[pic]
Man cannot live by bread alone. He must have peanut butter.
- Bill Cosby
Part 1: Executive Summary
In order to maximize profit, J.M. Smucker could increase sales of Jif peanut butter, its best selling product, into growing markets. Prior to any expansion a full analysis of the market is necessary. The country with the largest market potential for peanut butter in Europe is Germany (ibid 79). The country climate of Germany gives a positive outlook for peanut butter, the primary option being as a breakfast option in the bread spread category. Daily patterns are malleable to suggest that peanut butter be a component, an additive, an ingredient, or a snack.
Jif as a stand-alone brand is a U.S.-based product that has never, through company initiative, introduced any of their products internationally. Therefore there is no past experience in new market expansion. Jif has the branding business model. One main question is whether to copy the previous model for new entry (acquisition) or develop a new strategy that will better align with the targeted market. The target market for Jif in its home market of the US is families with children with the slogan “Choosy moms choose Jif.” Based on the 360 degree profile of customer segments in Germany, the segments were evaluated on margin, persuasion, and volume potential. It was determined that the target market will also be families with children in Germany. Although the target market is the same, Jif will have a very different problem in Germany, getting users to switch to peanut butter instead of Nutella and recognizing alternative uses. In comparison, the primary marketing challenge in the U.S. is getting users to switch from another peanut butter brand to Jif.
The following report found multiple challenges of introducing Jif to a new market, including multiple points of resistance from the target market, such as: association of peanut butter with fatty American foods,