Marketing Strategies for Barkers in Montreal

This report evaluates the marketing strategies of companies competing in the same market as Barkers in Montreal. It proposes a marketing plan to help Barkers succeed in the market.

Running head: MARKETING
MARKETING
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

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Executive Summary
The propose of this report will be to critically evaluate the marketing strategies of the
companies who are competing in the same market and same industry, who are marketing and
selling their products in the market place of Barkers, the fashion accessories organization
based in New Zealand. A marketing plan will be proposed in this report which will help the
organization to provide the best chances available to taste the success. A low cot related risk
management plan will be designed so that it will help the organization to incur less amount of
loss, if faced in the targeted market place of one of the selected North American or Canadian
markets. A preliminary market need analysis will be performed in the selected market place,
along with the market segmentation and value proposition of the potential customers in the
targeted market. A customer profile will also be created, who can be the ideal customer of
Barker. Positioning of the product along with the differentiation processes will also be
discussed in this report. Branding positioning and branding strategy which needs to be
followed by Barkers will also be discussed in this paper. The pricing and branding will be
done based on the pricing that the organization follows in the market place of New Zealand.
An integrated marketing communication plan will also be laid in this paper, where the
promotional mix will cover advertising, public relations and publicity and online and social
media marketing.

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Table of Contents
Introduction................................................................................................................................4
Part 1..........................................................................................................................................4
Selected Market......................................................................................................................4
Strategies by Other Companies..............................................................................................5
Part 2..........................................................................................................................................6
Customer or Market Need..................................................................................................6
Market Segmentation.............................................................................................................6
Geographic Segmentation..................................................................................................6
Demographic Segmentation...............................................................................................7
Behavioral Segmentation...................................................................................................7
Psychographic Segmentation.............................................................................................7
Value Proposition...................................................................................................................8
Customer Profile..................................................................................................................10
Product Positioning..............................................................................................................11
Differentiation......................................................................................................................12
Branding...................................................................................................................................13
Branding Positioning............................................................................................................13
Branding Strategy.................................................................................................................13
Pricing..................................................................................................................................14
Promotion.................................................................................................................................14

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Integrated Marketing Communications................................................................................14
Advertising...........................................................................................................................15
Public Relations and Publicity.............................................................................................15
Online and Social Media Marketing....................................................................................15
References................................................................................................................................17

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Introduction
The main propose of this report will be to critically evaluate the marketing strategies
of the companies who are competing in the same market and same industry, who are
marketing and selling their products in the market place of Barkers, the fashion accessories
organization based in New Zealand. A marketing plan will be proposed in this report which
will help the organization to provide the best chances available to taste the success. A low cot
related risk management plan will be designed so that it will help the organization to incur
less amount of loss, if faced in the targeted market place of one of the selected North
American or Canadian markets. A preliminary market need analysis will be performed in the
selected market place, along with the market segmentation and value proposition of the
potential customers in the targeted market. A customer profile will also be created, who can
be the ideal customer of Barker. Positioning of the product along with the differentiation
processes will also be discussed in this report. Branding positioning and branding strategy
which needs to be followed by Barkers will also be discussed in this paper. The pricing and
branding will be done based on the pricing that the organization follows in the market place
of New Zealand. An integrated marketing communication plan will also be laid in this paper,
where the promotional mix will cover advertising, public relations and publicity and online
and social media marketing.
Part 1
Selected Market
The selected market place where Barkers is going to expand their business is
Montreal, which s one of the three cities which possess more than one million people.

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Strategies by Other Companies
There are many fashion and lifestyle organizations which have entered the market
place of Canada. Sorel, for example is specialized in footwear has a good market presence in
Montreal. Apart from this, brands like Gucci and Calvin Klein, who are specialized in
apparel, footwear, fragrance and accessories like handbags, possess the marketing strategies
which are specific to the customers who are using their brands for a long time in the market
place of Canada, especially in Montreal. They have segmented their markets according to the
needs and requirements of the people who say there, and which will match their lifestyle,
preferences, behaviors, gender and age, apart from the marketing trends which the
organizations have faced when they have entered the markets of Canada.
It has been seen in recent studies and the marketing strategies that has been followed
by the above discussed companies that the organizations have to study the changes in the
basic needs and wants of the people of Montreal, as it can be stated that the taste and
preferences of the people changes, due to innovation or alterations in the trend of the market
places. So, it can be suggested to the senior management of the organization of Barkers that
they have to identify the requirements of the people towards the usage of fashion and
apparels along with accessories and footwear. They have to perform surveys in the market
places on a regular basis, so that any kind of changes in the tastes and preferences, so that it
will help the organization to keep themselves updated about the happenings in the market
place and will provide fresh and innovative ideas to identify the prospects and turn them into
customers by innovative strategies. It will help Barkers to efficiently strategize their plans of
entering the market of Montreal and properly allocate the budget in different sections like
clothing, suits, shoes and accessories, which will reduce the chances of incurring loss.

