Bvlgari - That Way to Victory

To understand the external exposures and the internal features a company faces it can be very useful to construct a SWOT analysis. The SWOT analysis is a tool to evaluate the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats of a company. This is important to understand when planning how to reach the set goals, to know which features needs reassessment and which are working.

Bvlgari is an immensely successful company. Their strengths are as follows

Bvlgari has a very strong brand name, which is hugely popular and well known worldwide.

They have a high brand presence in the media and social media’s.

Good marketing and advertising worldwide which ads brand value.

The company’s product portfolio is largely diversified. This allows a higher retention rate among the consumers. 

The strongest internal weaknesses Bvlgari faces are

Bvlgari has built the brand name on exclusivity. 

The products are however quite easily copied, which can make the brand lose its exclusivity.

Bvlgari is a world known brand; however, they have had limited penetration of the emerging markets.They have recently started to focus on these markeds, but the market coverage is not optimal.

Their store count is limited world wide

The biggest opportunities imposed by the external market is

The emerging economies, e.g. both generations Asian tigers, are great opportunities for Bvlgari.

Diversify the product lines further to complete the market penetration in their current markets.

Increase promotions and advertisements to raise brand awareness.

Further develop web based stores to make a bigger appearance in the growing online market

The most serious external threats to Bvlgari are

Bvlgari was negatively impacted by the economic downturn of 2008-2009. 

The consumer’s loss of purchasing powers, a weakening dollar and inflation are all threats to sales. 

The Italian challenging economy also has a negative effect on this.

Constant increase in counterfeit products.

Fluctuations in raw materials and the precious metal prices; volatile gold and silver prices. 

To summarize; Bvlgai has a great opportunity to strengthen their market coverage by focusing on emerging markets. Because of their limited store count it can be profitable to further develop their online appearance. Even though their product portfolio is largely diversified it is possible to strengthen their portfolio by further diversify. These aspects can also lead to a higher market share. Bvlgari’s brand value and market presence can also be strengthened by increased advertisement and promotions.

Bvlgai’s toughest threats have to do with the economical cycles during the latest years. These threats are difficult for a single company to do something with, beside wait until the cycles turn and the prices stabilize. 

MK

[This is the first out of two articles in the SWOT analysis series]

Sources:
http://en.bulgari.com/
http://luxpresso.com/news-couture/why-you-should-invest-in-gold/6613
http://luxpresso.com/news-time-n-style/the-legend-of-bulgari/7864
http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2013-09-04/news/41765725_1_dinaz-madhukar-luxury-brands-exclusive-retail-stores
http://www.mbaskool.com/brandguide/lifestyle-and-retail/3405-bulgari.html

Pictures:

1: http://1001envies.over-blog.com/article-mon-jasmin-noir-de-bvlgari-83587888.html

2: http://www.replica-rolex.co/bvlgari-replica-watch-bv18_29893.html

3,1: http://www.lookfantastic.com/bvlgari-aqva-pour-homme-gift-set-3-products/10565009.html

3,2: http://luxpresso.com/photogallery-time-n-style/accessorise-products-we-loved/14077/2

3,3: http://global.rakuten.com/en/store/brandneo/item/bv32541canvasblk/

3,4: http://www.prlog.org/10135856-wwwb2bvoguecom-wholesale-juicy-couture-teddy-bear-necklacesteel-bvlgari-jewelrytiffany-jewelry.html

3,5: http://www.worldwatchreview.com/2008/05/27/bvlgari-diagono-calibro-303-fashion-chronograph-watch/

4: http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052748704041504576185684121819382

5: http://www.globalblue.com/destinations/france/paris/the-bold-and-bright-world-of-bulgari/

Chopard - The Way to Victory

Chopard and Bvlgari have many similarities as they both are in the same industry. However, while looking at the SWOT analysis for both companies it is apparent that there also are many differences. (See also Bvlgari – The way to victory)

Chopard’s most dominant strengths are

The Chopard name is a strong and popular brand. It is well known and they have high global presence.

They have strong partnerships with well respected organizations. Both their partnership with the Cannes film festival and the partnership with Mille Miglia is furthering Chopard’s luxurious image.

The product is fully manufactured in house which takes away the risk of outsourcing. The product is therefore ensured to have high standards of quality. 

The most important weaknesses are

Chopard is both an expert watch maker company which is also a jeweller. This weakens their position of being experts in watch making, which is negative for the exclusivity image and perception of quality.

Chopard’s most promising opportunities are as follows

Chopard still have a lot of unexplored territory in emerging and developing economies.

They can explore more opportunities provided by their partnership experience, in order to heighten awareness and visibility. To keep consistency with their current operations they can partner with other film festivals in different parts of the world. They can also go further into the film scene by sponsoring and partnering with film awards.

Increase other promotions and advertisement to raise brand awareness. 

And their biggest threats are

Watches are becoming less and less a necessity because of alternative time telling devices such as cell phones.

Pirate copying of the watches is a large problem concerning the whole watch industry.

Competitors with higher brand awareness pose a threat in terms of brand switching.

To Summarize; Chopard's most dominant strengths are their strong brand name, their partnerships and the fact that they have been able to continue as a family business with in-house production. Their most promising opportunities are to explore the emergent markets and to go further into the opportunities provided by their partnerships. 

Their biggest weakness is that the consumers can get the impression of lower quality due to diversification. The threats imposed on the company are the large production of fake watches, the threat of brand switching and alternative devices for time telling purposes.

MK

[This is the second out of two articles in the SWOT analysis series]

Sources
http://www.chopard.com/
http://luxpresso.com/news-couture/in-pursuit-of-a-legacy-a-visit-to-the-chopard-factory/13564
http://luxpresso.com/interviews-itime-n-style/caroline-gruosischeufele-shares-chopards-inspirations/14093
http://luxpresso.com/news-style/the-worlds-most-expensive-pair-of-sunglasses-are-by-chopard/21217
http://www.mbaskool.com/brandguide/lifestyle-and-retail/3446-chopard.html

Pictures

http://moorishharem.com/Lifestyle-detail/l-u-c-tourbillon-by-chopard/

http://www.luxguru.typepad.com/lorre_white_the_luxury_gu/page/176/
http://www.imageamplified.com/2013/05/cannes-film-festival-coverage-chopard-lunch-at-the-66th-cannes-film-festival-wwwimageamplifiedcom-image-amplified.html