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Introduction to Blue Ocean Strategy
Strategy Business Information and Analysis, In the view of Chan Kim and Mauborgne (2005), the blue ocean strategy is the opposite of the mindset that the businesses must operate in a competitive environment. The blue ocean strategy believes that the companies must establish or design their strategies in such a manner so that it is possible to identify or create a new market place altogether. It is believed that when a business is able to do so, it helps the business gain the first mover advantage in the new industry.
The blue ocean strategy believes that the blue oceans can be found in two ways; either by identification of entirely new industries or identification of an industry within a red ocean industry. In addition to this, it is believed that the blue ocean strategy is far better than having competitive advantage in a red ocean strategy (Strategy, 2004).
Overview of the Company Selected
According to Pret A Manger (2015), the company selected for this analysis is Pret a Manger; it is a UK based fast food chain initiated in 1980s. The first shop of the fast food chain was opened in London and now it has managed to expand over multiple countries which shows the success of the business. In 2001, the McDonalds acquired 33% of the non-controlling rights of the fast food chain considering the growth of fast food chain.
The company still has more than 60% of the business coming from UK primarily London which means that the company has lower number of restaurants in other countries. The company has managed to grow steadily in past and it is forecasted that it will grow further in the future years (Pret A Manger, 2015).
Application of Blue Ocean Strategy by Pret a Manger
The blue ocean strategy can be applied by any company regardless of its industry and resources. The blue ocean strategy requires some strategic planning and implementation of that planning so that it is possible to identify a new market place or industry. Once the company has identified a blue ocean, it is easier to make products according to the needs of target audience and gain market share. Pret a Manger, the company selected in the case, identified a new market within the restaurant industry by their creative thinking and strategic planning. Before the Pret a Manger was launched, the professionals in the United Kingdom used to go to traditional restaurants to have lunch which was very time consuming at times. However, it was liked by most of the people residing in UK because they did not thought about an alternative to dine-in or take away (Kim and Mauborgne, 2006).
It is further discussed by Kim and Mauborgne (2006), the market analysis showed that these professionals are not satisfied with lunch in those restaurants on regular basis. There were two main reasons behind their dissatisfaction; firstly, the professionals do not always have sufficient time to take meal in the restaurant and secondly, Strategy Business Information and Analysis they were concerned because of health issues so they were not happy with that traditional restaurant lunch. This is what helped the Pret a Manger build a blue ocean in the food industry; the blue ocean created by Pret a Manger was focused on satisfaction of these two aspects that were causing dissatisfaction in the existing food / restaurant market.
The Pret a Manger aimed to satisfy both the issues which were causing the dissatisfaction in the restaurant market i.e. health and time issues. Therefore, the new venture Pret a Manger focused on satisfying both these aspects in a positive manner. The company launched its products in the fast food category primary sandwiches which were ready before the customers come to the shop. The sandwiches were primary placed in a fridge and the fast food chain ensured that they make fresh sandwiches daily. The reason for making fresh sandwiches…
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