Vora and Company

MARKETING MANAGEMENT

VORA AND COMPANY

TUHIN ROY

PGP/23/484

1) Should Mr. Vora continue in this business?

I believe Mr. Vora should continue in the business. The reasons can be stated as –

 The market for quick cooking oats is still in its preliminary stage (after the Government embargo) and there’s an opportunity to capture greater market share. Also, Blossom and Champion are only two competitors in this market, so Blossom can still grow its business if it addresses its issues correctly.

 The company has been operating nationally for only 2 years. It seems two years is quite less to decide its future, given that the company hasn’t been running profitably till then.

 Blossom has price advantage over its competitor (though there is problem in pricing the product). Also, the quality and taste of Blossom oats is considered at least as good as its competitor.

 Mr. Vora’s family has been in the group business for several generations. Therefore, they have the experience of businesses which can become useful in the long run.

2) What are the major problems faced by Vora and Company?

The major problems of the company can be summarised as-

 The company didn’t conduct proper market research and didn’t even have data on the volume of sales obtained by Quaker Oats or sales figures for Champion oats.

 The company copied its competitors in terms of packaging, labelling packages and certification mark. Appropriate market researches could have helped the company in building strategies of its own in these areas. Also, the labelling of Blossom doesn’t bring explicit focus on the fact that it is quick oats.

 Distributors are paid more in commissions with respect to its competitor Champion.

 The pricing of the product is also flawed. For each case it produces, Vora and company receives Rs.64 in north India and Rs.68 in Bombay and south India, whereas the cost to produce per case is Rs.72.1 excluding the salary of Mr. Vora.

 The packaging cost per case is 35.5% of the total cost which needs to