Maintaining Professionalism and Trust with Uniqlo Company

The research project provides an understanding of marketing strategy importance in providing a competitive advantage to Uniqlo Company. The cooperation and trust with the company were maintained, as sensitive information such as customer database was shared. This helped to conduct a customer survey that revealed various elements that needed improvement by the company. Additionally, it highlighted the importance of customer surveys in developing products and services according to customer needs and demands. Furthermore, this project improved my analytical skills and allowed me to develop a research design, contributing to the development of an effective marketing strategy for Uniqlo Company.

Uniqlo company
Research Report

Table of Contents
Executive Summary.........................................................................................................................3
Chapter- 1........................................................................................................................................4
Introduction......................................................................................................................................4
Aim of the study...........................................................................................................................4
Introduction of Uniqlo Company.................................................................................................4
Mission statement of Uniqlo Company.......................................................................................4
Vision statement of Uniqlo Company..........................................................................................4
Research question........................................................................................................................5
Research objective.......................................................................................................................5
Background of the study..................................................................................................................5
Chapter- 2........................................................................................................................................6
Literature review..............................................................................................................................6
Analysis and its tools...................................................................................................................6
Marketing strategy and strategic choices.....................................................................................6
Marketing mix and its elements...................................................................................................7
Pestle analysis..............................................................................................................................7
Strategic choices and Marketing..................................................................................................8
Chapter -3........................................................................................................................................8

Methodology....................................................................................................................................8
1. Research design....................................................................................................................8
2. Sampling and Data collection procedures............................................................................8
2. Data analyzing tools.............................................................................................................9
Chapter- 4......................................................................................................................................10
Data analysis..................................................................................................................................10
1. Pestle analysis.....................................................................................................................10
2. Market segmentation..........................................................................................................10
 Market overview.............................................................................................................10
 Markets segments............................................................................................................11
3. Competitors analysis...........................................................................................................12
4. Internal analysis..................................................................................................................12
5. SWOT analysis...................................................................................................................21
Competitive and growth strategy...............................................................................................21
Chapter-6.......................................................................................................................................23
Recommendations..........................................................................................................................23
Conclusion.....................................................................................................................................23
Reflective report............................................................................................................................23
References......................................................................................................................................25
Appendix........................................................................................................................................28

Uniqlo Customer research..........................................................................................................28

Executive Summary
The research is conducted on the Uniqlo Company in order to improve the marketing strategy of the
company which directly boosts the sales volume of the company. The primary and secondary research
method is used to conduct the research. The secondary research is conducted through accessing the
annual reports and sensitive information of the company and primary research is the customer survey
through questionnaire in order to determine the customer needs and preferences which are required to
improve the marketing strategy of the company. The results shows that the company needs to improve the
products through providing fashion trends clothing to the target audience, more promotional activities
needs to be conducted in order to improve the brand image in the eyes of the customers and storage
designing needs to be improved which helps to improve the sales volume of the company.

Chapter- 1
Introduction
The focus of the research study is to improve the marketing strategy of the Uniqlo Company in order to
boost the sales volume within the particular period of time. The marketing strategy plays an important
role in enhancing the revenue generation through attracting the target audience which enables to achieve
the mission and vision of the company. According to the Drucker et al., 1973 the strategic marketing is
defined as the process which comprised of business factors, environmental analysis and market
competitive which impacts the business units strategies. It includes the choosing of market target
strategies for the target audience in order to enhance the sales volume of the company. Hart & Stapleton
et al., 1977 explains that the marketing strategy is a statement which helps to achieve the marketing
objectives for example gaining competitive advantage in order to stand out among the competitors with in
the same industry. The marketing is a process which is used to develop the interest of the customers in
order to maximize the sales volume of the company.
Walter et al., 1992 states that the strategic marketing is related to the coordination of marketing resource
which helps to provide the competitive advantage to the company. Harper &Bagh et al., 1990 states that
appropriate case needs to be understand in order to improve the marketing objective of the company.
Lambini et al., 1997 states that the opportunities are determined through external analysis. The market
strategy should be centered in order to achieve the marketing objective which leads to accomplish the
long-term goals of the company. Aramario&Lambin et al., 1991 states that the marketing strategy is
oriented towards the achievement of long-term objectives of the company.

