be mainly based on journal papers and databases) to further enhance your knowledge about the company and the Swiss market. You will then need to perform the following tasks:

1) Perform a PESTEL and situational analysis first and then discuss if Italy is indeed an attractive subsequent international destination for VAUDE or not.

2) How would you adapt the marketing mix (price, product, place - but not promotion) for the Italian outdoor market? Please fully justify your answer through the use of relevant and supporting academic theory but also based on the findings of the previous task.

3) Discuss your branding and communication strategy for the Italian market (including SMART objectives). What communication mix are you going to use to achieve those objectives and how are you going to create awareness and forge a strong and positive brand image within a reasonable time frame? Use appropriate branding and communication models and theory to fully develop and support your answer.

**Please do not directly contact the company for information. You can, instead, look at their website and social media accounts to gather important information.

UK website: https://www.vaude.com/en-GB/

THE FOLLOWING INSTRUCTIONS APPLY:

Writing Guidelines/Presentation Format/Instructions/Criteria for Assessment

· Report Writing Guidelines:

For the assessment, you are required to produce a word-processed report, which addresses the above tasks and should not exceed 4,000 words in length plus/minus 10%. It must be word processed, using 11 point Verdana. You must provide a contents page as well as an executive summary. You must also follow the University library guidelines in terms of the Harvard referencing style.

You are required to demonstrate breadth and depth of knowledge and provide evidence that you have used a wide range of academic information sources in the compilation of this piece of work. You are also expected to undertake market research on the market that you recommend and use a wide range of industry and country sources.

While the tasks above have a practical focus, you must ensure that you provide the appropriate academic justification for your answers.

It is important that the reports be based on secondary research and are supported by a range of credible references from industry/academic journals and texts, both within the body of the text and as part of supporting Reference List. Text books alone are not insufficient.

You must make full use of and apply appropriate international marketing theory in all your answers.

Please ensure that you address each task separately and number accordingly.

The report should be written in report writing style (in third person) and should include:

1) A title page (including title, module name, matriculation number and word count);

2) A contents page with any sub-section headings and page numbers;

3) An executive summary with the key findings;

4) Sectioned body of text;

5) References and bibliography;

6) Appendices where relevant

References should conform to the RGU Harvard system. Use the library guide on referencing and adhere to these guidelines. It is expected that a wide range of sources will be used, including journal articles. Guidance on the University’s recommended version of Harvard is available from the University Library module on referencing on Campus Moodle:

http://campusmoodle.rgu.ac.uk/course/view.php?id=74221

Appendices should support the main body of the report - not replace the report. All key aspects of discussion should be included, rather than supplementary. In addition, the appendices should be capable of being understood on their own. Any tables, figures or supporting images should also be incorporated in the body of the report and not the appendices.

· Presentation Format:

You are required to produce a word-processed report, which addresses the brief. This report should consider each task separately (numbering each question). Your work must not exceed a maximum of 4,000 words. Word processed on one side of paper only, using Verdana typeface in font size 11.

· Criteria for Assessment:

It is anticipated that you will display breadth and depth of knowledge. You must analyse and evaluate the information presented. Theory should be interpreted in the practical context and any work that is purely practical or lacks theoretical underpinning will be marked down.

· Hand In Arrangements:

The submission deadline for the COURSEWORK is by 1 pm. on the 6th of April 2020.

The coursework must be submitted as an electronic copy to the Turn-it-In Coursework Dropbox in the BSM518 Campus Moodle Module Study Area under the section heading: Assessment activities and documents.

The penalty for late or non-submission of the coursework, without prior notification, is that it is treated as a failed attempt. There is also a penalty for deviating substantially from the word length or for poor spelling and grammar (deduction of up to 1 grade point from the final grade for poor spelling and grammar and deduction of 1 grade point for deviations in excess of +/- 10% of the specified word count). You must include a statement on the front cover of your work that specifies the word count. An electronic copy of your work should be retained and made available on request, to enable the marker to verify the word count.

The University’s Regulations require students to attend timetabled assessments and to submit work for assessments within the notified timescale and in accordance with the conditions for the course/module. [Regulation A3 – Section 1: Academic Appeals (Awards and Progression) Procedure]. However, the University recognises that illness or other valid circumstances can impact on a student’s ability to submit and/or attend an assessment. The University operates a Fit to Sit Policy, which means that if you undertake an assessment then you are declaring yourself well enough to do so. The University’s fit to sit Policy, therefore incorporates provision for extenuating circumstances.

