Classic Knitwear and Guardian: A Perfect Fit? (Brief Case) SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Sales & Marketing
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of Classic Knitwear and Guardian: A Perfect Fit? (Brief Case)
Classic Knitwear manufactures and distributes casual apparel, either unbranded or under a private-label brand name. Partly because Classic has no brand recognition with consumers, gross margins are low. To improve margins, the company considers partnering via a licensing agreement with Guardian, a manufacturer of insect repellent that has developed superior repellent technology for clothing. Unlike Classic Knitwear, Guardian is a well-known and well-respected brand in its target market of outdoor enthusiasts, and Classic Knitwear wants to take advantage of this by selling the new clothing line under the Guardian brand. The partnership presents many new opportunities for Classic Knitwear along with many risks. The CEO wants a quick decision in time for the company's upcoming investor call. The case explores challenges in product development, brand management, and consumer marketing. Students are required to complete a breakeven analysis and estimate product demand based on data presented in the case.
Swot Analysis of "Classic Knitwear and Guardian: A Perfect Fit? (Brief Case)" written by John A. Quelch, Patricia Girardi includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Knitwear Classic facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in Classic Knitwear and Guardian: A Perfect Fit? (Brief Case) case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Forecasting, Joint ventures, Market research, Product development, Sales and Sales & Marketing.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the Classic Knitwear and Guardian: A Perfect Fit? (Brief Case) casestudy better are - – there is increasing trade war between United States & China, increasing transportation and logistics costs, there is backlash against globalization, cloud computing is disrupting traditional business models, challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, increasing government debt because of Covid-19 spendings,
supply chains are disrupted by pandemic , competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of Classic Knitwear and Guardian: A Perfect Fit? (Brief Case)
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in Classic Knitwear and Guardian: A Perfect Fit? (Brief Case) case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Knitwear Classic, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Knitwear Classic operates in.
According to Harvard Business Review, 75% of the managers use SWOT analysis for various purposes such as – evaluating current scenario, strategic planning, new venture feasibility, personal growth goals, new market entry, Go To market strategies, portfolio management and strategic trade-off assessment, organizational restructuring, etc.
SWOT Objectives / Importance of SWOT Analysis and SWOT Matrix
SWOT analysis of Classic Knitwear and Guardian: A Perfect Fit? (Brief Case) can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in Classic Knitwear and Guardian: A Perfect Fit? (Brief Case) case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Knitwear Classic
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Sales & Marketing field.
4. Making a Sales & Marketing topic specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Knitwear Classic
Strengths Classic Knitwear and Guardian: A Perfect Fit? (Brief Case) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Knitwear Classic in Classic Knitwear and Guardian: A Perfect Fit? (Brief Case) Harvard Business Review case study are -
Highly skilled collaborators
– Knitwear Classic has highly efficient outsourcing and offshoring strategy. It has resulted in greater operational flexibility and bringing down the costs in highly price sensitive segment. Secondly the value chain collaborators of the firm in Classic Knitwear and Guardian: A Perfect Fit? (Brief Case) HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Knitwear Classic in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Training and development
– Knitwear Classic has one of the best training and development program in the industry. The effectiveness of the training programs can be measured in Classic Knitwear and Guardian: A Perfect Fit? (Brief Case) Harvard Business Review case study by analyzing – employees retention, in-house promotion, loyalty, new venture initiation, lack of conflict, and high level of both employees and customer engagement.
High switching costs
– The high switching costs that Knitwear Classic has built up over years in its products and services combo offer has resulted in high retention of customers, lower marketing costs, and greater ability of the firm to focus on its customers.
Strong track record of project management
– Knitwear Classic is known for sticking to its project targets. This enables the firm to manage – time, project costs, and have sustainable margins on the projects.
Innovation driven organization
– Knitwear Classic is one of the most innovative firm in sector. Manager in Classic Knitwear and Guardian: A Perfect Fit? (Brief Case) Harvard Business Review case study can use Clayton Christensen Disruptive Innovation strategies to further increase the scale of innovtions in the organization.