Aim of the study
The aim of the research study is to determine the measures in order to improve the marketing strategy of
the company.
Introduction of Uniqlo Company
The Uniqlo Company is a Japanese casual wear which is completely owned by the fats retailing company.
The company currently operates in fourteen countries other than the Japan. It is founded in the year 1949
at japan. The total employees of the company are approximately 30,000, and the company comes to the
fashion retail industry ("Mens, Womens & Childrens Clothing | Lifewear | UNIQLO UK," 2017).
Mission statement of Uniqlo Company
The mission statement of the company states that the company provides the high quality of products and
services to all the categories of social groups in order to make them feel better which enables to change
the world little better. The company is continuously improving its unique style through innovative skills
and technology in order to provide the competitive advantage to the company.
Vision statement of Uniqlo Company
The vision of the company to become world’s number one casual apparel brand through satisfies the
customers with the high quality of products and services. The company is using management model in
order to control the production which minimizes the retail prices.
Research question
The following research questions are designed to determine the measures in order to improve the
marketing strategy of the Uniqlo Company:
1. What is the current marketing strategy of the company?
2. What are the most effective promotional activities of the company?

3. How to improve the marketing strategy of the company in order to boost the sales
volume?
Research objective
1. To determine the current marketing strategy of the company.
2. To determine the impact of marketing strategy on the sales volume of the company.
3. To determine the most effective promotional tool for the company.
4. To determine the key resources for developing the competitive advantage to the company.
Background of the study
According to the Bradley et al., 1991the strategic marketing is defined as the process which is
based on the target market segments, marketing objective, policies and marketing positioning of
the company. Ansoff et al., 1985 states that the profitability is one of the elements which is used
to develop the market strategy in order to achieve the marketing objective within the specific
period of time. Boyd et al., 1998 states that the analysis activity is one of the important activities
which is used to develop the marketing strategy. Lambin& Jean-K Jacques et al.., 2000
mentioned that the good analysis leads to the development of good strategic marketing plan. Day
et al., 1986 states that there are seven determinants which are used to develop the strategic
marketing plan, namely, flexibility, profitability, vulnerability, validity, feasibility, coherence
and opportunity. Drummond et al., 2001 states that the in-depth understanding of marketing and
its environment helps to formulate the good strategic marketing plan.

Chapter- 2
Literature review
In this chapter, we will discuss the theoretical framework of the marketing strategy and the
conceptual background. The purpose of the literature review is to provide the background to the
current research about the marketing strategy and its impacts on the sales volume of the
company.
Analysis and its tools
According to the McDonald et al., 1999 the marketing strategy shows the bets opinion to
the company which enable to develop the profitability of the company through applying
the resources and skills within the particular period of time. Aguilar et al., 1967 states
that the environmental scanning enables to determine the information related to the
outside environment of the company. The external environment is divided into the
operating environment includes regulatory, political, social, technological and economic
conditions. Broadman et al., 2004 state that the strategic analysis includes three main
analyses, namely, fulcrum analysis, external analysis and solution analysis. The research
is conducted by the Boardman et al., 2004 in order to resolve the strategic issue. Porter et
al., 1980 states that the external environment analysis helps to determine the threat and
opportunities in order to stand out among the competitors within the same industry. The
external environment is divided into two categories, namely micro environment and
macro environment. The pestle framework is developed by the Johnson et al., 2008 which
is used to scan the macro environment. Johnson et al., 2008 states that the SWOT

analysis is used to develop the strategic options and the future action which helps to
provide competitive advantage to the company within the particular period of time.
Kotter et al., 1991 states that important to determine the vital elements at the time of
analyzing macro-environment.
Marketing strategy and strategic choices
According to the Walker et al., 1992teh main purpose of a marketing strategy is to coordinate
and allocate the marketing resources which helps to achieve the marketing objectives within the
specific period of time. The marketing strategy involves the specification of target market
strategy in order to offer the product line to the consumers. Then the competitive advantage will
be gained by the company which helps to stand out among the competitors within the same
industry. The different level of generic options can be used by the company through using the
porters generic strategic (Walker et al., 2014). Thompson &Stricklan et al., 2003 states that the
implementation of the strategy is the most difficult part of the strategic management process.
Johnson et al., 2008 states that the decision making needs to be maintained by the company
according to the industry in which the company deals and once the decision is taken the strategic
direction needs to be develop in order to achieve the goals and objective of the company. Kotler
et al., 2008 states that the marketing plays a critical role in developing the strategic plan as it
provides the inputs such as information in developing the strategic plan (West et al., 2015). The
strategic planning is the first step of the marketing plan which plays a critical role in generating
the revenue within the specific time framework. Kotlet et al., 2008 further states that it is the
strategic plan which helps to develop the logic in order to achieve the sales volume of the
company (Baker et al., 2014). According to Levie et al., 2006 the aim of the market
development strategy is to provide the competitive advantage to the company which helps to

