T&T Supermark: Strategy Identification (Current Strategy) - Essay Example

T&T Supermarket: Current business strategy A business strategy details the enhancement of competitive positionof an organization. There are numerous strategies that an organization can employ in order to gain competitive advantage. It is the desire of a company to think that it is different from its rivals in the marketplace. As for T&T Supermarket, its competitive position is defined by its unique Asian food items, which are not available in other supermarkets. In this regard, T&T uses differentiation business strategy in the Canadian market (T&T, 2014).

Differentiation is defined as offering unique items for various consumers (Vickery, Droge, & Markland, 2007, p. 439). This stresses on the numerous products and service attributes that are sensitive to the customers. With this, T&T has made attempts to attain customer loyalty (Vickery et al, 2007).A study by Gomez, Gutierrez-Arranz and Gutierrez-Cillan (2012) revealed that shopping at the supermarket is similar to travelling across Asia, where an individual finds fresh fruits such as mangoes from the Philippines, noodles from Taiwan and snacks from Japan.

This has been one of the key factors contributing to customer loyalty. The supermarket also offers a wide range of unique Asian foods such as the sea foods. The T&T supermarket has the seafood department where it stocks fresh crabs, fish and shrimps in a holding water tank (T&T, 2014). Needless to say, the supermarket has a bakery, Sushi, Asian deli and a Chinese barbeque section.It is through differentiation that T&T supermarket has created customer satisfaction. The supermarket is devoted towards quality of service provision, product improvement and innovation.

According to a case study on T&T supermarket carried out by Ho, Huang, Lee, Rosten, and Tang (2009), T&T has a customer loyalty program that woos customers to increase their shopping rates. Ho et al (2007, p. 708) note that this strategy highlights the high quality service that customers acquire from the supermarket. Notably, this strategy also assists the supermarket to compete in the Canadian market and attain a high market share, as opposed to its rivals. The differentiation of the products of T&T has assisted the supermarket to generate a perception among the customers that there are no substitutes for the products offered (Wang et al, 2013, p. 9). Though the rivals may have similar items, they surely do not have Asian products.

Additionally, the company also uses low cost leadership by offering its distinct products at a low cost while still making satisfactory profits. This allows the company to offer high quality products at a particularly low price than their rivals. In attaining this objective, T&T depends on supply chain management. This guarantees that products are availed to consumers whenever they need them. T&T offers both goods and services with some of the items having private labels. T&T’s supply chain management consists of purchasing and integration.

In purchasing, the supermarket’s managers are accountable for determining what the supermarket will sell, and look for suppliers. T&T has attained some market share in Canada because of its well-organized incorporation of suppliers, warehousing and distribution. T&T creates tactical partnerships with most of its suppliers and offers long-term business association, in exchange for reliable supply. With the assistance of technology, the company can forecast demand, monitor its inventory levels and manage consumer relationships (T&T, 2014).

This strategy offers the company a competitive advantage over its competitors by reducing costs of products, transportation costs, and competitive pricing for the patrons. This strategy plays an imperative role in enabling T&T supermarket become one of the primary players in the competitive Canadian market (Wang et al, 2013, p. 12). The company is focusing more on inventive processes and systems in order to attain higher efficiency.ReferencesGomez, B., Gutierrez-Arranz, A. M., & Gutierrez-Cillan, J. 2012. Exploring the influence of three types of grocery retailer loyalty programs on customer affective loyalty.

The International Review of Retail, Distribution and Consumer Research, 22(5), 547-561. Ho, R., Huang, L., Huang, S., Lee, T., Housten, A., & Tang, C. 2009. An approach to develop effective customer loyalty programs: The VIP program at T&T Supermarkets Inc. Managing Quality Service, 19(6), 702-720. T&T .2014, January. T&T Supermarket-corporate profile. Retrieved February 10, 2014, from www.tnt-supermarket.com/en/cprofile.phpVickery, S., Droge, C., & Markland, R. E. 2007. Production Competence and Business Strategy: Do They Affect Business Performance?

Decision Sciences, 24(2), 435-456. Wang, S., Hii, R., Zhong, J., & Du, P. 2013. Recent Trends of Ethnic Chinese Retailing in Metropolitan Toronto. Applied Geospatal research, 4(1), 1-18.