Please answer questions 1 and 2 at the bottom right ..
When the Sophisticated Junior opened its first store in Michigan. it was a time when a segment of the ferrale market was under- aware of the increasing numbers that would affect them down the road. Specifically, the increase in African American, Hisper served. Up until the early 1950s, there was little, If any, apparel that was tailored to fit the shorter-waisted figure. Most items and Asian American populations was becoming significant. Attention now focused on whether or not it would be were produced in misses sizes and often required alterations to it many of the consumers. necessary to rethink their merchandising strategies and redi- rect their model stacks to roflect those ethnicities' wants and it was then that the Sophisticated Junior opened its doors needs. Would the one-size-fits-all philosophy continue to serve with a specialty that catered to this narrower. shorter forale. The specialization that it subscribed to made it different from the company well, of would changes be necessary if it were to continue on the successful path it has enjoyed ever since it the rest of the merchants in its general trading area. It wasn't long before the company began to realize sales and profits far opened its doors? Would store designs have to be adjusted? Would visual merchandising require changes? Would advertising beyond what it had imagined. With the first store a success, the require new approaches? Would the Web site need redesigning business was on the road to becoming a chain operation, and to capture this growing segment of the market? These are just svertually reached other cities within Michigan. The merchant- some of the questions that required answers. dise assortment, first exclusively featuring dresses, ultimately Maragement, with the help of a marketing research firm, begin included sportswear ard a wealth of accessories. to tackle the problem. Many suggestions were made such as Throughout its years, the Sophisticated Junior entered into many different retail formats to respond to the needs of its 1. Adjust the merchandise mix to feature at least 60 percent of the customers and prospective clientele. First it was direct products that had a specific appeal to ethnic groups. marketing with a catalog that quickly became a success; then, 2. Plan a store-by-store evaluation and adjust only those inverily five years ago, the Internet was employed, with its Web site ries that indicated an ethnic population was in the trading shall bringing newfound sales. The company, at that time, 3. Change all of the advertising to focus on different ethnic themes operated thirty-two stores, published five seasona catalogs, 4. Utilize visual presentations that employed ethnic mannequins and featured a Web site. 5. Ignore any changes until a time when sales severely faltered To make certain that is success would continue, the At this point, management team mombers are stil planning the company's management team focused on market research to next move. ensure that they were aware of any charges in their custorrer base, and would address them when indicators warranted them to do so. Up to this time the research had directed their QUESTIONS in terms of merchandising directional changes, new promo- 1. With which. if any, of the management suggestions are you tional approaches, store design, and so forth. The most recent agreement? Defend your answers with sound reasoning research indicated a major occurrence that would probably affect 2. Pretend that you were a member of the management team the company's future. While management team members were What suggestions would you make in terms of possible aware of the increase in the different ethnicities that now. made changes at the Sophisticated Junior? Make certain that bock up their consumer base in many of their stores, they were not reason 's the basis for your suggestions
