KAYLINDAJA CATERING

Executive Summary
Kaylindaja Catering is a catering company that serves the local market here in the City of
Puerto Princesa. Kaylindaja offers creative, colorful, and unusual food. Kaylindaja catering will
inject new life into the catering market, leveraging Chef Linda culinary skills to develop creative
new catering options.
The working purpose and overall goal of the marketing project is to:

(1) analyze

Kaylindaja Caterings current situation; (2) determine strategies for reaching potential clientele;
and (3) develop marketing tactics and an implementation plan.
The marketing project opens with an analysis of the company's current situation,
including a review of its internal and external environment, which yields information regard
current company strengths and weakness along with the opportunities and threats present.
Kaylindaja Caterings primary strengths are in the areas of its staff and expertise. Its weaknesses
include consumer perceptions that firm only sells Filipino food, even for catered events and the
company is not well known in the area. The opportunities present include a growing
marketplace. The primary threat is a large number of competing firms in the area.
The marketing goal for Kaylindaja Catering is to become a viable company in the
catering business in Puerto Princesa City serving both individuals and businesses with high
quality food and service. The marketing strategy will begin with offering high quality food and
high quality, on-time service. The distribution strategy will be to sell via direct sales and to
expand via word of mouth endorsements. In the future, indirect marketing through florists and
banquet halls may be pursued.
The primary emphasis will be on advertising and promotion. Kaylindaja Catering should
begin a targeted advertising campaign and develop a colorful brochure that illustrates the
company's services. Personal selling and a presence trade shows should be used to enhance the
image. It will be important to reach the three distinctive markets that Kaylindaja seeks to serve.
Implementation and control measures are outlined in the conclusion of this report.

Current Situation
Erlinda Arinos, Kay Ann Mag-apan and Jan-Carl Jardinero own Kaylindaja Catering.
They combine their name experience, management expertise, and financial resources to conduct
business. Jan-Carl Jardinero is also the co-owner/business manager of Kaylindaja Catering Party
Planning. Kay Ann Mag-apan serves as the silent partner and is not involved in the daily
managerial activities of the business. Erlinda Arinos serves as the Chef and co-owner of the
company. The Kaylindaja Catering business was established in January 2014.
The owners of Kaylindaja Catering would like to eventually concentrate on the catering
business and discontinue the party planning business.
Presently, Kaylindaja Catering carries out every aspect of the catering process. After the
initial meeting with the client, Jan-Carl Jardinero prepares a menu selection including prices. The
next meeting involves the contract signing and down payment. During the catering event,
Kaylindaja Catering provides the food along with servers, linens, and chinawares. They set up
the food display and clean up the venue at the conclusion of the event.

Internal Environment
An analysis of the current situation for Kaylindaja Catering includes examining the
companys internal environment, external environment, competition, and customers. The mission
statement was the first component examined in the internal environment. The current statement
reads, Kaylindaja Catering is dedicated to providing service for their customer base in the local
catering market in the Puerto Princesa City. Kaylindaja Catering is committed to providing high
quality and reliable services to existing and potential customers.
Though Kaylindaja Catering is a new business with little name recognition in the catering
market, the opportunity for exposure and interest is increasing. Catering is widely used for many
different occasions, and the demand for this service is continuously increasing.
In developing the catering business, the owners of Kaylindaja Catering investigated the
current market and current trends for catering services. According to the 2009 Economic Census,
the catering market for the Puerto Princesa City area produced P8, 600,945 in sales. There are
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various events in need of a caterer including, but not limited to: weddings, banquets, graduation
parties, engagements, showers, and political rallies. The market appears to be saturated with a
wide variety of catering vendors. Despite this saturation, the owners entered the market because
they believed with the right business and marketing plan they could succeed.
The experiences of the owner and the operation of their current cafe creates a key
competitive advantage for Kaylindaja Catering relative to competitors. The experience in food
preparation and in party planning helps the company acquire customers and expand the clientele
list. Also, the extensive resume of the owner gives the company a competitive edge.
With regard to resources, Kaylindaja Catering has an established facility in working
condition. The current production capacity for Kaylindaja Catering is ten major events per
month. The business concentrates on high-quality production method which means the company
has the opportunity to focus on the quality section of the market. Although the business is able to
outsource for employees, the dependability and resourcefulness of the employees place a limit on
the firms current operating capacity.
Kaylindaja Catering operated at a profit during the second year of operations; however,
this was partly due to the owner managing the business and sharing a facility with the caf.
Income statements for the first two years of operation indicate growth and profitability potential.
Currently, the catering service uses the van owned by the caf. In the future, a vehicle
dedicated to the catering service should be purchased. Supply costs went down the second year,
after the initial costs for purchasing serving equipment had been absorbed. The new caf will
soon be finished, which means the current facility will house only the catering business. This will
mean that the monthly payments on the building will be charged to the catering service along
with utility expenses.

