Porshe Case Study

Porsche Case Study

Shelly Huff

        The defining problem in this case study is clearly growth.  Porsche wants to grow in several ways.  One way that they would like to see growth is the number of female buyers.  While the Cayenne did lure more women to the brand, the hope is to develop a new model that will appeal to both men and women to further attract a higher percentage of females, as well as male buyers new to the brand.  Another way Porsche would like to see growth is within their dealer network.  In several states, Porsche lost almost 50% of their dealers.  The idea is to gain some of that percentage back.  The question is, what steps can Porsche take to attract more women to the brand and increase their dealer network to achieve the growth they are seeking.  I have I identified two possible solutions.

        The first solution that I propose would be to develop a hybrid in both the Boxster and the Cayenne.  People are becoming increasingly environmentally conscious and are concerned about their carbon footprint.  Hybrid cars are becoming increasingly more popular and sought after.  There would be several advantages for Porsche if they were to develop a hybrid.  The Boxster and the Cayenne are the models that have most appealed to female buyers.  Developing a hybrid in these two models would not only attract more women to the brand, it would also succeed in luring more males to the brand.  A hybrid would appeal to the demographic of the male buyer who views his car as an escape but feels some guilt at owning the brand.  Developing a hybrid would help alleviate some of the guilt the buyer, both male and female may feel about owning a Porsche.

        Another advantage would be the cost.  Due to the fact that the models are already designed and currently in production, developing a hybrid would mean modifications to existing models.  Modification is much less costly than developing a new model.  In addition, these two models already appeal to several demographics of buyers, modifying these two models to make them hybrids will expand their attractiveness within these demographics.  The attractiveness of a hybrid will also appeal to their dealer network.  California, Georgia, Massachusetts, Michigan, and Washington are all states in which Porsche lost over half of their dealers.  These states are all some of the most eco-friendly states.  Having a hybrid version would assist in bringing dealers in these states back into the Porsche fold.

        Of course, there are disadvantages associated with this idea.  One of the primary disadvantages is that Porsche has a very loyal fan base.  Porsche loyalists do not like change to the brand and that may be an issue with developing a hybrid.  In addition, there could be some loss in performance.  Porsche prides itself on the performance level of their vehicles and a hybrid may not perform the way a non-hybrid model would.  A final disadvantage would be that hybrids typically have higher rates of depreciation.  This means that a hybrid model would probably not have the high resale value that is usually associated with the Porsche brand.