International Business Strategy Case Study: Apple Inc. & Domino's

This case study examines the international business strategies of Apple Inc. and Domino's Pizza. It analyzes Domino's decision to maintain its unique delivery model globally, adapting its marketing mix, product offerings, and pricing to local consumer preferences in markets like the USA, Japan, and India. The study also explores Apple's competitive advantages, particularly its operational and innovation excellence, product pricing, and global supply chain model. It highlights the importance of value proposition, supply chain management, and market adaptation for success in international business. The analysis draws on various academic sources and discusses the companies' future value propositions, sustainability, and relationships with network partners. The study emphasizes the significance of maintaining a unique business model for customer-based services and the importance of understanding the interplay between product pricing, brand equity, and supply chain dynamics in the global market.

INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS STRATEGY
Case Study of Apple Inc &
Domino’s

Evolution of decision to stick to home delivery business model
• Domino’s have been sticking on to two of the biggest business ideas,
which are carrying on their traditional pizza and their unique delivery
model.
• Online Pizza Hut in China, who has restored the full fledged casual
dining experience for customers, the CEO of Domino’s that this changes
the ultimate Appeal of the brand.
• Nevertheless, the organisation has updated several electronic gadgets
from where Domino's pizza can be ordered.
• This includes Apple iPhone, Amazon Echo, Apple watch, forcing
Samsung Smart TV as well as other smart watches and voice
commands.
• The value proposition of the unique delivery business model outside
United States is much higher (Bhosale and Deo 2018).

Strategies to evaluate local differences in consumer taste and preferences
• It is evident that unlike Pizza Hut,
Domino's stuck to their original product
offering, that is pizza.
• According to the CEO, the blend of bread,
sauce and cheese works fundamentally in
almost all important business locations,
other than China.
• However, in order to conquer the
individual market of China, Domino’s is
not ready to change their unique value
proposition towards the customers.
• The basic differences, incorporated by
them in order to differentiate the
preferences of customers of different
markets are the change of toppings and
the presentation of pizza.
• According to the CEO, in the Asian market
shopping like seafood and fisher popular
in the Indian market is curry and this is
how the product variation goes on in the
different markets.

Marketing Mix
• USA
• The product offerings in USA standard with very less price variation and incorporating only differences like seasonal
toppings.
• Prices of pizza where is between 10 US dollars to 15 US dollars
• Promotion does not take place through traditional media like television or press. The fundamental strategy of promotion in
USA is is delivering more and more digital channels of Pizza ordering including the likes of Amazon echo, voice command,
pebble smart watches and so on (Kirkpatrick, Cuvelier and Flanagan 2018). This creates unique value propositions towards
customers and in turn creates news which provides free publicity to the brand
• Pizza is mostly delivering to the customer’s location in USA as in any other part of the world. Only 15% of the customers in
USA prefer to dine in outlets or take away.
• Japan
• Because of the low consumption trend in Japan, the company uses premium toppings like snow crab, mangalitsa pork,
Bordeaux sauce, beef stew as well as fresh Mozzarella. Product variation is also brought about in the form of heart shaped
pizza in pink boxes on special occasion like Valentine Day on Mother’s Day (Rathore and Ilavarasan 2017).
• Price of Pizza is standard or comparatively higher than the surrounding markets and in comparison to US markets, it is
slightly lower.
• For promotional purposes Domino’s attempts to create locations for enjoying pizza. For evidence they offer heart shaped
pizza pizza on unique creations like Valentines Day on Mother's Day. The uniqueness of the promotional strategy is that
rather than spending on commercials, the organisation tries to create news. This incorporates the example of offering 2.5
million yen for a one hour job at dominos for a lucky winner.
• Pizza delivery at customers location is the most famous business model in Japan also.
• India
• In India, along with the standard toppings and standard sizes, Domino’s Pizza has invented curry based North Indian flavours
like Tandoori toppings. In order to to develop value towards the moderate and low end customers, they have developed the
Pizza Mania series where pizza for one customer starts from 55 INR.
• Price of Pizza is about two third of the price in the USA market
• Recently Dominos is focusing more on spending money on TV commercials as well as newspaper and other print media
advertising.
• Dining out on Pizza is particularly favoured by teenagers and the customers aged more than 20 years or so mostly preferred
to order pizza.

