Competitive Strategy Coopers Brewery
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Competitive Strategy
Assessment 3 – Individual Assignment: Business Report
29th November 2010
Coopers Brewery
Grant Semmler
Student ID: 110013428
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executive Summary
This report examines the current competitive strategies of Coopers Brewery Limited (Coopers); a family owned South Australian based beer producer.
Coopers is a public company which is not listed on the Australian Stock Exchange, currently holding a 3.4% market share of the Australian beer market (Coopers Chairman’s Report, 2009). Its major competitors are the Fosters Group and Lion Nathan together holding 94% of the Australian beer market (Byrom & Lehman, 2009).
The company exports to 26 countries worldwide including the USA, UK, India and Russia. Although still small, exports currently account for 2.6% of Coopers’ total sales.
In 2005 Coopers resisted a A$420 million hostile takeover attempt by Lion Nathan, successfully persuading its shareholders that the future lay in family hands as opposed to those of the multinational. The company also changed its constitution to prevent any future takeovers by large corporations.
Through the use of various tools, including SWOT, PESTLE and Porters 5 Forces, this report investigates the key strategies employed by Coopers in order to analyse the company, its financial situation, competitors and competitive advantage.
As competition in the beer industry in Australia is intense, this report will make recommendations, including blue ocean strategies, to develop new product lines and the possible expansion and establishment of a new bottling plant on the Australian East Coast. Along with the continued strong management focus, these recommendations will assist Coopers to remain a sustainable and profitable company within the industry.
Contents
Executive Summary 1
1. Company Background 3
2. Company Analysis SWOT and PESTLE 4 Porters 5 Forces 4
3. Financial Analysis 5
Competitive Strategy
Assessment 3 – Individual Assignment: Business Report
29th November 2010
Coopers Brewery
Grant Semmler
Student ID: 110013428
[pic]
executive Summary
This report examines the current competitive strategies of Coopers Brewery Limited (Coopers); a family owned South Australian based beer producer.
Coopers is a public company which is not listed on the Australian Stock Exchange, currently holding a 3.4% market share of the Australian beer market (Coopers Chairman’s Report, 2009). Its major competitors are the Fosters Group and Lion Nathan together holding 94% of the Australian beer market (Byrom & Lehman, 2009).
The company exports to 26 countries worldwide including the USA, UK, India and Russia. Although still small, exports currently account for 2.6% of Coopers’ total sales.
In 2005 Coopers resisted a A$420 million hostile takeover attempt by Lion Nathan, successfully persuading its shareholders that the future lay in family hands as opposed to those of the multinational. The company also changed its constitution to prevent any future takeovers by large corporations.
Through the use of various tools, including SWOT, PESTLE and Porters 5 Forces, this report investigates the key strategies employed by Coopers in order to analyse the company, its financial situation, competitors and competitive advantage.
As competition in the beer industry in Australia is intense, this report will make recommendations, including blue ocean strategies, to develop new product lines and the possible expansion and establishment of a new bottling plant on the Australian East Coast. Along with the continued strong management focus, these recommendations will assist Coopers to remain a sustainable and profitable company within the industry.
Contents
Executive Summary 1
1. Company Background 3
2. Company Analysis SWOT and PESTLE 4 Porters 5 Forces 4
3. Financial Analysis 5
References: In simple terms, niche (marketing) can be defined as fulfilling the needs of a tightly-defined market segment (Kotler and Keller 2006). • Fulfilment of environmental obligations through eco-friendly plant and processes to reduce its carbon footprint. This was recognised and awarded by the South Australian Government (Coopers Chairman’s Report, 2009). As shown in the IBIS World Report on Coopers, 2009 (Table 1), Coopers has maintained a positive financial growth for the period FY2004-2009. Table 1 (IBIS World Report on Coopers, 2009) |Financial Growth (Average for the period FY2004-2009) | 5. COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE A competitive advantage is gained by offering consumers greater value, either by means of lower prices or by providing greater benefits and services that justify higher prices (Burke & Jarratt, 2004, p.130). Coopers invites its consumers into a South Australian family brewing tradition that differentiates it from its competitors, creating a clear market space (Kim & Mauborgne, 1999, p.83).