Azalea's Seafood

Situation: Azalea Seafood Gumbo Shoppe is a seafood company which specializes in 5 seafood products. Azalea's gumbo is their best selling item that accounted for 90% of its annual sales. Mike Rathle and John Addison are the co-owners of Azalea Seafood Gumbo Shoppe. The company has a just-in-time production process helped increase cash flow and kept costs low. However, because of their JIT production process they have very little inventory and often do not have any cases of gumbo available for individuals who stop by.External Opportunities: The opportunities for Azalea Seafood Gumbo Shoppe are endless. They could potentially be sold in every grocery store and restaurant in the United States. External threats: The common external threat that I noticed was that they always had to battle with their competitors for premium shelf space.Internal Threats: A common internal threat is their employees. One employee cost them $100,000 in recalled gumbo because an employee mis-mark...

Azalea Seafood Gumbo ShoppeIntroduction Found in approximately 1000 supermarkets and 300 restaurants, Azalea Seafood and Gumbo Shoppe is among the largest producers of ready-to-eat gumbo with annual revenues in 2000 of more than $1 million. The company's gumbo was their best selling item earning nearly 90% of yearly sales. Although Azalea has a competitive advantage with its tasty gumbo, Azalea is looking to maintain long-term growth and obtain a sustainable competitive advantage. In order increase its profitability, the company needs to consider options to improve its business strategies. Currently Azalea's facilities are located in a small country side building and many large restaurants do not find it at par with their standards. This causes Azalea to lose sales from businesses like Applebee's and Cracker Barrel. In addition, major highways for the rapid distribution of their product are not available and easily accessible. Despite the location, Azalea's owners are s...

The Azalea Seafood Gumbo ShoppeExecutive SummaryAzalea Seafood Gumbo Shoppe wishes to develop a strategic plan to maintain long-term growth and sustain a competitive advantage. For Azalea to accomplish this, they will need to consider the options presented here. Included is an analysis of Azalea's problems and issues to address, along with recommendations to grow the business. The recommendations are based on the status of the current market and forces that drive the industry.Azalea has a great product that will perform very well in the market. Marketing and sales are areas that will also need improvement. Management is very capable and should easily be able to adjust to competition in the market. A great deal of opportunity lies ahead in the many unfulfilled niches to be filled and explored. Azalea will need to expand and diversify its customer base. This can easily be accomplished by focusing on marketing and sales efforts. The company needs to concentrate on, not o...

1. Rivalry among competing sellers (Moderate) * Customers switching costs are low* Demand for products is starting to grow* Compete aggressively for favorable product placement in supermarkets2. Competitive Force of Potential Entry (Moderate-Strong)* Economies of scale are fairly low to initially enter the market as a value-added seafood producer* Customer loyalty and brand preference is high. If first-time customers are pleased with their experience, then they are likely to be repeat customers. * The industry is beginning to grow* Many unfilled niches to pursue 3. Competitive pressures

...