stands out among the competitors within the same industry. The newest scientific article on the
topic strategic management and organizational behavior states that approximately 71% of the
company’s performance is based on the dependent variables whereas 12% are independent
variable and 11% are dependent as well as independent variable.
Marketing mix and its elements
The market strategies are mainly developed to determine the target audience and to develop the
values for the target group. The marketing tools have four tools, namely, price, product, place
and promotion which are used to implement the marketing strategy for the company (Ferrell et
al., 2014). Kotler et al., 2010 states that the advertisement is used inform the large number of
target audience about the products and services which are offered by the company. Kotler et al.,
2010 further explains that the advertisement is the part of promotional mix which includes direct
marketing, personal selling, direct marketing, and public relations. Rix et al., 2007 states that the
brand name is promoted through advertisement and it is shown from the study that the brand can
also connect with the emotions of people. Sutherland et al., 2008 states that the television
advertisement enables get the consumer attention more than other promotional tools as the visual
effect helps to get higher attention than audio effect (Bennett et al., 2015). Rigby et al., 2011
argues that the role of advertisement is changing through digital retailing because it seems to be
more convenient which threatens the retailing shopkeepers (Sheth et al., 2015). Silverstein and
Sayer et al., 2009 states that the marketers do not understand the significance of women
audience. They further explain that the appropriate market research is not conducted on the target
women as it is assumed that the women are getting what they want (Rothaermel et al., 2015).
According to the Graves et al., 2010 the advertisement helps to influence the unconscious needs

of the consumers which are not necessarily needs to them. The study of consumer behavior helps
to determine the ideas, needs and demand which enable to satisfy the consumers through
providing the products and services within the specific period of time. Solomon et al., 2002
states that the perception is the defied as the process which is used to interpret the sensation by
the consumers and the sensations are derives from the five sensations. Bohdanowicz and clamp
et al., 1994 states that the perception can be implement in the brand, store and product
positioning (Solomon et al., 2014).
Pestle analysis
According to the Johnson et al., 2008 the porter’s analysis is used to evaluate the macro
environment of the company through evaluating the industry segment within the specific period
of time. Dibb and Simkin, 1996 states that the market segmentation is used to determine the
opportunities in the market through analyzing the market within the specific time framework.
Byars et al., 1991 states that the marketing mix is used to design the price, product, place, and
promotion according to the customer group. The customer segment analysis helps to determine
the market opportunities in order to determine the competitive advantage to the company.
Johnson et al., 2008 states that the strategic group analysis is used to determine the strategic
opportunities by dividing the industry into the group of companies which have similar
characteristic (Zalengera et al., 2014). Henry, 2008 states that the internal analysis is used to
determine the competitive advantage through determining the strength and weakness of the
company. Hensterly, 2007 argues that is it possible to determine the competitive advantage
through determining the resources of the company. According to the Barney and Hasterly, 2006
the value chain model can be used to determine the value which are added by the various
activities into the process and operations of the company.

Strategic choices and Marketing
Kotler et al., 2008 argued that the marketing plays a critical role in the development of strategies
and the marketing information can be used by the company for developing the strategic plan in
order to improve the sales volume of the company. Kotler et al., 2008 states that the marketing
strategy is the logic which is used by the companies in order to achieve the goals and objectives
of the company. It includes market segmentation and targeting in order to develop the effective
strategic plan which helps to achieve the mission and vision of the company.
According to Fill, 2006 the marketing mix tools can be used in various combinations in order to
communicate with the target audience. There are mainly five tools of communication mix,
namely, promotion, advertisement, public relations, direct marketing, and public relations and
public selling (Hacklin et al., 2013). It is suggested to select the communication mix as per the
behavior and needs of the target audience in order to develop the effective marketing mix within
the specific period of time. The direct marketing helps to directly contact with the customers
which enables to develop the customer relation in order to develop the brand image in the eyes of
the customers (Das et al., 2015).
Chapter -3
Methodology
In this chapter, we will discuss the methodology which is used to conduct the research. The
chapter also includes the research design, sampling and data collection procedures, data
analyzing tools.

