...A Report - Microfridge: The Concept by Group 3A Background and concept of the product In 1987, Mr. Robert Bennett wanted to explore and exploit his idea to combine a refrigerator, freezer, and 500-watt microwave oven into a single unit called “Microfridge”. He is 31 years old and has a Master’s degree in engineering. He had devised electronic circuitry that shut off power to the refrigerator/freezer whenever the microwave was switched on. A hot plate and a refrigerator would draw 20 amps whereas the unit he designed would never pull more than 10 amps of current. Financials To this end, he approached a number of major electronic goods’ manufacturers and Samsung and Sanyo agreed to consider its production. Sanyo offered to provide the product at the rate of $263 per unit. According to them, the estimation of upfront tooling payment was $170,000. Following that, Bennett added $300,000 for the first year of selling and administration hoping he would earn a return of 15% of the selling price (Selling price of $309 on Sanyo’s Landed price). He also is planning to leave his job and use the proceeds of $50000 in funding. Surveys To go ahead with his idea, Bennett approached Boston’s Atlantic Research to conduct interviews with 200 Massachusetts. This gave him an idea about the demand of the product in the market and his end customers’ expectations. His research found that students were interested in the concept of micro-fridge because 90% of the students were using hazardous appliance...
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...MicroFridge, Inc. (now a subsidiary of Mac-Gray, Inc.) was an entrepreneurial startup in 1989. It grew quickly due to the intelligence and drive of its founder, Bob Bennett, making it an Inc. Magazine 500 winner. I became the company's first Director of Marketing in January of 1994 and worked there until late 1997, just prior to the Mac-Gray acquisition. Situation: In late 1994, MicroFridge had come to the realization that its dependence on the College Housing market had to change. Sales to that sector had plateaued in 1993, which partially spurred the creation of the College Rental Program (see Case Study). Sales in its other segments, i.e. Hotel/Motel and Military Bases, had not been a major contributor to its success to date. As a marketer with not quite a year in the company, I felt that there were two primary issues preventing us from growing. One was that our sales structure was focused only on the college market. The second was that our selling proposition was exclusively factual and quantitative. Bob, an extremely gifted salesman with a quantitative mind, had created a strong selling proposition to the college housing officer, based on the benefits of increased occupancy of residence halls. The message had been successful in the first few years of the company's existence, as evidenced by the "Inc. Magazine 500" award. But after a while, practically anyone who was going to buy into the concept already had. Furthermore, structural problems blocked further...
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...Deograsius Ssesimba Case study, MicroFridge; The Concept The Microfridge, Is a devised electronic circuitry that shuts off power to the refrigerator whenever the microwave oven is switched on and pulls less than 20 amps of current, is a 1+1>2 device which can offer those who are in concern of using electronic appliances safely like college students and retailers a safer, more convenient and inexpensive combination of microwave and fridge. For college students: Exclusivity: This microfridge is meant for individuals they own this during their study period. It helps them to get free from dependency on college mess. They need not to stick to college timings to care for food. They can have any food at any time of their own choice. Cost Savings: As microfridge is cheap and can be used for multiple purposes so they are having cost savings as compared to purchasing separate fridge and oven. Also they can have food own their own without fear of fire and also allows safe cooking in the student’s room. Time Savings: As students have to move to college mess for food and wait in queue for their turn, all they have to do is put food in oven and utilize the time till food is ready for some other useful purpose. Lesser worry :Parents have no worry about their children when they are away like whether they have had food or not and what quality of food they are having as they knew that they can have packed food and get it warm at any time. At same time parents are free from thinking...
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...on in this manner decreasing the danger of flame to a base by constraining current to 10 amps. 4. Market-College understudies who live in hostel Background A blend of an icebox, freezer and 500 watt microwave broiler into a solitary unit which is another item in the business sector and consequently gives the first mover's leverage to the producer as well. Background A blend of an icebox, freezer and 500 watt microwave broiler into a solitary unit which is another item in the business sector and consequently gives the first mover's leverage to the producer as well. Goals/Objectives 1. Sale of Microfridge to college students 2. 15% return on the Selling Price or $309 on Sanyo’s landed price 3. Provide a safe option of cooking for college students 4. A respectable Rate Of Return in the long run Goals/Objectives 5. Sale of Microfridge to college students 6. 15% return on the Selling Price or $309 on Sanyo’s landed price 7. Provide a safe option of cooking for college students 8. A respectable Rate Of Return in the long run Guidelines 1. Possible speculation of around $530000. 2. Alliance with domestic apparatuses makers e.g. Samsung or Sanyo. 3. Patents are conceivable to be made. 4. A First to the market item. 5. Use only distributors and not keep house accounts due to lack of experience. Guidelines 6. Possible speculation of around $530000. 7. Alliance with...
