The founder of Starfish Products is Pandora Truelove who started by making jewellery as a hobby at home. Eventually Pandora began to sell some of her jewellery at small craft fairs in the district where she lives. Her jewellery proved to be very popular, especially amongst the age group 14–18. It was low priced, but well made and very fashionable. Quite simply, Pandora discovered that not only was she good at making jewellery, but she had a feel for the market and jewellery fashions that would sell to younger customers.

From this humble beginning, in just three years Pandora has expanded her business and sales to the point where she now works fulltime and employs three people helping her make the jewellery in a small workshop. At the moment she is selling mainly through craft fairs, but now at much larger national events.

Pandora wants to expand the business;

demand is still strong and she has retained her flair for judging the market. She has the option to move to larger premises where she could take on more production staff. She has a small budget for promoting her products.

Her main problem in relation to expanding the business she feels is distribution. To expand quickly she must secure retail outlets on a national basis through which she can market. Alternatively, she has considered whether franchising might be an answer, with sales direct to customers in their own homes rather like Tupperware or Ann Summers parties.

CASE STUDY QUESTION What distribution alternatives might be available to Pandora to expand her business, and what are their relative advantages and disadvantages?