Cruise Industry
MBA 623 | North American Cruise Industry |
Table of Contents Executive Summary 2 Cruise Industry Overview 2 Market Overview and Structure 2 Industry and Customer Segments 5 Target Market Analysis 7 Carnival Cruise Lines 7 Target Market Analysis 7 Positioning Strategy 7 Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines 8 Target Market Analysis 8 Positioning Strategy 9 Norwegian Cruise Lines 9 Target Market Analysis 10 Positioning Strategy 10 Disney Cruise Lines 11 Target Market Analysis 11 Positioning Strategy 11 Business Opportunities 11 Appendix 1: Market and Customer Segmentation Figures 13 Appendix 2: Cruise Line Positioning and Target Marketing Selection Figures 16 Appendix 3: Perceptual Maps 18 Bibliography: 23
Executive Summary
The North American cruise industry is the most exciting growth category in the entire leisure market. Ships are not viewed just as a means of transport, but as floating resorts that compete with land-based counterparts such as restaurants, bars, shopping centers, entertainment venues, etc. The revival of cruising has taken place in the past four decades and today it forms a small but growing segment in the global tourism industry. As a young industry, it has had an average annual passenger growth rate of 7.2%. The North American cruise market is estimated at $17.46 billion. Currently, the Baby Boomer generation is the primary target market of the cruise industry. However, a younger group (Echo) of the population is becoming more active, which opens up more business opportunities for the cruise industry.
The cruise industry is dominated by three main players – Carnival Corporation, Royal Caribbean Cruises, and Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL). Disney has also entered the market by leveraging their established brand. These companies control approximately 94% of the market. The cruise industry is relatively difficult to enter and exit due to extremely high purchasing and selling cost of cruise ships.
Table of Contents Executive Summary 2 Cruise Industry Overview 2 Market Overview and Structure 2 Industry and Customer Segments 5 Target Market Analysis 7 Carnival Cruise Lines 7 Target Market Analysis 7 Positioning Strategy 7 Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines 8 Target Market Analysis 8 Positioning Strategy 9 Norwegian Cruise Lines 9 Target Market Analysis 10 Positioning Strategy 10 Disney Cruise Lines 11 Target Market Analysis 11 Positioning Strategy 11 Business Opportunities 11 Appendix 1: Market and Customer Segmentation Figures 13 Appendix 2: Cruise Line Positioning and Target Marketing Selection Figures 16 Appendix 3: Perceptual Maps 18 Bibliography: 23
Executive Summary
The North American cruise industry is the most exciting growth category in the entire leisure market. Ships are not viewed just as a means of transport, but as floating resorts that compete with land-based counterparts such as restaurants, bars, shopping centers, entertainment venues, etc. The revival of cruising has taken place in the past four decades and today it forms a small but growing segment in the global tourism industry. As a young industry, it has had an average annual passenger growth rate of 7.2%. The North American cruise market is estimated at $17.46 billion. Currently, the Baby Boomer generation is the primary target market of the cruise industry. However, a younger group (Echo) of the population is becoming more active, which opens up more business opportunities for the cruise industry.
The cruise industry is dominated by three main players – Carnival Corporation, Royal Caribbean Cruises, and Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL). Disney has also entered the market by leveraging their established brand. These companies control approximately 94% of the market. The cruise industry is relatively difficult to enter and exit due to extremely high purchasing and selling cost of cruise ships.
Bibliography: 1. Dowling, Ross K – “Cruise Ship Tourism” (2006) 2