Analysis of the External Environment and Competitors Thea
In order to analyze the external environment of Circuit City a number of analytical tools were used. The Porter’s Five Forces Model is used to assess the strength of five competitive forces. An analysis of stakeholders is used to explore the impact Circuit City has outside of the company. The opportunities and threats are assessed. Strategic Group Mapping is used to gage the company within its industry. Finally, key success factors are used to explore what has worked and what has not in the past with both Circuit City and industry competitors. Following is the information and conclusions drawn from these tools.
The Porter’s Five Forces Model (see appendix I) is used to explore the strength of five competitive forces: competitors, substitutes, entry, suppliers, and buyers. The rivalry among firms in the consumer electronics retailing business is moderate to strong. The main competitive firms to Circuit City include Best Buy and Wal-Mart. Price is a large factor in the competitive environment, especially price on large items including laptops and flat-screen televisions. There is also competitive rivalry around the customer service, warranties/guarantees, and store environments.
There are not a large number of competing firms in the consumer electronics retail industry, and the firms that do exist in the market have unequal size and growth. Consumers have low switching cost. It would cost more for a retailer to get out of the business than to stay in. Many firms have diverse strategies but they do tend to use each other as benchmarkers.
The threat of new entrants in the consumer electronics industry is moderate to low. There are not a lot of competitors in the field. There is little reaction from Circuit City and Best Buy if a new entrant were to enter the industry. Newcomers will not likely see attractive profits. There barriers to entry in the consumer electronics industry include strong loyalty to existing retailers, cost disadvantage of small size firms, capital requirements to start in the industry, strong capital is needed to secure real estate, inventory and other start-up fees.
The threat of substitutes is low in the consumer electronic industry. There are not a lot of substitutes in the industry. When a consumer wishes to purchase an electronic service or product there are not limited choices. Either a bricks and mortar store or from an e-commerce site.
The competitive force of suppliers is strong. The inventory in a consumer electronics store is their most valuable asset. Without the support of suppliers there is little chance of a store creating sales and other sales creating incentives. It is costly for a buyer to switch suppliers. If a product is available at one consumer electronics store than consumers will also expect to find the product in the competitor’s store. There are not very many suppliers available in the market and therefore the few that are hold a lot of power.
The competitive force of buyer is strong. They are sizable purchases made in the industry and make up a large majority of the industry’s product. The choices that the buyer makes have a considerable effect on the store, whether they choice is where to shop or what to buy when they chose a store.
Overall the external competitive environment for Circuit City is moderate. Its strongest competitive forces are the industry rivals, Best Buy and Wal-Mart. There are strong barriers to entry, and good substitutes do not exist.
As part of SWOT analysis (see appendix III), opportunities and threats are used to look at the external environment of the company. The opportunities explore both what is happening internally at Circuit City and externally that will have a positive impact on the company. Threats are also from either inside to outside of the company. A threat is something that could negatively influence the firm. If action is taken threats can be averted. The most important aspect of threats is awareness, if Circuit City is aware of existing threats the company will be better able to react.
Circuit City’s opportunities include; increase in online retail spending, because Circuit City has many issues with the placement of their retail locations and the look of their locations. The increase in online spending helps them bypass this problem. The growth in the electronics is also an opportunity, although home buying and other consumer spending has decreased, purchases of larger electronic items such as flat screen televisions have increased and experts do not see changes in this trend.
Other opportunities that Circuit City is creating for themselves include the upgrade of their stores appearance and image. As possible, stores are getting made over to become cleaner and brighter, also by decreasing the size of the stores, and moving them to more accessible locations.
Threats that are pertinent to Circuit City include; the increasing cost of rental space, especially in the prime locations that Circuit City want to move stores to. Also, as stated in Porter’s Five Forces Model that power of suppliers is strong and dependence is increasing. Possibly the strongest threat to Circuit City is the competition. Circuit City is number two in the consumer electronics stores after Best Buy, because of the size, strength, and capital of Best Buy it would be difficult if not impossible for Circuit City to surpass them in volume. Another competitive force that is a large threat for Circuit City is the increase in electronics sales by retailers such as Wal-Mart and Target. Consumers are now interested in the one stop shopping of these retailers.
