http://www.scribd.com/doc/13821614/Giordano http://www.scribd.com/doc/30294332/Giordano http://www.scribd.com/doc/44856852/Describe-and-Evaluate-Giordano http://www.authorstream.

com/Presentation/Anandllim-590392-giodano-final/

http://wenku.baidu.com/view/07fac3232f60ddccda38a0a9.html http://mdshossain.wordpress.com/2008/02/26/giordano-making-a-value-for-money-highvolume-high-quality-service-strategy-work/ http://wenku.baidu.com/view/07fac3232f60ddccda38a0a9.html Giordano: Making A Value-For-Money, High-Volume, High-Quality Service Strategy Work.

Background of Giordano International Limited The improved communication from Share Point and Outlook allows us to make better product allocations between markets, which has helped Giordano raise the average selling price on our items and increase gross profit. Cody Chan, Regional Merchandising Lead, Giordano. Giordano, International Limited is a retailer of mens, womens and childrens quality apparel, accessories and supplying products to third parties, founded at 1981 by Jimmy Lai in Kowloon, Hong Kong. Giordano has become a pioneer of customer service in the AsiaPacific region and, as of January 2008, currently employs more that 11,400 people and operates 1800 stores worldwide in 40 countries.The company is Asia-Pacifics most successful retailer and sells its name under the brands of Giordano, Giordano Concepts, Giordano Junior and Giordano Ladies. Giordano has been publicly listed since 1991 and since then trades on the Hong Kong stock exchange under the ticker symbol.Giordanos success is measured by the companys relentless focus on its five corporate business values of quality, knowledge, innovation, simplicity and service. The company has its own apparel manufacturing division where many of its own clothing styles are produced. Giordano is also renowned for its basic and practical mens, womens, and childrens T-shirts and trousers, especially denims. In comparison, Giordano is very similar to the American based popular retailer The Gap. Giordanos Vision is To be the best and the biggest world brand in apparel retailing. When the Mission is To make people feel good & look great.[1] Analysis Issues Firstly, how, if at all, should Giordano reposition itself against its competitors in its existing and new market?

Answer: According to Osama Taha- A positioning strategy results in the image you want to draw in the mind of your customers, the picture you want him/her to visualize of what you offer, in relation to the market situation, and any competition you may have Giordanos current positioning strategy is based on providing value-for-money merchandise of discounted casual unisex apparel. Giordano repositioned its brand to focus on value-added products and broadening its appeal by improving on visual merchandising and apparel. The company also emphasized on the merchandise that is relatively mid-priced which means inexpensive yet contemporary and trendy, and offers quality, value and excellent customer services. Now the fact is whether or not Giordano should reposition itself against its competitors in its current and new markets. Repositioning is not necessary for the entire company because Giordanos relatively midpriced positioning worked well: the inexpensive yet trendy clothing appealed to Asias frugal customers, especially during the Asian economic crisis. However, with the Asian economy booming, customers now have more disposable income and spending power. Thus, Giordano could find it worthwhile to alter their brand image into a more high-value, highquality and therefore higher price market. This could mean primarily repositioning Giordano as a higher priced and higher value brand. Giordano must continue to be creative in their promotions. Perhaps they should spend more on traditional advertising, as they spend less on advertising and promotion than close competitors. A spokesperson, McCann- Erickson, in his one comment about Giordano was that it was a good brand but not a great one. Compared to other international brands, it doesnt shape opinion. A competitor of Giordano is Esprit. They are seen as more upmarket than Giordano, whilst being stylish and trendy. However, Esprit promoted a lifestyle image, even though it is positioned similarly to Giordano. So, Giordano could re-launch its image, to be more stylish and thus promoting a lifestyle and not just a brand. It is not necessary for Giordano to follow same positioning strategies for different market but it will depend on the market condition of a particular whether to follow standardized or customized strategy. The company can go after with standardized positioning strategies value-formoney merchandise for different market within the same region like South East Asian countries. But before implementing this standardized positioning strategy Giordano needs to understand the single market on the basis of consumers tastes and preferences about the product and promotional activities. On the other hand, the other successful strategies of Giordano in proving excellent customer services, information system and logistics and human resource policies and practices should be implemented tactically for different markets. It means customized strategies should be developed for different countries even within Asia because there are some variations between countries in terms of their economic, cultural and social factors. Giordano completely understood its core competencies and the pillars of its success, but it had to carefully explore how they were likely to develop over coming years. Which of its competitive advantages would be sustained and which ones were likely to be eroded? Answer: The competitive advantages those worked as key success factors for Giordano to achieve a distinct position in the competitive markets are:

