Fenix Del Sur Case Study
1 Dilemma with Opportunity Presented to F´enix del Sur
F´enix del Sur, an antique and artifact brokerage firm specialized in authentic African, South and
Native American decorative artifacts. It started in the early 1900s but has continued to grow and become known as one of the best in authentic pieces. Problems the company is facing is contenting in a hyper competitive environment with mass merchandisers, internet dealers, cheap imitators and government export regulations. Supply has become a big problem for them recently, and they have even begun to produce replicas at the request of their clients. F´enix del Sur is currently faced with an opportunity to obtain a contract with a mass merchandising retailer to sell their products at
10% below their current prices. The contract would start out with an initial purchase of $750,000 and possibly generate as much as 4 million in sales annually. The dilemma is wether or not the company feels that this contract is a good fit strategically. Also of concern is wether or not this opportunity conflicts with the organizational culture.
2 Available Courses of Action
1. Accept the contract with the department store
This alternative would require tripling the amount of replica products that the F´enix del Sur is producing. One question that F´enix del Sur should address is, how would this affect the image of the company? Their focus would be somewhat taken away from acquiring authentic products and directed towards the replica industry. From the SWOT analysis in the appendix, one of F´enix del Sur’s strengths is the ability to produce high quality replicas. This strength aligns well with the opportunity to obtain the contract with the department store.
When evaluating opportunities, it is good to classify them in terms of the type of strategy employed. Since the contract with the department store would not necessarily be a new offering, they are looking to execute market penetration with
F´enix del Sur, an antique and artifact brokerage firm specialized in authentic African, South and
Native American decorative artifacts. It started in the early 1900s but has continued to grow and become known as one of the best in authentic pieces. Problems the company is facing is contenting in a hyper competitive environment with mass merchandisers, internet dealers, cheap imitators and government export regulations. Supply has become a big problem for them recently, and they have even begun to produce replicas at the request of their clients. F´enix del Sur is currently faced with an opportunity to obtain a contract with a mass merchandising retailer to sell their products at
10% below their current prices. The contract would start out with an initial purchase of $750,000 and possibly generate as much as 4 million in sales annually. The dilemma is wether or not the company feels that this contract is a good fit strategically. Also of concern is wether or not this opportunity conflicts with the organizational culture.
2 Available Courses of Action
1. Accept the contract with the department store
This alternative would require tripling the amount of replica products that the F´enix del Sur is producing. One question that F´enix del Sur should address is, how would this affect the image of the company? Their focus would be somewhat taken away from acquiring authentic products and directed towards the replica industry. From the SWOT analysis in the appendix, one of F´enix del Sur’s strengths is the ability to produce high quality replicas. This strength aligns well with the opportunity to obtain the contract with the department store.
When evaluating opportunities, it is good to classify them in terms of the type of strategy employed. Since the contract with the department store would not necessarily be a new offering, they are looking to execute market penetration with