Eco Harvest: Entrepreneurial Venture, Feasibility, and Strategy

This report provides a feasibility study for Eco Harvest, a new plant-based meat manufacturing company, examining the relationship between innovation and entrepreneurship. It includes a competitive and STP analysis, along with a discussion of the proposed business model using the business m...Read More

Entrepreneurship
and Business
Development

Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
MAIN BODY...................................................................................................................................1
Feasibility study of the new venture.......................................................................................1
Relationship between innovation and entrepreneurship.........................................................2
Competitive and STP analysis................................................................................................3
Discussion on proposed business model................................................................................5
Different marketing strategies to be used during phases of industry life cycle......................7
Quantitative and qualitative tools for risk mitigation.............................................................7
Common Mistakes made by first time entrepreneurs.............................................................8
CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................10
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................11

INTRODUCTION
Developing a new venture is risky and complicated endeavour as it involves facing
uncertainties and determining various aspects of the enterprise (Audretsch, Belitski and
Korosteleva, 2021). The new venture developed for this report is plant based meat manufacturing
company Eco Harvest. The feasibility of the concerned venture is determined in this report along
with description of relationship between innovation and entrepreneurship. Competitive analysis,
STP analysis and business model canvas is applied to new venture in order to explain the
enterprise and determine its feasibility. Marketing strategies to be used in different phases of the
industry life cycle and planning tools which support risk mitigation are included in this report.
Besides this, the common mistakes made by first time entrepreneurs is included in this report.
MAIN BODY
Feasibility study of the new venture
The new venture concept of this report is to open a plant based meat manufacturing
company. The company will sell plant based meat which acts as an eco-friendly substitute
product for different type of meat products. . The eco-friendly meat products offered by Eco
Harvest will be similar in taste, texture and smell to original meat. In this way, the company will
provide consumers a sustainable option for consuming meat products. This is a feasible business
concept because the industry for analogue meat and substitute meat products in UK has high
growth potential.
Statistical data shows that UK consumers are becoming more acceptable of vegan and meat free
foods. The number of consumers in UK who eat meat free food increased significantly with 50%
in 2017 to 65% in 2019. There is high profitability in selling meat free food products as the sale
of such products was also positively affected from 2014 to 2019. It increased by 40% from £582
million in 2014 to £816 million in the year 2019. Apart from this, by the year 2024 the sale of
meat free food products will reach the highest number £1.1 billion (PLANT-BASED PUSH: UK
SALES OF MEAT-FREE FOODS SHOOT UP 40% BETWEEN 2014-19, 2020).
This statistical data showcases that UK consumers are looking to become more
sustainable and choosing eco-friendly products in their diet. The high feasibility of the Eco
Harvest enterprise can be understood from these significant rise sustainable food preferences
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from British consumers. This is because Eco Harvest will provide a sustainable option for British
consumers who are looking to decrease their carbon footprint in choices.
Apart from the rise in consumption of meat free food in UK, the statistical data for plant
based meat industry also provides positive outlook of the industry. The plant based meat market
is expected to reach value of £6.2 billion by the year 2025 with a CAGR of 14.0% (Plant-based
Meat Market by Source (Soy, Wheat, Pea, & Other Sources), Product (Burger Patties, Strips &
Nuggets, Sausages, Meatballs, & Other Products), Type (Beef, Chicken, Pork, Fish, & Other
Types), Process, and Region - Global Forecast to 2025, 2021). This rise can be attributed to rise
in climate concerns and increasing awareness about health benefits offered by plant based meat
over meat produces. This further showcases the high feasibility of Eco-Harvest. This is because
by quickly entering and establishing brand name in the UK, plant based meat industry can help
the respective company gain opportunity for international growth and high profitability.
The statistical data on dithery preferences of UK based consumers also showcases high
demand for plant based meat products. Currently 7.2 million adult consumers in Britain take diet
free of meat products and this is expected to reach 13 million by the end of 2021. In addition to
this, 27% of British Households have replaced meat food items with vegan or vegetarian
alternatives at least once a week (Plant based meat: an industry full of potential, 2021). The
innovative plant based meat substitutes offered by Eco Harvest for different types of meat
products will provide the firm competitive edge and help the company make high profits.
Relationship between innovation and entrepreneurship
Entrepreneurship is defined as the process of building a new enterprise with the aim to gain
profitability of the company and bearing any risks associated with the endeavour. Innovation on
the other hand is defined as the action of individual or entity creating new ideas such as new
products services or processes. These two concepts are related because entrepreneurship involves
identifying commercial opportunities in new novation and taking entrepreneurial risk to make the
innovation commercial success. Successful entrepreneurs have high appetite for risk and are able
to use take risk in introducing new innovation in the corporate world.
