B207 Shaping Business Opportunities Chloe Jackson-Nott
EMA K2628294
Chloe Jackson-Nott
K2628294
B207 Shaping Business Opportunities
EMA
PART A: 2,086 words
PART B: 173 words
PART C: 246 words
TOTAL = 2,505 words
Page 1 of 7
, B207 Shaping Business Opportunities Chloe Jackson-Nott
EMA K2628294
PART A
1. The IKEA vision aims ‘to create a better everyday life for the many people.’
Wilson and Gilligan (2005) have six tests for a successful mission statement with one
being ‘be achievable.’ The challenge IKEA may face here is saying ‘the many people,’
but someone with a disability or condition may struggle with the flat-pack element of the
products. However, IKEA have shown that they are able to change their business model
to accommodate customers when they expanded their brand to India. They were able to
partner with a brand called ‘Urban Clap,’ which helps customers put together their
furniture after purchase. IKEA sells a range of 9500 products, so introducing an
accessible partnership with a similar furniture building company may also be
challenging because of how many products they have. Thankfully, every product comes
with a step-by-step guide of how to build so the helpers should find it easy enough to
assemble a range of different pieces.
When expanding to the Indian market, they would have conducted marketing
research. This research helped them understand how their culture is different to the
European market, which is why they partnered with ‘Urban Clap.’ During their research,
they found that many people in India were mainly using public transport. With IKEA’s
business model, they locate their stores outside of the city centre so that costs are lower
in land purchase. With the difference in India, it meant that they had to adapt their
model and adjust it so that their store locations were central. This would have been a
challenge as it now meant that they didn’t have a uniform model globally and they would
have had to pay extra for land being in a more populated area. In August 2018, they
saw 40,000 customers on their opening day in Hyderabad and they are looking to
expand further to Mumbai and Delhi. Another challenge they may face could be over
capacity. With the global pandemic still happening, we are now seeing different variants
of COVID-19 spreading. Although we still have control of the virus currently, that is
mainly due to continued social distancing and masks. When they open their stores in
other parts of India, they will need to create a system to ensure safety measures are still
in place. Unfortunately, this may mean a booking system or turning people away at the
door. They could overcome any loss in sales through online delivery but that again
depends on what restrictions are in place if the country locks down and non-essential
retail stops trading.
According to The Open University (2020), ‘competitive advantage involves an
organisation positioning itself in relation to its competitors.’ One difference with IKEA
that stands out compared to other furniture retailers is the flat-pack element. This
challenge was overcome quite quickly, as it has improved on manufacturing costs and
also allowed the customer to get involved with building. Customers can develop a sense
of achievement when they have completed their build. Even if some customers get
aggravated with the building process, the outcome will still remain positive. During the
pandemic, IKEA was classed as non-essential retail so their stores remained closed.
Page 2 of 7
EMA K2628294
Chloe Jackson-Nott
K2628294
B207 Shaping Business Opportunities
EMA
PART A: 2,086 words
PART B: 173 words
PART C: 246 words
TOTAL = 2,505 words
Page 1 of 7
, B207 Shaping Business Opportunities Chloe Jackson-Nott
EMA K2628294
PART A
1. The IKEA vision aims ‘to create a better everyday life for the many people.’
Wilson and Gilligan (2005) have six tests for a successful mission statement with one
being ‘be achievable.’ The challenge IKEA may face here is saying ‘the many people,’
but someone with a disability or condition may struggle with the flat-pack element of the
products. However, IKEA have shown that they are able to change their business model
to accommodate customers when they expanded their brand to India. They were able to
partner with a brand called ‘Urban Clap,’ which helps customers put together their
furniture after purchase. IKEA sells a range of 9500 products, so introducing an
accessible partnership with a similar furniture building company may also be
challenging because of how many products they have. Thankfully, every product comes
with a step-by-step guide of how to build so the helpers should find it easy enough to
assemble a range of different pieces.
When expanding to the Indian market, they would have conducted marketing
research. This research helped them understand how their culture is different to the
European market, which is why they partnered with ‘Urban Clap.’ During their research,
they found that many people in India were mainly using public transport. With IKEA’s
business model, they locate their stores outside of the city centre so that costs are lower
in land purchase. With the difference in India, it meant that they had to adapt their
model and adjust it so that their store locations were central. This would have been a
challenge as it now meant that they didn’t have a uniform model globally and they would
have had to pay extra for land being in a more populated area. In August 2018, they
saw 40,000 customers on their opening day in Hyderabad and they are looking to
expand further to Mumbai and Delhi. Another challenge they may face could be over
capacity. With the global pandemic still happening, we are now seeing different variants
of COVID-19 spreading. Although we still have control of the virus currently, that is
mainly due to continued social distancing and masks. When they open their stores in
other parts of India, they will need to create a system to ensure safety measures are still
in place. Unfortunately, this may mean a booking system or turning people away at the
door. They could overcome any loss in sales through online delivery but that again
depends on what restrictions are in place if the country locks down and non-essential
retail stops trading.
According to The Open University (2020), ‘competitive advantage involves an
organisation positioning itself in relation to its competitors.’ One difference with IKEA
that stands out compared to other furniture retailers is the flat-pack element. This
challenge was overcome quite quickly, as it has improved on manufacturing costs and
also allowed the customer to get involved with building. Customers can develop a sense
of achievement when they have completed their build. Even if some customers get
aggravated with the building process, the outcome will still remain positive. During the
pandemic, IKEA was classed as non-essential retail so their stores remained closed.
Page 2 of 7
