Cowgirl Chocolates

SITUATION ANALYSIS

The situation analysis is made up of six areas of concern. The marketing manager, or Marilyn in this case, should be concerned with the opportunities as well as the threats with the cooperative environment, the competitive environment, the economic environment, the social environment, the political environment, and the legal environment (20). Considering these six areas, we will look at the industry, the organization, and the marketing strategy of Cowgirl Chocolates.

When looking at the industry of Cowgirl Chocolates, it is important to note that the market for chocolates alone is very vast. The is great, however, the company is not simply a chocolate company. It is aiming to serve a niche market. Therefore, the market for spicy chocolate is tremendously smaller.

After performing a Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats (SWOT) analysis, it is found that the strengths of the company include: product differentiation, as well as high quality ingredients. For clarification, strengths are only what a company does well inside their company. This product differentiation is seen through Marilyn’s different forms of chocolate, as well as her unique flavors. Her types of chocolate include individually wrapped spicy truffles, truffle bars, and caramel sauce. The truffle bars are available in orange-expresso, as well as lime tequila crunch. The individual truffles are available in those flavors as well, in addition to a “mild-mannered” option. The high-quality nature of the chocolates is evident in Marilyn’s choice of manufacturer. Seattle Chocolates produces all of Cowgirl Chocolates base chocolate. Seattle Chocolates is known for being sold in high stores such as Nordstrom as well as Neiman Marcus.

Marilyn’s weaknesses, or internal things the company does not do well, include high production costs, limited cash flow, and a lack of target market. Cowgirl Chocolates’ cost of sales expenses for the year 2000 were $31,423, while the revenues were only $30,046. Not to mention, there was an additional $22,024 worth of other expenses, totaling over $50,000. Businesses are in business to make money. These expenses are of major concern and something needs to be done quickly in order to save the business. With all of these expenses, this causes a limited cash flow. In the case, it mentions that Marilyn has been putting her own money from savings into the business, and even bartering her art products for money. With limited cash flow, this is a major concern for Cowgirl Chocolates. The lack of target market is one of the tactical problems, so it will be discussed in detail later on.

On the external side of the business, the opportunities could be strengthening online presence, implementing marketing research, evaluating the product line, and partnering with more co-ops. It is mentioned in the case that Marilyn has considered focusing on her online presence. This could be a cheaper, more efficient way to sell her product. These opportunities will be discussed in more detail throughout the case.

Externally, threats include gourmet chocolate companies and imitation of product. It is important to note that Marilyn should not attempt to compete with big label brands like Hershey. It is nearly impossible as a small business to compete with these larger, global companies. Quite frankly, Cowgirl Chocolates would not survive. Additionally, it would be of concern that companies like Lindor could possibly imitate Marilyn's spicy chocolate and sell it at a lower price