1. Research design
The research is exploratory in nature which mainly focused on the assessment of the industry and
internal environment of the company in order to improve the marketing strategy of the company.
The case study method is used to conduct the research study in order to gain the in-depth
understanding of the policies and strategies of the company. The customer survey is done
through questionnaire tool for determining the perceived value of the products and services in the
eyes of the customers. The mixed method of research design is used which is a combination of
qualitative and quantitative research. The mixed research design method helps to collect the
different information and it enables to develop the interrelationship between the findings. The
qualitative data is collected through conducting the interviews which enables to collect the in-
depth information related to the company.
2. Sampling and Data collection procedures
 Quantitative research- Questionnaires
The aim of the quantitative research is to collect the perception of the consumers related
to the Uniqlo Company. The random sampling is conducted on the target audience of the
company. The sample size of the research is 100 which are conducting through sending
questionnaire to the respondents. The aim of the survey is to determine the consumer
behavior, shopping patter, brand image, and others (McGuirk et al., 2016). The questions
are formulated on the basis of research questions. The email ids of the customers are
taken at the time of online shopping and at the time of paying bill in the retail stores. The
questionnaire consists of ten questions which aim to determine the customer satisfaction
related to the products and services provided by the company. The customer data was
acquired through customer database in which the emails of the customers are provided by

the customers at the time of online purchase. The survey is conducted through online
questionnaire which is distributed among the one hundred twenty customers and the
duration was three week. The response received from hundred customers and self-
administered survey is conducted due to the convenience of respondents. The closed
ended questions are used in order to collect the maximum information from the
respondents within the specific period of time.
 Qualitative research- Semi-structure interviews
The aim of the semi structured interview is to determine the more information related to
the company, history, policies, potential problems, and future plans of the company. The
qualitative research aims to determine the maximum information related to the
procedures, policies, and financial position of the company. The semi interview method
is selected due to time constraint which helps to provide the direction of the conversation
through exploring the topic in an effective manner. The in-depth interview is not suitable
due to the time constraint whereas the semi structure interview helps to cover the list of
theme with no strict format (Matthews et al., 2014). It helps to cover all required
information with the freedom to uncover the information. The structure interview helps to
determine the information related to the internal environment of the company.
3. Research setting
Uniqlo is the Japanese casual wear which manufacturers, retailer and design with the high
quality of casual wear for all age group and it is the subsidiary of fast retailing co. The
aim of the research is to improve the market strategy of the company through primary
and secondary research. The primary research is oriented towards the internal analysis
and secondary research is towards the external environment analysis in order to

determine the trend of the industry and current situation as well as the assessment of the
competitors.
4. Research ethics
The company information is accessed with the cooperation of the owners as the customer
survey is used to provide the potential benefits to the company. The company is also
interested in receiving consumer survey analysis, but there are cost and time constraint.
The semi-interview information is used with the customer database in order to conduct
the customer survey (Glesne et al., 2015). The netiquette norms and data protection act is
considered at the time of conducting the online customer survey.
5. Limitations–
The limitations of the study include the lack of time and cost constraints. The research
could have been better but as the survey is conducted through using emails due to which
there is a lack of interaction with the respondents so the reliability of data is less. Another
limitation is cost due to lack of time as some respondents answered the questions quickly
whereas some respondents take time and the time gap is may be due to the limited
understanding of the questions and the confusions related to the questions as there is lack
of interaction which can be one of the reason for late response (Hailer et al., 2015). The
scope of the study is wider but the sample size is small which acts as a limitation in
findings the appropriate results.
2. Data analyzing tools
MS excel is used as the data analyzing tool in order to analyze the data in which charts, bar
graphs, and pie charts are used to analyze in the most efficient and effective manner (Sud et al.,

2016). The MS excel is find appropriate as per the research nature which helps to analyze the
response of the questionnaire through using different bar graphs, charts, and other useful tools.
Chapter- 4
Data analysis
1. Pestle analysis
 Political factors: The Company operate in Asia, America region, and Latin region which
is not stable, so there are various political risks which impacts of the business
performance and that need to be considered at the time of developing market strategies.
 Economic factors: The profitability of the company is increased in the year 2015 which
contribute towards the economic growth of the country.
 Social factors:The Company is operating globally so it is considering the economic as
well as social aspects in the ethnic approach of the company (Newton et al., 2014). The
company has created fund of $10 Million for children as clothes for smiles and
professional tennis player Novak Djokovic is used as the famous personality to support
children in order to achieve their dreams. The company has developed social company,
namely, Grameen Uniqlo ltd. In order to resolve the social issues and problems such as
sanitation, poverty, and education.
 Technological factors: The Company highly invests on the technology innovation in
order to provide the competitive advantage to the company.The company integrates
strategies which are suitable with the competencies and resources in order to produce
high quality of products and services.

