Culture - Customisation and Innovation

Question: Discuss about the Culture, Customisation and Innovation. Answer: Introduction: Centre Parcs is the famous village that operates hotel and leisure sector by providing them with full equipped accommodation in various locations of the forest. The resort in village style provides a huge range of activities that includes both indoor and outdoor; sports and leisure facilities, which offers various types of entertainment. Retails outlets, pools as well as restaurants are some basic amenities that are provided by Centre Parcs. It also incurs high operational cost on the company like training, wage bill, which is a too precious resource for the enterprise. Moreover, this can be considered as a reason that Centre Parcs is quite satisfied, and even holds high staff proportion. In this company customer service had provided to be easily implemented, and therefore, it offers high-quality service (Ferrand McCarthy, 2009). It can also be considered as the Centre Parcs strong reputation and brand awareness. History/Establishment The concept of this village was introduced around 30 years back in Holland, and since that time the design is recreated in various locations of Europe, which includes around four places of UK, such as Elveden Forest, Sherwood Forest, Oasis Whinfell Forest and Longleat Forests. Centre Parcs operates hotel and leisure sector by providing them with full equipped accommodation in various locations of the forest. SWOT analysis Strength- Centre Parcs holds strength as it offers monetary assistance and hold experience of business units. Weakness- it has only small business unit Opportunities- Centre Parcs hold opportunities as growth rate and profitability will be high; new acquisitions will be made; economy is growing, and there is constant increase in income level. Threats- Centre Parcs face threat from financial capacity, issues in technology, increasing prices of raw materials, rise in interest rate, rise in labour cost, and risk in external business. Understanding about growth strategies / Ansoff Matrix There is no other company in the UK like the Centre Parcs, which is environmentally clean and offers the high service quality. Consequently, there is no requirement for low cost for the purpose of enhancing the sales as the real substitutes. Market research usually relates to the new markets. Through Ansoff matrix is quite better in the case of Centre Parcs for selling out the new services in the previous markets of product development for the purpose of boosting the market share of the company. Various growth strategies Ansoff Matrix Market penetration The most successful investment for the Centre Parcs growth strategy is the organic growth. It occurs when the firm tries to expand through private ways. In this case, the company is seeking to grow through selling out the items through enhancing the customer base (Ferrand McCarthy, 2009). Simultaneously through the help of advertising, investing in the villages and offering more and more leisure activities for the purpose of fitting with customers, instead of making use of services. The reason behind is that Centre Parcs, need to make use of organic growth as its sound bias in the case of development and offered money is secured as well as well managed (Ferrand McCarthy, 2009). Therefore, its quite less risky as the business is under the complete control of all components related to growth strategy and there exist no negative influence from mergers like bad customer service at the time of leisure activities (Ferrand McCarthy, 2009).However, through organic growth, that is long pro cess needs consistent investment for a longer duration; hence Centre Parcs might face the issue in exploring finance for their investment. Product development It includes exploring the new area that relates to new markets having less competition, high cost as well a moderate price for customer service and production, as it results in high profits and competitive benefits due to the product expansion. In the case of project managing, the phase of development in new villages as well as leisure activities relates to it. In the event of recruitment and training, the location is related to high unemployment (Ferrand McCarthy, 2009). Its always better to make use of on-the-job training so that employees can get the better education while working (Campbell-Smith, 1986). Through market campaigning, the companies advertise through television and families mainly watch, and its noted that Centre Parcs visit is mostly made by families (Ferrand McCarthy, 2009). Through developing the line of new products like the mountain Parcs and seaside Parcs. It also provides the new experiences or either activity like hot air ballooning as well as bungee jumping. Centre Parcs can attain the license for these activities (Ferrand McCarthy, 2009). They will also require trained employees and required health and safety completion of work. Seaside Parcs often try to help the objective of corporate growth. It also provides customer loyalty, and in this case, people often visit the seaside locations as compared to competitors (Ferrand McCarthy, 2009). However, its noted that the seaside relies on the seasonal sales, and they might struggle in maintaining the sales. It also builds the Centre Parcs strength of around 200 previously lying activities (Ferrand McCarthy, 2009). Market development Centre Parcs is specialized over particular target group like families and they are not interested in damaging the reputation through entering and penetration of new markets. For the purpose of attaining the product development, Centre Parcs requires investing in innovation as well as research and development (Ferrand McCarthy, 2009). For instance, aquarium, new swimming pools along with various other new innovative items. Furthermore, it is noted that Centre Parcs might create the venture with different other companies that might enhance the product development for the purpose of decreasing the expenditure over innovation and research and development (Ferrand McCarthy, 2009). Through establishing the new products, Centre Parcs might try to target the new customers like teenagers, instead of families (Calantone Mazanec, 1991). However, its not a right idea that they should try to advertise as leisure for the families. Therefore, the image and reputation might seek to damage that leads to fewer sales and