The Trading Performance of Mark & Spencer in International Countries - Case Study Example

The paper “The Trading Performance of Mark & Spencer in International Countries" is a pathetic example of a case study on business. Marks and Spencer Company plc is a British multinational company with its headquarters in the city of Westminster London with about 800 stores worldwide. The company specializes in selling clothing, luxury food products, and home products. The company is now making some food products that are of high nutrition value such as bread enriched with vitamin D (BBC, 2015). The other company’s major plans are to start more stores overseas to increase its business operations (BBC NEWS, 2015). Its founders are Michal Spencer, and Thomas Spencer and its CEO is Marc Boland. M & S has 798 stores across the UK and other regions.

The stores that performed best in Asia are under the M & S (Asia Pacific) Limited, which offers various products such as fashion wear for women, children, and men (Marks and Spencer plc Company profile, 2013). Other products are footwear, lingerie, foodstuff, and body care products in its several stores around Hong Kong. The company experienced an increase in sales, especially in the food division. Food sales went up by 3.7 % on the overall basis and 0.7 % on a like to like basis (Global.marksandspencer.com, 2015). The sales that rose are the general merchandise that was up by 1.3 and 0.75 like for like. Clothing sales increased by 1.2 % and 0.6 % like for like and group sales also rose by 1.6 %. The valentine’s day of 2015 saw over 350 new products and great sales in the first quarter.

One of the strategies that make M & S Company perform well in Asia is their competitive prices for their products that aim at attracting customers while protecting their gross margin as asserted by Corporate.marksandspencer.com, (2015). Favourable prices attract many customers especially those buying many commodities. High-quality services by the company employee also attract and retain the customers in the M & S stores such as courtesy, fast services, and good customer relations (Butler, 2015). Quality display of the items also attracts customers and increase sales through impulse buying. As customers window-shop, they get attracted to many products due to their good packaging and display, leading to more sales. Product promotion through advertisements and the introduction of new products especially during festivities such as Valentine’s Day leads to more sales (Slideshare.net, 2015). The other strategy the company employs is good management through effective communication to help identify the items that the customers need and supply them in plenty.

PESTLE analysis involves the analysis of the external environmental factors affecting business such as political stability, policies, and economic factors. PESTLE analysis of Marks and Spencer in Asia is as discussed. One of the factors that enable the company to prosper is the political factors that are favourable for business operations in the country. Such factors are government taxes, labour policies, investment policies, environmental and business regulations, which create a good atmosphere for business operations (Butler, 2015). The peaceful environment in Asia and high security ensure the confidence of shoppers in the M&S malls as they shop around. 

There are also economic factors that favour business in Asia such as consumer spending, the cost of raw materials, inflation, and income levels. Consumers in Asia are willing to spend especially during festivities and national holidays (Butler, 2015). The market confidence, especially in countries such as China, is very high raising investors to hope running their businesses. The executive of the M & S Company in Asia are optimistic, and confidence as the continent has a high economic growth rate compared to the rest of the world. The company is, therefore, tapping the available market by investing in new products to increase its sales of domestic merchandise, clothing, and foodstuffs.

Social factors in Asia also contribute to the performance of the M and S companies by increasing their sales. The social factors include cultural norms, fashion trends, population, and buying patterns. The high population in Asia provides the market for the companies’ products as it leads to a high volume of sales. Health issues have resulted in the change in preferences, and the companies respond by creating low priced products to meet the demand of the large population. Technology is the key to the success of any business in such areas as automation, research, and development to serve as many clients as possible. Through e-commerce, M & S companies in Asia can serve a large market leading to high sales and high-profit margins (Inside Retail Asia, 2015). There are also the legal factors affecting the performance of M & S Companies’ operations such as complying with the laws through the promotion of safe and convenient working atmosphere. The other services the companies have tried to invest in our employee support programmes, customer services, and community development. All these environmental factors have helped the companies to achieve high growth in Asia and satisfy their customers' needs.

M&S Company is doing well in several stores especially those in Asia as its population and favourable economic, political, and the social environment favours its growth. The company strategies such as low pricing, advertising, and packaging are very important as they lead to increased sales and high profits. Many customers may not afford to buy large packs and would prefer going for the smaller ones promoting the volume of sales. For the stores in Asia to perform better, technology is the key factor by automating most of its operations such as order placements to allow shoppers to do their shopping at their convenient places. The company should also offer delivery services to their customers especially the ones that shop online to enhance performance.