 Legal factors:The FR counseling center is developed by the company in order to control
the legal requirements of the company and its focus on the employee's wellbeing such as
workplace accident prevention.
 Environmental factors:The Company has to initiate environmental policies in order to
minimize the environmental impact of the operational process of the company. The legal,
environmental policy is developed by the company in order to minimize the hazardous
chemicals through coordinating and controlling the business process.
2. Market segmentation
 Market overview
The casual wear market is highly competitive market with the large number of retailer’s ad
supermarket dominating the market. The clothing market is reduced due to which the export of
clothing has been reduced (Baalbaki et al., 2015). The labor rate is increased in the market due to
which the manufacturers are relocated to the Southeast Asian countries such as Vietnam and
Bangladesh. The manufacturers are focusing on providing high value to the customers which
increase the competition in the market. The major competitors in the market has high sense of
knowledge regarding the fashion trend and innovation which shows high innovation is required
to sustain in the market.

 Markets segments
There are three market segments, namely, affluent, cautious, and price-conscious shoppers which
spent their disposable income on the basis of certain factors. The three segments are explained
below:
 Affluent shoppers: It is the largest segment which contributes towards the gross
domestic product of the country as it has highest disposable income because the

consumer wants high quality of innovative products. They are likely to shop at the street
retailers and departmental stores for their convenience (Peter et al., 1999).
 Cautious shoppers: It is the medium segment, and the disposal income is also small as
they monitor the total expenditure of the budget and they also value the money through
buying the reasonable quality of products with the affordable prices. They are likely to
shop from the street retailers and supermarket which provide stylish quality products at
reasonable price.
 Price-conscious shoppers: It is the smallest segment which has the tight budget due to
which they are very price sensitive. They were mainly likely to shop at the value shops
and super markets which provide discounts to the customers.
3. Competitors analysis
The market is divided into strategic groups which are based on the market penetration, and focus
of strategy and market is dominated by a large retail chain which positions them according to the
market segment.
 Supermarkets
It is related to the low-income class customer, and the supermarket provides the wide
variety of product at low costs.
 Department stores
They apply market penetration strategy in order to attract a large number of customers,
and the main strength of the departmental stores includes the convenience of shopping.
 High street fashion retailers
They are using differentiation strategy in order to provide innovative products and
services to the target audience. The companies which lie under this segment are mainly

focused on the product differentiation in order to provide the competitive advantage to
the company.
 Special retailers
These types of companies provide specialized products and service to the target audience
such as Uniqlo Company is specialized in casual wears.
 Independent stores
It includes small retailers which provide the wide variety of products to the target
audience, and they are mainly focused on the differentiation strategy (Hollensen et al.,
2015).
4. Internal analysis
 Product review
The company provides wide variety of products and services to the target audience, Tops,
Knitwear, Outwear, collections, bottoms, underwear, accessories, and footwear. The
company also provides the clothing for infants from 1 to 3 years and kids from 3 to 24
months, and boys and girls who are more than three years. The sales of the company are
increasing in the previous years which shows from the analysis that the products and
services are highly appraised by the target consumers which help to generate sustainable
profit in the future. The company is listed three ranks among the competitors on the basis
of their sales volume which shows that the company is generating higher revenue through
providing high quality of products and services with affordable prices (Cavusgil et al.,
1994). The rapidly growth of the sales volume shows that the target audience are satisfy
with the quality of products and services provided to the target audience.

 Customer analysis
The results of the customer survey are explained below:
1. You are :
Categor
y
% in
total
Female 65
Male 35
Female Male
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
Series1

The majority of customers are females which are higher than the male’s respondents.
The sixty-five percent of the respondents are females, and thirty-five percent are
males.
2. Marital status
Marital
status
Total
%
Married 15
Single 65
Divorced 5
Engaged 10
Widow 5
Total %
Married
Single
Divorced
Engaged
Widow
The research shows fifteen percent are married, sixty-five percent are singles, five
percent are divorce, ten percent are engaged, and five percent are the widow.
3. Occupation

Response
Total
%
Business man 35
Job 50
Unemployed 10
Other 5
Business man Job Unemployed Other
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
Total %
Total %
The customer survey shows thirty-five percent are the business man, fifty percent are
doing jobs, ten percent are unemployed, and others such as students are five percent.
So the majority of buyers are doing a job.
4. Please indicate your age group:
Age
Total
%

18 or
less 30
26-35 45
18-25 15
35 or
more 10
18 or less 26-35 18-25 35 or more
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
45
50
Series1
The customer survey shows that thirty percent of the respondents are lies under the
age group of 18 or more, forty-five percent of the respondents come under the age
group of 26-35, ten percent come under the age group of 35 or more.
5. How much amount do you spend on shopping?
Cost in %
$50 or
less 26
$50- 54