less market share (Ferrand McCarthy, 2009). Market research leads to more sale off similar items to the new customers. Through expanding the targeting territories like Luxembourg, Ireland, and Scandinavia. Centre Parcs might require to develop the agreements with local partners such as joint venture and even try to conduct the market research in new markets (Cadotte Turgeon, 1988). There are few expected gaps in the market (Ferrand McCarthy, 2009). Successful had proved in Netherlands, France, Germany as well as Belgium. The group had gained experience here, and they might try to build the joint venture as well as a local partnership with the help of pr evious contacts network (Mullin, Hardy Sutton, 2007). Diversification Strategy Growth can be attained through developing the new items in the new markets. For Centre Parcs, its not considered as the better idea for expanding into new markets, as its quite tough and risk and needs an enormous amount of expertise and investment (Mullin, Hardy Sutton, 2007). However, if the Centre Parcs needs to enter the new market, then, in that case, they have to make their development, because its the vast company, and they are ready for making massive investments. Market penetration can be easily used in the manner that quality is not reduced due to the less price along with reputation dont get damaged (Mullin, Hardy Sutton, 2007). Diversification implies selling out the new items like the strategy for enhancing the sales. It also targets the corporate customers with the activities of new team building, experiences of leadership development and conferencing (Bramham, Henry, Mamm Van der Pool, 1993). Centre Parcs would require undertaking the market research to determine whether the corporate customers will enhance the items (Mullin, Hardy Sutton, 2007). They would also require cost and package of the around for the corporate clients. Centre Parcs holds various facilities that could be made used for team building as well as leadership training. Many companies are exploring new ways for increasing the green credentials and trying to train the executives as well as their team, and in that less financial investment is needed (Mullin, Hardy Sutton, 2007). Discussion of growth strategies in the context of Centre Parcs It offers the strategy that provides the group along with competitive benefits (Bould, Breeze Teare, 1992). To follow the same, Centre Parcs might go more attractive as compared to competitors in the UK in the result of the active management of the environment, for the same they attain secure, sustainable reputation and recognition awards (Ashworth Voogd, 1990). In order to sum up the previous analysis of Centre Parcs growing strategies, it is recognized by consulting that the company is selecting to increase organically; therefore it offers the low-risk process of development and the same tries to maintain the viable future for long term in the company, only if the event happened as forecasted or planned (Ayton, 1994). Product development The most strong factor for Centre Parcs is the increasing the village organically and making use of product development started (Archdale, 1994). It is because Centre Parcs holds the tremendous loyalty towards the brand and its quite risky to lose the same through reducing the cost, for the purpose of reducing the prices and through moving towards new markets and then targeting the new customers. However, the same replies on the shareholder's expectations (Ashworth Goodall, 1990). For instance, shareholders might want to keep the profits high without investments and managers also try to expand the strategy of product development (Boyer Viallon, 1994). As Centre Parcs is the market leader, then in that manner they will stay, in the similar market for the purpose of not losing the share of the market, while entering into new markets. Product development still requires holding high investments. For instance, swimming pool, new Aqua Park, and Aquarium. Since the Centre Parcs is the mar ket leader, then its expected that they should have the high resources and thats the reason, there is no requirement for the growth of organic as its quite risky (Ashworth Goodall, 1990). Market development The website of Centre Parcs depicts their actual turnover, in comparison with the European competitors. Centre Parcs located in Europe holds the high capacity, but their turnover is around double of the UK Centre Parcs (Ashworth Voogd, 1990). It reveals that visitors were spending as well as occupancy is more in UK Centre Parcs as compared to Europe Centre Parcs. Ansoff matrix also shows that there are around three main strategies that can quickly overcome the forces that relate to the process of the response of Centre Parcs (Ashworth Voogd, 1990). It includes the competitive position of the reaction process. This process tries to place the Centre Parcs in the quite robust and different view within the market. Diversification The firm also set up the strengths and explored the weaknesses. It is also noted that the fifth site of the company is its operations. Therefore, there is a capacity to improve the targets like repeat booking and turnover. Through direct competitors as well as five sites offers the group with the entire segment of the market, which alters on strengthen the position of Centre Parcs along with benefitted share value (Ashworth Voogd, 1990). Conclusion Its noted from the paper that subcontracting strategic alliance might be referred to the Parcs development. The strategic partnership is the one, where more than the companies can easily share the resources as well as activities to initiate the strategy. In the case of Centre Parcs, the highest advertising, maintenance, promotion as well as increase in staff benefits can come at high risk for the company for the purpose of staying competitive within the market. Recommendations In the context of critical problems, sub contraction of alliances method could be referred as tackling the problem and contacting the expectations of shareholders. To keep the financial status healthy, certain operational functions could be subcontracted for reducing the cost of operations from the generated right prices. References Archdale, G. (1994). Destination Databases: Issues and Practices, in Seaton, A.V. et al. (eds) (1990). Tourism: The State of the Art. John Wiley Sons Ashworth, G.J. 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