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Part 2
Customer or Market Need
Customer need analysis will help barkers to identify he basic requirements of the
people of Montreal possess towards their fashion and lifestyle. What are the basic features
that the people uses while buying different fashion and lifestyle products, and the type and
amount of value that they are getting from the brands used by them. The value preferences
toward a particular product can be different for different people. The type of benefits that the
customers are getting by using different lifestyle and fashion need to be identified, so that it
will help the organization of Barkers to design their products and target the market of
Montreal. The market or customer needs analysis will help the marketing team of Barkers to
identify the specific requirements or the present needs of the people of Montreal towards
various types lifestyle and fashion products, along with the anticipating the future needs of
the people and preparing the organization to cope p with the sudden changes or alterations
that may arise in the new market place. It will help to reveal the available opportunities along
with the involved risks and possible challenges, and will provide time to overcome the
barriers or challenges in order to realize such opportunities.
Market Segmentation
The market will be segmented according to the basic characteristics of the people
towards the various lifestyle and fashion products, which are described as follows:
Geographic Segmentation
The market here will be segmented in the main areas of the city of Montreal, where
people are obsessed about having new style of fashion and lifestyle, towards various types of
clothing, suits, shoes and accessories. The place hic posses the most number of modern
people will be targeted first.

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Demographic Segmentation
In this market segment, mainly the teen and young adults will be targeted, as it has
been found in researches conducted by the marketing department that most of the people
belonging from these two segments are very much possessed having innovative and fresh
style and design of fashion and accessories, and it will help the organization to earn more
profit from these segments.
Behavioral Segmentation
Here, the upper class and upper-middle class of people will be targeted, who do not
spend much time on making purchasing decisions towards the fashion and lifestyle products.
They have been identified by the market research team of Barkers, and it has been seen that
these categories of people want to possess more than one footwear or clothing outfits, in
order to show then to the other people, families or friends.
Psychographic Segmentation
Here, mainly the young and middle-aged people will be targeted, who will possess
more interest to visit the store of Barkers and try something new and trendy, and will sot their
budget and lifestyle. The personal values and traits of these people towards various line and
ranges of fashion and lifestyle items will be assessed and will be targeted by Barkers. The
type of values that these people will get from the products of Barkers will be identified and
proper planning will be done accordingly.

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Value Proposition
Barkers are considered to be the company that is into the lifestyle business and is well
known for the quality of service and the products that are rendered by them in the market.
They have created a better image and customer perception in the market which delivers the
brand unique identity as compared to other competitors in the market. The current initiative
that is taken by the respective organization is to expand the business in the Montreal city of
Canada, which requires understanding the lifestyle that has been adopted by the people
residing city of Canada. Some of the major value preposition system that has been adopted
by the company to enhance effective marketing strategy in the Canadian market is mentioned
as follows:
 The first and foremost initiative adopted by Barkers in the Canadian market should be
by launching their store on a physical or online basis by demonstrating all the
available variables. This helps them to understand the key requirement of the
customers by analyzing the actual demand of a certain product in the market.
 Montreal is the place that is well known for winter, they must try to focus in such
lifestyle products understanding the key requirement of the people, which creates a
differentiated brand identity in the current market.
 They must try to identify a target clothing category analyzing a target market within
the respective nation and design it with attractive category of products that makes
them unique in the respective nation through their differentiated service offered.
 Understanding the pricing system and affordability of the customers can be the major
part which helps the company to gain profit out of the available outputs. Barkers are
considered to be the well-known brand that manufactures the category of products
with high price value, while expanding the business to Canada it is important for them

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to select a particular city where the affordability range of people are high and
effective.
 By ensuring the system of better accessibility and convenience for the customers
through the service rendered by them in the newly expanded market, This can help the
brand in maintaining an effective status as compared to any other stores in the
respective market.

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Customer Profile
CUSTOMER IDENTIFICATION FORM PHOTO
Name of the Customer Martin Abraham
Age of the Customer 27
Location of the Customer New Zealand
Languages Spoken French and English
Area of Interest Reading books, Travelling, Shopping
Brands Mostly Preferred
(In Clothing)
Raymond, Van Heusen, Gucci
Website Mostly Preferred
( Twitter, Facebook, Instagram)
Facebook and Instagram
Customer Feedback Nil

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Product Positioning
Figure 1: Positioning Map of Barkers
Source: Created by the Author
According to the value proposition of Barkers discussed above, the products of the
organization will be positioned as high quality with a moderate high pricing, which will help
the organization to maintain a minimum amount of profit earning as well as reducing the risk
of incurring losses, while at the same time, but compromising with the quality of the products
that are sold by the organization of Barkers in the region of New Zealand. The products
mainly will be positioned by using the features or characteristics of the fashion apparels and
accessories along with the benefits that the targeted market will get from purchasing the