External Environment
Due to the recession and slowdown in the Philippines economy, sales in catering services
actually declined in 2009 in the Puerto Princesa City area. The growth of the university and new
businesses in the area should help the economy rebound quickly, including the catering business
marketplace.
The demand for catering services tends to fluctuate during the year, primarily because
catering services reach peak demand for special occasions. Demand increases during holidays
and during the spring and summer for weddings. The majority of weddings are held from April
through July of each year.
Additional events that utilize catering services are political parties, corporate parties and
banquets, and private parties. Again, these tend to have higher concentrations during the spring
and summer, and around holidays. Catering for political parties increases prior to local, state, and
national elections.
Catering services are culturally diversified in the types of food dishes it provides in order
to meet all of the customers tastes & preferences. The most common requests are for:

Filipino-style food

Oriental-style food

American-style food

Seafood

Social-cultural trends indicate an increasing demand for catering service. An increase in

dual income households creates greater discretionary funds for catering private events. Tied
closely to this is the lack of time and busy schedules. It is easier and more convenient to hire a
caterer to handle the food at an event than do it yourself. This is also true for weddings. But,
another opportunity is present in the wedding market. Catering is the most socially thing
accepted method of serving food and any type of private preparation of food would be viewed
less favorably. This includes the rehearsal dinner, which is now catered for most weddings in
addition to the wedding reception.

Although the economy has affected the number of catering events held by businesses, the
growth in the business sector in Puerto Princesa City area has created a greater demand for
catering services. These events vary from a recognition dinner that might have 50 guests to major
corporate events that will have attendance of 1,000 individuals.

Competitive Environment
Kaylindaja Caterings main competitors are full service caterers, turnkey caterers, and
general caterers. The catering business consists of four levels of competitors. At the top level are
full service caterers who also are involved in event planning. They handle the entire event,
including the food. The second level of competitors is full-service caterers who do not offer
event planning services. They only care for the food and tables at the event. The third level of
competitors is restaurants that also offer catering services. These restaurants tend to be limited by
the types of foods served at the restaurant. The lowest, or fourth tier, are restaurants, primarily
fast food operations and grocery stores, that prepare catering food trays that can be picked up by
customers. Some restaurants also provide these food trays for customers who are concerned
about expenses.
The top tier catering services target large businesses and the high-income residents of the
area. Leas Bakeshop and Catering is the market leader in this sector of the market and controls
the largest market share of the catering business. Although their prices tended to be high, the
company has a loyal customer base and its owners are member of the local social elite class.
It was the second tier of competitors that offer food, service, and prices that are
comparable to Kaylindaja Catering. Fortunately, the location of the caf helped create a positive
image of Kaylindaja Catering through the perception was that it was a local restaurant that was
engaged in catering. Most companies and individuals did not know it was a full-service catering
service and that it operated independent of the restaurant.
For most catering services awareness and recognition are the keys to success. Few
companies, except the large ones, spend money on marketing and advertising. This is especially
true for the bottom two tiers, restaurants and grocery stores. They simply post signs in their
business about the catering service.
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All of the companies in the first two tiers have yellow page ads or listings. Some of the
higher-end restaurants also place a listing under catering to inform potential customers they do
provide catering as well. A few of the companies advertise in the newspaper, especially in the
spring and summer and around holidays. A select few have agreements with other types of
services to generate leads, such as bridal shops, photographers, florists, and bakery shops.
Customer Analysis
Kaylindaja Catering maintains a full service operation. This service offers a menu
selection to customers. The customer then selects the exact menu for an event and negotiates a
price per person. The company provides the chinawares, linens, crystal, and silver for the event.
Employees are responsible for the set-up and clean-up of the event. Kaylindaja Catering is also
responsible for replenishing empty trays during the event.
SWOT Analysis
The SWOT analysis involves reviewing Kaylindaja Caterings strengths and weaknesses.
The opportunities and threats were taken from the environment in which Kaylindaja Catering
operated. Most of the material in this section has already been covered, but it is beneficial to
summarize it here. The figure below provides a table that highlights the results of the SWOT
analysis