$100
$100 or
more 20
$50 or less $50-$100 $100 or more
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
in %
in %
According to the customer survey twenty-six percent of the respondents buys under
ranging from 50 or less, fifty-four percent of the respondents buys ranging from $50-
$100, and twenty percent buys ranging from $100 or more.
6. Please rank the following factors of Uniqlo
Features in %
Quality 85
Design 75
Eco-
friendly
80
Fashion
trends
50
Price 80

Quality Design Eco friendly Fashion
trends Price
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
in %
in %
According to the customer survey the quality is rated highest by the eighty-five
percent out of the hundred by the respondents, seventy-five percent is rated to design
by the respondents, eighty percent are rated to eco-friendly out of hundred, fifty
percent is rated to fashion trends, and eighty percent is rated to price.
7. Which excites you to shopping at Uniqlo:
No
impact
Moderate
impact
High
impact
More convenient locations 0 80 20
Promotions 0 12 78
Professional and easy to use
online shop 0 30 70
Discounts 0 70 30

User-friendly website /
interface 0 30 70
Adverts 0 20 80
Sales 0 75 25
More convenient locations
Promotions
Professional and easy to use online shop
Discounts
User friendly website / interface
Adverts
Sales
0
20
40
60
80
No impact
Moderate impact
High impact
According to the customer survey eighty percent of the respondent’s rate moderate
impact of more convenient location, and twenty percent rated high impact. Thirty
percent rate moderate impact of professional and easy to use online shop and seventy
percent rate high impact. Twelve percent rate moderate impact of promotions and
seventy-eight percent rate high impacts. Seventy percent rate moderate impact of
discount and thirty percent rate high impact of discount. Thirty percent rate moderate
impact of user friendly website and seventy percent rate high impact of user friendly
website. Eighty percent rate high impact of adverts and twenty percent rate moderate
impact of adverts. Seventy-five percent rate moderate impact of sale and twenty-five
percent rate high impact of sales.

8. Would you like to shop at Uniqlo Company in the future?
Respons
e in %
Yes 89
No 5
Not sure 6
Yes No Not sure
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
in %
in %
Eighty-nine percent of the respondent's state yes for the shopping at Uniqlo in the
future whereas five percent state no and six percent are not sure.
9. Where did you hear about the Uniqlo Company?
Respons
e
Words of mouth 10
Advertisement 25
Newspaper 30

Features in press 13
Online 17
Others 5
Words of mouth
Advertisement
Newspaper
Features in press
Online
Others
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
Response
Response
Ten percent of the respondents hear from words of mouth, twenty-five percent hear
from advertisement, thirty percent hear from a newspaper, thirteen percent hear from
features in press, seventeen percent hear from online, and five percent from others.
10. Please rate the below statements:
Statements
Strongly
disagree
Disagre
e
Agre
e
Neither agree nor
disagree
Strongly
agree
I like to do online shopping because of convenience 35 25 40
I like to do shopping where the prices are low with
high quality of products 15 85

I like to buy clothes mostly at festive season 40 45 15
I like to shop at the time of discounting 65 17 18
The advertisement encourage me to do shopping 5 5 55 10 25
Strongly
disagree Disagree Agree Neither
agree
nor
disagree
Strongly
agree
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
I like to do online shopping
because of convenience
I like to do shopping where
the prices are low with
high quality of products
I like to buy clothes mostly
at festive season
I like to shopping at the
time of discounting
The advertisement
encourage me to do
shopping
Thirty five percent are agree with the statement that I like to do online shopping
because of the convenience and twenty five percent are neither agree nor disagree,
and forty percent are strongly agree. Fifteen percent are agree that I like to do
shopping where prices are low with high quality of products and eighty five percent
are strongly agree. Forty percent are agree that I like to buy clothes at festive season;
forty five percent are neither agree nor disagree, and fifteen percent are strongly
agree. Five percent are strongly disagree that the advertisement encourage me to do
shopping, five percent are disagree, fifty five percent are agree, ten percent are neither
agree nor disagree and twenty five percent are strongly agree.
 Sales and performance of distribution channels

The distribution channel of the company is very effective which cover the wide range of
target audience and the sales performance of the company is rapidly growing through
providing high quality of goods and services to the target audience at low prices.
According to the reports Uniqlo Company is growing at 23% global rate in the global
market which shows the profitability of the company is increased in the future. The
company has expansion strategy which helps to develop the brand image in the eyes of
the customers. Followed is the sales forecasting of the company:
 Critical success factors
The customer survey shows that there are mainly four factors which are chosen in casual
wear, namely, fashion trend, quality, price, and variety. All four factors in context of
valued features shows that the company provides high quality of products which shows
the perceived value of the company is high as the quality as highly rate by the company.
The designing is moderately rated by the consumers and prices are highly rated by the
company which shows that the customers are satisfy with the quality and prices of the
products and services. The product review shows that the consumers are satisfy with the
quality of products with in price range which leads to develop the brand image in the eyes
of the customers.
 Company overview and analysis

