Colette Cheung's Blog

Don’t you hate it when the product you need to buy is wrapped in such a complicated manner that you just end up thinking to yourself: “Why did I buy this in the first place?” Take for example the Oral-B toothbrush I bought the other day. It was sold in a sealed plastic package where there is no way to open it but by brute force. I’ve always wondered why some firms package their products in such a way to make it difficult for the consumer to open. Isn’t the packaging meant to benefit the consumer in the sense that they would WANT to buy the product because of it? The fact that the toothbrush was so hard to take out made me having some post-purchase dissonance thoughts. Albeit being a great toothbrush, in the end, the hardship and length of time it took me to open it might lead me to pick another toothbrush brand next time…

Why are horse products so expensive? I, myself, own a horse, and being a student is not the best way to buy all the horse products you need. Many may think that you don’t need much to ride a horse, but it’s quite the contrary. When my parents first bought my horse, I was astounded about the amount of expenses I had to lavish on Camaro.

Just look at this Stubben saddle.

Stubben Saddle

And how much would this leather good sell for? An astonishing $2995.00. Expensive much? That’s not all. Riding a horse, you must also buy a bridle.

The horse industry, and other famous horse product brands such as Shedrow, Stubben can price their products so high, yet have consumers buy them nonetheless. They’ve been quite successful in the fact that horse lovers are always willing to buy anything for their treasured horses. The horse niche market, also piggybacks on the dog industry as most horse riders also bring along their canine companions to the barn. Shedrow was then able to use this to also implement a dog blanket line.

Using the 4P’s of Marketing Mix, companies that specialize in products catered to horse lovers and their companions, are able to fully utilize their marketing mix. They price their products as high as the niche is willing to accept it, carry products that are essential and sometimes unnecessary for horses and their owners, place their stores and advertise around barns around the Lower Mainland and promote seasonal products a month before they are needed. So, a new line of winter blankets would be on sale in mid-fall. Nonetheless, I love my Camaro 🙂

SoSeems like everybody (at least 15-30 girls/women) seems to shop at Aritzia. I never quite understood how people can be attracted to the overly expensive clothes sold at this retail chain but also spend their hard-earned money to buy it!

Aritzia Logo

Though not a huge fan of Aritiza due to their sky-rocketing prices, I must commend them on being able to find such a good target market and fully exploiting it. Having followed the STP (Segmenting, Targeting, Positioning) to a tee, Aritzia was able to segment the market, by considering going into women’s fashion; targeting the age group of 15-30, who are either able to manipulate their parents into buying the clothes for them or having part-time to full-time jobs and the disposable income associated with it to fund these costly expenses; and Aritzia is finally able to position itself as a fashionable retail store with current styles at a higher than average price. They offer clothes by various designs that are tailored to their target market, and keep ordering from that line, such as Wilfred, if it does well.

As seen in www.businessoffashion.com, Josh Lutzker, a Principal at Berkshire Partners, explains: “[we] invested in Aritzia because of the strength of the management team, led by Brian Hill, and because of Aritzia’s outstanding position in the market. Aritizia’s connection with its consumers, the strenght of its product design and its excellence in store design and retail operations have all led to very strong retail economics and a unique opportunity for growth”.

The fact that Aritzia was able to capture their target market so distinctly by using the STP principles has definitely led to their success. The fact that females of that age group are very influenced by social media, peer pressure and mob mentality helps, too.