Strategic Thinking Report: Analysis of BUTTLES Plc's Strategies

This report provides a strategic analysis of BUTTLES Plc, a timber and builder firm. It begins with an introduction to strategic thinking and its application to the firm. The report then delves into the key strategic issues faced by BUTTLES Plc, including lack of online services, changing demographics, and poor strategic formulations. It uses PESTLE analysis to examine the external macro factors influencing the retail sector and analyzes competitors like Tesco and Amazon. The report then discusses current strategies such as market expansion, loyalty programs, and technological applications, as well as future trends including providing value, product services, impactful promotions, and direct manufacturer-customer relationships. The conclusion summarizes the findings, emphasizing the effectiveness of the current strategies and the importance of adapting to future trends to maintain a competitive position in the market.

STRATEGIC
THINKING

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
TASKS.............................................................................................................................................1
1. Strategic issues.........................................................................................................................1
2. Current strategies and future trends.........................................................................................3
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................5
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................6

INTRODUCTION
Strategic thinking is a tool which helps in defining various ways of thinking, viewing,
assessing as well as creating the future to determine the efficient and advance use of available
resources. For analysing the strategic issues and decisions, BUTTLES Plc is selected
(Chkhartishvili and Korepanov, 2016). The selected firm is operating its activities in Timber &
Builder and it was founded in 1919 and situated in London. This project report includes key
strategic issues, current strategies, future trends as well as detail analysis of competitors of the
organisation.
TASKS
1. Strategic issues
Business environment analysis is a systematic process which helps in identifying the
external along with internal elements which affects the performance of any business. There are
various external as well as internal factors constituted with any business. The external factors
includes technological changes, competition, legal laws, economic, social and political
environment. The internal factors includes employees, managers, money, organisational culture,
working environment. There are various factors which are manageable or controlled abut at the
same time distinct factor are not manageable or uncontrolled and these impacts various
circumstances. Such analysis helps in perceiving own position in relevance to its competitors in
the market.
PESTLE Analysis is used for analysing any industrial sector. Such analysis helps in
scanning and monitoring the external macro factors which influence the working of any
organization. PESTLE stands for political, economic, social, technological, legal and
environmental (Moutinho and Vargas-Sanchez, 2018.). This tool provides a concept related to
the business position, market decline or growth, its potentiality and also gives directions for the
operations of any business. The PESTLE analysis of retail sector is as follows:
Political factors: These factors have influence in the smooth functioning of operations of
any organization. These factors are related to effect of government's rules and regulations, plans
and policies in an economy. Such regulations affects the revenue, import, export, profitability of
the sector at great extent.
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Economic factors: These are very important for the trade and business perspective. Such
factors include economic growth, inflation rates, exchange rates and interest rates. The world
economy decides the situations of profits as well as sales of retail sector.
Social factors: These trends impacts the performance of the retail sector. These are
related to the shared ideas, norms, attitudes and values of the population living in any
society .Any change in such factors leads to disturb the performance of selected sector.
Technological factors: This is a crucial player in the selected sector as the supply chain,
user experience, customer values and sales are dependent on such factors. Various new
technologies have changed the face of the sector in manner ways.
Legal factors: It includes rules and regulations defined by the governments of distinct
countries. Various laws related to business are described under such factors.
Environmental Factors: As the retail sector operates in physical locations it is very
crucial to consider all the elements which affects the sustainability, waste reduction as well as
other concerns related to sustainability.
There are various companies which performs their operations in retail industry (Retail
Economics, 2019). Some of them are Waitrose, Sainsburys, Tesco, Asda, Amazon, Marks &
Spencers, and many more. Some of the major competitors of chosen firm are Tesco and Amazon.
The competitive position of Marks & Spencer, Waitrose, Amazon are behind BUTTLES Plc
while rest dominate the industry by maintaining the position.
The market details of each competitor of selected firm are provided below:
Tesco: Such firm is the largest retailer in UK and is successful in satisfying the needs, demands
of its customers by achieving great value as well as acquires 27.4 % market shares.
Amazon: This entity works on the path to achieve the values from its customers but a major
competitor of the chosen company and acquires 16% market shares (Ben Stevens, 2018).
Key issues are the challenges which affects the organisational mission, vision, structure,
management and performance. Various companies faces distinct issues. Some of the issues faced
by BUTTLES Plc are as follows:
 Lack of online services: Morrison is facing an issue of lack of online services to provide
products online at the time demanded by customers (Customer Experience magazine,
2019).
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 Changing population demographics: The size of population retained by the
organisation is changing or they are attracted towards the competitors products or
services.
 Poor strategic formulations: The managers of BUTTLES Plc are not able to formulate
effective strategies to resolve various problems associated with performing its operations
against its competitors (Norris-Tirrell and Clay, 2016.).
Thus, all these issues are important to be considered to work in the competitive
environment. The executives must consider such issues at the time of framing policies for future.
