Maison Maille Case Study: Targeting Younger Consumers Analysis

This case study analyzes Maison Maille's strategic approach to targeting younger consumers. The analysis highlights the need for Maille to focus on the 25 and under age group, who are less inclined towards traditional mustard flavors, suggesting a shift from a predominantly senior clientele. The assignment emphasizes the importance of a customer-centric perspective, advocating for modified, sweeter versions of mustard to attract younger buyers, along with a push sales strategy. The analysis further explores Maille's premium pricing strategy and mass distribution, which has enabled it to secure a strong market position. Furthermore, it recommends leveraging social marketing and internet marketing, including Maille.com and social media, to engage with younger customers. The case study examines the effectiveness of push and pull marketing strategies and the role of channels in reaching the new target market.

Running Head: Strategic Analysis on Maison Maille 1
Strategic Analysis on Maison Maille

Strategic Analysis on Maison Maille 2
1. Maille is required to focus on the younger segment of customers, say the young adults
belonging to the age group of 25 years and below. It is because only about 50% of this
particular segment consumes mustard while its major clientele belongs to the dwindling
numbers of the seniors above the age bracket of 50. So Maille to survive the market need
to work on new customer segments and getting the younger crowd on the radar would be
an attractive proposition by the company (Hunt & Mello, 2017). In this regard a customer
centric perspective need to be considered by Maille as the younger generation has grown
up consuming sweeter dressings like ketchup. Therefore they would not be able to stand
the strong flavour of the mustard and a modified version of the mustard like a sweeter
version of it would be favourable in arousing the interest of the prospective young
buyers.
Maille would be requiring a push sales strategy to get the due attention of its targeted
customers. In this marketing strategy, Maille being a pioneer in the mustard segment
would be promoting the products to the customers to induce them make a purchasing
decision in this regard (Dörnyei, Krystallis, & Chrysochou, 2017). Push marketing would
be effective for the company as the younger generation are not so prone to the
consumption of mustard seeds in comparison to its sweet dressings like ketchups. But the
customer trend shows that Maille could shift to pull marketing strategy as the customers
grow old they develop a liking for mustards (Chernev, 2018). So owing to the pull
marketing strategy the aged customers would approach Maille to buy mustards but to get
younger people on fray it needs to focus on the push marketing strategy.
2. Maille has been able to consolidate its position in the competitive marketplace ranging
over centuries and monarchies. The organisation has undertaken an integrated premium
pricing strategy to reach out to the upper middle income segment of the society (Philip,
Lane, Ang, Tan, & Leong, 2017). The quality of the products offered by Maille made it
the 2nd largest brand in table dressing segment across France and have 9% market share
reaching out to 42% of the French population. So the demographic segmentation adopted
by Maille to target the upper middle income segment of the society through a premium
pricing strategy had paid off well for the organisation.

Strategic Analysis on Maison Maille 3
Maille had upheld this strategy as well while displaying its product in the supermarkets
along with other food items like sauce, ketchup and mayonnaise by means of mass
distribution. This is being done by the company to offer its customers a variety of choices
and a greater acceptability to the customers through a greater level of display through the
retailers (Wu, Yeh, & Hsiao, 2011). This sort of positioning strategy worked for Maille as
its premiumisation strategy and a greater display technique through the retailers
established a trust factor amongst the targeted customers. The phenomenon ensured the
customers to have a quality product with creative tastes and sustainable instincts ton win
confidence in the market.
3. In the 21st century, the century old organisation of Maille need to be innovative to get due
attention of its targeted and potential customers and in this regard the social marketing
strategy would be utterly helpful (Hutchinson, Donnell, Gilmore, & Reid, 2015). The
aspect of internet marketing could be used effectively by Maille to promote its brand and
the products associated with it. The organisation has taken initiatives in launching
Maille.com for having an e-boutique to showcase its range of products, customise orders
for the customers and interact with them to establish a long-term relationship with them
(Chernev, 2018). There are provision for subscription of newsletter for the customers to
acquaint them with the French gastronomy establishing a trust factor in the meantime.
The internet phenomenon would be an ideal platform to attract the new and potential
targeted customers of younger generation as they spent a lot of time over the internet. The
medium also provides a unique opportunity to its users to interact with the potential
customers say the younger brigade and have their feedback on the products (Dörnyei,
Krystallis, & Chrysochou, 2017). In this way Maille would be able to erect a
communication bridge between the company and the targeted customers by reaching out
to the using the internet technology and the social media platform to have its competitive
edge.

Strategic Analysis on Maison Maille 4
References
Chernev, A. (2018). Strategic marketing management. London: Cerebellum Press.
Dörnyei, K., Krystallis, A., & Chrysochou, P. (2017). The impact of product assortment size and
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Hunt, & Mello. (2017). Marketing (2nd ed.). Newcastle: McGraw-Hill.
Hutchinson, K., Donnell, L., Gilmore, A., & Reid, A. (2015). Loyalty card adoption in SME
retailers: the impact upon marketing management. European Journal of Marketing,
49(3/4), 467-490.
Philip, Lane, K. K., Ang, S.-H., Tan, C.-T., & Leong, S. M. (2017). Marketing management.
New York: Pearson.
Wu, P., Yeh, G., & Hsiao, C. (2011). The effect of store image and service quality on brand
image and purchase intention for private label brands. Australasian Marketing Journal
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