 Value chain analysis
 Operations
The company manufactures their goods and services by their own manufacturing
unit which focuses on the production of utilitarian clothing which is less
vulnerable to the fashion trend and target masses. The design of products is the
main element of the operation which is done by the renowned fashion designer,
namely, Jill Sander with the collaboration of skilled fashion designers.
 Outsourced production
The company is not core manufactured goods and services but they outsourced
from china, and seventy-five percent of the production is outsourced from china.
The staff of the company is closely monitoring the quality of outsourcing products
and services in order to provide a high quality of products and services to the
target audience as it is the unique selling preposition of the company.
 Procurement
The company purchases raw material from the global supply in bulk in order to
provide the high quality of products and services due to which the purchasing
process of the company is mainly based on the simplification of material and
consolidation of volumes.
 Inventories
The inventories of the goods are highly monitored by the company in order to
maintain the track of stock within the specific period of time.
 Human resource team

The team of the company comprises of engineers who are experienced in the
textile industry that is highly skilled and able to integrate into the value chain of
the company. The skilled labor of the company is mainly responsible for the
developing and designing of new products and provides technical support to the
partners. The high skilled labor provides a competitive advantage to the company.
 Innovation and technology
The company is highly focused on the innovative technology in order to provide a
high quality of products and services to the target audience. The company has
adopted blog management system, and the research team of the company is
aggressively working on analyzing the customer database in order to provide a
competitive advantage to the company.
 Resource analysis
 Relationship with suppliers: The Company has their own manufacturing
team due to which the company does not need to depend on the suppliers
which provide the competitive advantage to the company.
 Innovative technology: The Company is highly focused on using innovative
technology for the development of products and services which provide a
competitive advantage to the company.
 Product differentiation: The Company provides the high quality of causal
wears in all ranges at the low prices which provide the competitive advantage
to the company.
 Location: The Company operates in fourteen countries which provide the
temporary competitive advantage to the company.

 Brand image: The Company has high perceived value in the eyes of the
customers which provides the competitive advantage to the company. The
brand image helps to provide sustainable profitability to the company.
 Owners: The owners of the company are highly skilled and focused which
provides the partly competitive advantage to the company. The company has
the unique business concept which helps to provide the competitive advantage
to the company.
5. SWOT analysis
 Strength: The Company is renowned for innovation which helps to provide the
competitive advantage to the company and the company stands first in the Japanese stock
market. The company is using the combination of cost leadership and differentiation
strategy in order to provide the high quality of products and services to the target
audience.
 Weakness: The Company has the limited presence and the major competitors of the
company are international which has a higher rank then Uniqlo Company.
 Opportunity:The Uniqlo Company is not operating in Asia market which is the growing
market, and it helps to generate higher revenue through starts operating in Asia market.
 Threats: The Company has major competitors in the domestic market which is the major
threat to the company as they are providing similar products and services to the target
audience which impacts on the sales volume of the company within the specific period of
time.

Competitive and growth strategy
It is recommended to continue the differentiation and cost leadership strategy in order to provide
the competitive advantage to the company. It is suitable for the company as it is the most feasible
growth strategy which helps to generate higher revenue within the specific period of time.
The company needs to improve the following areas:
 Improved products and services
 Reinforcing distribution network through using effective channels
 Improvement in promotional activities
 Marketing mix
All the above improvements can be done through reconstructing the marketing mix.
Following are the main points which need to be improved in order to provide the
competitive advantage by improving the marketing mix strategy of the company.
 Product: The product designing must be improved through improving the
fashion trends of clothing in order to satisfy a large number of consumers. The
needs and demands of the customer must be collected through customer survey
in order to provide high fashion trend clothes to the target audience (Grönroos et
al., 1995).
 Price: The cost of production needs to be minimized in order to improve the
profitability of the company through reducing the product cost, travel expenses,
timely costs, and delivery costs.

