An Analysis of a Successful Fast Food Restaurants Business Strategy: AlBaik - Literature review Example

? An Analysis of a Successful Fast Food Restaurants Business Strategy: "Al Baik" Contents Contents 2 Introduction 3 Aim 4 Literature Review 4 Conclusion 18 Reference 19 Introduction AlBaik was started in the year 1974 by late Shakkour Abu Ghazalah in Saudi Arabia, Jeddah and is termed as the most successful fast food chain of restaurants. AlBaik is the result of late Shakkour Abu Ghazalah to own a successful chain of restaurant. The founder had started his job working behind the counter, cooking and by serving the customers and now the founder, Late Shakkour Abu Ghazalah is the owner of Albaik legacy and over the years have developed a concept which consists of quality which has grown to serve the people and its millions of customers for over the years. Throughout the years of its operation the restaurant did not forget its roots and never had allowed them to become complacent and kept following the basic recipe needed for the success. AlBaik is one of the most famous chains of fast food based on Saudi Arabia which sells shrimp and chicken with various types of sauce. AlBaik has about 40 branches in Saudi Arabia, Jeddah seven restaurants in Mecca and one each in Yanbu and Taif. AlBaik ranks at top in serving chicken to consumers. AlBaik is highly committed towards society, its customers and also the team members. The organisation is committed towards many different corporate social responsibilities, CSR initiatives. It has launched unique educational program and social programs to strengthen the relationship between trust and value with regards to the community. AlBaik, due to their responsibility and high performance they have been successful in attracting the loyal customers of the multinational quick service restaurants (Madinah Institute for Leadership & Entrepreneurship, 2012). Nearly even after 36 years of its service, AlBaik is still the most popular chicken and seafood fast food restaurant in Saudi Arabia. One of the important initiatives taken by the AlBaik was generating awareness and environmental care campaign with its unique cartoon characters such as Wartan and Nazeeh. Over the years the characters have been the most popular and liked by both parents and children and have help in the initiatives to care about the environment and CRS activities (Earth Day Network, n.d). Therefore the report would talk about the strategies adopted by AlBaik and a literature review on the chain of restaurants. The report aims to find out the reason for not going global despite of the huge success in Saudi Arabia and in some cities of Saudi Arabia. Thus the aim of the research is to focus on analysing their business strategy and researching the reasons as to why they are not international. Aim To analyse the business strategy To find out AlBaik operated only in Saudi Arabia. Literature Review Background Globalization is termed as a process where events or influences affect the local political and also the social activities of the country. The most important contention is that in the process of globalization the social economic and political processes of globalization have disrupted and overwhelmed the relationship between the state and the citizen residing on the state (Hudson & Slaughter, 2007, p.1). Globalization has been referred to as both a savoir and damnation to the world especially in the Middle East. The attitude of the Islamic countries over the matter of globalization has always been a topic of debate. With a majority of opposition movement and region and with the present of intellectual in the society, it can be said that at the starting point Middle East was against globalization. Middle East region especially the Arab countries have consistently lost from globalization from over the years. The region had remained isolated in comparison to other countries from the global economy; the growth rate of the country had stagnated at almost less than half of the average of the global economy, the shares of foreign direct investment and global trade had also decreased globally and the country was not able to create job opportunity for the people in Saudi Arabia (Leon, 2008, p.227). Globalization did also have positive impact on the Middle Eastern countries. The first and foremost positive effect of globalization is that it has been able to raise the overall global wealth but not as much as the advanced countries. Globalization may reduce terrorism but it might depend on factors such as trade levels and economic development (Yetiv, 2011, p.202). Franchising is a form of licensing where the franchiser makes the overall marketing plan which includes the brand name, logo the product and the method of operations. The franchise agreement is usually a comprehensive method than the regular licensing method. Companies which have achieved success in home market have exploited the method of franchising in order to expand globally or into the international market. Some of the most successful companies include Mc Donald’s, Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC), burger king and other fast food chains which have emerged into the international market with flying colours (Gillespie, Jeannet & Hennessey, 2010, p.258). The Middle East has gained popularity among franchisors during the recent years. The population of Middle East, particularly Dubai has growing disposable income and more sophisticated. The population are well travelled as well as well educated and are mostly aware of the latest trends and latest fashions. Many countries have realised the benefit of economic development of franchising and have introduced laws and offerings in order to encourage a continued growth. One of the major obstacles in the region is particularly political unrest and some countries also come across complex legal procedures and also bureaucratic procedures which can slow down the impact of new business enterprises. The countries which are mostly attractive towards foreign investors are the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Israel