Conclusions from Domino’s case
• Brands dealing in consumer goods are customer
based services should cling on to their unique
business model because that is the most
exquisite part of their value proposition towards
the customers.
• In case, if Domino’s had shifted to other product
offerings like beverages, confectioneries or sugar
boiled products, the unique Apple of the brand
in the foreign market would have been lost.

Inter-brand competition
(Apple)
• Apple dominates other Software
and Hardware Technology brands
because of the operational and
innovation excellence which makes
organisation thrive in most of the
potential markets.
• The individual product marketing
and their popularity helped Apple
become the largest information
technology company overcoming
Samsung as well as gain the
reputation of the best Global brand
overcoming Coca-Cola.
• The brand value of the company is a
unique proposition because of
switch customers favour purchasing
a Apple product.

Future value proposition from Apple
• The foundation of the future value proposition of Apple Inc. is typically
derived from the pre launch of new products, Sourcing commitments,
and management of inventories and evaluation of these processes.
• Business processes like demand forecast, resolution of potential
backlog and ensuring a fast cycle time of new product delivery along
with periodic review of the demand, lifecycle status as well as
component cost forecasting are the typical prepositions of the
company towards their shareholders and other stakeholders (Clarke
and Boersma 2017).
• Other than that the exclusivity of the supply arrangements, volume
guarantee as well as and in-depth supply chain infrastructure that can
support the aggressive market leadership of Apple will also help the
company in its future sustenance (Xiao and Shi 2016).

Product pricing sustainability and comparison with Samsung
• Relationship development with their network partners is a factor of
strength that has helped in increasing scaling of production as well as
improvement in quality of manufacturing process.
• These facilities help the company to be equipped with the greatest product
line, which uses best components in terms of basic Software and Hardware
which is achieved also by the employment of most talented employees.
• Hence, in this regard it can be argued that in terms of competitiveness over
quality and effective pricing, not only Samsung, but also other hi market
brands like oneplus, Xiaomi in Asia and Huawei have been attempting to
offer products at most affordable prices (Marshall et al. 2016).
• However, the price component is one of the most unique value propositions
of Apple against their brand equity. This implies that customers purchase
Apple products because they are costly.

Sustainability of the Global supply chain model of Apple
• The general supply chain model of the company follows the strategy of the
most large multinational corporations supply chains.
• Apple does research for cultivating new technologies for acquisition of
intellectual property for their future products.
• The pre launch of products comma helps in in analysing Global production
possibility, Sourcing commitments as well as inventory management
(Lockamy 2017).
• Other factors that make the supply chain effective are that Apple takes many
steps for managing total value created for the supply chain management of
suppliers as well as provided within the chain.
• Predetermination of expectation of the suppliers, exclusiveness of the
supplied arrangements as well as volume guarantees ensures a supply chain
infrastructure that can support the address the market leadership strategy of
Apple.

References
• Clarke, T. and Boersma, M., 2017. The governance of global value chains:
Unresolved human rights, environmental and ethical dilemmas in the apple supply
chain. Journal of Business Ethics, 143(1), pp.111-131.
• Marshall, D., McCarthy, L., McGrath, P. and Harrigan, F., 2016. What's your strategy
for supply chain disclosure?. MIT Sloan Management Review, 57(2), pp.37-45.
• Lockamy III, A., 2017, July. An examination of external risk factors in Apple Inc.’s
supply chain. In Supply Chain Forum: An International Journal (Vol. 18, No. 3, pp.
177-188). Taylor & Francis.
• Xiao, T. and Shi, J.J., 2016. Pricing and supply priority in a dual-channel supply
chain. European Journal of Operational Research, 254(3), pp.813-823.
• Bhosale, P. and Deo, S., 2018. An examination of the inventory management
system at Dominos.
• Taylor, B., 2016. How Domino’s Pizza reinvented itself. Harvard Business Review.
• Kirkpatrick, J., Cuvelier, K. and Flanagan, J., 2018. Chartered Financial Analyst
Challenge: Analysis & Research of Domino's Pizza.
• Rathore, A.K. and Ilavarasan, P.V., 2017, February. Social media analytics for new
product development: Case of a pizza. In 2017 International Conference on
Advances in Mechanical, Industrial, Automation and Management Systems
(AMIAMS) (pp. 213-219). IEEE.