Is There Scope For A New Business In My Local Area?

Section 1- Aim.

I believe there is one aspect of retail that is missing in my local area; therefore I have chosen to start up a shoe shop. This shoe shop will cater for all needs and all types of shoes: glamorous, work, general etc. I will be undertaking my investigation by asking people to answer simple questionnaires in order for me to see if a shoe shop is really wanted and needed in my local area (Wallington.) and if so who the likely customers will be. I will then be looking at data and statistics to help me with my secondary information. I will be asking mainly middle-aged people, as they seem to over rule the age groups in Wallington. I will be then considering the marketing mix – Price, Product, Place and Promotion, to help me come to a conclusion as to whether there is scope for the shoe shop.

1.2- Objectives.

Section 2- Methodology and Questionnaire.

For the methodology I will note how I carried out the investigation, and the questionnaire will include approximately 10 questions, which will make the basis of my primary research.

Section 3- Data Presentation and Data Analysis

Here, I will explain briefly how my data was collected and what I hope to achieve from each question. My data from my questionnaire will then be presented in graphs excluding personal information. For data analysis I will try and explain how I came to my results and compare them to other data and information previously collected. For example I may analyse the age range of customers for my shoe shop.

Section 4- Secondary Research.

For my secondary research I will be looking on the Internet, at previous statistics (from a ...

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Section 3- Data Presentation and Data Analysis

Section 4- Secondary Research.

For my secondary research I will be looking on the Internet, at previous statistics (from a census) and looking through library reports. I will also include a map or photograph of my area, which may be useful as it can show possible locations of competitors. I may also ask other well-known shoe shops what their best way of advertisement was for them and which age group mostly shops there.

Section 5- Marketing Mix-Product, Price, Promotion and Place (4Ps)

In this section I will be making my marketing proposals regarding my new business. I will include a brief introduction, which will explain the contents of each section of the marketing mix (4P’s- Price, Product, Place and Promotion.) I shall support my argument with additional information and consider the advantages and disadvantages of each aspect of the marketing mix. I must use my research accordingly to find the best marketing mix for my shoe shop.

Section 6- Final Section.

In this final section I shall present my findings, an evaluation, my conclusion and recommendations. This will contain comments and important findings which will help me if I was to redo my investigation. Lastly I shall include my appendices and Bibliography. This is all the information I used and the websites, books and other resources I used throughout the project which helped establish my initial information.

1.3- Methodology

I will be investigating the scope for a new shoe shop in my area and to do this I will need to do certain amounts of research.

Primary Research.

My primary research was mainly found out from questionnaires, which I will ask local people to answer. To do this I need to use some kind of sampling, not to discriminate or stereotype I will use random sampling. This means I will ask people at random no matter their age or gender. My shoe shop is open for all age ranges so I will not need to be too specific of age when presenting my questionnaire. My questionnaire will contain ten questions with a multiple of answers, this enables me to percentage my answers so analysis will be easier. These questions will allow me to predict and encounter my potential customers and therefore I will be able to base my final plans upon what they want from my shop. My questionnaires will enable me to decide who my shoe shop will be open for, what type of market I will be open for and the range of shoes in my shop.

My sampling size will be approximately 50 people; this I believe will allow me to get a fair overview of my potential customers. I believe the larger the sampling size the easier it will be to calculate and analysis. It will also mean my findings will be more reliable. With 50 questionnaires I will be able to calculate percentages easily and quickly.

I will use graphs and presentations to help analyse why I arrived at this result and I will then need to relate it to the Market Mix.

Secondary Research.

For this I will be using information which already exists, and therefore will be using the internet for example to find out previous information which should hopefully be up-to-date and recent. I will be investigating the population statistics of my area using the Internet and previous Census’. This will allow me to calculate how big my potential public will be. This will hopefully be big enough for my shop to make a profit and survive upon. I will also be adding maps and photographs which will locate competitors and local shoe shops which may be a threat to my new business. If they are nearby they may become a problem and will therefore need to be investigated further and this will occur in my secondary research. Alongside this I shall be investigating transport links to my shoe shop. I will also be using other information sources e.g. The Yellow Pages. By doing this I can pinpoint all competitors within range, which my help me compete for customers and advertise accurately. I may discover that I will need huge amounts of special offers and advertising to ensure my shop will take priority and become most popular.