and Egypt (Sherman, 2011). Middle East comprises of a great cultural diversity of ethnic groups which are further divided into difference of religions and languages. Nearly half of the population of Middle East are not Arabs though most of the people residing in Middle East speaks in Arabic and Arabic is also the national language of many different countries in that region, but it has been found out that a large number of population speaks in Turkish, Kurdish and also Farsi. The Middle East comprises of more of Muslim than Arabs, more than 90 percent of the population practice Islam. The cultural differentiation is among the people and their language, customs, religion and dress values. The cultural pattern is shuffled about three times. Therefore it could be concluded that region has a great cultural diversity (Yambert & Goldschmidt, 2010, p.13). Countries at the Middle East, have adopted the new lifestyle who prefers to socialise in places such as fast food chains and so on. The main difference between the modern style and the regional style is the type of food which is offered. In western restaurants mostly in Middle East and also North Africa one can have European cuisine, with a strong French influence. The success of the fast food chain restaurants also depends on the location. Shopping malls are also a new experience in the Middle East countries. In the last several years’ fast food chain has started by the Middle Eastern, they work accordingly to the principles of western chains, though they differ in menu (Heine, 2004, p.137). With the increase in disposable income and with increasing exposure to the western culture, with nuclear families and with multinational work culture and the new trend of having fast food has become the new culture of the Middle Eastern population. The Middle East has experienced a growth in the fast food sector. For example McDonald which had only 11 outlets in 1991 expanded into 546 outlets by 2001. The Middle East experienced a growth particularly after the Gulf war in 1991 (Smith, 2011, p. 306). The meat pies of Middle Eastern had gained much prominence and this is due to Habib’s fast food chain. Next only to McDonalds is Habib’s which is popular for its kebab. The cuisine of Middle Eastern represents an exotic and also unappetizing in the past has made the columns of newspaper for food critics (Karam, 2007, p.137). But the Middle Eastern cuisine restricted geographically. But most of the restaurants success was its hamburger which was known as quick service particularly for its students (Jakle & Sculle, 2002, p.277). Many American fast food chains such as KFC, Pizza Hut, and McDonalds have franchises in the Middle East. McDonalds have even introduced a new product, sandwich in order to appeal Middle Eastern tastes, Mc Arabia which is a sandwich of grilled chicken and others. Most of the restaurants in Middle East have been segregated about eating habits one restaurant for men and one for families and separate restaurants for the women. The Restaurants are mostly closed on Muslim holidays and also for Ramadan (Albala, 2011, p. 225). Eating is one of the most important passions of the Middle Eastern people. Middle East is always known for its political, religious and also social issues that divide the region but an emphatic belief that food is important and this is the place where all the people of Arab would agree. The retail food sector in the Gulf has also undergone certain changes and has introduced the supermarkets and also hypermarket. Middle East is one of the fastest growing market for food and also beverages, the food service sectors are estimated to earn a profit of about 31 dollars annually. Saudi Arabia is the largest importer of food in the Middle East and followed by Kuwait and the UAE. Middle East is home to about more than 200 millions of the Muslim population and the demand for halal products are increasing at a high rate as the population is growing at a faster rate, with a rise in the incomes and desire to experience a other varieties has given rise to the fast food sector. The Middle Eastern population tend to experiment with a variety of food products and this is because of the fact that the today’s generation are seen travelling through which they are able to expatriates, bring the culture of other countries and introducing new and different food product. Other factors which is responsible for the growth of fast food chains in Gulf and Middle East is due to the students who pursue higher education in the West and with the spread of international communication through television, internet and other such medium, has affected the purchasing decision of the customers. They are demanding more of western food than the traditional ones (Ham, 2009, p.97). The food service sector of the Middle East represents an important market with a total amount spends estimated to be about US 7.6 million dollars during 2009. The rise in international tourist also increased drastically and grew by 16%. Dubai alone recorded a growth in the tourist by 10 million in the year 2010. The Government has also supported the country in the construction of resorts, hotels, restaurants and other such facilities. During the past five to seven years the fast food restaurant in the Middle Eastern countries, particularly franchisee with other food service such as coffee, desert have entered the market. The food service sector in the Saudi Arabia is still underdeveloped as the country still lacks hotels and other necessities. However the food service sector is expected to expand drastically in the future. The food sector largely depends on specialised importers which help to source products rather than importing directly. With regards to competitor from the fast food sector, there are many international brands that have entered the market and have done pretty well. McDonalds, KFC, Nandoos as compared to the domestic brands. But AlBaik has outperformed these international brands and remains to be the market leader in the fast food chain sector. It has expended into about 31 