Demand: The demand for coffee shops and quality products at competitive prices is enormous in the Heathrow airport as identified by Michael Peacock (2005)[2]. This is mainly because of the increasing number of passengers to the airport, which has not only increased the customer base but also accelerated the construction of Terminal 5 at the Heathrow airport.
Customer base: The customer base which is the main element whilst determining the target market as argued by Gerry Johnson and Kevan Scholes (2003)[3] is enormous in the Heathrow airport terminals. This is not only from the side of the passengers who arrive or depart from the airport but also because of the increase in the visitors who accompany the passengers as argued by David Jinks (2004)[4]
Location: The location factor as argued by Laurence Mathew (2005)[5] is a critical element for strategic positioning of an organization in the target market. The fact that the Heathrow airport is of international importance and a shop located there can attract customers from both the national and international market makes the location factor as a key strength for setting-up a coffee shop in the airport.
Weaknesses:
Volatile customer base: The major weakness is the volatile nature of the customer base in the airport. The fact that even though the customer potential in the Heathrow airport is vast, but ever changing due to the nature of the business in the airport makes the customer potential as a critical weakness as much as it is argued as a strength. Since this is an apparent factor for any shop in the airport, the weakness is oblivious in nature.
Seasonal business: Another important factor that needs to be considered is that the airport caters high level of customers during the periods of holiday making whilst supports only the business travellers at other times. This makes it clear that the business for the coffee shop is seasonal in nature.
Opportunities:
Differentiation by Pricing: the demand for