Computerization The POS terminals that are used to record and transmit flows of stocks to a mainframe computer which then aids in controlling stock flow of inventory. A tightly controlled menu It mainly focus on a few items whose demand and desirability can be closely monitored. Frugality curbed spending on advertising and tight inventory control Value pricing value for money apparel The other sources of competitive advantage for Giordanos are: 1. A dedicated workforce in all outlets that provides quality service: In order to maintain this Giordano follows stringent selection procedures to ensure only desired employees are chosen, conduct workshops on attitude training, follows rotational on the job training method and performance related pay systems on the basis of periodic performance evaluations. 2. Simplicity and speed of operations: Giordano maintained a flat organizational structure and this facilitated easy communication between people within the organization, helped to make speedy decision and to manage the project efficiently. 3. A recognized brand: Giordano has received awards such as: The American Service Excellence Award, ISO 9002 Award and People Developer Award which helped Giordano to establish their brand as a familiar one in over 30 countries. All these competitive advantages and sources should be maintained by Giordano in order to keep its current competitive position and there are some other competitive advantages that should be developed by Giordano in future. The future competitive advantages can be gained through investment into the development of employees and continued development of a learning organization which may not be gained by the other competitors. y A third issue to be considered was Giordanos growth strategy in Asia as well as across continent. Would Giordanos competitive strengths be transferable to other markets? Would strategic adaptation to IT strategy and marketing mix be required or would tactical moves suffice?

Answer: Giordano Companys main competitive strengths which can be transferred to other market are: the experience of the employees, inventory controlled system, HRM practices but the policies should be different for each country and can use the established distribution, marketing and inbound channels members in order to market their product outside the home country. IT strategy which is currently used by Giordano, it should not adopt the same strategy for other countries where they are planning to expand their business. Because the IT infrastructure for each country in Asia and other continents may not be the same and the current IT strategy of Giordano may not be supported by that particular countrys technological structure. Giordano needs more efficient, cost effective, and secure internal communication platform which will link its many sites in Hong Kong and other host countries. As the cross border business of Giordano is increasing, the company needed a comprehensive communications tool that would help Giordano employees conduct multisite management meetings, share documents and collaborate for fast business decisions and quality customer service. In such scenario Giordano can go for partnership with the IT

company (Like Microsoft), through which they can install such a server and software through which they can equipped their staff with real time teamwork and presence capabilities that dramatically increased productivity. At the same time they can decrease its multi-national direct dialing and travel cost, as well as IT management costs. The marketing mix strategies that are followed by the Giordano for the existing market should not be the same for new markets where the company is willing to enter. The marketing mix strategies mainly deal with arrangements of the 4 Ps. So the strategies regarding product price, price, place and promotion should not be the same for all target countries as the market differs in terms of their economic, cultural, social and political environment. But the successful strategies which are currently used for other market can be used by Giordano as guidelines and can develop tactical strategies for different market according to the market situation and customers requirement. Recommendation From the above analysis we have some recommendation for Giordano International Limited. These are: C It is essential to start promotions to increase brand awareness when starting businesses in new market. C The location and site selection for establishing Giordanos outlet in different country will be critical. The company should carefully select the site to position their stores which will be convenient for the customers. C Customer is the key and main factor for differentiation is customer care. The company needs to follow customized customer service strategy for each market segment. C Giordano needs to find out possibility of outsourcing to maintain low costs C Extensive market research is needed to investigate designs and fabrics required by the target customers Conclusion Giordano has perfectly focused in the value-for-money concept and everything they do is managed at a world-class standard. The management conducted their business in such an excellent and professional manner which helped this brand to reach from Asia to the Middle East and India, Australia, Eastern Europe, and now in North America. References Kotler, P., & Kelvin, K. (2006).Marketing Management .New Delhi: Prentice-Hall Publications. Taha, O. (2000). How to Design Your Positioning Strategy. Retrieved February 23, 2008, from http://www. dime-co.com/marketing/positioning.htm Giordano International Limited (Hong Kong). (n.d.). Retrieved February 25, 2008, from http://www.giordano.com.hk/web/HK/index.html Our Company. (n.d.). Retrieved February 25, 2008, from http://www.giordano.com.hk/web/HK/ourCompany.html

