Recycled Dreams Bridal Shop Marketing Plan
Executive Summary
Recycled Dreams is a bridal shop like no other around its location. The shop does not only focus on selling wedding gowns but also attires for the bridesmaids and flower girls. Besides, the shop sells in cash to those who can afford the wedding gowns and accessories and provides hiring services to those who may not afford the items. The discussions in this paper provide a detailed analysis of various factors that affect the operations and competitiveness of the company in the wedding shop sector. The literature explores the external environment of the firm and its influences on the product, consumers, the organization, and potential competitors in the market. The explorations in this work suggest that new product development should bring together all stakeholders and players in the market to avoid failures.
External Environment Analysis
Economic Environment
The economic status of an individual and the prevailing economic situations in a country determine the rate at which people celebrate their weddings and the amount of money they set aside for the same. Weddings cost a lot of money, and most couples would wish to reduce the cost by hiring wedding gowns instead of buying them. Therefore, Recycled Dreams will focus on the middle- and low-income earners who cannot afford to buy a gown and other wedding accessories.
Cultural Environment
Research has shown that the Christian population in the U.S. is increasing, which implies that the number of new couples taking part in weddings will increase too. A majority of Christians considers a wedding as the official way of uniting a man and woman to become one. The bride, bridegroom, bridesmaids, and flower girls must have special attires on such days.
Technological Environment
Recycled Dreams will use technology to market its wedding products to the targeted customers. For instance, the firm will have a web page, which will feature various gown designs and their respective prices. The company will also use a Facebook account for marketing and communication purposes.
Demographic Factors
Various issues, such as the need for higher education, unemployment, and gender differences, have reduced the number of new marriages occurring in the contemporary society. Most youths stay long in school thus postponing their weddings and marriages or deliberately decide to marry late. On the other hand, low income or unemployment force some couples to operate on minimal budgets.
Competitor Analysis
There are around 50 bridal shops in Recycled Dreams’ target location. Nevertheless, most of these bridal shops concentrate on selling gowns and other wedding attires to the bride, bridegroom, and their families, not hiring. Thus, Recycled Dream is a unique bridal shop since it focuses on hiring out wedding gowns and other accessories that the couples, bridesmaids, and flower girls may require. The shop will position itself as one with the best selection and customer experiences among the potential competitors. Recycled Dreams will employ a focus strategy by providing couples with unique wedding accessories in a memorable environment. Recycled Dreams has a competitive advantage over other bridal shops as it is the only one in its location that offers hiring services for wedding accessories.
Consumer Behavior
Wedding products help consumers meet various needs, such as emotional and symbolic ones. Wearing a good gown on the wedding day gives the bride a sense of pride and status. In many instances, the society judges a wedding based on the cost or design of the bride’s gown on the occasion day. Hence, wedding couples often go through various consumer decision-making processes before arriving at their final choices. The process begins with a felt need, in this case, a wedding, in which a gown and other accessories are needed. The couples then collect relevant information about the required products, for instance, the possible shopping locations. In such cases, the couples should weigh the available alternatives in the market and determine if they would meet the needs they identified in the first stage before making a purchase.
Segmentation, Targeting, and Positioning
Market Segmentation
Recycled Dreams Bridal Shop will serve, at least, three market segments, namely brides, bridesmaids, and flower girls. Many people prefer buying the gown and attire for the bridesmaids and flower girls. However, Recycled Dreams will hire out these products to those who may not afford to buy them. A bride normally feels attached to the bridesmaids and flower girls; thus, she would wish for them to have the best attires. Similarly, the bride has the final say on the design of the flower girls’ dresses. In most cases, it is the parents of the flower girls who pay for their clothes. Nevertheless, a low financial status may lock some young girls out; thus, Recycled Dream would offer them an opportunity to hire the clothes at a lower cost compared to buying new ones.
Target Market Segment Strategy
Recycled Dreams primarily focuses on wedding gowns. However, the brides usually have the bridesmaids and flower girls to be outfitted. Fitting one bride with a gown or hiring out one gown to her allows the business to access other six or so bridesmaids and six flower girls to hire out clothes to and other accessories. The firm positions itself as a low-cost company, which allows brides, bridesmaids, and flower girls to meet their wedding needs.
Product and Branding Strategy
As stated earlier, bridal gowns remain the primary product in Recycled Dreams Bridal Shop. The shop will focus on wedding gowns and other related product lines, including bridesmaids and flower girls’ attires. Previous research has shown that brides wield power over the bridesmaids and flower girls. Therefore, concentrating on gowns would allow the business to attract brides who may then lure the bridesmaids and flower girls to do their shopping in the same store. Therefore, the firm will ensure that it provides services and shopping experiences that exceed the needs and demands of the customers.
Pricing Strategy
Recycled Dreams aims at using a pricing strategy to increase the market presence of its gowns in the U.S. market. In so doing, the company believes that it would increase its annual sales. Recycled Dreams Bridal Shop will sell the gowns and other accessories based on a couple’s budget and purchase capacity. The company will use penetration pricing to grow its market share and profits by introducing the hiring service to its wedding gowns. The cost of the products will vary depending on the product mix. For instance, those who buy or hire the gown alone will pay slightly more compared to those who hire or buy it alongside the bridesmaids and flower girls’ outfits. In this regard, the firm believes that such a differential pricing approach would encourage the brides to make all their purchases at Recycled Dreams Bridal Shop. The enterprise will use discounts as a price adjustment strategy by charging lower prices to those who do more purchases in the shop.
Marketing Communications Strategy
The primary goal of marketing this product involves the need to create awareness about the item and the new hiring service. The firm will also conduct marketing to maintain its monthly market share growth and increase the number of referrals. To this end, the company will use a combination of promotion strategies to market the wedding gowns and other related products among the potential customers. Recycled Dreams will employ target marketing by focusing on low- and middle-income couples and their parents. Parents usually offer financial support and make gown purchases for their daughters. Thus, the organization will make advertisements through local wedding magazine publications will reach those carrying out information search about bridal shops. The firm will also build close relationships with wedding event organizers to make referrals to them. On the other hand, the enterprise will carry out robust online marketing through its website and social media pages.
Distribution Strategy
The company has various objectives for distributing the products. Firstly, the distribution would increase product availability in the market and, thus, meet the needs and demands of the consumers. Product distribution will also enable the firm to receive feedback regarding the conditions in the market, particularly from the intermediaries. Recycled Dreams will use a direct distribution channel to sell its products to the final consumers. The approach does not require any intermediaries between the company and final consumers. In this regard, it is faster and shorter compared to an indirect distribution channel. Furthermore, the channel offers more profit to the business because it eliminates the intermediaries whose presence in the distribution channel inflate product costs and lower profits. The company carries out online marketing and allows the buyers to make their orders, which will be delivered directly through parcels and other services. The direct marketing channel rarely experiences distribution channel conflicts because it has only two players, that is, the seller and the buyer.
