A friend of yours is considering purchasing a small (45 employees) custom metal manufacturing company in Wichita, KS that fabricates a wide variety of products such as metal park benches, metal frames for trampolines, business signs, fence railings, decorative yard art, and everything in between. Due to the custom nature of the work, the company's customers include a wide variety of individuals and companies such as small businesses, ranchers, homeowners, retail companies, etc. The company can work with a client from concept to construction and has the capability to do mill/turning work, sheet/tube fabrication, powder coating, welding, and prototyping. The founder and CEO of the company is wanting to retire and is looking to sell the business.

Knowing that you are in a graduate business program and are taking a strategic management course, your friend seeks you out for advice and offers to pay you a consulting fee for your efforts. Specifically, she is only interested in purchasing the business if there is potential to significantly grow the business and achieve a high return on investment (ROI). To this end, she wants your help to identify a strategy that will potentially result in a competitive advantage and in turn a high ROI. To identify a viable strategy to achieve this goal, what would you advise your friend to do?