In the consumer electronics industry, the main success factors include; brand recognition, selection, and add-on services. Many consumers shop based on brand recognition, often consumers are wary when purchasing electronics and those who are much more likely to shop at a store that they are familiar with. When consumers decide on an electronics store; selection is a top priority, stores that offer a wide array of products in a wide variety of brands will have an advantage over those stores that do not. Newer to the consumer electronics industry is the add-on of services; these include warranties, services to set-up purchases, and services to help with any technical problems. These services offer a great value to consumers and even if they are utilized they can often be of consideration when choosing a retailer.
The environmental forces that are most likely to influence Circuit City’s actions and future performance are the economic forces including interest rates, consumer’s disposable income, and the general economic environment of the consumer market. Electronics is one of the most fluctuating industries with the external economic environment. As the price of high priced items, such as plasma televisions decline the ability for more consumers to purchase these items will increase, as the return on these products is low, the more sales that take place the more profit Circuit City can make.
Circuit City’s future will be greatly affected by changes that Best Buy is making. Best Buy is opening smaller stores, comparable to the size of Circuit City. The consumer reaction to this change will have a large impact on Circuit City. Best Buy and Circuit City have been experiencing varying stock prices and the future of both of firms will be closely watched by investors. Changes that are being implemented or will be in the future will have a great impact on both companies. Wal-Mart and its continuing growth into new industries also poses a large threat to Circuit City, because of Wal-Mart’s ability to sell items at lower prices there is a threat that Circuit City’s customers will look to Wal-Mart to find deeply discounted item, even if they do not have the services to go with them.
Analysis of Organization (Internal Analysis) Theresa
Even though Circuit City is the second largest consumer electronics retailer in the United States there is still a great deal of improvement that can be made internally to gain a greater amount of competitive advantage. Circuit City has a number of strengths and weaknesses in their internal environment. Circuit City does have some internal strengths it depends on to keep a competitive advantage and to remain as a predominate figure in this market.
Throughout the past five years Circuit City has had to make major changes to the structure of the corporation to deal with their financial loss. One of the more basic strengths is the store name. Everyone has heard of this company and associates the name with reliable electronics. There are more specific strengths that have helped to get the company out of debt. First of all there have been changes to the layout to better accommodate the customers. They also consolidated their merchandise information to one central location. This means that products are available when and where the consumers are demanding it. Circuit City has been consolidating so they are now more cost effective. The consolidation should save around $110 million in 2007 and an estimated $140 million in 2009 (Pinkerton, 1). Circuit City is also working with its vendors to improve pricing change response and create a greater awareness of pricing for customers. They are also lowering the prices of extended warranties on flat panel televisions since there has been a decline in the prices. To deal the layoffs of several high paid, knowledgeable employees, Circuit City has a training program to quickly educate new employees. As most consumers are aware, Circuit City has an installation service. With Firedog, Circuit City differentiates themselves from the competition. Competitive advantage lies in the services offered to the customers. They offer installation services, accessories, warranties, and Hi Def feeds.
There are also several weaknesses that Circuit City has to address. Since Circuit City had to close 55 stores internationally they have not been able to expand to new geographic areas (Pinkerton, 1). Also due to their bleak financial position two distribution centers had to be closed which makes then international distribution less efficient. There has been a great deal of change in executive management since the CFO and the Chief Merchandising Officer Douglas Moore left the company. Analysts are keeping a close eye on how the leadership changes will change the company. Circuit City has also had to layoff 3400 knowledgeable employees which has hurt their sales (Desjardins, 1). They have been replaced with lower paid employees. This cuts cost but can hurt their image. On average five employees from every store were let go which probably hurt company morale and had employees question their job security. Circuit City does not have sophisticated pricing and supply chain technology like their competitors do (Lloyd, 2). Circuit City’s financial stance is not secure, a stock drop of 46% in the past year (Hudson, 2). Competitors such as Best Buy acquired many of the locations where Circuit City was going to open now stores resulting in much fewer store opening than anticipated.