It is your responsibility as a student to ensure that your School is informed of any extenuating circumstances, such as illness or other valid circumstances, which might prevent you from undertaking an assessment or is impacting on your ability to prepare for the assessment.

There are two routes through which extenuating circumstances can be claimed as follows:

· Coursework Extension Request Form:

If you are seeking an extension to a submission deadline then the Coursework Extension Request Form should be completed and submitted through your RGU email account to your School. The School email address can be found at: www.rgu.ac.uk/academicregulations

Supporting evidence should be scanned and included with the email. You will receive an automated receipt of your email which you should retain for your records.

· Deferral Request Form:

Non-submission and/or non-attendance: If you are claiming extenuating circumstances in relation to non-submission of an assessment or non-attendance at an examination then the Deferral Request Form should be completed and submitted through your RGU email account to your School Office at the designated email address. This can be found at: www.rgu.ac.uk/academicregulations the completed form should arrive not later than five working days after the date of the examination and/or the assessment submission deadline.

If you wish to be considered for mitigating circumstances as to why you are unable to submit your assessment on time, you must complete one of the forms above (obtainable from the Web). Send this to your Course Leader along with any other evidence that you deem appropriate e.g. a doctor’s letter, prior to the submission deadline.

Finally, all work MUST be passed through the Turn-it-in system (the guide is posted on Campus Moodle). On-campus students must submit their Turn-it-in report along with their work.

PLEASE DO NOT HESITATE TO CONTACT YOUR MODULE COORDINATOR SHOULD YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS/CONCERNS.

The submission date for the COURSEWORK is by 1 pm. on the 6th of April 2020.

Return of Results: Results will be released by e-transcript through RGyoU and the assessment grading grid will be returned electronically by administration.

For resits, the submission deadline is no later than:

Monday the 3rd of August 2020, by 1pm.

Based on the same case study, you will need to perform the following tasks:

1. In order to be successful in the Italian market, VAUDE needs to know and understand the competitive situation. Using the Porter’s Five Forces Framework, analyse competition and determine the competitive intensity in the Italian market.

2. Critically discuss the essential factors or criteria which VAUDE must take into account before the final selection of an entry mode is made. You must then select one (or more) appropriate market entry mode for VAUDE, justifying your choice through the use of supporting academic theory.

3. To what extent do you agree (or disagree) with the following statement and why? “Quantitative research can obtain data from a large sample of respondents, produce results with high reliability and validity and is less subject to bias. It is, therefore, superior to qualitative research methods in an international marketing context. As a result, VAUDE should rely on quantitative research in order to gain valuable insights into the Italian market”. Please fully justify your answer by using appropriate academic theory.

** Please do not directly contact the company for information. You can, instead, look at their website and social media accounts to gather important information.

Results will be released no more than 5 days after they are ratified at the final August exam boards.

A copy of the Tutor Coursework Marking Grid is attached which will guide you as to what the grade relates to in your submission.