The competitive advantages those worked as key success factors for Giordano to achieve a distinct position in the competitive markets are: Computerization: The POS terminals that are used to record and transmit flows of stocks to a mainframe computer which then aids in controlling stock flow of inventory. A tightly controlled menu: It mainly focuses on a few items whose demand and desirability can be closely monitored. Frugality: curbed spending on advertising and tight inventory control Sources of competitive advantage for Giordanos are: 1. Products are various and categorized like ladies, kids, etc so it reaches all ages and unisex 2. Providing a professional service so customers feel comfortable and concentration on quality at the service core 3. Many people have known Giordano as quality brand 4. Giordano was able to consistently sell value-for-money merchandise through careful selection of suppliers, strict cost control, and resisting the temptation to increase retail prices unnecessarily 5. A dedicated workforce in all outlets that provides quality service: In order to maintain this Giordano follows stringent selection procedures to ensure only desired employees are chosen, conduct workshops on attitude training , follows rotational on the job training method and performance related pay systems on the basis of periodic performance evaluations 6. A quality staff recruitment for a high quality and loyal staff in Giordano from a careful staff selection 7. A well chosen supplier to get the finest supplier and keep innovating to create creative products and high quality materials 8. Prices are reasonable and keeping it normal, not to raise it up 9. Giordano stores are located in dense population and high traffic areas 10. Move fast on a market change 11. Smart in sales opportunity and minimizing store size for the efficiencies

12. Using high technology for fast distributions. Every sales and the barcode information will be identified and transmitted directly to the company main computer and sales distribution department 13. Giordano always makes sure that the stocks are always available in the store 14. Fast moving items to avoid old items piled at the warehouse or best seller items unavailable 15. Information are fast spread to the productions so if theres any slow moving item, Giordano will try to sell it as fast as possible and if its reaches the minimum number o selling it will be stopped 16. Customers are satisfied because out of stocks doesnt happen often 17. Giordano using smart information so they are different than others 18. Giordano aggressively promoting their brand through creative and focused campaign on customers so the marketing succeed 19. The employee has awareness of their roles in customer satisfaction and economic system 20. Integration of employees into a winning team 21. Giordano has many 1800 outlets in over 30 countries 22. Giordano offers value for money clothing with a good quality 23. Giordano maintains a flat organizational structure which makes it easy to make communication with employees within the company thus this leads to quick decision making. 24. Has excellent management and staff that offer excellent service 25. Tight inventory control that will not result in overstocking of goods 26. Has high advertising budget due to this their company is more recognizable. 27. Simplicity and speed of operations: Giordano maintained a flat organizational structure and this facilitated easy communication between people within the organization, helped to make speedy decision and to manage the project efficiently 28. A recognized brand: Giordano has received awards such as: The American Service Excellence Award, ISO 9002 Award and People Developer Award which helped Giordano to establish their brand as a familiar one in over 30 countries

2. Describe and evaluate Giordanos current positioning strategy. Should Giordano reposition itself against its competitors in its current and new markets, and should it have different positioning strategies for different markets? Giordanos current positioning strategy Giordanos current positioning strategy is value for money or quality merchandise at affordable prices. Thats differentiating their products compare to other rivals. Moreover they put their service different with high level of service provided to customer, their sales staff is dedicated, ever smiling, well mannered and helpful. Those positioning strategies were success due to filling a gap in the market for trendy, yet reasonably priced unisex apparel, reinforcing the positioning with the appropriate marketing communications and the delivery of quality service.

Giordano reposition itself against its competitors in its current and new markets The possibility of changing current positioning in the light of developments in the industry, particularly with respect to consumers desire for trendier fashion, as well as the increase in the number and strength of competitors should also be discussed. For instance, students could critique the firms interpretation of these trends and its subsequent decision to upgrade its image and capture the up-scale segment. Obviously, this move may cause problems with its current core target segments. This was apparent from the failure of its Giordano Ladies venture, because the positioning strategy failed to differentiate the up-scale segment from the value-conscious segment. Giordano has fought hard to establish its brand name for its valuefor-money proposition, but it is also because of its established branding that Giordano cannot easily change its positioning. However, it can be seen that Giordano took measures to avoid the problems of brand dilution, and to overcome its apparent difficulty in moving consumers perception of Giordano towards a high-end positioning. For instance, it established a new product line, Bluestar Exchange, to cater to the needs of its existing value-for-money segment and revamped the core brand with extensive marketing communications and gave its stores a new look. Giordano initially tried to acquire Theme International in November 1999 to carry its line of up-market ladies apparel, but its take-over bid was rejected by Themes management and stockholders. Instead of giving up entering the up-market segment, it re-launched Giordano Ladies and Giordano Junior to carry a trendier line of apparel, with encouraging results. We may conclude that, Giordano should not lose its focus on customer services as one of its core differentiating factors. Should it have different positioning strategies for different markets? There are possible problems with having different positioning strategies in different markets. For instance, the recent slight shift towards a higher end from the current low-end value-formoney positioning in Hong Kong was not fully executed in its other markets. Customers in these markets may become confused as to what Giordano stands for, and this inconsistency makes effective service strategy implementation difficult, particularly as consumers are becoming increasingly mobile and travel more frequently between Giordanos core markets. In addition, economies of scale in apparel purchase, design and market communications may be diluted, if different strategies are followed across markets. If this trend persisted, Giordano may dilute its brand name and possibly might weaken its competitive advantage in other areas as well. Probably, Giordano would do better to keep a consistent positioning, keep its management focused on its core strengths, and send a clear message to all its staff and customers. Giordano are slowly and gradually moved its positioning upwards to meet the rising affluence, and hence the resulting desire for high end apparel, of its core target segment. As Giordano enters into new markets and face strong and similarly positioned competitors in these markets (The Gap in the US, Japan and most European markets), the pressure to adopt a slightly different position that suits the unique market situation of a particular country may