Organizational Resilience of Knitwear Classic
– The covid-19 pandemic has put organizational resilience at the centre of everthing that Knitwear Classic does. Organizational resilience comprises - Financial Resilience, Operational Resilience, Technological Resilience, Organizational Resilience, Business Model Resilience, and Reputation Resilience.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Knitwear Classic is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the Classic Knitwear and Guardian: A Perfect Fit? (Brief Case) are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Digital Transformation in Sales & Marketing segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Knitwear Classic digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Knitwear Classic has successfully integrated the four key components of digital transformation – digital integration in processes, digital integration in marketing and customer relationship management, digital integration into the value chain, and using technology to explore new products and market opportunities.
Effective Research and Development (R&D)
– Knitwear Classic has innovation driven culture where significant part of the revenues are spent on the research and development activities. This has resulted in, as mentioned in case study Classic Knitwear and Guardian: A Perfect Fit? (Brief Case) - staying ahead in the industry in terms of – new product launches, superior customer experience, highly competitive pricing strategies, and great returns to the shareholders.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Knitwear Classic has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Knitwear Classic has effective processes in place that helps in exploring new product needs, doing quick pilot testing, and then launching the products quickly using its extensive distribution network.
Diverse revenue streams
– Knitwear Classic is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in Classic Knitwear and Guardian: A Perfect Fit? (Brief Case) case study a diverse revenue stream that has helped it to survive disruptions such as global pandemic in Covid-19, financial disruption of 2008, and supply chain disruption of 2021.
Weaknesses Classic Knitwear and Guardian: A Perfect Fit? (Brief Case) | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of Classic Knitwear and Guardian: A Perfect Fit? (Brief Case) are -
Slow to strategic competitive environment developments
– As Classic Knitwear and Guardian: A Perfect Fit? (Brief Case) HBR case study mentions - Knitwear Classic takes time to assess the upcoming competitions. This has led to missing out on atleast 2-3 big opportunities in the industry in last five years.
Increasing silos among functional specialists
– The organizational structure of Knitwear Classic is dominated by functional specialists. It is not different from other players in the Sales & Marketing segment. Knitwear Classic needs to de-silo the office environment to harness the true potential of its workforce. Secondly the de-silo will also help Knitwear Classic to focus more on services rather than just following the product oriented approach.
Compensation and incentives
– The revenue per employee as mentioned in the HBR case study Classic Knitwear and Guardian: A Perfect Fit? (Brief Case), is just above the industry average. Knitwear Classic needs to redesign the compensation structure and incentives to increase the revenue per employees. Some of the steps that it can take are – hiring more specialists on project basis, etc.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study Classic Knitwear and Guardian: A Perfect Fit? (Brief Case), it seems that company is thinking about the frontier risks that can impact Sales & Marketing strategy. But it has very little resources allocation to manage the risks emerging from events such as natural disasters, climate change, melting of permafrost, tacking the rise of artificial intelligence, opportunities and threats emerging from commercialization of space etc.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Knitwear Classic has not been able to do capital spending to the tune of the competition. This has resulted into fewer innovations and company facing stiff competition from both existing competitors and new entrants who are disrupting the industry using digital technology.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Knitwear Classic, firm in the HBR case study Classic Knitwear and Guardian: A Perfect Fit? (Brief Case) needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Skills based hiring
– The stress on hiring functional specialists at Knitwear Classic has created an environment where the organization is dominated by functional specialists rather than management generalist. This has resulted into product oriented approach rather than marketing oriented approach or consumers oriented approach.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, John A. Quelch, Patricia Girardi suggests that, Knitwear Classic is facing high bargaining power of the channel partners. So far it has not able to streamline the operations to reduce the bargaining power of the value chain partners in the industry.
Slow to harness new channels of communication
– Even though competitors are using new communication channels such as Instagram, Tiktok, and Snap, Knitwear Classic is slow explore the new channels of communication. These new channels of communication mentioned in marketing section of case study Classic Knitwear and Guardian: A Perfect Fit? (Brief Case) can help to provide better information regarding products and services. It can also build an online community to further reach out to potential customers.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the Classic Knitwear and Guardian: A Perfect Fit? (Brief Case) HBR case study still accounts for major business revenue. This dependence on star products in has resulted into insufficient focus on developing new products, even though Knitwear Classic has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
High cash cycle compare to competitors
Knitwear Classic has a high cash cycle compare to other players in the industry. It needs to shorten the cash cycle by 12% to be more competitive in the marketplace, reduce inventory costs, and be more profitable.