 Place: The convenience shows that the customers are satisfied through buying
from convenient stores, online, and others so the company needs to improve the
distribution channel which can be easily reachable for a target audience.
 Promotion:
The company needs to develop more promotional activities such as personal
selling, advertisement of national and international television at peak hours,
complementary gifts must be provided to the target audience, and feedback must
be taken in order to improve the marketing strategy of the company. The
promotional events must be organized by the company in the operating countries
which helps to improve the sales volume of the company (Solomon et al., 2014).
 Communication mix
 Search engine optimization
It helps to improve the sales volume of the company through driving traffic to the
websites of the company. It is very important for the company as it brings visitors
to the website which popularize the brand that directly increases the sales volume
of the company.
 Storage design
The shopping environment of the company needs to be improved which influence
the shopping behavior of the customers through communicating with the message
and products to the target audience of the company. The professional retail
consultants should be considered at the time of designing stores in order to
influence the customer behavior which adds value to the organization and it also
helps to retain the customers.

 Brand awareness
The company must introduce its web blogs and magazine which helps to develop
the brand image in the eyes of the customers that directly improve the sales
volume of the company.
 Trade shows
The trade shows should be conducting by the companies in the operating
countries which help to develop the brand image in the eyes of the customers and
it also attracts new target audience through effective advertisement campaigns. It
also enhances the strategic position of the company and increase the effectiveness
of selected market and target audience (Jain et al., 2009).
Chapter-6
Recommendations
From the above analysis it is recommended to improve the fashion trends of the company in
order to retain the existing customers and attracts new customers which directly improve the
sales volume of the company. The email marketing campaign must be started by the company in
order to build brand image in the eyes of the target audience. The innovative technology must be
used in order to develop high fashion trending clothes. As the majority of target audience is
women and girls so the company must manufacture high fashion clothing. The quality and
pricing strategy should be continued as it is the unique selling process of the company. The trade
shows and advertisement campaigning should be conduct by the company in order to develop the
brand awareness through effective campaigning. The channel of distribution must be improved

as per the convenience of the customers which helps to improve the sales volume of the
company. The promotional activities must be aggressively developed by the company in order to
develop the brand awareness among the target audience.
Conclusion
From the above analysis it can be concluded that the Uniqlo Company needs to revise its
marketing mix strategy in order to stand out among the competitors within the same industry.
The internal and external analysis shows that the company is famous for providing high quality
of products and services at low prices. The customers are satisfied with the quality of products
and services but it requires to improve the fashion trends in order retain the existing customers
and attracting new customers. The company needs to improve its channel of distribution in order
to provide convenience to the target audience. The high promotional activities and production of
latest fashion trending clothes helps to generate high revenues for the sustainable long period of
time.
Reflective report
The experience of the project is rewarding as many challenges come in between to complete the
project. The customer survey analysis was the best and interesting part which provides highest
learning through using analyzing tool to determine the results and findings of the study. Time
management is one of the challenging aspects in order to complete the project on time. The
professionalism is maintained through the research. The in-depth interview with the owners of
the company helps to provide the understanding of marketing strategy importance in order to
provide competitive advantage to the company. The cooperation and trust with company is

maintained as sensitive information of the company such as customer database is shared with me
in order to conduct the customer survey which shows various elements which needs to be
improved by the company. I also understand the importance of customer survey in order to
develop the products and services as per the needs and demands of the customers. This project
helps me to improve my analytical skills and allows me to develop the research design which
contributes towards the development of effective marketing strategy of Uniqlo Company. I also
learnt the about research and development importance in the real business. The overall
experience was enjoyable which helps to improve my research skills, analytical skills, time
management, professionalism, and helps me to gain the experience of real business world.

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Appendix
Uniqlo Customer research
Demographic information
1. You are : Female Male
2. Marital status Married Single Divorced Engaged Widow
3. Occupation Business man Job Unemployed Other
4. Please indicate your age group: 18 or less 26-35 18-25 35 or more
5. How much amount do you spent on shopping?

 $50 or less $50-$100 $100 or more
6. Please rank the following factors of Uniqlo
______ Quality
______ Design
______ Eco friendly
______ Fashion trends
______ Price
7. Which excites you to shopping at Uniqlo:
No impact Moderate impact High impact
More convenient
locations
Promotions
Professional
and easy to use
online shop
Discounts
User friendly
website /
interface

Adverts
Sales
8. Would you like to shop at Uniqlo Company in the future? Yes No Not sure
9. Where did you hear about the Uniqlo Company? Words of mouth Advertisement Newspaper Features in press Online Other
10. Please rate the below statements:
Statements Strongly
disagree
Disagree Agree Neither
agree nor
disagree
Strongly
agree
I like to do
online
shopping
because of
convenience

I like to do
shopping
where the
prices are low
with high
quality of
products
I like to buy
clothes mostly
at festive
season
I like to
shopping at the
time of
discounting
The
advertisement
encourage me
to do shopping