2. The Retailer
• Independent department store.
• Specialises in surfing equipment, clothing and
other apparel.
• Surfing is no longer just a hobby but can also
be viewed as a lifestyle choice.
• Stockists of surfing equipment is limited to
mainly coastal regions.
• Second surfing equipment stockist in Belfast.
3. Objectives
• Mission statement:- to provide our customers with
easy access to the highest quality surfing products
with the highest level of service by
friendly, knowledgeable staff.
• Corporate Objective:- achieve a 15% average
annual growth in sales, profit and earning per share
over 5 years, and invest in new stores.
• Marketing Objective:- increase market share by
5% over the next 12months.
5. Brands
• Own brand will
account for the
majority of the
stock supplied.
• Other popular
labels also
available.
• Some stock
brands will be
specialised.
6. Location
• Ideally located in Victoria Square Shopping
Centre.
• Main focus is on fashion and lifestyle.
• Product prices and quality are high.
• Few independent retailers already established.
• Easily accessible area with a wide choice of
retailers available.
8. Location
• Rent charges can cost
from £80,000 - £180,000
per annum.
• Other charges – service
charges; insurance; rates;
rental deposit.
• Now is a good time for
independent retailers to set
up businesses.
9. Competitors
• Key competitor 1:
• Two Seasons
• Its main focus is on
winter/snow sports
equipment.
• Key competitor 2:
• Surf Mountain
• Its main focus is on
surfing equipment.
10. References
• Internet:
– Unknown. (2011). Consumer spending on sport is booming across the
age spectrum. Available:
http://blog.euromonitor.com/2011/01/consumer-spending-sport-
booming-across-age-spectrum.html. Last accessed 22nd Feb 2011.
– McGarel, B. (2009). Has Victoria Square weathered storm?. Available:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/northern_ireland/7986415.stm. Last
accessed 24th Feb 2011.
• Email:
– McAnallen, C. Claire.McAnallen@savills.ie. FW: Victoria Square units.
22nd Mar 2011.
• Books:
– McGoldrick, P (2002). Retail Marketing. 2nd ed. Berkshire: McGraw-
Hill Education.
Notas do Editor
The purpose of this assignment is to chose a retail store and decide where to establish it in Belfast. For my chosen retailer, I have decided to establish a new independent department store. The store will specialise in surfing equipment, clothing and other apparel, and will be one of very few retail stores in the city of Belfast to specialise in such a focused market.The logo in the background. I chose the style because, to me it comes across as quite refreshing – bright vibrant colours, the style and colouring of the font are reflective of the wave pattern and overall it has quite a laid-back appearance and feel to it. The name, Blue Wave, is simplistic, obvious to what the store is about, and easy to remember.About Surfing is a sport that can be seen as a hobby, something to do to pass the time or, for some people, it can be a lifestyle choice. Surfing is classified as an ‘Adventure’ sport, amongst other popular activities such as camping, scuba-diving and water ski-ing. In 2009, adventure sport equipment accounted for the third largest segment of the sports equipment market in the UK with 20.1% of the market share, closely behind the golf equipment and fitness equipment segments. Despite the current economic climate, the UK sports equipment market is forecast to increase in value by the year 2014 with a percentage increase of 19.3% since 2009.Research I have conducted shows that, whilst a number of shops situated around Belfast stock surfing merchandise, they are limited to clothing (mainly fashion e.g. Billabong t-shirts etc) and accessories and jewellery. All other stock required for surfing, including the obvious (surfboards, wetsuits etc), are only available in areas located near sea and costal regions i.e. Along the North Coast (Portrush, Derry), with one Surf Mountain store in Belfast, and one in Bangor and Lisburn each. Whilst there are a number of surfing fashion suppliers and other sports equipment suppliers situated around Belfast, with the exception of Surf Mountain, none of these suppliers specialise in the focused area of surfing. While surfing can only be done in areas situated by the sea, people who may want to go surfing abroad may not want to have to travel a long distance to surf equipment stockists in Portrush and Bangor, especially if they live closer to Belfast.Therefore while Surf Mountain on Brunswick St is a provider of surfing equipment, it is not as accessible and easily located as a store in the city centre, and because Belfast is such a large shopping destination, attracting not only customers from within the region and nearby but people from the Republic of Ireland as well, it would be an ideal location for a specialist surf store to set up.
Mission statement:- general but it is basically what this store is about. Surfing is a popular past-time and lifestyle choice and many people interested in participating, either as beginners or professionals, want to be sure that the products they have purchased are sustainable, reliable and of a high quality, to help them achieve the full potential of the experience of surfing.Staff recruited will be trained to be knowledgeable of the products, friendly and helpful, and offer the highest possible customer service.Only stated one objective each for both the corporate and marketing objective list as I’m still unsure about how achievable they might be, as product prices have not yet been setCorporate objective:- often stated in terms of growth, profitability and prestige .. Achieve a 15% growth – 15% is not a large amount, but because the store is new, it’s better to aim achievably low than impossibly high. Because of the nature and size of the shopping centre, as well as the high quality content provided by its retailers, people know they are getting value for money and are prepared to pay higher prices for products they know are of top quality. This is what will hopefully drive sales up – people know that they are getting their money’s worth.Invest in new stores – because this is the first store to be launched, obviously there will be no rush to expand in other areas. However further down the line and depending on how well the store does in terms of sale volumes and profit, I would like to create new stores in other regions across Northern Ireland. My first additional store would maybe be situated on the Lisburn Road as there are plenty of large units available and no competition in terms of product range.Marketing objective:- defined in terms of sales, market share, customer service etc. Hope to gain more market share than 5% if possible, however since the store is in its first year of establishment, it needs to be kept realistic and achievable.