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...Microfridge Issues a) How to produce? b) Customer? c) Sanyo offer? d) How to distribute? Distributor or direct method? (Collaborator) e) Cost of the product and profit from it? (Pricing) Objectives 1. To be able to introduce the micro fridge. 2. Target the academic institutions and hotels. 3. Arrive at a competitive price that gives him at least 15% return. 4. Find a manufacturer? Constraints Low capital - Robert has just $50,000 to start up his business, which is eventually not enough. Manufacturing problem – GE, Amana and other domestic manufacturers were not interested. SANYO and Samsung agreed to manufacture his product provided Bennett agreed to pay all the upfront cost. Administration, Legal, Patent & other miscellaneous expenses: Besides upfront and basic product cost Bennett has to pay for these expenses as well. Potential buyers: Bennett was not very sure of his targeting customers. 1. Patent the electronic circuitry and use the patent to raise capital (loan from bank or find an investor). 2. Bennett should try to negotiate with Sanyo or Samsung, to pay the upfront cost of $170,000 once the sales starts. 3. Choose the way of delivering the product, distributor or direct? Uniqueness of the product - Compact. Less power consuming. Ability to switch between the appliances. (Competitiveness) Target customers - college hostels, hotels, hospitals, service apartments, dormitories. (Customer) ...
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...MBA 6050 Marketing Management and Strategy College of Business Administration Bowling Green State University Spring 2014 Instructor: Dr. David A. Reid Phone: (419) 372-3410 Office: 285 Business Administration Building Fax: (419) 372-8062 E-Mail: dreid@bgsu.edu Class Hours: MW 1:30 - 2:45 p.m. (in BA116) Office Hours: MW 12:30 - 1:15 p.m.; 3:00 – 4:15 p.m., and other times by appointment “Marketing…is the whole business seen from the point of view of its final result, that is, from the customer’s point of view. Concern and responsibility for marketing must, therefore, permeate all areas of the enterprise.” - Peter F. Drucker, People and Performance, 1977 Required Textbook • Managing Marketing in the 21st Century: Developing and Implementing the Market Strategy, 3rd ed., by Noel Capon (www.axcesscapon.com, 2012). Available through www.axcesscapon.com (as a PDF file or in paperback), as well as Amazon.com or BN.com in either paperback or electronic format and in paperback through the University Bookstore. Required Cases • Harvard Business School Cases: listed in course outline. Cases are available for purchase online through Harvard Business School Press (Coursepack Link for purchasing cases listed below with list of cases). Introduction and Overview In their never-ending search for the ultimate secret to business success, many businesses continue to overlook the most fundamental premise of all business. While their search for...
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...Chapter 09 Segmenting, Positioning, and Forecasting Markets Multiple Choice 1. The affluent Asian adult survey by Synovate __________ individuals according to their different attitudes, media exposures and habits, and product consumption patterns. a) categorizes b) ranks c) isolates d) distinguishes e) promote Ans: a Feedback: The individuals are categorized according to their different attitudes, media exposures and habits, and product consumption patterns. Page: 241 Learning Objective: 1 2. What can be concluded about the affluent Asian adults from the survey? a) Marketers should focus their marketing efforts on all groups b) Marketers may use different messages to sell the same products to same group c) Affluent adults in Asia are a homogenous group d) Marketers will not seek to reach out to them in the same way e) All of the above can be concluded from the survey Ans: d Feedback: Marketers will not treat them as one group, and will not seek to reach out to them in the same way. Page: 242 Learning Objective: 1 3. Which of the following statements about the affluent Asian adult is true? a) “Luxury Loyalists” tend to purchase more of the digital products such as laptops and MP3 players. b) “Executive Warriors” have the highest penetration for the Internet and usage of e-mail and instant messaging c) The “HUMmers,” hungry, urban, and mobile individuals, make up the largest group of affluent Asian adults d) The “Gimmes,” younger adults between...
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...Marketing Management, Millenium Edition Philip Kotler Custom Edition for University of Phoenix Excerpts taken from: A Framework for Marketing Management, by Philip Kotler Copyright © 2001by Prentice-Hall, Inc. A Pearson Education Company Upper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458 Marketing Management Millenium Edition, Tenth Edition, by Philip Kotler Copyright © 2000 by Prentice-Hall, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, in any form or by any means, without permission in writing from the publisher. Compilation Copyright © 2002 by Pearson Custom Publishing. This copyright covers material written expressly for this volume by the editor/s as well as the compilation itself. It does not cover the individual selections herein that first appeared elsewhere. Permission to reprint these has been obtained by Pearson Custom Publishing for this edition only. Further reproduction by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by any information storage or retrieval system, must be arranged with the individual copyright holders noted. This special edition published in cooperation with Pearson Custom Publishing Printed in the United States of America 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Please visit our web site at www.pearsoncustom.com ISBN 0–536–63099-2 BA 993095 PEARSON CUSTOM PUBLISHING 75 Arlington Street, Suite 300, Boston, MA 02116 A Pearson Education Company SECTION ONE Understanding Marketing Management Marketing in...
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