STRENGTHS
1. Solid, strong owners and leadership
2. Excellent staff who are highly trained and very customer attentive.
3. Superior service offerings.
4. Low cost facility
5. Financially stable operation
6. Funds available for marketing

WEAKNESSES
1. The struggle to build brand equity.
2. A limited marketing budget to develop brand awareness.
3. The difficulty finding someone with enough culinary skill to support the Chef
4. Image as a restaurant caterer
5. Low awareness of catering business

OPPORTUNITIES
1. Growing local business economy
2. Changing cultural/social acceptance
3. Recovering of economy

THREATS
1. Large number of competitors
2. Low-end suppliers with lower prices
3. A slump in the economy that will decrease customer's budgets for parties.
Kaylindaja Catering has solid, strong ownership with considerable experience in food
preparation as well as event planning. The company has money to invest in marketing the
catering service and making it a viable competitor in the marketplace.
While being tied with the caf and planning business provides some experience financial
benefits, it also is currently a major weakness. In addition, there is a low awareness of the
catering service in the public, especially among businesses.

The growing local economy and changing cultural acceptance of catering services
provides Kaylindaja Catering with an opportunity to expand the business, despite the threat of a
large number of competitors.

Keys to Success
The keys to success in this business are:
1. Product quality: Food, coffee-based beverages, and entertainment are our products. They
must be of the high quality and value.
2. Excellent Customer Service: Our patrons are paying to have a good time. Their
experience will suffer if service is not of the highest caliber. Each member of the staff
will be courteous, efficient, and attentive.
3. Marketing: Attracting customers who find value in the companys offering. We will need
to target our audience early and often.
4. Management: We will need to have a firm grasp on food, beverage, and labor costs. The
dining/entertainment/coffeehouse experience must be delivered in a fashion that will not
only inspire repeat business, but encourage word-of-mouth recommendations to others.
Proper inventory, employee management, and quality control is key. Maintaining a cost
of goods on foods at below 50%.

Marketing Objectives
Marketing goals outline the purpose of a company and then marketing objectives act as a
guide whereby the firm can evaluate its marketing decisions and performance. Based on the
analysis of Kaylindaja Catering, the following marketing goal is set forth for this marketing plan:
The marketing goal for Kaylindaja Catering is to become a viable company in the catering
business in the Puerto Princesa City area serving both individuals and businesses with high
quality food and service.

Objectives are used to evaluate the performance of a business and the success of the
marketing plan. The following objectives of Kaylindaja Catering set goals in sales, profit, image,
and customer awareness to be reached within one year.

Short-term objectives (1 year)

1. Sales: To generate revenues totaling P 800, 000 for the next calendar year.
2. Awareness: To have 25% of area businesses and organizations, and 20% of middle to highincome individuals in the local target market aware of the product and services offered by
Kaylindaja Catering during the year.
3. Image: To have 55% of the individuals and businesses who indicate they are aware of
Kaylindaja Catering to also indicate they see it as a full-service catering service that provides a
full array of foods and services.

Long- term objectives (5 years)

1. Sales: To generate revenues of P 20,000,000 within 5 years.
2. Profits: To generate a net profit target of a 10% by the end of 5years.
3. Awareness: To have 40% of area businesses and organizations, and 50% of middle to highincome individuals in the local target market aware of Kaylindaja Catering.
4. Image: To have 75% of the individuals and businesses who indicate they are aware of
Kaylindaja Catering to also indicate they see it as a full-service catering service that provides a
full array of foods and services.

Target Market
The clientele of Kaylindaja Catering can be divided into two segments. The first segment
is the individual who has a desire for social contact through social events and celebrations. This
group is made up of upper middle class married individuals who seek social and cultural
acceptance. They are very brand loyal because of their high-income status. This group of
individuals may also have certain family characteristics. They would have the presence of
children who will in the future engage in social and wedding activities. Their activities would
include social events, entertainment, and shopping. Their interests include such subjects as
family, home, and community. Opinions and views they hold about themselves and the world
around them are social issues, culture, products, and the future.
The second segmentation of the target market includes area small to mid-size businesses
and organizations, both profit and nonprofit. This group consists of organizations and businesses
engage in community and corporate affairs. They spend more money and offer more events than
the previous segment. Their activities include work, social events, and entertainment. Their
interests include such items as jobs and the community. The businesses and organizations
opinions and views they hold are politics, business, products, economics, and the future.