Opportunities Classic Knitwear and Guardian: A Perfect Fit? (Brief Case) | External Strategic Factors
What are Opportunities in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The opportunities highlighted in the Harvard Business Review case study Classic Knitwear and Guardian: A Perfect Fit? (Brief Case) are -
Identify volunteer opportunities
– Covid-19 has impacted working population in two ways – it has led to people soul searching about their professional choices, resulting in mass resignation. Secondly it has encouraged people to do things that they are passionate about. This has opened opportunities for businesses to build volunteer oriented socially driven projects. Knitwear Classic can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Reconfiguring business model
– The expansion of digital payment system, the bringing down of international transactions costs using Bitcoin and other blockchain based currencies, etc can help Knitwear Classic to reconfigure its entire business model. For example it can used blockchain based technologies to reduce piracy of its products in the big markets such as China. Secondly it can use the popularity of e-commerce in various developing markets to build a Direct to Customer business model rather than the current Channel Heavy distribution network.
Changes in consumer behavior post Covid-19
– Consumer behavior has changed in the Sales & Marketing industry because of Covid-19 restrictions. Some of this behavior will stay once things get back to normal. Knitwear Classic can take advantage of these changes in consumer behavior to build a far more efficient business model. For example consumer regular ordering of products can reduce both last mile delivery costs and market penetration costs. Knitwear Classic can further use this consumer data to build better customer loyalty, provide better products and service collection, and improve the value proposition in inflationary times.
Use of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies for transactions
– The popularity of Bitcoin and other crypto currencies as asset class and medium of transaction has opened new opportunities for Knitwear Classic in the consumer business. Now Knitwear Classic can target international markets with far fewer capital restrictions requirements than the existing system.
Buying journey improvements
– Knitwear Classic can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. Classic Knitwear and Guardian: A Perfect Fit? (Brief Case) suggest that firm can provide automated chats to help consumers solve their own problems, provide online suggestions to get maximum out of the products and services, and help consumers to build a community where they can interact with each other to develop new features and uses.
Redefining models of collaboration and team work
– As explained in the weaknesses section, Knitwear Classic is facing challenges because of the dominance of functional experts in the organization. Classic Knitwear and Guardian: A Perfect Fit? (Brief Case) case study suggests that firm can utilize new technology to build more coordinated teams and streamline operations and communications using tools such as CAD, Zoom, etc.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Knitwear Classic in the field of marketing communication. It will bring down the cost of doing business, provide technology platform to build new products in the Sales & Marketing segment, and it will provide faster access to the consumers.
Leveraging digital technologies
– Knitwear Classic can leverage digital technologies such as artificial intelligence and machine learning to automate the production process, customer analytics to get better insights into consumer behavior, realtime digital dashboards to get better sales tracking, logistics and transportation, product tracking, etc.
Creating value in data economy
– The success of analytics program of Knitwear Classic has opened avenues for new revenue streams for the organization in the industry. This can help Knitwear Classic to build a more holistic ecosystem as suggested in the Classic Knitwear and Guardian: A Perfect Fit? (Brief Case) case study. Knitwear Classic can build new products and services such as - data insight services, data privacy related products, data based consulting services, etc.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Knitwear Classic to increase its market reach. Knitwear Classic will be able to reach out to new customers. Secondly 5G will also provide technology framework to build new tools and products that can help more immersive consumer experience and faster consumer journey.
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Knitwear Classic to expand its talent hiring zone. According to McKinsey Global Institute, 20% of the high end workforce in fields such as finance, information technology, can continously work from remote local post Covid-19. This presents a really great opportunity for Knitwear Classic to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Knitwear Classic can make experimentation a productive activity and build a culture of innovation using approaches such as – mining transaction data, A/B testing of websites and selling platforms, engaging potential customers over various needs, and building on small ideas in the Sales & Marketing segment.
Learning at scale
– Online learning technologies has now opened space for Knitwear Classic to conduct training and development for its employees across the world. This will result in not only reducing the cost of training but also help employees in different part of the world to integrate with the headquarter work culture, ethos, and standards.