Creating a SWOT analysis is an excellent way to analyze a firms internal and external environments but it does have its limitations. It should be viewed as only a starting point for analysis. Using the information from a complete SWOT analysis, a firm can recognize their competitive advantage (see appendix III). A strategic change can be implemented to improve areas found in the weaknesses. To view a more in depth internal analysis it is important to create a value chain analysis (see appendix V). With this information it is easier to see where the greatest amount of internal value being created and where the value is lacking. Improvements can be made accordingly.
The primary activities in the value chain analysis include inbound logistics, operations, distribution, marketing and sales, and service. Inbound logistics deals with the material handling, warehousing, and inventory control. Circuit City in particular has made drastic changes to their supply chain in the last few years. Improvements were made to their supply chain organization to help identify and react to consumer demand in a timely manner. They also reduced the time it takes from buying the products from vendors to the time it gets on the shelves of the stores. To help in obtaining inventory there is Circuit City Global Sourcing, Ltd. in China, Hong Kong and Taiwan. Products are then shipped from the manufacturing centers to the nine different distribution centers through out the United States.
For the operations activities, Circuit City has implemented six sigma strategies for continual improvement. With this process quality has become a main focus to create a greater differentiation between Circuit City and its competitors. In 2001 Six Sigma was implemented to the supply chain and distribution centers. It looks to increase customer satisfaction and lower costs. In 2004 Circuit City was able to reduce the hiring process from 18days to 8 days (Heller, 1).
The primary activity of marketing and sales is involved in the purchases of products and services by the consumers, and different incentives to get the consumers in to purchase Circuit City’s products. This is an area where circuit city is lacking in value and is at a competitive disadvantage. It is required for the sales force to participate in e-learning courses to help them become more knowledgeable about their products and company. Since many senior employees were let go and replaced with new lower paid employees, their knowledge of who Circuit City is limited and consumers may notice when trying to buy new products. Also the lack of store promotion has reduced sales. Their competitors are more focused on marketing their stores than Circuit City is. Due to the dramatic decline in profits over the past two years, Circuit City has bad to cut costs and part of this retraction has been in marketing. For Circuit City to gain a competitive advantage in this activity it is essential to invest more money and time into marketing and sales.
The greatest amount of value in the internal analysis of Circuit City lies in their services. There are numerous amounts of services offered to the consumers. A few include, the variety of channels accessible to consumers to purchase products, (online, stores, catalog and phone) there are kiosks in stores so if a location is out of a particular product the consumer has the option of ordering it online, and they have firedog which installs electronics. All of the technicians are trained to be helpful, knowledgeable and reliable. Circuit City also offers a credit card with a rewards program for returning customers. Other services include online bill payment, protection plans and extended warranties. Circuit City also believes in corporate social responsibility and encourages all of their employees to participate in what they call “Heart of the City.” This is different volunteer organizations that employees have the opportunity to get involved with. Circuit City works with The Boys and Girls Club, Habitat for Humanity and United Way. In order for Circuit City to take full advantage of their service it is necessary for the consumers to know what is being offered to them. This is where their lack of marketing fails them. Marketing should focus on all of the different services Circuit City offers.
The resource based view of the firm also looks into the different resources and capabilities of a firm. Circuit City’s firm resources include both tangible and intangible assets. First of all they do have a strong financial backing. They have a low debt equity ratio which gives operational leverage from cash flow and less distractions from creditors. They have open floor designs for customers, trained employees, a strong reputation and wanted products. The next step in the resource based view is the firms’ capabilities. For this Circuit City has excellent customer service, the latest technology and the ability to maintain their reputation. What they are lacking in this area currently is employee satisfaction. There are several people speaking out against the recent layoffs. There have even been lawsuits filed against wrongful termination. The core competency for this company lies in their services. The gap lies in marketing and employee morale.
