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Maxine Clark opened first Build-A-Bear workshop in 1 996 since then company started more than 370 stores all over the world. It offers the customers the unique experience of making their own stuffed animal toy. Its revenue had reached $ 474 by the end of 2007 it is increasing at a constant rate of 15% per year. MAIN TEXT: PRODUCT: Build-A-rear is a place where a child was to able to find his own stuffed toying that what he want. After entering in to the Build -A-Bear workshop child find different stations.
In “choose me” station child select an unstudied animal what he want and at “Stuff Me” station where animal comes life by blowing the amount of fluff hat customer want. In “Hear Me” station consists of fixing voice box to the stuffed toy. In ‘Fluff Me” station customer can give a blow dry spa treatment to the stuffed toy and finally in “Dress Me” and “Name Me” includes dress of toy and birth certificate is created with the child selected name. PRICE: The price of Build-A-Bear toy starts from $and an average of $25 which is affordable by the maximum income level of people.
PLACE: It sells its products to the middle class and upper middle class people in retail market. PROMOTION: It mainly concentrates on customers’ word of mouth rumoring policy rather than any other promotional activities. Company implements this policy because it maintains good relationships with customers, customization of their product. Word count: 380 CONCEPT OF MARKETING Here the concept worked by the Maxine Clark Marketing, because here Build -A-Bear company sells what customer wants unlike the other toy making companies, they sell what they have.
Here customers are the child. They have earned a life time experience by creating a toy and satisfied with the making of toy what they want instead what they actually don’t. Even though there are many competitors’ in the toy industry. This company is unlike from the other. It has unique brand image among them but competitors’ are concentrated only on quality and price of the product . One of the competitors’ Vermont Teddy bear started in 1981 it has achieved a great success but it was not kept any Impact on the sales of Build-A- Bear because of Its uniqueness.
Clark says her company’s sales are uniformly distributed throughout the season unlikely the rest of toy Industry. CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP MANAGEMENT: Mane Clark as a CEO of guild-A-rear gave importance to customer satisfaction rather than company’s profits. She thinks that involved in the thoughts of child how they think? And how they feel happy by playing with toys? Clark has worked on both low-tech and high-tech methods in making a Build-A-Bear as a customer involving organization. She gives personalization to the customer according to his/her wish.
She creates an image that her company is trusted one. This company gives the entertainment to the children so the customers are satisfied. She visits her stores regularly to interact with her customers by simple chatting. She gives her business cards to her customers as a result she receive thousands of Emails regarding customer wants and suggestions. She started virtual advisory councils for receiving suggestions from child. By the way Build-A-Bear makes the customer ideas in practice they can feel satisfied.
She is succeeded in maintaining a proper customer relationship management. EXPANDING MARKET: Among the suggestions of customers some of them are implemented by Maxine Clark. Addition to bears some other toys like mini scooters, Hello kitty bears, Mascot bears which have become very successful among customers. Build-A-Bear had made tie ups with the sketcher shoes and grows as one of the best seller of footwear industry. It had also made tie up’s with NAB, WANE, MILD, NIL, NFG and MASCARA moreover the company has created the website named “Build A Bear Vile. Mom” to connect more with the customers. The site contains games and different process of building a bear and any one can register on it but for playing games customers has to get a promo code by buying a toy in the Build-A-Bear company. In order to expand the market Clark had built at least 350 stores in U. S, 120 stores in Europe and ranching an additional of 300 stores all over the world. Apart from Build-A-Bear she also started new stores like “Friends 2 B Made” and “Build-A-Odin”. This company has a 25% stake holders of “Ride Makers” which is a popular toy car shop.
MARKETING ANALYSIS: Word count: 523 NEED: It is a need for every child to entertain themselves by playing with toys and they can’t enjoy fully by playing with their parents and watching television. Whatever they may be their parents had to fulfill physical as well as psychological needs of children and they has to provide entertainment to child by providing required joys . This point is clearly observed by Maxine Clark and worked on it to start the Build-A-Bear company. WANT: In this case the want is the way of fulfilling the need of entertaining the children by toy.
Maxine Clark may think that toys are efficient tools for providing the entertainment for kids child generally wants toys. DEMAND: Any people who can afford 10$ for buying toys for their kids can be the customer for Build-A-Bear company and it will increase the demand for that company that’s why Maxine Clark starts the price of the toy at the cheaper rate of 10$. TARGET PLACE: Build-A-Bear Company’s main target place is children and parents who are ready to fulfill the need of entertainment for their children.
I t targets mainly middle class and upper middle class because of the price as it has as low as $10 and average $25. Company mainly attracts the people who are interested in toys and toy making. VALUE AND SATISFACTION: In this case product value is greater than customer satisfaction because of the customer expects only a toy which involving good entertainment in making a toy, but company gives not only a unique life time aging a toy. The product is cheaper when compared to services and moreover it offers a quality product on that price only.
So obviously product value is greater than customer satisfaction. This is one of the best competitive advantages for Build-A-Bear company. SOOT ANALYSIS OF Build-A-rear STRENGTHS: 1. It maintains good customer relationship management with their customers. 2. It is the customer centered organization so customization helps in increasing profits. 3. It has wide market all over the world with more than 370 stores. 4. It earns a rand image and connected the people with good retail network. 5. It has unique competitive advantage among all the companies of toy industry.
WEAKNESS: 1 . One of the major weakness for Build-A-Bear is it has limited targeting. OPPORTUNITIES: 1 . Word count: 365 According to demographics of a particular region if Build-A-Bear launches a product it will be a great opportunity for them. 2. If they diversify with different types of products same brand of Build-A-Bear. 3. In this busy world the parents can’t spend more time with their children so they can offer different products to provide more entertainment for children without involvement of parents. THREATS: 1 .
There are wide ranges of competitors like Vermont teddy bear in the toy industry which produce quality products. 2. Increasing in technology day by day may cause tremendous changes in the toy market. 3. It markets toys in many countries it might bear tariffs. CONCLUSIONS: 1. If we want to start a company first of all we think that there is a need for that product in the market or not if it is a compulsory need in the market then our product sustained for long time. Build-A-Bear identified strong need in the market. If our company is customer centered one means we offer a product which satisfies the customer then we earn long run profits. Build-A-Bear is succeeded in maintaining CRM. 3. Build-A-Bear has a competitive advantage of providing an entertainment and life time experience which is not offered by other competitors. If our company has good competitive advantage irrespective of competitors we earn profits. SUGGESTIONS: 1 . Build-A-Bear can make tie up’s with child gaming companies so that Build-A-Bear mall all types of entertainment for child is present. 2.