Threats Classic Knitwear and Guardian: A Perfect Fit? (Brief Case) External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study Classic Knitwear and Guardian: A Perfect Fit? (Brief Case) are -
Easy access to finance
– Easy access to finance in Sales & Marketing field will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. Knitwear Classic can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Technology acceleration in Forth Industrial Revolution
– Knitwear Classic has witnessed rapid integration of technology during Covid-19 in the Sales & Marketing industry. As one of the leading players in the industry, Knitwear Classic needs to keep up with the evolution of technology in the Sales & Marketing sector. According to Mckinsey study top managers believe that the adoption of technology in operations, communications is 20-25 times faster than what they planned in the beginning of 2019.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Knitwear Classic can face lack of demand in the market place because of Fed actions to reduce inflation. This can lead to sluggish growth in the economy, lower demands, lower investments, higher borrowing costs, and consolidation in the field.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Knitwear Classic can face downward pressure on margins from increasing competition from international players. The international players have stable revenue in their home market and can use those resources to penetrate prominent markets illustrated in HBR case study Classic Knitwear and Guardian: A Perfect Fit? (Brief Case) .
Aging population
– As the populations of most advanced economies are aging, it will lead to high social security costs, higher savings among population, and lower demand for goods and services in the economy. The household savings in US, France, UK, Germany, and Japan are growing faster than predicted because of uncertainty caused by pandemic.
Regulatory challenges
– Knitwear Classic needs to prepare for regulatory challenges as consumer protection groups and other pressure groups are vigorously advocating for more regulations on big business - to reduce inequality, to create a level playing field, to product data privacy and consumer privacy, to reduce the influence of big money on democratic institutions, etc. This can lead to significant changes in the Sales & Marketing industry regulations.
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Knitwear Classic is facing in Sales & Marketing sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
High level of anxiety and lack of motivation
– the Great Resignation in United States is the sign of broader dissatisfaction among the workforce in United States. Knitwear Classic needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Sales & Marketing industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Consumer confidence and its impact on Knitwear Classic demand
– There is a high probability of declining consumer confidence, given – high inflammation rate, rise of gig economy, lower job stability, increasing cost of living, higher interest rates, and aging demography. All the factors contribute to people saving higher rate of their income, resulting in lower consumer demand in the industry and other sectors.
Increasing wage structure of Knitwear Classic
– Post Covid-19 there is a sharp increase in the wages especially in the jobs that require interaction with people. The increasing wages can put downward pressure on the margins of Knitwear Classic.
Capital market disruption
– During the Covid-19, Dow Jones has touched record high. The valuations of a number of companies are way beyond their existing business model potential. This can lead to capital market correction which can put a number of suppliers, collaborators, value chain partners in great financial difficulty. It will directly impact the business of Knitwear Classic.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Knitwear Classic with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
Learning curve for new practices
– As the technology based on artificial intelligence and machine learning platform is getting complex, as highlighted in case study Classic Knitwear and Guardian: A Perfect Fit? (Brief Case), Knitwear Classic may face longer learning curve for training and development of existing employees. This can open space for more nimble competitors in the field of Sales & Marketing .
Weighted SWOT Analysis of Classic Knitwear and Guardian: A Perfect Fit? (Brief Case) Template, Example
Not all factors mentioned under the Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities, and Threats quadrants in the SWOT Analysis are equal. Managers in the HBR case study Classic Knitwear and Guardian: A Perfect Fit? (Brief Case) needs to zero down on the relative importance of each factor mentioned in the Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities, and Threats quadrants.
We can provide the relative importance to each factor by assigning relative weights. Weighted SWOT analysis process is a three stage process –
First stage for doing weighted SWOT analysis of the case study Classic Knitwear and Guardian: A Perfect Fit? (Brief Case) is to rank the strengths and weaknesses of the organization. This will help you to assess the most important strengths and weaknesses of the firm and which one of the strengths and weaknesses mentioned in the initial lists are marginal and can be left out.
Second stage for conducting weighted SWOT analysis of the Harvard case study Classic Knitwear and Guardian: A Perfect Fit? (Brief Case) is to give probabilities to the external strategic factors thus better understanding the opportunities and threats arising out of macro environment changes and developments.
Third stage of constructing weighted SWOT analysis of Classic Knitwear and Guardian: A Perfect Fit? (Brief Case) is to provide strategic recommendations includes – joining likelihood of external strategic factors such as opportunities and threats to the internal strategic factors – strengths and weaknesses. You should start with external factors as they will provide the direction of the overall industry. Secondly by joining probabilities with internal strategic factors can help the company not only strategic fit but also the most probably strategic trade-off that Knitwear Classic needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.