Development of Strategic Alternatives and Options Tak
The four main forces that Circuit City has to deal with are: customers, competitors, suppliers, and economic forces. The customers are very important because their main target is to satisfy their customers with the best service.
The company are trying to improved their customer shopping experience in the stores the same time and among other things are to relocate their accessories such as wires and cables and services close to the section where you can located the big ticket items or expensive items so that customers can see more quickly what they might need to furnish their home office or outfit a home theater. The company also came out with the strategy that hinges on a robust Information technology infrastructure that makes information readily accessible to customer. The company is currently improving its business from developing a more effective and efficient promotions to decide which products should be displayed at each different isle.
“Its top executives announced plans to turn the company into a customer-focused business that delivers a personalized experience to all of its customers across all of its channels” (Cio.com). The high-profile role technology will play a major role in delivering personalized customer experiences. This will able the store associates to recognize their customers through loyalty cards or reward cards as soon as they enter the store.
The company is ranked by consumer electronics as the number-three seller of consumer electronics, behind Best Buy and Wal-Mart, which were their strong competitor in the current electronics market.
The company gain their competitive advantage over its competitors through the new system knows as the point on sale (POS), this system actually supported the company commission based compensation structure by keeping track of which of their employee that made the sales. The new system also provided information for the company multi channel commerce capability and was one of the earlier retailers to shift their offline distribution into online. (Cio.com)
By introducing the new system, it allowed their customer to select more products on their own, and in addition, the internet also provided a way for many of their customers to get detailed information about the company products. This is when the company is no longer as much of a dependence on sales people. The company actually lay off 3,400 of their highest paid sales personnel with and aimed of restructuring at lowering cost and improving their financial performance. (Twice.com)
However, one of their fierce competitors, Best Buy’s Corporation competitive advantage is achieved through a scale of comprehensive service offerings and differentiated shopping experience. Their salespeople actually know what they're doing and they provided the best customer service in the store. In the Best Buy store, within a minute of browsing in a section, a Best Buy associate swings by to offer assistance. The staffer casually dispenses product info or comparisons, and just as quickly lays back if you decline the help. Best Buy is investing in an ambitious customer-centric strategy that allowed it to identify its most profitable customers. (Cio.com)
The company success is through a mechanistic organizational structure, an extensive information system detailed which included Multi Channel, Supply Chain and Six Sigma.
“Circuit City lists Multi-Channel integration as one of its primary innovation initiatives. Circuit City defines multiple channels as the different methods that customers have the option to purchase from the company; these methods include shopping in a store, ordering on the phone, on the web, or from a catalog. Circuit City also places internet kiosks in its stores so if a product is out of stock, a customer look through the internet online and directly order online. (wikipedia.com)
“Supply chain enables the company and its processes to be involved in all of the steps between obtaining product from a vendor and having the product in stock at locations for a customer to purchase. Circuit City made improvements within its supply chain organization to help identify and react to consumer demand in a timely manner as well reduce the time between buying from a vendor and display of the product at the point of sale. Most Products are shipped directly from manufacturers to the 9 Circuit City distribution centers. Enhancements will continue to be made in areas such as vendor relations, distribution and warehousing, inventory management, space planning, and supply process re-engineering” (Wikipedia.com).
“The company applies six sigma to its operations such as supply chain and distribution centers. The methodology of Six Sigma is to measure the increase customer satisfaction while bringing the cost down. The company also announced that Six Sigma was applied to very important company projects and had been used to streamline the hiring process from as much as 18 days down to 8 days. Six Sigma has since been applied to open box sales, pricing markdown reduction and testing processes such as determining the sales impact of bundling products with accessories” (Wikipedia.com).