locations and charges the least price starting from $2.50 as compared to its competitors KFC which charges $3.90; Nandoos $4.90 and so on. AlBaik has proved to be very popular than the foreign brands such as Church’s chicken, KFC. The chains of restaurant have in particular the financial clout and in addition to that have a free reign of the foreign market to make a point to succeed wherever these food chain set up the outlets. The free market type of Middle East has allowed different countries to explore and open up an outlet and take the advantage of the changing lifestyle of the population residing in Middle East countries. But as rules or laws of the country, a popular Saudi restaurant is not allowed to become a part of any foreign market. This law might affect the business policies and could hinder the development of the economy of the Middle East in the global market. They might not be able to compete with the global market (Business Management, 2009). Strategies Strategies are always important to reach a specific goal and are more specific and are generally made for short term basis. Strategies are usually specific to dates that are decided to achieve a given target and how much within the prescribed date. A restraint should also adopt effective strategies to over its weaknesses. Restaurant usually fails because of the factor or belief that if the quality of the food, service and ambience are good, the customers would surely return and it is assumed that the potential customers would want the food which is offered by the restaurant. But marketing does not believe in any such assumptions. Restaurant marketing is based on philosophy of marketing which make way for the ownership and management to relate with its guests, general public and employees (Walker, 2007, p.109). Strategic Theory Strategic theories are important in keeping the brand ahead of its competitors. The companies tend to follow the competitive strategies which were coined by Porter. According to Porter, there are three kinds of strategies which outperform the firms in the industry. They are cost leadership, differentiation and focus strategy. The term generic is used by Porter so that the industries can classify and slot the competitive advantages according to its need and strength. It is said that the management should dedicate to just one of three strategies in order to risk dilution of the competitive advantage. Cost leadership means to achieve the lowest price in the industry and become the leader in that field. By applying the cost leadership theory a firm would be able to reduce the impact of competitive rivalry as it allows the firm to enjoy superior profit margin and become the leader as no other firms are able to compete with its low pricing strategy. It aims to reduce the impact of both the supplier and the buyer; it provides a barrier to entry against the new entrant and can safeguard its profit. Porter criticises that low cost only takes into consideration the production cost and also recommended an analysis of the entire value chain of the firm (Botten, 2007, p.264). The differentiation aims for the development of products and services which tends to offer some unique attributes which are valued by the target audience and the potential customers and which are perceived to be better than its competitors. The value that is added by the firm allows it to charge a premium price and the customers are also willing to pay the amount to get the product. The advantage of differentiation strategy is that if the supplier also increases its price the firm would be able to get it from its customers by charging them with a high price and the firm knows that because of its unique attributes customers would surely buy at a much higher price than its competitors. Some of the major strength of the firms applying the differentiation strategy is such as it is accessed to scientific research; it has got the most highly skilled and creative team for its product development; it achieves a good corporate reputation for innovation as well as quality products and with a strong sales team who successfully communicate the strengths of the product. But the risk associated with the strategy is that competitor’s imitation and also change in consumers taste and preference (Sengupta & Bhattacharya, 2006, p.121). The focus strategy mainly concentrates on narrow segment, the niche market. According to Porter, a focus strategy cannot take place until and unless there some under performance or over performance takes place (Botten, 2009, p. 278). Like every other model, Porters strategies also counter parts with issues and problems. One of the main issues was with focus strategy which is stuck in the middle. It is necessary for organisations to adopt one of the strategies else they would be left with no competitive advantage to prove them above its competitors. But according to Lynch (2000), companies have adopted more than one competitive advantage in order to achieve its desired result. Hunger & Wheelen (2001) has argued that strategies can be very easily imitated by its competitors and have also pointed out that companies opting for differentiation strategy should be careful about its prices and has advised not to set high price. Many problems have been identified by Lynch (2000) for differentiation and low cost strategy. According to Lynch, there cannot be the option of low cost strategy because when a company becomes the leader in low cost than no other company can choose this strategy and adopt it. And with respect to differentiation strategy it is argued it cannot be achieved within a short span of time, the companies have to find out the demand of the customers and then differentiate it and also if the customers are willing to pay a high price. Lynch points out that the generic strategies of Porter do not provide any suitable information on niche marketing. It is finally concluded that the Porters generic model can be used for analysing the strategies as the model explores two important aspect of corporate strategy, cost reduction and differentiation (Kossowski, 