Critically Applying Relevant Concepts For Strategic Management: The Case Of Marks And Spencer Group Plc

Introduction to organization

Marks and Spencer Group Plc is one of the major multinational retail companies in United Kingdom that sells good quality clothing, home products and luxury food products too. The company’s headquarters is present at London, United Kingdom and it has revenue of more than 10.622 billion. The organization is growing more with time, which has created enough scopes and opportunities to excel in the delivery of products and services within the retail sector. The major problems included the falling of market share and increased prices of products, which have made many customers unsatisfied. The company currently holds nearly 85000 employees, the chairperson of the company is Archie Norman, and chief executive is Steve Rowe (Marksandspencer.com 2018).

In the competitive business world, every business wants to remain afloat and as being one of the top companies within the clothing industry, Marks and Spencer needs to implement the right business strategies. Based on the statistics regarding growth and development, it is found that it is a firm that has been facing issues with its market share dipping much below the normal market share that existed previously (Belleflamme and Peitz 2015). The clothing retail company has made a mark within the industry by applying the right strategies to cover a wider market share and at the same time, ensure that both middle class and rich people’s needs are satisfied. The business strategies are implemented by Marks and Spencer to attain a good position in the market place. This is possible through proper market segmentation, development, penetration and sometimes working as a joint venture with other small companies too. With the huge capital investments, it has become easy for capturing a wider market and for creating a good brand position along with the achievement of international goals and objectives with ease and effectiveness (Waldman and Jensen 2016).  

The company’s market share fell due to offering the products and services at higher prices while the clients wanted to buy the products and services at a much lower cost. Thus, it is considered as a firm that has been facing some issues. Being one of the premier clothing, food and financial services’ provider in United Kingdom, Marks and Spencer relied much more on delivering the products and services at higher prices, which has been one of the prominent causes of decline in market share and decrease in sales revenue too (Ruigrok and Van Tulder 2013).

The micro and macro analysis of environmental factors will be done with the use of PESTLE analysis, Porter’s five forces analysis and understanding the life cycle of the clothing industry as well.

The external environmental factors are analyzed with the use of PESTLE analysis, required to manage proper functioning of the organization. The PESTLE analysis is used to determine the political factors, economic, social, technological, legal and environmental factors associated with the business functioning (Kant Hvass 2014).

The political factors include the laws, rules and regulations set by the Government and also the tax policies, employment laws, tariffs and trade restrictions imposed on the company. This has also allowed Marks and Spencer to use the higher cost structure effectively and gain a good market share.

Industrial organization approach and strategy

The economic factors include focusing on the niche market conditions and delivering the products and services accordingly for the fulfillment of clients’ needs and preferences (Sivalingam 2015). A good amount of cost has been saved, which facilitates better import and export activities along with allowing the customers to perceive higher quality products to ensure higher satisfaction level. The company has opened up new ways to deliver insurance services along with other financial services that can attract more customers, furthermore leading to higher sales revenue and enhancing the growth in economy of the country too. 

The social factors are associated with the size of population, level of income and education possessed by individuals and from the background or ethnic origin from which they belong. There are cultural factors too that comprise the socio-cultural factors including the condition of housing and balanced diet, which enables many of the employees of Marks and Spencer to look for maintaining a balance between life and work, manage leave policies, flexible working hours, etc. (Chen et al. 2014). The online shopping website has been enabled by the company to make a mark within the competitive business environment, furthermore created convenient for people to purchase the products and services (Marksandspencer.com 2018). Based on the demographic factors, the middle aged and maturepeople are more inclined towards the company products and most of them are females, thus the demographic conditions are assessed. 

Few of the technological impacts include management of online shopping website, creating tore cards and introduced the automatic self-scan area where the clients no longer need to wait in queues prior to checkout after making purchases (Folios and Read 2013). With the implementation of new technologies, marketing scopes have increased and to deal with the challenges. The higher prices were often the reason for which customers’ base was reduced, and thus advanced technologies could reduce the workload and operational costs, which would further impact the prices set for those products and services of M&S.

The legal factors include aligning the legislations, laws and rules with the business goals and objectives such as implementing the Wages Law, laws related to the health and safety of workers, Union laws and Monopoly laws that are responsible for creating a good workforce where discrimination is prevented along with copyrights and patent laws.

The environmental factors are considered important because the company wants to manage sustainability considering use of greener approaches for the manufacturing and production of good quality products and services for meeting the clients’ requirements and preferences. With the sustainable measures undertaken, Marks and Spencer creates a positive brand image among the clients and influenced their buying behaviors largely too (E. Dobbs 2014).

Marks and Spencer have used the Porter’s five forces analysis for determining the five forces affecting the business including the threat of new entrants, threat of substitute products, threats of competitive rivalries, and bargaining power of suppliers and buying power of the consumers (Burns and Dewhurst 2016).

