Development proposal for UK Fashion footwear retailer Essay

Development proposal for UK Fashion footwear retailer - Essay Example The essay "Development proposal for UK Fashion footwear retailer" talks about UK Fashion footwear retailer and analyzes Light Feet Ltd. Key Note (2012, p. 1) points out that the UK footwear market demonstrated an increase in expenditure by consumers on foot wear by 18% in 2008. This expenditure is related to the fact that substitute retail shops have led to competitive pricing for footwear and a resultant motivation of consumers to make more purchases. Light Feet Ltd requires to be aware of the competitive business environment within the UK footwear market so that managerial decisions on strategy and competitive advantage would be focused at overcoming the threat that substitute retail shops for footwear would pose on the company. In accordance to Business Wire (2012, p. 5), the switching costs of consumers within the UK footwear market are relatively low. This means that consumers would easily change the retailers from whom they buy footwear to substitute dealers without incurring s ignificant costs. In this regard, the company’s pricing policy must ensure that competitive prices are provided to the consumers so that the inclination of the buyers for substitute retailers for footwear can be overcome or reduced. It is therefore the performance of the company in pricing and tradeoffs with its advantages over the substitute retailers that competitiveness within the UK footwear market can be achieved. The UK footwear industry is highly competitive as illustrated by the values of imports. that various retailers have achieved from different global markets as presented on the figure below. Supplier Power Porter (2008, p. 82) demonstrates that the competitiveness of a company within a market is determined by the ability of a company to apply strategic business approaches which are aimed at taking advantage of the supplier power. In this regard, Light Feet Ltd must perform a market research and analysis in order to determine the power that the manufacturers of fo otwear within the UK have on the retailer who deal in these products. This will allow the company to make right choices and informed decisions on its relationship with the manufacturers of the footwear brands that it sells within this market. Through effective relationship with the suppliers or manufactures of footwear, the company will be able to win the confidentiality of the suppliers and as a result ensure a constant supply of footwear. This is an important consideration because it determines the ability of the company to meet the demand in the markets. Moreover, constant supply will allow Light Feet Ltd to meet the needs of its loyal and new customers for variety of footwear products. In the supply of footwear within the UK market various outlets have demonstrated competitive advantage as illustrated on the table below.    1995 2000 2005 2008 Shoe Shops 45 37 33 30 Sports and Outdoor shops 14 19 17 15 Clothing Stores 12 11 14 17 Grocery Superstores 5 7 8 7 Mail order/online 1 0 9 10 11 Other Retailers†  14 17 18 20 Total 100 100 100 100 Mintel Oxygen Reports (2012, p. 1) reveal that the footwear market in the UK is complex