2007, p.7). Deciding whether to go Global All the companies need not venture into the international market in order to survive. Local businesses can market its product well in its local market place. Operating in the domestic market is much easier than operating globally. The managers of the organisation need not learn other language and laws and eventually apply. It is much safer to operate in the local market as they do not have to deal with uncertainty, with regards to value of currencies, political and legal rules and regulation and most importantly they need not introduce or redesign its products in order to suit the customers’ expectations. Organisations which compete globally are affected by the global position as they need to compete on the regional as well as international basis to succeed. The global competitors might have the potential to attract the company’s local market. They might offer much better products at a cheaper rate; it might follow a strategy to counterattack the competitors in the domestic market and tie up with the resources. With customers becoming savvier and they are expanding into international grounds and require international servicing. Also another reason might be since the domestic market has reached its saturation point or is shrinking over the years, the foreign markets may gain additional sales and profits opportunities. It is important for companies to analysis many important factors before taking the decision of going global. The organisation needs to ask certain question to it to see whether it is ready for global expansion. The company should ask itself whether it can understand the taste and preference and behaviour of the buyer in other countries; will the company be able to offer attractive products; able to adopt the culture, business culture and deal with them effectively; the mangers need to have international experience and other such factors. Because of these difficulties most of the companies do not enter the global market, most of them do not act until and unless some odd situation arises which leads for global expansion (Kotler, 2010, p.475). Strategy Adopted by AlBaik Al Baik is one of the renowned restaurants in Saudi Arabia and it is just impossible for any visitors not to visit Al-Baik. This local fast food chain has been operating since 35 years and has been able to achieve the success which it deserves. For any organisation to succeed it is important for it to adopt the right strategies which would ultimately lead to success. The restaurant, AlBaik has captured most of the shares and has been regarded as the highest market share taker and also in terms of customer loyalty. The organisation concentrated mainly on its quality and services to reach such a place. AlBaik has adopted the strategy of Porters Generic Model. The Porters Generic Model deals with the cost leadership strategy, differentiation strategy and focus strategy. The cost leadership strategy is a strategy where the organisation aims to achieve a competitive advantage by reducing its costs and keeping it below the competing firms. The differentiation strategy seeks to distinguish the organisation with its competitors by increasing the quality of the product and services. And the focus strategy is where the organisation tends to concentrate on products line, buyers and also the market (Griffin, 2010, p.244). AlBaik has adopted the strategy of Porter’s Generic Model and it has followed both cost leadership and differentiation strategy. Mostly companies go for one of the strategies but AlBaik has followed a strategy which combines both the cost leadership and differentiation strategy. The restaurant has achieved a high number both in terms of quality and price. The price is relatively low as compared to its competitors such as KFC and Mc Donald’s. It has made a differentiation strategy by making the taste and quality of its products unique. This is one of the reasons why it has gained so much popularity in Saudi Arabia and parts of the country. The products are highly preferred by the customers and also the tourists, they are brand loyal and this shows the strong brand equity of AlBaik. The brand aims to send strong message to its customers about the quality, affordability, trust, fast service, convenience and most importantly social responsibility. Apart from the above strategy, the advertisements have been very effective and the management has played a major role in deciding upon the advertisements, public relation and by spreading stories regarding the brand. These are some of the marketing strategies which organisation usually adapts to increase the brand loyalty and demand of its product in the market. When its comes to customer service, AlBaik has been providing a strong customer service, its fast service, cleanliness and other factors which makes it to the top in Saudi Arabia. AlBaik is among the few restaurants which tend to introduce new products which are based on suggestion from its customers. Its location also plays an important role. Strategically location puts a great impact on the minds of the customers. There are many restaurants of AlBaik overall Jeddah and it’s mostly full of customers. Thus these are the strategies adopted by AlBaik in order to mark its presence in Saudi Arabia (Word Press, n.d). But despite of its huge success in Saudi Arabia, the organisation did not ever go for international expansion which is one of the most current strategies that organisations adopt. Every successful company have marked its presence in the global market except AlBaik. Reason for not going Global The possible reason as to why AlBaik did not think of going global maybe it wanted to remain as a local brand and continue serving its customers. International expansion usually requires a lot of hard work and also formalities to full fill. AlBaik being in Saudi Arab, the country which is made famous for terrorism and other illegal activities and also previously the country was against globalization, the organisation did not want to go for international expansion. Also may be the owners of the