In addition to this, long-term entrepreneurship is dependent on innovation to face external
environmental changes and survive in the industry for a long time period. This includes brining
innovation in products, services or business processes (Cheng, Tani and Wang, 2021). In case of
the proposed entrepreneurial venture Eco Harvest, the innovation is to offer sustainable products
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for different meat substitutes. This is an innovative idea because the enterprise offers sustainable
option for variety of meat products including seafood such as salmon This innovative offering
will help the company to create distinguished brand image and gain success in the growing
sustainable meat industry in UK.
Competitive and STP analysis
Porter’s five forces analysis
This analytical tool is used to understand the competitive landscape of an industry. It
provides information about the five competitive forces present in an industry and helps
understand the profitability and growth prudential of an industry by determining the level of
competitive forces acting in the industry (Skala, 2019). This analytical tool can aid in
understanding the feasibility of plant based meat industry in UK. The application of Porter’s five
forces tool on plant based meat industry in UK is provided below:
 Intensity of Competition: The level of competitiveness in the industry is determined in
this section of the analytical tool. Large number of competitor’s increase intensity of
competition and lower profitability of business firms. The plant based meat industry has
high level of competition. This is because there are different brands in the industry such
as Beyond Meals, Tofurky, the vegetarian butcher and Fry Family Food.
 Bargaining Power of Suppliers: The ability of suppliers to pressurize business firms in
the industry to lower quality of the products or increase price of the product is described
in this section of the analysis. Factors such as vertical integration and rarity of the raw
materials impact bargaining power of suppliers. The bargaining power of suppliers in
case of plant based meat industry in UK is low. This is because the main raw material is
plants and other vegan products which are available in high quality by large number of
suppliers.
 Bargaining Power of consumers: This refers to the pressure introduced by consumers on
business firms of specific industry to lower price of the product, enhance the quality of
consumer service and quality of the products. Factors such as sensitivity of the consumer
towards price and low switching costs affect the bargaining power of consumers
(Nikolaev, Boudreaux and Palich, 2018). The bargaining power of consumers in analogue
meat industry of UK is moderate. It reached the moderate level because of presence of
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various competitors. Despite this it is not high because most competitors do not offer
every variety of meat substitute.
 Threat of new entrants: The ability of new entrants to easily enter the industry and affect
the market share of incumbent firms is competitive force analysed in this part of the
analysis. Entry barriers of an industry impact the level of threat of new entrants. The
threat of new entrants in this industry is moderate. This is because of presence of entry
barriers such as regulatory considerations and high initial investment.
 Threat of substitute products: A substitute product is defined as any commodity which is
able to fulfil the same consumer needs. Presence of perfect substitute increases the
competitiveness of an industry (Cherrier, Goswami and Ray, 2018). There is no perfect
substitute product for plant based meat which makes this competitive force low.
From the above analysis it is determined that entering the plant based meat industry is
feasible. This is because the industry is not saturated and consumers do not have high number of
alternatives or substitutes. The supplier power is low which will support earning high profits.
This showcases that initial investment in the industry will provide high returns.
STP analysis
This analytical tool provides three steps which can be used by the company to determine
the target audience of the firm to create and identifying the most effective ways to communicate
to the target audience of the company. The application of STP analysis to determine the target
audience for Eco Harvest and understand the fusibility of the company is given below:
 Segmentation: In this part of the analysis, the consumers are divided into different
segments which have similar characteristics (Mitzinneck and Besharov, 2019). This helps
the company efefcfitvelly communicate with different consumer segments to increase
profitability. The first segment for Eco harvest is determined on the basis of
psychographic segmentation. This involves consumers who seek sustainable lifestyle.
They are profitable segment as they need to purchase sustainable meat products. Apart
from this, business firms who offer sustainable plant based meat dishes are also profitable
consumer segment for the company. In addition to this, behavioural segmentation helps
identify the consumer segment of consumers who have health issues with meat products.
This depicts the feasibility of Eco harvest as it includes both businesses and consumers in
target segment.
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 Targeting: The most profitable and value consumer segment for the company is
determined in this part of the consumer segment. The most profitable target consumer
base for Eco harvest includes eating establishment and sustainable consumers. This is
because these segments can be converted to loyal consumers easily. This further
increases the feasibility of the firm because loyal consumers can be gained from target
audience.
 Petitioning: This is the last section of the model in which the positioning appeals to the
target audience is determined (Dougla and Prentice, 2019). The firm needs to position
itself as sustainable environmentally conscious firm to provide consumers symbolic
positioning. As a part of functional positioning, the supply chain of the products will be
ethical and sustainable. This will increase the feasibility of the firm by completing
consumer requirements to purchase meat products sustainably.
