case study of subject strategic management please help to solve this ASAP , Please

Ahmad relocated to a town with a population of 25,000 people and established Ahmad Supermarket. He had previously owned and ran grocery stores in two other communities. At the age of 30, he had owned and managed his own micro market store for ten years. The supermarket was primarily involved in credit sales, therefore Ahmad's first move was to switch to strictly cash sales - It was the town's first of its sort.

"Value For Your Money Every Day," was Ahmad's credo. He stressed the need of courteous, fast service, high-quality merchandise, and fair rates. His rivals were out-of-date stores that didn't appreciate the fierce competition. Several innovations aided him in establishing himself and

increasing his sales volume. Ahmad Supermarket, for example, was the first supermarket in town to offer weekend and holiday promotions. Ahmad's store was also one of the first in the state to provide exchanging coupons. By 1998, his business had risen to the top of the town's grocery rankings. The business had outgrown its initial downtown home by the end of 1998. At the town's east age - the direction of the town's growth - a modern, 10,000-square-foot store was built. Ocean, a regional grocery chain, launched the town's first real chain store shortly after this transfer. Ahmad was concerned about the competition, but he stuck to his primary business idea and worked even more effectively. As a result, Ahmad Supermarket's sales and profits have remained consistent year after year. Ahmad Supermarket's Recent Developments Ahmad opted to sell a 30% interest in the business to his older brother, Ismail, and a 20% interest to his younger brother, Adam, in January 2000. Adam had recently graduated from a nearby university and had joined the business as an active partner. For many years, the store had been regarded as

one of the state's most successful independent grocery enterprises. The town's population of 25,000 had expanded to 200,000 by the year 2000, thanks to rapid economic and social changes in the area. The Ahmad Supermarket was located in the town's newest sector. The area's residents are mostly from the middle to upper income categories. Customers from adjacent villages, on the other hand, provided a significant proportion of lower-income trade. In the year 2000, Ahmad joined one of the country's leading independent wholesalers. Ahmad was able to employ

many of the private brands as a result of this relationship, which also helped to boost his company's competitive edge in the local retailing business. The wholesaler also provided member stores with advertising themes and promotions. Calendars, diaries, backpacks, umbrellas, pens, cutlery, towels, and T-shirts were just a few examples of promotional items. These promos were effective in improving the company's sales and making Ahmad Supermarket more popular among local businesses. "Something is always happening," customers would say.

Local Market Structure in 2000

The Ocean chain keep became placed at the brink of the downtown segment. Initially, Ocean mainly centered on promoting its items to clients withinside the center to decrease-profits brackets. However, extra lately, they've additionally brought products that caters to upper-profits clients' developing needs withinside the region. Ocean then have become one in every of Ahmad's competition. Presently, JIMAT Food Store

remained Ahmad's important unbiased competitor in view that he opened his grocery store in 1978. JIMAT Food Store had additionally moved to the east fringe of the metropolis and became nonetheless going through restrained parking space. The meals keep's number one enchantment became credit score presented to regular clients and goodwill constructed up thru years of fine service. However, the corporation's commercial enterprise has slowly diminished in latest years. The pricing shape in retailing marketplace ought to nonetheless be defined as healthy. Although there has been a couple of huge meals chain keep running withinside the metropolis, the smaller outlets have been nonetheless capable of mark up their merchandise at affordable charges. Though there has been a few opposition most of the existing companies, the competition most of the outlets became now no longer severe.

Beginning of Discount Store Competition

In the center of 2001, a reduction keep got here to the metropolis and opened its doorways to the public. With the brand new participant got here a brand new kind of opposition withinside the neighborhood retailing marketplace. C-Mart Discount Center, a 20,000 square-foot operation,

carried a complete line of non-meals objects and complete grocery objects inclusive of dry groceries, sparkling meats, dairy merchandise, sparkling culmination and vegetables, and frozen foods. The keep became franchised, and the proprietor operated different C-Mart Discount Centers in a bigger metropolis a few 25 kilometers away. When C-Mart Discount Center opened for commercial enterprise, they right away dropped charges drastically, in particular charges of staple objects inclusive of rice, cooking oil, and flour. They featured and presented diverse staple objects and branded merchandise priced at 15% to 20% decrease than the alternative retailing shops withinside the region. C-Mart

Discount Center is outwardly the use of its meals operation as a drawing card for its extra worthwhile lines.

Increasing Competition

Ocean made it obvious right away that it did now no longer intend to be undersold with the aid of using the cut price keep that gave no

unfastened coupons and supplied no carryout service. Ocean commenced to provide weeklong specials to its clients. Eventually, the weeklong specials have become one of the new policies withinside the neighborhood retailing commercial enterprise. At the equal time, opposition more and more more have become severe most of the outlets withinside the metropolis. The outlets commenced to compete with every different with the aid of using reducing their everyday objects to close to price or below. K.C. Lim, the proprietor of JIMAT Food Store, surpassed away in 2001, rapidly after the cut price keep opening. Without losing any time, a a hit younger businessman with worldwide chain keep control enjoy fast bought the JIMAT Food Store from the deceased family. The younger businessman right away removed credit score and unfastened coupons and tried to begin a discount-kind operation himself. He offered maximum of his merchandise without delay from the neighborhood producers and worldwide producers and offered them at discounted charges. Loss leaders have become extra well-known withinside the neighborhood retailing

industry. The Ocean chain did now no longer only meet the cut price charges however even attempted to undersell a number of its products. Meanwhile, they further increased their advertising; extra newspaper advertising, handbills, radio, and a few tv commercials. JIMAT likewise stayed withinside the thick of charge opposition.

Ahmad's Dilemma The arrival of the discounter marked the start of a stressful duration for Ahmad Supermarket. The particularly calm scenario

that had prevailed for decades became abruptly shattered. For the beyond 3 years, Ahmad Supermarket has been experiencing declining income of approximately 20 percentage a 12 months. As one would possibly expect, Ahmad joined the institution with the aid of using reducing

charges. Nevertheless, as he saw charges reduce to profitless levels, he puzzled the know-how of such excessive opposition. Part of the query

became the kind of keep Ahmad Supermarket must attempt to be. He commenced to invite himself whether or not Ahmad Supermarket ought to continue to exist if the corporation projected an picture that distinguished it from the discounter. At times, it seems to Ahmad that charge opposition can be the maximum powerful manner to draw clients and vital in such commercial enterprise.

(Source: Strategic Management Text & Cases by Mohd Khairuddin Hashim, 2004)

based on case study, you are required ;

(45 marks)

a. i Assess the external environment and identify factors that contributed to Ahmad's successful operation and growth in the past and explain

ii. Assess the external environment and identify factors that contributed to Ahmad's successful operation and growth in the present and explain

iii. Assess the internal environment and identify factors that contributed to Ahmad's successful operation and growth in the past and explain

iv. Assess the internal environment and identify factors that contributed to Ahmad's successful operation and growth in the present and explain

(45 marks )

b. i. What are Ahmad's sources of strength and weekness in the current period of intense competition? and

explain

ii . what are Ahmed's sources of opportunity and threat in the current period of intense competition? and explain

iii. What are Ahmad's sources of strength and weekness in the past period of intense competition? and explain

IV. what are Ahmed's sources of opportunity and threat in the past period of intense competition? and explain

c. Which store would be likely to suffer the most from the opening of the discount store? and explain

Give your reason.( 15 marks)

d. What course of actions should Ahmad Supermarket make during the next few months? (15 marks)