Market Analysis - Introduction To Market Share

Definition

Market share can be defined as the percentage of all sales within a market that is held by one brand / product or company. Market share can be measured in several ways. However, the two most important measures are by:

- Sales revenue

- Sales volume (the number of units sold)

Examples of market share

Market share information on the UK clothing retail market is summarised below:

Position Brand Sales(Ð'Ј'm) Market Share (%) Number of Outlets

1 Marks & Spencer 2,743 10.2 315

2 Next 1,708 6.3 333

3 Arcadia 1,609 5.9 1,603

4 Debenhams 1,076 4.0 97

5 Asda 963 3.6 215

6 Matalan 776 2.9 137

7 Tesco 710 2.6 588

8 Bhs 631 2.3 163

9 New Look 552 2.1 573

10 John Lewis 482 1.8 25

Total of Top 10 11,250 41.8

UK Market 26,911 100.0

Source; Deutsche Bank 2002

The UK clothing market, as defined by Deutsche Bank in their recent report, is valued at Ð'Ј26.9 billion. It is one of the most concentrated retail markets in Europe, with the top ten retailers accounting for some 42% of the market.

What is market concentration? It is the proportion of market value that is owned by the leading brands or products/companies in the market. Where the market leaders own a large part of the overall market, the market is said to be highly concentrated. By contrast, where the market leader has a relatively small market share and there are many other competitors, a market is said to be "fragmented"

There has been little change in the concentration of the UK clothing retail market in recent years. The top 10 retailers