Marketing Strategies
Kaylindaja Catering offers great food and a unique catering service to businesses and
small to medium consumer groups. The overall strategy is a growth strategy with a concentration
on creating awareness. The concept of the awareness strategy is to start in a local market through
an integrated marketing approach and then use the experience and positive word of mouth to
move into subsequent markets. Once the market is established, Kaylindaja Catering can consider
branching into other municipality area of Palawan, such as Narra, Elnido and Brookes Point.
Product Strategy
Kaylindaja Catering offers top quality food and beverage catering with high quality
service. The company guarantees on time delivery of goods and services, and assures each
customer that their satisfaction is top priority. Although Kaylindaja Catering offers services
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comparable to many of the other caterers in the surrounding areas, the manager/owner has to
develop a strong reputation for this catering company. There are approximately 40-50 advertised
caterers in the surrounding areas, all of which offer basically the same services, which include; a
wide variety of entrees to choose from, preparation of food and beverage, delivery of food and
beverage, and servers to serve the prepared meals.

Distribution Strategy
Kaylindaja Catering is currently located on San Pedro, National highway. By using this
location for the catering service and moving the caf to a new location allows to expand the
catering operation with minimal costs. The restaurant will still be located nearby so it does
provide the benefit of sharing some resources, especially human capital.
Kaylindaja Catering, being a catering service, deals mainly in direct sales, and promoting
via word of mouth. Creating a website may allow large groups and companies, as well as
individual, to learn more about Kaylindaja Catering. Potential customers can go to the website
to have access to the services offered, the unique items and possibilities, and discover the "who,
what, when, where, and how" information about the business.
Indirect sales could also be an option for Kaylindaja Catering. By networking through
florists and banquet halls, more contacts can be made. Wedding chapels often provide florists,
decorations, photography, and catering. Aligning with a wedding planner or chapel can create a
new client base.

Promotion Strategy
To increase market share as well as gain profits, Kaylindaja Catering should establish an
aggressive awareness campaign using newspaper advertising, tradeshows, networking, personal
selling, and website partnerships.
It is suggested that Kaylindaja Catering consider expanding its advertising endeavors by
placing ads in the local newspaper. Regular advertising should especially be considered during
the spring and summer months when catering services peak. Advertising during other times of
the year can help increase brand name recognition.
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We recommend that the company should develop a colorful brochure for the catering
business, including pictures and the distinctive characteristics of the catering business. These
brochures should be designed for sales calls, tradeshows, and inquiries.
Trade shows are an excellent venue for reaching consumers and businesses. The owners
should carefully choose tradeshows that will maximize the companys exposure. For instance, a
trade show dealing with weddings would be excellent for that market. A trade show involving
business attendees would be good to reach the business community.
A personal selling strategy should be used to introduce the firm to local businesses as
well as networking with floral shops, wedding accessory shops, specialty bakeries, and other
interested establishments. This type of strategy should begin with personal letters containing
information about the company and its services. These letters should be followed by phone calls
in order to set up a sales appointment. These sales appointments should include a presentation of
the services offered and should be followed up by a personal call or letter.
The website will assist in creating better recognition and acquiring more customers. It is
important for the website to be linked with other services, especially those that are connected to
events such as weddings. Creating mutual link partnerships with local wedding planners, florists,
retail wedding stores, and photographers can benefit both parties.

Pricing Strategy
At the present moment, Kaylindaja Catering pricing is equivalent or competitive with the
other caterers in the market. As Kaylindaja Caterings market share grows, the company should
increase prices to relocate to the upper tier of catering services. Not only does this increase
revenue, but it also may enhance the prestige and image of the company.