restaurant did not have the confidence of launching its product globally, they did not want their product to fail or was not sure as how the products would be accepted in the international market. But at the same time, the owner was very much passionate about his work and with such a high success the organisation should have entered into the international market. Another factor might be the intercultural difference between Saudi Arabia and other countries. Often when there is difference in culture the international expansion does not produce positive results. Saudi Arabia culture is totally different from that of the other western or Asian countries and the potential market for fast food is mainly the Asian countries and the western countries. The regulatory issues might be a concern for the country in respect for going global. Countries usually have to pay high tariffs during the process of going global which might put the product at a disadvantage. Therefore the organisation might have thought to produce and stay competitive in the local market. AlBaik also has the highest market share in the country and competes with other big brands such as KFC and Mc Donald’s. It has been estimated that the fast food center of Saudi Arabia is estimated to increase by about 4.5billion dollars in the coming few years (Food Export Association, 2011). AlBaik might want to just operate in its emerging market and grow immensely. The strategy adopted by the restaurant may not suit the international market, but it could have learned or have adopted the techniques which are used by other big retail outlets and go for international expansion. If AlBaik goes global, there would be issues that the organisation might face which might be in the field of marketing and sales, regulatory, legal, financial costs, and supply chain issues. The sales and marketing might get affected in the process of going global. The products might not be needed by the country due to the presence of other big brands. With regards to marketing campaign, the restaurant should be aware of the culture and taste and preference of the population where the company thinks of expanding. If there is any mismatch, it would result in a total failure for the product as well as for the company. Most important is the culture of the population, in order to achieve success it is very necessary to mix with the culture and practise the habits. There are companies which failed because they did not meet with certain requirements of the culture, people mindset tends to be different and they might not accept the product if not campaign properly according to their likes and dislikes. The mode of promotion should also be selected after doing a proper research on the customers and their preference. The customers are the ultimate seller and for a restraint the food along with its service matters for the people. Thus with proper marketing campaign considering the preference and taste of the target market, AlBaik would expand and succeed as it has done in the domestic market. The legal issues are different from other countries and during international expansion; these are the factors that should be considered. The organisation should act accordingly to the legal factors of the region. During international expansion, the financial costs are quite high as the organisation needs to decide upon the various costs both fixed and variable costs. The labour costs are different from that of Saudi Arabia, cost of land and other such factor which are necessary for going international. Other financial risk might include the foreign exchange risk, financial management and also operational exposure (Luo, 1999, p.4). Global networks have been aided by good communication and transportation, the use of internet and with the development of organisational capacity in order to manage complex supply chains issues. Some of the important issues which AlBaik might face are the organisation must know the factors which are important for the success of its supply chain; the management should organise the process in which it would serve its members of global supply chain; The economic factor would affect the structure of the global supply chain. The design of supply chain is also at risk due to restriction on trade and also long lead times (Handfield & Nichols, 2002, p.230). Conclusion The fast food market in Saudi Arabia is estimated to grow at a high rate making the big players grow even bigger. It can be said that the restaurant aims to bigger in terms of revenue and profit and remains at the top position by operating in the local market. AlBaik is one of the most famous and successful fast food chains restaurants in Saudi Arabia and also operates in some parts of the region. The retail outlet aims to give the best products at a high quality and at a much cheaper rate than its competitors. It has gained a huge success for over the years. The business strategy adopted by the retail fast food was a combination of cost leadership and differentiation strategy. The only thing that made the analyst wonder was why the retail fast food did not opt for global expansion. AlBaik had done exceptionally well in the domestic market and also it had expanded in some of the cities of Middle Eastern countries. It has been the market leader in Middle East and its products are known for its well quality and services. Therefore it was very much expected that the restaurants would expand into the international market. But due to certain reason the restaurants did not expand. It had applied the cost leadership strategy and also the differentiation strategy. The products are really cheap than its competitors and also of good quality. It would be profitable for the restaurant to expand globally at least in few more cities in the Middle East. With the rise in the disposable income, the fast food chains are growing and people are consuming more fast foods. This shows that the restaurant, AlBaik had the opportunity to expand and also had the capacity to expand in the international markets. 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