Student Matriculation Number: Course: GMM

Marker: Grade: %

Global Marketing Management BSM518 Semester 2 / 2018-2019

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Grade	Global Marketing Management
A (70%+ Outstanding)	· Meets all the structural and content requirements set out in the assignment brief; responds to all parts of the question asked, giving detailed consideration to parts of the discussion that reflect the weighting in the assignment brief. · Shows very clear processes of analysis, utilizing a wide range of models and frameworks to classify issues; consistently demonstrates analytical interpretation, discussing and evaluating issues and themes that emerge and linking them into an evaluation of global marketing themes and issues; analytical evidence is used in an accurate manner, focussed on themes and issues with detail and accuracy. · Refers to a selection of global marketing literature, drawn from a wide range of sources; show sources of factual information clearly; good assessment of scope of subject-based literature – linkages between literature and assignment discussion clearly articulated, integrated and discussed. · General tone shows high levels of critical engagement – utilization of subject-based reading within discussion and argumentation; shows a grasp of the issues at play in anticipating questions and issues; consistently substantiates opinions expressed, arguments made and conclusions drawn with theoretical evidence. · Makes linkages clear between theoretical and practical issues at play within the assignment discussion.
B (60-69% Excellent)	· Meets the structural and content requirements set out in the assignment brief; responds to all parts of the question asked, generally giving due consideration to parts of the discussion that reflect the weighting in the assignment brief. · Shows clear processes of analysis, utilizing a range of models and frameworks to classify issues; generally demonstrates analytical interpretation, discussing and evaluating issues and themes that emerge to a large extent and linking them into an evaluation of global marketing themes and issues; analytical evidence is used in an accurate manner, focussed on themes and issues. · Refers to a more limited selection of global marketing literature, and module key readings but a good selection of journal literature; shows sources of factual information clearly; very few descriptive elements, confined to practical discussion of issues. · General tone shows more limited critical engagement with few descriptive elements –utilization of a range of reading within discussion; shows a grasp of the key issues at play and anticipates most but could develop aspects of the discussion further. · Makes linkages clear between key theoretical and practical issues at play within the assignment discussion.
C 50-59% Good	· Meets the structural and content requirements set out in the assignment brief; responds to all parts of the question asked, giving consideration to most parts of the discussion that reflects the weighting in the assignment brief. · Shows clear processes of analysis, utilizing a limited range of models to classify issues; demonstrates some analytical interpretation based on the classification of data in frameworks, including some discussion and evaluation of issues and themes that emerge, linking them into a general evaluation of global marketing management themes and issues; analytical evidence is used in a general but accurate manner. · Refers to a limited selection of global marketing literature, relying predominantly on key readings and tends to show descriptive sources of factual information in a general way; descriptive in handling of literature, using citation mainly in an explanatory and definitional manner rather than integrating within discussion; clear but descriptive evidence based for arguments. · General tone shows limited critical engagement and is rather descriptive – some evidence of wider reading, though not consistently referred to in detail; shows a grasp of the key issues, but does not fully anticipate some issues and retains some conceptual or practical flaws in the execution of the work.
D (40 – 49% Satisfactory Pass)	· Meets the structural and content requirements set out in the assignment brief but lacks detail in discussion of key elements of the questions; responds to most parts of the question asked, giving some weight to parts of the discussion that reflects the general weighting in the assignment brief. · Shows some processes of analysis, utilizing a limited range of models to classify issues; demonstrates limited analytical interpretation based on the classification of data in frameworks and some discussion and evaluation of issues and themes that emerge, linking them into a general but incomplete evaluation of global marketing themes and issues; analytical evidence is used in a general manner. · Refers to very little global marketing literature, confined to student ‘textbook’ references and lecture materials and tends to show sources of factual information in a very general manner; supportive information used very generally, descriptively, not providing an effective evidence base for discussion of assignment questions. · Descriptive assessment of scope of subject-based literature – linkages between literature and assignments questions only generally articulated; generally uncritical in approach; limited evidence base for arguments but an attempt made. · General tone descriptive – does not show evidence of wide reading or deep grasp of the issues, though structurally effective and acknowledging all key issues, even where not discussed.
E (35-39% Condonable Fail)	· Meets most but certainly not all of the basic requirements and structure set out in the assignment brief – some element missing or given poor coverage; discussion of key questions or issues is flawed; does not respond to some parts of the question asked, and does not give weight to different parts of the discussion. · Shows little of the processes of analysis, utilizing a very limited range of models/theories to classify issues; shows little or no analytical interpretation based on the classification of data in frameworks and little discussion and evaluation of issues and themes that emerge; issues and themes identified flow indirectly from the analysis; little differentiation between ‘key’ or important’ issues; analytical evidence is used in a very general indirect manner. · Makes virtually no use of global marketing literature to support ideas or to show sources of factual information; literature used in a very descriptive manner, for definitions or not integrated into the main text, providing little understanding of the issues. · Very limited descriptive assessment of scope of subject-based literature; very poor evidence base for arguments. · Descriptive –shows no evidence of applying readings or lecture materials to arguments put forward.
F (<35% Outright Fail)	· Meets very few / none of the basic requirements and structure set out in the assignment brief –elements missing and most given poor coverage; work is flawed in a major way; discussion of key questions or issues is flawed in a major way; does not respond to significant parts of the question asked, and does not give weight to different parts of the discussion; produces a very general discussion that does not relate meaningfully to the assignment question. · Shows little of the processes of analysis, utilizing few models to classify issues, those that are used are highly descriptive; shows little or no analytical interpretation and little discussion and evaluation of issues and themes that emerge; does not distinguish between data inclusion in models and interpretation or analysis; little or no differentiation between ‘key’ or important’ issues; analytical evidence is patchily used in a very general, indirect manner. · Does not make use of any literature to support ideas or show sources of factual information; no rationale for arguments; evidence base is unsupported / unsubstantiated. · No evidence of reading or applying lecture materials to arguments put forward.

Knowledge and Understanding and Application of Theory to brief instructions 40%

Presentation, Communication of ideas, IT Skills, Research undertaken and Referencing 20%

Analysis, Synthesis and Evaluation of materials 40%

First Marker:

Date:

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