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products of Barkers. Features like durability, reliability or unique value will be used as the
positioning strategy of the organization.
Differentiation
 As compared to the function of creating a product different differentiated factor in the
organization, they must try to create an effective service to the available customer
base by providing and creating a strong business network which can avail facilities
that are based on the easy availability of products as compared to their competitors.
 The target customers can be the upper and upper middle class people residing in the
urban society. They offer fashionable clothing and designing as per the needs and
wants of the people who consider Barkers as their own unique brand.
 The promotional strategies that are adopted by the brand different as compared to
their competitors in the market. The advertising technique adopted by the brand is by
investing a huge amount on the campaigns that creates a unique identity for the
respective brand in the market. This also created a better brand awareness for the
product in the market.
 The other major factor that provides a unique identification for the brand as compared
to their competitors is that they design and manufacture the cloths as per the needs
and wants of customers with preference to their styles.
 As compared to their competition in the market, the production capacity of the
respective brand is 38 million meters and as compared to other competitors of the
same product category they are recognized as the only brand to manufacture fabrics
that are wool blended and worsted. This gives the brand a differentiated identification
in the market apart from their competitors.

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Branding
Branding Positioning
 As a part of taking initiatives regarding the system of physical and online marketing
strategy, this function will help the brand to identify the key product category where
they must give major focus on.
 A differentiated marketing strategy can help the respective brand to ensure a better
and systematic method of positioning the product categories as compared to their
competitors in the market.
 They must try to adopt effective pricing strategies in the market, where the products
must be delivered to the customers at reasonable and affordable value measuring
brand value in the market.
 The product must be segmented and manufactured understanding the demographic,
psychographic and behavioral factors that are associated with both the market and the
customers.
Branding Strategy
Proper branding strategies need to be implemented in the market place of Montreal,
which will help the customers to aware about the range and line of products that will be
introduced in the market place of Montreal. Strategies like name brand recognition can be
used and implemented, which will be beneficial to the people of Montreal. As the name of
Barkers is only familiar with the people of New Zealand, so it is required for the management
of the organization to use brand hitting, as it will help the prospects or the interested people
of Montreal will be able to identify the brand name of Barkers and differentiate then from the
products of the rival companies that are selling same types of products in same market place.
Attitude branding strategy can also be used by the management of Barkers, as it will be using

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the customized experience towards the fashion and lifestyle products of them. Barkers will
manufacture and sale those products which will be preferred by the people of Montreal.
Customized experiences will help the organization to gain a competitive edge over its rival
companies.
Pricing
The management has decided to follow the price ranges of the products that they use
in the region of New Zealand. There will be no variations between the pricing strategies that
are followed in the region of New Zealand and that will be followed in the city of Montreal.
Penetration strategy can be followed by the organization of Barkers, where the initial prices
will be set at a low margin in order to capture the market share in Montreal at a fast space. It
has been found in researches that it is preferable to capture the market share in the fashion
and lifestyle industry, because people might lose interest of visiting the stores or outlets of the
newly launched organization, and fashion and lifestyle industry is very vulnerable to ever-
changing of tastes and preferences of the people of a particular area. Economy pricing is
another option available for the organization of Barkers, as it has been stated that the costs on
the advertising and other market related costs will be low, though the main focus of the
organization will be to capture the market share of the city of Montreal as much as possible.
The pricing of the products will be marked accordingly so that most number of people can be
attracted with the least amount of bucks spend on the targeted market place by Barkers.
Promotion
Integrated Marketing Communications
A proper integrated marketing communications will help to boost the morale of the
management of Barkers to receive good results from the market of Montreal relating to the

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marketing campaigns as well as reducing the market related costs and maintain the profit
margin of the organization, which will provide to gain the competitive edge over others. It
will help to attract the potential customers or the targeted market of Montreal and sale the
different lines and ranges of products to the identified prospects. It will include the following
mediums:
Advertising
As Barkers is totally new to the market place of Montreal, they have to advertise their
range of products effectively and efficiently, so that it will help to attract the eyeballs of the
identified prospects and turn them into the customers of Barkers. Innovative ways of
advertising offers need to be provided in order to again the maximum amount of market share
in Montreal. Inaugural offers and discounts can be provided to the people, the details of
which will be provided in the leading newspapers and fashion and lifestyle related magazines
to aware the people. Happy hours can be implemented on selective number of days in a week
in order to increase the number of footfalls in the stores of Barkers to increase the sales of the
products.
Public Relations and Publicity
Engagement of the people towards the brand of Barkers needs to be done, as it will
help brand awareness in the market place of Montreal, along with publicity about the
organization and its products.
Online and Social Media Marketing
It can be stated that most of the people now possess Smartphone due to the
advancement of technology, and most of them possess more than one account in different
social media accounts. So, it will be mandatory for Barkers to provide advertisements in the
social media platforms of the people of Montreal, so that they will be able to know about the

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offers and discounts along with the details of the fresh arrivals on stores, which will ignite the
interest level of the people, and will lead them to visit the outlets of the organization and
purchase the products that will be able to satisfy the requirements of the people.

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