Circuit City design includes a centralized structure, because most of their stores are privately own by the company. The company also makes an announcement that they will remain a private corporation and will not establish franchise anytime soon. The company believes it is more efficient in executing its business plan or authority as a privately held company, because a transformation would eliminate the public company transparency into the Company's operating strategy that is uniquely damaging in a highly competitive industry where Circuit City is going head-to-head with a tough battle. (Cio.com)
Phil Schoonover, president/CEO of the company said that, “We are taking a number of aggressive actions to improve our cost and expense structure, which will better position us for improved and sustainable returns in today’s marketplace. These actions represent the execution phase of the work initiated this winter to accelerate Circuit City’s transformation. We expect to deliver improvements in our selling, general and administrative expense rate while maintaining appropriate investments to drive our key strategic initiatives such as digital home services, multi channel and home entertainment” (Twice.com).
The president of the company continued by saying that, “We are continuing to challenge all aspects of our SG&A expense. We are reviewing our organizational structures to ensure that they are efficient and promote productivity; evaluating spans of control and layers of management to ensure that our front-line associates are empowered; instituting more discipline and controls around expense management; identifying overlapping functions that can be combined to drive efficiency; outsourcing functions where appropriate; and eliminating entire pieces of non-value added work. Unfortunately, a number of associates are directly impacted by the actions, but we are making Circuit City stronger for the long term” (Twice.com).
Currently, their leadership style have been shifted from a top down model to the one that drives integrate change from the bottom up. This is where people from the top level management of the company will have to work more. They believe that it is the best way for finding solutions for their customers' needs, and at the same time, the company is also setting performance goals more effectively and better targeted incentives with key business outcomes. They are heavily placing more emphasis on training, coaching and mentoring. As a result of these efforts, they are building a culture where associates make data-driven decisions and set a higher bar for performance.
Based on the Circuit City’s scope of activities, competitive advantage, organizational structure, management system, and leadership style there are varying strategic alternatives and options available to them. The three most prominent options are; to update and renovate the technologies and operating systems, to change the management style to a top-down to bottom up approach throughout the entire company, and finally, to emphasis the need and create a new brand or image for the company as a whole. All of these alternatives would positively affect the brand positioning and customer satisfaction of Circuit City.
Evaluation of Recommendations and Strategic Choices
In analyzing the recommend changes to the technology and operating systems of Circuit City the positive aspects of implementing new systems include; efficiency, instant feedback, and less labor cost. The efficiency of Circuit City’s supply chain will benefit greatly from new technologies. They are currently lagging behind the competition creating a completive disadvantage in allowing competitors to gain market share. If a new system is installed instant feedback will be readily available to store workers, warehoused workers, and transportation specialists. This will create a better communications system and allow customers to receive their products at the desired time. Another benefit of implementing a new technology and operation system is lower labor costs. Labor costs will be decreased due to the unnecessary man power used to conduct frequent inventories. Costs will also be reduced because it will take less time to locate a certain product. All of these benefits will result in greater customer satisfaction.
There are drawbacks if this system is implemented. These drawbacks include; cost of installation, cost of training, and reliability on technology. The initial installation cost is very expensive. This expense carries to warehouse costs, retail costs, and transportation costs. These cost increases will result in higher prices for consumers. The cost of training for this new technology is also high. Every employee must possess the knowledge to work many parts of the system. The cost of training would include paying hourly wage to employees and the cost of paying trainers. These costs would also translate into higher prices for the consumer. A very important drawback is the reliably that Circuit City would have on this technology system. Bugs in the system and human error need to be considered when implementing new technology.
In analyzing the recommend changes from a top down to bottom up management approach the advantages of this change include; immediate customer response and employee morale and empowerment. The customers will be able to tell employees their thoughts and suggestions and see them implemented giving customers a feeling of control. Without having to go through multiple management channels employees will be able to faster assist customers with problems. This management system will increase employee morale and empowerment by giving them power and problem solving abilities. It also gives employees a sense of stake in the company where they can see their changes in action.
The disadvantages of implementing a bottom up management system include; loss of management control and reliance on employee knowledge. Management is submitting a lot of power to employees in this system and must trust that they will do what will benefit the company as a whole. Management also has to rely on employees knowledge which can be limited. Instead of having power in full time managers, they will be putting a lot of trust in part time employees.
