Question

eff, the owner of The Toy Box (a toy store), has chosen his products carefully. They are all handmade of wood; none are cheap games made of cardboard and paper. He knows he will be selling his toys to both adults and children; for example, his expensive chess and backgammon sets are quite expensive because the board and pieces are all made of wood by local artists and craftsmen. He knows that his customer base will not include parents who are looking for an inexpensive toy for their children or to give as a birthday gift; there is another store in town that offers mass-produced games. As part of his marketing outreach, Jeff offers "game nights" where he sets up game boards and invites local teens and adults to take part in light-hearted competitions, where the winners receive a 10 percent discount to a game at the Toy Box. All of Jeff’s activities are aimed at giving Jeff a sustainable competitive advantage through ______.'

Answer 1

Available options are:

a) defensive strategy.

b) blue ocean strategy.

c) diversified portfolio.

d) vertical integration.

e) strategic positioning.

Answer:

Option E Strategic Positioning

Explanation:

Though it seems that the company has investment in a specific niche market segment but this doesn't mean that the blue ocean strategy is followed by the company because it is not given that the competitors can whether or not manufacture such products based on their capabilities.

Furthermore, the investment is in the same industry so the investment is not diversified investment.

It is also worth noting that the company has no ambition of moving to acquire the capabilities of customers or suppliers so it is not part of vertical integration.

The company has not opted to defensive strategy otherwise it would had tried to increase its marketing budget and save costs on manufacturing and other operations.

The strategic positioning follows three principles. The first principle is that the company tries to increase the value for the shareholders by positioning the business in a specific segment which the The Toy Box Inc did by manufacturing products from expensive to low priced products. The second principle is trading-off the competition gains and losses which Toy Box Inc tried to do by offering inexpensive products as well. The third principle is finding the fit among operations of the business which Toy Box Inc did successfully by integrating marketing department with other departments. The result of integration was that the company increased its sales by offering 10% discounts on its products.