Discussion on proposed business model
Business model canvas
This tool provides entrepreneurial structure for creating clear and coherent business plan
which can be easily understood by potential investors. This model provides concise explanation
of the new venture proposed by the entrepreneur and helps attract the attention of suitable
investors. The application of business model canvas to the proposed business model of plant
based meat company Eco Harvest is provided below:
 Consumer Segments: The primary consumer segments of the company who will provide
the firm highest revenue are identified in this part of the model. The main consumer
segments of the company are food businesses selling vegan food products who require
plant based meat to prepare meals and consumers who seek to live sustainable lifestyle.
These are the most profitable consumer segments for the company as the products offered
by Eco Harvest fulfils their essential need.
 Value Proposition: The value promised by the company to be delivered to the target
audience of the firm is determined in this part of the model (Giné and Mansuri, 2021).
The value proposition of Eco Harvest is to deliver variety of sustainable options to the
consumers including sustainable meat options for seafood. In addition to this,
sustainability of the product will be maximised by using sustainable packaging which is
also part of value proposition.
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 Revenue Stream: The primary channels which generate revenue for the company are
discussed in this part of the business canvas model. The main revenue stream of the
company will be through direct to consumer online sale of the sustainable meat products.
In addition to this, retail sale of the products will also be a profitable revenue generation
channel.
 Channels: The pathways for delivering postposed value to the consumers and
communicating with the target audience are discussed in this section of the business
canvas model (Obschonka, 2017). Digital marketing channels will be used to
communicate with the consumer in case of Eco Harvest. The channels used by Eco
harvest are social media, search engine marketing and pay per click marketing.
 Consumer relationship: The process through which the new venture will create and
maintain positive consumer relationship are determined in this section of the report. The
actions taken to enhance positive consumer relationship is to gain continuous feedback
from existing consumers and make efforts to enhance consumer service and provide
consumers exceptional products.
 Key activities: The processes and activities undertaken by the company to ensure smooth
daily functioning of the firm are discussed here. The main activity in context of Eco
Harvest is to utilize vegetables and other vegan materials for replicating taste and texture
of different meat products on a commercial scale.
 Key resources: The essential resources which are required for delivering value
proposition to the target audience are identified in this portion of the model. The main
resources needed in case of Eco Harvest include human resources, automation
technology, plants for raw material string and packaging material.
 Key partners: Apart from suppliers, the main partners which are essential for smooth
functioning of the company are determined and discussed here. The main partner for the
company are the retail chains selling Eco Harvest products.
 Cost Structure: In the final part of the business canvas model, the cost structure of the
company is determined. This includes the fixed and variable costs which are part of the
overall expenses of the company (Clark and Harrison, 2019). The fixed costs in case of
Eco Harvest are salaries, insurance, depreciation and land costs. On the other hand, the
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variable costs involves in the cost structure of Eco Harvest are materials, electricity
consumption and packaging costs.
Different marketing strategies to be used during phases of industry life cycle
Industry life cycle is defined as evolution of an industry or business on its growth or
decline. This includes four stages of introduction or start-up, growth, maturity or consolidation
and decline or underperformance. Eco Harvest needs to use different marketing strategies in each
stage to stay ahead of the competition. The marketing strategies which can be used by Eco-
Harvest in each stage are defined below:
 Start-up: In this stage, aggressive marketing strategy will be used to increase brand
awareness at large scale. Social media marketing and traditional marketing methods such
as TV advertisements will be used to each maximum number of consumers.
 Growth: The marketing strategy used in this stage should be focused to increase market
share of the company (Cardella, Hernández-Sánchez and Sánchez-García, 2020). In case
of Eco Harvest, the marketing strategy adopted at this stage will be to build suitable
loyalty schemes to ensure that large number of consumers are converted into loyal
consumers. This will support extension of the consolidation phase.
 Consolidation: The marketing in this stage will focus on ensuring that competitors to not
affect market share of the company. In context of the respective company, this will
include providing consumers lucrative discounts to attract large number of conquers from
rival firms.
 Underperformance: In this last phase, the product introduced by the company is
underperforming and suitable strategy is adopted to retain few consumers. Eco harvest
will focus on using personalized marketing strategy such as email marketing to retain
final few consumers for long time period.
Quantitative and qualitative tools for risk mitigation
Risk mitigation is defined as the process of taking action to reduce organizational exposure
to risk and lower the likelihood of occurrence of those risks (Forouharfar, Rowshan and
Salarzehi, 2018). The qualitative and quantitative tools which will be utilized to mitigate risk in
case of the proposed enterprise Eco Harvest are explained below:
Quantitative tools for risk mitigation
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 Root Cause Analysis: This is an effective tool for mitigating risk which involves
identifying the root causes of different types of risks faced by the company. This
quantitative tool will be used in case of Eco Harvest to determine the root cause of
operation risks and eliminating likelihood of such risks by removing the root cause.