Creating a “brand” or image for Circuit City has both benefits and down falls. The benefits include; creation of customer loyalty, greater customer awareness, and differentiation. Creating a “brand” creates greater customer loyalty by having the consumer identify with the store through its products. It also creates customer awareness by increasing the buzz about the store and creating a sense of curiosity. Creating an image sets Circuit City apart from the competition. Instead of being seen as second to Best Buy they are seen as their own entity.
The down falls of re-branding include; cost, difficulty in implementation, and risk associated with re-branding. Creating a “brand” takes a tremendous amount of capital. Some of the costs included are marketing, remodeling, and training of employees. It is very complex to implement a new branding strategy. It takes a great amount of time and talent to implement large scale changes in any organization. It is incredibly risky for Circuit City to re-brand themselves. There is no guarantee that the capital, time, and talent put into the strategy will pay off in the end.
In the case of Circuit City re-branding the disadvantages do not outweigh the advantages. It would be in Circuit City’s best interest to invest the capital, time, and other resources into changing and creating a new “brand”.
Strategic Implementation and Control Mechanisms (Action Plan) Brook
Of the three strategic alternatives our recommendation or a plan of action would be for Circuit City to choose the re-branding to be the best option at this time. Circuit City is moving in a forward motion in terms of changing the image of the stores, and cutting costs. Circuit City must begin improving their sales and brand image in order to keep their rank as second best to Best Buy in the home electronics retailer industry. Circuit City is in need of a face lift beginning with the corporate structure of the Circuit City “brand”. Every store needs to be updated so as though to have a new stylish look. Circuit City must give consumers a reason to talk about the store and brand. Finally there must be a difference from Best Buy and give customers a reason to choose Circuit City over other competitors.
Circuit City’s action plan should begin with a corporate remodel from the inside out. Circuit City needs to revamp the entire look of their organization, from the store fronts to the advertisements to the market segment. It is necessary for the entire organization to update its image. Circuit City must focus on bringing back old customers as well as searching out new customers. A market must be identified and that market must be addressed with multiple marketing tactics. The younger generations are eager to test out the latest and greatest new electronic gadget as are older generations, especially the Baby Boomers. Circuit City must find a way to differentiate itself from their competitors, so a though to not to appear as though they are simply a ‘copy cat’ retailer falling behind their biggest competitor. It must also be important for Circuit City to create brand loyalty to the store, so as to create a customer base that continues to shop there time and time again.
Circuit City has a reputation of unattractive and dim lit stores at many of their locations. Circuit city is presently trying to change that look, by updating the look of their stores, with better lighting, new store front design and new equipment. All store locations need to have this new updated feel. The remodel is expensive, but believed to be well worth it, consumers today expect to see a stylish store with space to move around in a friendly atmosphere. In the electronics industry, where the newest gadget is here and forgotten in short amounts of time, there seems to be a need for a ‘hands on’ experience. Circuit City may do well, by adding display rooms. A display room for speakers, televisions, game consoles and other such gadgets, so customers can ‘try out’ the product in the store. Circuit City needs to focus on creating an experience not a shopping trip for their customers.
In order for Circuit City to change their appearance and re-brand itself they must engage itself in many marketing campaigns that span the scope of conventional ads and circulars in Sunday papers to more modern guerrilla marketing tactics. Word of mouth marketing is so powerful; Circuit City needs to tap into that by creating some sort of ‘buzz’ about the company and their service and product line. There needs to be a movement towards making Circuit City ‘the place to go’ for all electronic needs. Positive reinforcement of the company will help ensure more brand recognition, which may lead to more foot traffic in both the stores and online. The more the market is saturated with positive messages the more the general public will have a reason to discuss Circuit City in everyday conversations. Aside from creating ‘buzz’ about Circuit City through word of mouth, a more conventional method of advertising is also needed. Efficient advertisements are needed in multiple media forms, such as newspaper, magazines, trade journals, television, radio and online.