increase. In this case, students could suggest that Giordano acquire another existing brand or start-up a new business entity under a different brand, with its own positioning strategy. In fact, this is illustrated by Giordanos recent venture, Bluestar Exchange, which catered to a more price-conscious, mass-market segment. However, this strategy is extremely risky due to the costs involved in building a new marketing strategy and brand, and students may come to the conclusion that having a consistent positioning may be the better option even if it means competing head-on with established brands. In conclusion, a potential strategy for Giordano could be to maintain its positioning in Hong Kong and over time slowly and gradually shift its position in its other markets slightly more up-market to follow its Hong Kong positioning. This strategy would have the added advantage that it would move upwards together with its core target segments, which is also developing upwards in terms of education and increasing disposable income due to most of Giordanos Asian markets are developing fast. We believe that in the balance, it would be better for Giordano to maintain a consistent positioning across all markets, even when Giordano decides to enter countries with entrenched competitors with similar positioning. Should these competitors be too strong, we feel that it would be better not to enter this market rather than try to establish a new brand and strategy. The main reason is that this would be expensive and high risk as less of Giordanos core strengths could be transferred to this new market, and benefits from economies of scale could not fully be reaped like in terms of manufacturing volumes, marketing and training.

3. What are Giordanos Key Success Factors (KSF) and sources of competitive advantage? Are its competitive advantages sustainable, and how would they develop in the future? Giordanos KSF | Sustainability in existing country markets | development of KSF | Potential future

DesignsFast and market-driven NPD: - Systematically collects ideas from customers, front line and experienced designers- Fast turnaround from market impulse, design, manufacturing to distribution to the shops | Somewhat sustainable - Relies on effective organizational communications and other intangible sources of advantage, which are difficult for competitors to copy and implement effectively | -Competitors could increasingly use technology to assist in their design process- On Giordanos part, effort must continually be made to obtain and utilize feedback from target customers- Attracting and retaining good staff in design is important | Operations, Logistics and ITExcellent management of systems and integration of activities, e.g., stocks obsolescence costs are minimized due to: - Daily sales reports (facilitated through IT & systems)- Limited stock in shops that are daily restocked- Rapid market-driven manufacturing | Somewhat sustainable - Giordanos efficiency in logistics and operations may be copied or even exceeded with an acquisition of superior systems. However, there are not many competitors who would be able to copy the implementation and integration of the systems on the scale that Giordano has done | -Other competitors would be likely to try to

emulate Giordano- Needs to continually look for new ways to improve and build its advantage inside and outside its industry- For example: benchmarking against retailers like The Gap and Liz Claiborne, which are well-known for their integration of IT systems and efficient operations | Branding and MarketingGiordanos Brand: - Positioning - helps instant transfer of key values Giordano offers (value-for-money, good quality casual wear, excellent service)Excellent brand recognition due to high advertising budget | Somewhat sustainable - Brand equity helps to build customer loyalty- However, Giordano faces threat of strong competitors with similar positioning and also from brand dilution (e.g. cheap image) as the market in general shifts upward along with increasing incomes | -Biggest threat comes from reputable players like The Gap- Giordano should continue to invest in strengthening its brand equity through heavy advertising and excellent customer service- It could acquire another brand to serve higher end segment | Customer ServiceFantastic customer service: - Service orientation is pervasive in many of its activities- Recruitment, selection and training of staff- Empowerment and motivation of staff | Somewhat sustainable - A service culture is one source of advantage that competitors would find difficult to copy - However, Giordano needs to ensure that this culture can be maintained as it expands rapidly in existing and new markets | - Other competitors have not yet attempted to follow Giordanos service strategy |

LocationGood, high traffic shopping and convenience locations: - High contributions allow aggressive retail location acquisitions | Difficult to sustain - Giordanos sites are an important source of advantage, but other competitors could also do the same | Competitors and new entrants will successfully compete for good locations |