 Delphi Technique; This quantitative tool involves seeking constancy from team of
experts. List filled with data related to the risks is sent to the experts and their responses
are compiled. The results ae than sent back to experts until a consensus is reach on how
to deal with the risk most effectively (Hohmann and et. al., 2020). This quantitative tool
will be used to face financial risks and financial experts will be consulted to ensure that
financial risks are mitigated. This will reduce loss exposure of Eco Harvest.
Qualitative tools for risk mitigation
 SWIFT Analysis: This is defined as structured what if technique, which involves
application of a systematic, team based approach in a workshop environment where the
focus of the tam is in investigating impact of changes on approved plan by considering
series of What if questions. This tool helps to understand the viability of opportunities
and risk. Eco Harvest will be able to mitigate different types of risks with the help of this
quantitative this tool by understanding the amiability of risks and opportunities.
 Probability Matrix: This quantitative tool is helpful in mitigating risks. This tool helps
determine severity associated with various risks faced during undertaking an
entrepreneurial endeavour and provides a practical method of ranking overall severity of
risks though multiplication of likelihood of risk occurrence against the impact of the risk
if it occurs. This tool helps business firms understand the degree of intensity associated
with each risks and identify drivers of various risks. Eco Harvest will utilize this tool in
risk mitigation by controlling identifying risk drivers and take action to manage risks on
the basis of risk drivers.
Common Mistakes made by first time entrepreneurs
 Ineffective planning: Constructing detailed and well researched planned for different
aspects of the enterprise such as marketing plans, risk mitigation plans and financial plans
is essential to developing successful entrepreneur (Coad and Storey, 2021). In addition to
this, it is also helpful in attracting investors as they believe that the entrepreneur is well
prepared to face the corporate world. Ineffective planning is a common and lethal mistake
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made by first time entrepreneurs. Suitable plans need to be developed for Eco Harvest to
create well prepared image in front of investors and ensure entrepreneurial success.
 Forgetting about the consumer: Keeping the consumers first is an essential aspect of
successful enterprises in the current world. It is important to become a consumer centric
company in order to face competition and increase consumer retention for high
profitability. In context of the plant based meat manufacturing firm Eco Harvest,
developing a consumer centric culture will help keep the company focused on consumer
well-being and ensuring the best quality services are delivered.
 Impatience: Perseverance is commonly found characteristic in successful entrepreneurs.
Such entrepreneurs are able to face rejections and failures and make consistent efforts to
gain success with patience. Lack of patience leads to mistakes which can be the reason
for final termination of the company (Dinnar and Susskind, 2018). In case of the Eco
Harvest, patience will be adopted to gain success and various entrepreneurial actions will
be undertaken with perseverance attitude.
 Lack of sales ability: Selling goods to the consumer is an important part of
entrepreneurship and helps the company generate profits. Ineffective sale skills reduce
the potential of the entrepreneur and lead to failure of the enterprise.
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CONCLUSION
From the above report, it is determined that understanding the feasibility of entrepreneurial
venture makes it easier to attract investors as it provides information about the potential
profitability associated with the entrepreneurial venture. Entrepreneurship and innovation are
connected concepts because entrepreneurship involves taking risks for commercialising specific
innovation and new innovation help business firms gain success in their industry. Conducting a
competitive analysis through Porter’s five forces model and STP analysis helps to understand if a
specific entrepreneurial venture is feasible. Business canvas model needs to be used to explain
new entrepreneurial venture in simplistic manner as it covers all the key elements of the
enterprise. It is also important for business firms to adopt different marketing strategies during
different phases of the industry life cycle to attract maximum number of consumers during each
phase and face competitors efefcfitvelly. Mitigating risks associated with entrepreneurship is
essential for gaining long-term success in the industry and different qualitative and quantitative
tools can be used by business firms to ensure effective risk mitigation. It is determined that new
entrepreneurs make some common mistakes such as impatience, lack of consumer-centric nature
and ineffective planning.
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REFERENCES
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Mitzinneck, B. C. and Besharov, M. L., 2019. Managing value tensions in collective social
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Online
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https://startups.co.uk/sustainability/plant-based-meat-an-industry-full-of-potential/
Plant-based Meat Market by Source (Soy, Wheat, Pea, & Other Sources), Product (Burger
Patties, Strips & Nuggets, Sausages, Meatballs, & Other Products), Type (Beef,
Chicken, Pork, Fish, & Other Types), Process, and Region - Global Forecast to 2025,
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