Marketing Tactics
The marketing strategy should begin with the development of an advertising awareness of
campaign. Working with a local agency or a free-lance creative, a series of newspaper ads should
be designed. Kaylindaja Catering serves three distinctive markets. Advertisements should be
designed to reach each market.
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Coinciding with the development of the newspaper ad campaign should be the

development of a color brochure. The brochure should be high quality and created by a
professional agency or service. It should reflect the high quality service and food that Kaylindaja
Catering offers. This brochure will be used for sales calls, tradeshows, and inquiries about the
catering services.
Kaylindaja Catering should designate an employee within the company to examine the
local newspaper and clip every engagement announcement. This employee should then locate the
mailing address of the bride-to-be. A direct mail offer letter should be designed and sent to each
bride-to-be along with the brochure.
Working with the Puerto Princesa Chamber of Commerce and other local organizations,
Kaylindaja Catering should make a list of all tradeshows in the area. An analysis of each trade
show should be conducted especially in terms of who attends and how well the attendees match
Kaylindaja Caterings three target markets. Depending on the costs of hosting a booth,
Kaylindaja Catering should select a variety of shows that will allow the company maximum
exposure. To attract attention to the booth, Kaylindaja Catering should offer a contest for free
catering services as the prize. This goal is to generate interest and collect names of individuals
and businesses that can be entered into a database and solicited in the future.
In conjunction with the design of the advertisements, brochure, and direct mail offer,
Kaylindaja Catering should to retain a company or individual to redesign the companys website.
The site should be of high quality and the look, graphics, and feel need to match the brochure
and newspaper ads being designed. Everything will be integrated and offer the public the same
image of the company. Once all of these advertising and marketing pieces have been created,
Jan-carl is ready to start making sales calls. He should follow up business leads obtained from
the trade shows.
The final component of the awareness campaign being recommended is the development
of a follow-up letter and survey to consumers and businesses that use Kaylindaja Caterings
service. The letter should thank them for their business. The survey should solicit information
about the quality of the service and the customers experience. The final component of the
survey should ask for friends or business associates that the manager and co-owners can contact
and provide information and a brochure. To encourage customers to complete the survey and
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provide referrals, a voucher for two should be sent to every person that books a catering event.
This allows for that person and his or her significant other to enjoy a nice "thank you" meal.

Implementation
Before launching this marketing strategy, Jan-carl and co-owners should develop a
calendar noting when each component will be developed. In addition, they should estimate the
costs of each component. To ensure a successful completion of the marketing strategy, funds will
be earmarked for each component. By spreading the costs over a year, they can use additional
money generated by the business to support the marketing effort. It may also be necessary to
borrow some cash to ensure the marketing plan timetable is followed. Based on our analysis, we
recommend the following time table. Costs are a very rough estimate based on limited
knowledge and investigation into the recommendations.

Step

Activity

Starting Date

Implementation
Date

Develop newspaper
ads

January

March

P
2,500

March-December

P
24,000

Run newspaper ads

Estimat
ed Costs

Color brochure

January

December

P
12,000

Direct mail letter

February

December

P 1,200

Trade shows

March

December

P
30,000

Website design

January

March

Follow-up letter

April

May
Total Costs

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P
33,000
P 500
P
103,200

Evaluation and Control

The companys performance will be evaluated in four key areas: sales, profits, awareness,
and image.
In sales performance, actual sales should be compared to the sales objective. This can be
completed at the end of each quarter. The owners Kaylindaja Catering can look to see whether
the company is on target to reach the first year sales goal. In addition to reviewing sales figures,
the owners can examine the number of clients served to see if any increase in sales was due to
more clients and/or clients spending more per event. Company sales should be compared to the
industry average and that of competitors, if this information can be obtained. Careful records and
detailed reports on performance will assist the monitoring process.
For profit performance, the sales revenue and costs from the previous year should be
compared to that of the current year. Actual and estimated profits should also be compared to
determine differences. A cost control system should be developed to maintain costs that remain
within the specified budget. This will help to control profitability within the business. The
investments in marketing during the year will make it more difficult to turn a profit the first year.
But, by year 2 and year 5 of this marketing plan, a profit should be generated with the objective
of earning a 10% net profit by the end of year 5.
Awareness should be measured on a regular basis. This will be conducted by a marketing
research firm or an independent agency to ensure validity of the study. The costs of retaining an
outside company may be prohibitive until the end of each year. When it is financially feasible, it
would be beneficial to conduct an awareness study. Hopefully this will occur at the end of 6
months, so corrections can be made if the company is not on target. The effects of advertising
and the awareness campaign may be somewhat delayed. It will take time to get word out about
the company.

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The image component of the plan can be measured along with awareness. It should be
measured at the end of each year to determine if the marketing campaign has changed or
developed the image of the company.

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