SWOT Analysis of Aston Martin

This article provides a SWOT analysis of Aston Martin, highlighting its strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats in the automotive industry. It also discusses the impact of SWOT and PESTLE analysis on the functional areas of the company.

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SWOT Analysis of Aston Martin
In order to analyse the capability of business and potential to get success, it is essential for
every company to frame the SWOT analysis (Baporikar, 2019). This analysis generally helps in
identifying the strengths and weaknesses, with presence of threats and opportunities in a certain
marketplace. Failure in considering such a framework, lead to take ineffective and poor business
decisions. In context with Aston Martin, it is one of the manufacturer company of UK that deals
in automotive sector. It produces and distributes a range of luxury sport vehicles worldwide,
nearly about in six continents and over 50 countries. For expanding business in more emerging
countries, this firm needs to analyse its potential capabilities in following way, so that effective
strategies can be made –
SWOT Analysis –
Strengths:
Aston Martin has been founded in 1913, at London, in UK, which shows its long history
in automotive industry and establishment of its brand among loyal customers. Well-owned brand
in this regard, helps this firm in easily influencing the new customers towards its business. Along
with this, strong engineering as well as designing team of respective firm aids in creating the
stylish, innovative and powerful range of sports cars.
Weaknesses:
Limited product portfolio and weak manufacturing process, show the major weaknesses
of Aston Martin, which suggests that before expanding business in other market, it is needed to
make changes in the same (Sinha, Shankar, Vrat and Mathur, 2019). Similarly, as compared to
other competitors like Ferrari, Lamborghini and more, lesser market penetration arise barriers for
this company, in achieving its business objectives.
Opportunities:
Keeping the business updated with latest technologies and enhance talent at workplace,
give opportunity to Aston Martin in expanding its automobile market. Through competitive
pricing strategies, it can easily influence new customers and retain the loyal ones towards its
business (Vlados and Chatzinikolaou, 2019). Moreover, via extensive distribution and enhance
promotional activities, it can increase its market penetration.
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Threats:
Interference of government like taxation policies, trading and more, arise threat for
automotive firms including Aston Martin, in operating business successfully at other countries
(Jobber, Lancaster and Le Meunier-FitzHugh, 2019). Along with this, not including celebrity
endorsement within promotional activities as compared to other firms, also create threat for
respective organisation in gaining competitive advantages over them.
Thus, through all over analysis, it has been analysed that for expanding business at
international level, managers of Aston Martin to frame effective strategies. This would help in
making feasible decisions as well, for achievement of corporate goals more efficiently.
The way key drivers like Pestle and SWOT impact on functional areas of Aston Martin
SWOT and PESTLE analysis are considered as the main factors that helps decision-makers
of a company in evaluating the advantages and drawbacks of a project or initiative, for
achievement of profitability (Jobber, Lancaster and Le Meunier-FitzHugh, 2019). These analyses
could be applied over a range of large as well as small projects, for identifying the factors which
might affect the different functions like finance, marketing and other. This would help in
analysing the potential of earning profits or loss during implementation of new project. With
respect to Aston Martin, as this company mainly operates business in automotive sector,
therefore, analysing the key factors will help in evaluating how the same affects its functional
areas (Sinha, Shankar, Vrat and Mathur, 2019). For example – On financial functions, internal
factors like strengths of business in terms of capital advantages, aid in framing effective
strategies for accomplishment of corporate goals. Similarly, weakness of business impact on
financial decisions in both positive and negative manner, that assists to determine opportunities
through which sources of money can be identified, to operate other functions like marketing,
HRM and other successfully. Other key drivers like economic (taxation policies, trading policies,
inflation and deflation rates) and technological factors, also affect the financial decisions such as
pricing strategies, investment in updated technologies etc. Therefore, before taking any strategy
for sales growth and performance, project’s feasibility and more, it is essential to conduct both
SWOT and Pestle analyses (Baporikar, 2019). This would help in ensuring the high successive
growth for business expansion at global market, more efficiently. Similarly, another main
function like marketing also affect majorly by internal and external factors of business
environment. Through analysing political, legal and environmental factors, marketers of Aston
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Martin can evaluate the opportunities for business expansion, including factors that arise threat
also. Any changes in legislations affect majorly on advertising and promotional activities of a
company. So, considering this aspect, it becomes essential for marketing department of Aston
Martin to monitor the macro-environment. This would help in developing strategies for improve
and enhance business capabilities, for developing the strong brand image within automotive
sector.
Thus, it has been evaluated that SWOT and Pestle are the most useful tools for strategic
planning and making effective decisions (Vlados and Chatzinikolaou, 2019). To access markets
for business expansion and product development, these tools help in determining the company’s
capabilities and factors that affect major operations of business. Through this process, strategies
for adopting opportunities and overcome from threats can be developed, to ensure successful
growth and profitability. Along with this, accessing the potential of new market area will aid
Aston Martin in taking decisions regards with business expansion more easily. The other
advantages that might get after evaluating the impact of micro and macro environment factors on
functional areas, respective firm can maximise its response positively on opportunities. It also
aid in building more capabilities for strengthening the business and setting objectives for
planning the strategies.
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REFERENCES
Books and Journals
Baporikar, N., 2019. Influence of Business Competitiveness on SMEs Performance. International
Journal of Productivity Management and Assessment Technologies (IJPMAT). 7(2).
pp.1-25.
Sinha, P., Shankar, R., Vrat, P. and Mathur, S., 2019. Power distribution reforms. Journal of
Advances in Management Research.
Jobber, D., Lancaster, G. and Le Meunier-FitzHugh, K., 2019. Selling and sales management.
Pearson UK.
Vlados, C. and Chatzinikolaou, D., 2019. Methodological redirections for an evolutionary
approach of the external business environment. Journal of Management and
Sustainability. 9(2). pp.25-46.
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