These hurdles helped the organisation to overcome them to function with the current trends as
well as performing in future.
2. Current strategies and future trends
Market trends are the conditions or situations which facilitates the changes as well as
developments in present or future to provide the directions of trading. Trends may be for short
term or long term but provides general direction of buying and selling any product or service in
the competitive market. The current as well as future trends in the retail market are as follows:
Current trends are those trends or things happening in market which influences the
buying and selling of any product in the market at current time period (Marketing Week, 2019).
Some of the current strategies of BUTTLES Plc are as described:
 Expand into market and build new relationship: The selected firm is diversifying its
operations in distinct market areas to build relationships with potential customers as well
as suppliers by providing online services as well as making provisions to retain old
customers along with suppliers.
 Performs activities with loyalty: Morrison has implemented its plans to provide
innovative products as well as services to keep the society happy which leads to achieve
better benefits by updating loyalty programs.
 Analog technological: The chosen firm uses such technology which helps in holding true
values of the organisational products, platforms retailers use to implement their
marketing strategies. Such technology are helpful in transmitting information accurately
based on the inputs.
 Provides immediate services: Earlier a consumer has to wait for getting new and
innovative products but now a days organisations are working to supply products through
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immediate services. The immediate services helps in attracting as well as retaining the
consumers towards the organisation.
 Practical strategies of marketing: BUTTLES Plc is following a trend of providing
detailed information to its known customers directly to develop its products in the
market. Such firm has put various practical strategies of marketing to diversify in front of
its competitors.
Thus, the selected firm is focusing to attract more customers by applying various
strategies and some where successful in achieving beneficial position in the competitive market
place. The organisation should also formulate various strategies to forecast the future for
sustaining the available resources. Products for the upcoming or future generations.
Future trends: Such trends helps in identifying the emerging situations for the purpose of
improving the strategies by forecasting the future (Marketing Week, 2019.).
 Providing values without compromising: The firm has forecasted the expectations of
the society and focused to provide the valuable products or services without
compromising with other resources.
 Products with experienced services: various customers have complaints regarding the
services provided by the entity. So, BUTTLES Plc have decided to provide pleasant as
well as clear product offerings to increase the visibility for the purpose of making easier
to customers to get what they actually wants.
 Impactful promotions: The organisation has formulated various strategies to cut down
its costs as well as to provide quality over quantity which will help to providing various
products to distinct customers. Such trend will help the firm to ensure a beneficial place
in the competitive market.
 Dealing between manufacturers and customers: BUTTLES Plc is thinking to become
a intermediary to provide its customers various perishable products directly from the
manufacturers (Shapira, Ketchie and Nehe, 2017). This will help in keeping the products
fresh as well as selling the products to protecting the interests of its customers.
Objectives of BUTTLES Plc is to provide right products by keeping its products costs lower
for expanding its business and maintain a competitive position in the market.
According to the study, it can be said that the current strategies will be appropriate in the
coming year as these are the strategies which helped the organisation to achieve a long term
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image in the market. The current strategies are formulated after proper research and development
as well as forecasting the future trends. Such strategies will be effectively used in the future if
they are properly implemented according to the derived plans and the results will be satisfactory
(Stacey, 2016).
CONCLUSION
From the above report it has been concluded that organisation facing issues related to
lack of online services, population demographic changes, as well as poor strategic formulations.
The organisation has also formulated various strategies related to expanding into market to build
new relationships, performing activities with loyalty, Analog technological, providing immediate
services, practical strategies of marketing for the current trends. Various strategies such as
providing values without compromising, products with experienced services, impactful
promotions, dealing between manufacturers and customers for future trends to remain in
competitive positions. All these current strategies are effective for the future.
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REFERENCES
Books and Journals
Chkhartishvili, A. G. and Korepanov, V. O., 2016. Adding informational beliefs to the players
strategic thinking model. IFAC-PapersOnLine. 49(32). pp.19-23.
Moutinho, L. and Vargas-Sanchez, A. eds., 2018. Strategic Management in Tourism, CABI
Tourism Texts. Cabi.
Norris-Tirrell, D. and Clay, J. A., 2016. Strategic collaboration in public and nonprofit
administration: A practice-based approach to solving shared problems. CRC Press.
Shapira, H., Ketchie, A. and Nehe, M., 2017. The integration of design thinking and strategic
sustainable development. Journal of Cleaner Production. 140. pp.277-287.
Stacey, R. D., 2016. The chaos frontier: creative strategic control for business. Butterworth-
Heinemann.
Online
Ben Stevens., 2018. Retail Gazette. [Online]. Available through:
<https://www.retailgazette.co.uk/blog/2018/04/amazon-now-5th-largest-retailer-uk/>.
Customer Experience magazine. 2019. [Online]. Available through: <https://cxm.co.uk/whats-
really-wrong-at-BUTTLES Plc/>.
Marketing Week. 2019. [Online]. Available through:
<https://www.marketingweek.com/2014/03/13/BUTTLES Plc-unveils-five-point-
marketing-plan-to-revive-fortunes/>.
Marketing Week. 2019. [Online]. Available through:
<https://www.marketingweek.com/2018/07/03/BUTTLES Plc-producers-shopkeepers-
tv-ad/>.
Retail Economics. 2019. [Online]. Available through: <https://www.retaileconomics.co.uk/top-
10-retailers-uk-top-10-retailers>.
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