Fresh Food Supermarkets

Bénédicte Thoméré

Prof. Hamilton, Marc

MGMT 36030_32

April 16, 2014

Fresh Food Supermarkets

        Fresh Food Supermarkets is a grocery store chain located in the Southeast in the United States. The company is expanding its stores in the Eastern seaboard and Southwest. Vivian Noble is a successful African American top manager in Atlanta and she has been asked to relocate to Phoenix in Arizona. Opening a new store is a big challenge that she must confront. During her career, she has faced some prejudice but she is a strong woman and she refuses to be stopped by any barrier. Despite her new challenge, she knows she could make profits at the same time. Vivian Noble has to follow several steps to recruit and develop her workforce.

Phoenix is the capital of Arizona and the Latin American population has increased a lot in ten years. After analyzing the social environment, Vivian Noble must employ people who speak English and Spanish. Indeed, bilingual employee is always a bonus for the company. Knowing that Latinos are collectivists, the manager should hire Hispanic workers and consequently adapt her business. She also needs to take into consideration the customers’ wants and needs to succeed in her business. When companies change location, they must study the local population. In this case, Hispanic are different than American people and the manager has to adapt her company in function such as spicy food, beans, rice, quesadillas, and fajitas. Analyzing and understanding the culture allows the company to find the

appropriate equipment and it is the key of success. Once the marketing research is done, the next step is the marketing strategy that she has to put in place. The firm has to satisfy the wants and needs of Hispanics, so she will need help from experts to target her new market. Moreover, she has to research how is Phoenix’s lifestyle and consumption behavior because it is different than Atlanta and the strategy could not work in the same way.

To resume, Vivian Noble must analyze and understand the Latin culture and lifestyle in Phoenix. Then, she can elaborate a marketing strategy and start to hire people. After targeting the clients, she can build a strong strategy to make profit.

Fresh Food Supermarkets operates in the East Coast region so they are used to this culture and lifestyle. Expanding its activities in Phoenix is a good advantage and opportunity that the company has. Vivian Noble will decide in a positive or negative way that will confront the company in this new state. She has pressure on her because she has to take the good decision for the future of the firm. She needs leadership skills in order to be or stay a powerful manager. Communication is very important in a team, so Vivian should communicate her objectives and ideas to her colleagues to reach her goals. Also, she needs to create a strong relationship with her colleagues in the company. The marketing mix approach will help her to set her 4P’s strategy about the price, place, position, and promotion of the products. Building a strong relationship between employees is essential in a company even if they come from different part in the world. Her colleagues have to know that they can talk to her anytime and about any problems they can face. Hispanics in general are cooperative, have teamwork, and are concerned about their social relations. Communication is primordial for this culture.

...