An innovative way to attract new customers would be through the use of guerrilla marketing tactics. In such cases Circuit City could sponsor events on campuses, at out door concerts, and at boat, car, and RV shows. At these events Circuit City could have product booths were consumers could come and see some of their product line, have give-a-ways for gift cards and/or merchandise. This would give Circuit City a ‘hands on’ approach to reaching new customers.
Another aspect of the muti- approach marketing campaign would be for Circuit City to form some sort of alliance with another company in a new creative way of showing off their products. Circuit City has done this already with its alliance with Apple Computers and selling those in their stores exclusively. There may be a market for them in with Hybrid cars. They could align themselves with a Hybrid car company to ensure all stereo equipment came from Circuit City or that repairs and upgrades would be directed to the stores. Circuit City must find an area of expertise that is different from their competitors and exploit that. Consumers are looking for the latest and greatest products, services and add-on packages in today’s market, therefore Circuit City must find a way to grad a hold of a niche market and market to them.
Although, all marketing efforts require vast amounts of capital to generate the results wanted. We believe that by Circuit City getting their name out into the general public that they will see pleasing sales figures. Circuit City must choose to focus on increasing their profits through marketing campaigns and diversify itself from all other competitors.
Conclusion
If Circuit City follows our recommendations for a re-branding we believe that they will be successful in reclaiming market share in the consumer electronics industry. Because of the recent changes in both employee structure and management structure re-branding will help make employees feel more secure in their futures at Circuit City. Employees will also feel a sense of success if they can be a part of the new brand and can say that they helped to build the brand. Consumers will view Circuit City in a different light and will be excited to visit the newly made over, bright stores and experience the new and improved Circuit City shopping experience.
By following the action plan that we have outlined Circuit City will be able to regain the market and retain a strong hold on the number two spot in the consumer electronics industry. The re-branding will not only help Circuit City’s current situation but will also help secure a solid spot in the future as competitors change and evolve around them.
At this point, we do not think that Circuit City should not try to surpass Best Buy, but focus on gaining market share. There would be a possibility that in the distant future, seven to ten years, that Circuit City could surpass Best Buy in the consumer electronics industry, but the current focus should be on improving the image and customer relationships of Circuit City.
Appendix:
Appendix I:
Porter’s Five Forces Model for circuit City: Consumer Electronics Industry
Appendix II:
Sales and Income Comparison Graphs
Appendix III:
SWOT Analysis
:
Appendix IV:
Resourced Based View of Circuit City
Appendix V:
Value-Chain Analysis of Circuit City
Works Cited
Annett, Tim. "The Afternoon Report: Gorging on Gadgets; Online Edition." The Wall Street Journal 19 June 2007. ProQuest. 9 July 2007.
Hudson, Kris. "Best Buy? Maybe Not for the StocK." The Wall Street Journal 20 June 2007, Eastern ed.: c1. ProQuest. 9 July 2007.
Hudson, Kris. "Circuit City Enters New Turnaround Stage." The Wall Street Journal 31 May 2007, Eastern ed.: b5. ProQuest. 9 July 2007.
Kelley, Jeffrey. "Circuit City Enters New Phase." Richmond Times Dispatch 20 May 2007, sec. Business: d1. ProQuest. 9 July 2007.
Works Cited
Amato-McCoy, Deena M. "A Cultural Change." Chain Store Age 82.7 (2006): 51.
Desjardins, Doug. "Circuit City Re-Org Results in 3,400 Layoffs." Retailing Today 46.5 (2007): 3.
Hudson, Kris. "Circuit City Enters New Turnaround Stage; Retailer's Response to Competition Includes Job Cuts, Store Openings." Wall Street Journal May 31 2007: B.5.
Lloyd, Mary E. "Earnings Digest: Best Buy Strategy Pays Off as Circuit City Falters." Wall Street Journal Apr 5 2007: C.6.
Pinkerton, Janet. "Circuit City Cracks." Dealerscope 49.5 (2007): 10.
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©2007 Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia “Circuit City” 4 July , 2007
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