Surfboards - Surfboards come in many shapes, sizes and designs so it is important that you know the type of board you are looking for. A few important factors worth considering - your weight, your surfing standard, what waves you will be surfing regularly and, for those surfing enthusiasts who like to what board looks the coolest.Types of surfboards available:-ShortboardLongboard – ideal for beginners Fish GunAccessories will include:- Surf wax – to create friction to allow grip Fins Surf bags Leashes – to attach to hand/board Surfboard repair kits etc Racks for carsWetsuits – after your surfboard, a wetsuit is the next thing that customers need to consider purchasing. Given the temperature of the water areas surrounding UK and Ireland, wetsuits cling to the body fittingly to keep heat in and prevent body temperatures from dropping. Wetsuit accessories also include: Thermal vests, gloves, hoodcaps, and bootsFashion clothing – for those who see surfing as a lifestyle choice and wish to live it fashionably, surf-style apparel/clothing will be available for both men and women, from junior sizes to adult sizes. These include: Tops, hoodies, sweatshirts Shorts, skirts, dresses, jeans Shoes Jewellery – male and female Accessories – wallets, purses, bags, hats, belts etc Other – books & guides on e.g. How to surf, take care of surfing equipment, surfing photography and artwork; services could be surfing lessonsQuantity of products similar in size to e.g. River Island, Republic – mens and womens sections, each with own clothing, accessories etc.
Own brand will account for the majority of the stock.More brands will be stocked as well as own brand, examples shown on the slide. Others will be stocked as well accordingly, depending on product e.g. Kahuna, who specialise in surf watches, and Nalu Beads, who specialise in surf jewellery beads.A benefit of supplying other brands – an easily accessible stockist. E.g. Nalu Beads – if this store were to supply Nalu Beads, it would be the second store, not only in Northern Ireland to supply these beads, but also in the whole of Ireland – all other stockists are based in England, and also available online.
Due to the nature of the product being sold, and as prices for surfing products are generally quite high (approximately £140 for a longboard surfing board), Blue Wave’s ideal location for setting up would be in Belfast’s Victoria Square Shopping Centre.Choosing to establish the store in Belfast’s Victoria Square Centre is a means of differentiation in itself. Victoria Square is known for its high end retailing, e.g. premium stores such as All Saints, Ted Baker and Cruise and the general focus throughout the centre is on fashion and lifestyle.Generally, product and service prices and quality are higher than most other areas in Belfast, which would be my main reason for establishing a business here. In addition, very few stores situated in the shopping centre are independent retailers – most stores are part of franchises and chains. This gives Blue Wave an additional means of differentiation.Victoria Square is not only one of Belfast’s most popular shopping areas but is also easily accessible to everyone – it is a brief walk from Royal Avenue/CastleCourt/City Hall, it has a multi-storey car park consisting of 1000 spaces and has over 50 retailers available to choose from.Other possible locations around Belfast include CastleCourt, Ann Street and Lisburn Road. However:CastleCourt would be more of a family-based centre, with shops for babies, children and adults alike, and offers lower prices and a variety of product quality depending on the individual store. Ann Street does not have the same traffic and footfall as bigger areas such as Victoria Sq and CastleCourt do, and so there would not be the same level of potential footfall reached.Lisburn Road is another high-end area that has higher product prices and a high level of product quality. However it is not as easily accessible as Belfast’s city centre – customers may find themselves having to leave the main city centre area for something they are looking for specifically and for some customers they may find this to be an irritation or inconvenience.
This is the birds-eye plan of the upper ground floor of Victoria Square. Ideally the store would be opened in the currently vacant unit UG6 (previously Tom Tailer), which is situated between JD sport shop and the Apple store. It consists of 2 floors and is approximately 5586 sq ft between the two floors.The main competitor is situated at the opposite end of the Shopping Centre between Urban Outfitters and Clockwork Orange, on the edge of Ann Street.Although I could not find footfall statistics for Victoria Sq throughout 2010, 2009 figures show that, although the estimated footfall figure of 12-15million was not reached, it was still a high figure of 10million people thoughout the year.
Because the size of each unit varies, rent rates can start at around £80k and be as high as £180k per year.When taking on a unit in Victoria Square, other costs need to be taken into consideration aside from rent: Rent Service charges - £5-£6 per sq ft Insurance – a couple of hundred pounds Rates – from £30k onwards Rental deposit – independent retailers are more likely to be asked for a rental deposit in case they default on their payments and may sometimes have to give personal guarantees e.g. Putting their car, home etc on the line!Additional costs include fit-out costs and legal costs. Tenants must ensure they have sufficient financial backing before investing.However when all that is said, despite Victoria Square needing more financial investment than other areas, now is still a good time for independent retailers to set up businesses, given the low rent costs, extended rent-frees, flexible lease terms etc that are available to potential tenants.Images of the unit I would like to set up Blue Wave in.
The main source of competition in Victoria Centre is the sports and lifestyle store, Two Seasons, located at the opposite end of Victoria Square centre.Although it stocks skate, snow and surf attire, it primarily focuses on snow sports equipment and clothing, and its range of surfing products is limited to clothing only.In terms of competing products, Surf Mountain would be the key competitor, as it supplies not only fashion clothing but also surfing equipment such as surfboards, wetsuits, accessories etc. However given the location of Surf Mountain, it is most likely not doing as well in terms of sales as it could be – it is out of the main city centre region and harder to find than shops located in the main street Royal Avenue, CastleCourt or Victoria Square.Other competitors located around Belfast may need to be considered but are not as great a threat as Two Seasons and Surf Mountain: Castle Court – Lifestyle Sports, QuiksilverLisburn Road – MacSki, Climate Ski Ann St - JJB Sports