The threat of new entrants is medium considering the fact that huge amount of capital investments are done for creating new stores all over UK. With the mature market, other companies need to offer something unique and innovative, which is a daunting task within the food and retail industry of UK.

External Environment discussion evidenced by literature and application of models

The threat of substitute products is high because the substitute products have reduced the demands for the products of Marks and Spencer by making the clients move to some other alternatives because of the lower price at which the products are offered (Porter and Heppelmann 2014). Tesco and Sainsbury provide the alternative products and services, though it is known that the products and services delivered by M&S are good in terms of quality and offers are often provided, which influences consumers’ buying behaviors.

The threat of rivalries is high, because there are other firms within the food and apparel industry that have offered similar quality products and services at reasonable prices and those meet the up-to-date fashion criteria.

The buying power of consumers is high because consumers’ demands and preferences change from time to time, which makes it difficult for M&S to bring something unique and innovative immediately (Ahi and Searcy 2013).

The bargaining power of suppliers is low, because M&S knows how to attract suppliers and obtain good quality supplies of raw materials and resources. The company possesses good turnover and the suppliers expect the retail company’s stocks are filled with the supplies they provide (Turker and Altuntas 2014). 

The comparative industry analysis means comparing the industry within which M&S falls with another industry in UK. M&S, being a fashion retail company is to be compared with the food retail industry consisting of major companies like Tesco, Sainsbury, etc. The fashion retail industry has played a major role in contributing to the economy of the nation, which values around 29 billion pounds. The growth in population and increased awareness about the fashion  and apparel items have increased the demands for clothing accessories in UK, because of which, the UK fashion industry has grown significantly and resulted in transforming the businesses, leading to higher revenue generation and creating place for some of the world’s top fashion designers (Kozlowski, Searcy and Bardecki 2015). UK fashion industry is known for its creativity, uniqueness and innovation, which allows for offering something more to meet the clients’ demands and expectations. In UK, the fashion retail industry comprises of high-end brands as well as brands that provide products for both middle class and lower class segments. Thus, the clients have the freedom to choose between multiple options within the innovative and creative style clothing items available. The consumers’ fashion trends are unique and thus there are demands for ethical and environment friendly clothing as well, which has been considered by many companies including M&S to manage business responsibly (Shamma and Hassan 2013). Moreover, UK fashion retail industry has created economic opportunities through increased employment scopes and opportunities along with business decisions made to offer something unique to ensure client satisfaction.

The food retail industry, on the other hands, is not much dependent on innovation, creativity or uniqueness; rather it focuses on quality that creates positive mindsets among the clients regarding their purchases. It is much different from the fashion retail industry that focuses on creativity and innovation of products to keep the clients engaged and meet their demands and expectations too (Singh, Grover and Singh 2013).

The threats got higher, because of the falling of market share caused due to increase in the prices of products and services of Marks and Spencer. There were threats from other businesses like popular clothing brands that made products available at reasonable prices, which could make the clients shift their focus to the other company.

The industry life cycle consists of pioneering phase, growth phase, mature growth phase, maturity phase and decline phase. The major tool used for analysing the industry life cycle of Marks and Soencer is by identifying the present phase of the organisation based on the industry cycle in the maturity stage. It has also identified the ecternal environemnt life cycle urve that shows the slower growth due to the presence of multiple competitors within the conercened industry. Thus, it is important to be considererd that Marks and Spencer must change its strategic aprpoach to adjust to the amrket conditions and ensure suxcessfuk dleivery of good quality clothing products to its customers and ensure customer satisfaction as a whole too (Lin and Wu 2014).  

The competitive benchmarking has been widely adopted by Marks and Spencer through adoption of CSR strategies and a new benchmark has been set to stay ahead of its competitors. The company was previously specialized in the production of fashion and apparel items though with time, the company extended its product range and introduced food items too for competing with other companies within the specific industry. To improve the corporate social responsibility, the company has introduced a new benchmark named ‘The Corporate Human Rights Benchmark’ to strive for gaining commercial and moral advantages (Hinterhuber 2013). This has though been done with the formation of a link to manage the human rights properly and making sure that the social responsibilities are managed appropriately to create positive mindsets among the clients. M&S has become a brand of contrasts, i.e., combining both fashion and food retail to create good impressions among the clients and influenced their buying behaviors, which has allowed for extension of services and thus a sustainable competitive position has been achieved too.

The benchmarking showed that the clothing accessories and items are available at Tesco at reasonable prices, ranging from $19 to $25 whereas in M&S, the product range price starts from $25. The quality is quite good for both the companies, though the prices set for the products by Tesco is considered as value for money when compared with the products and services offered by M&S.

M&S operates within a competitive business environment, which has created convenience for operating in multiple segments including food, clothing and beauty products. The company, being sensitive to social, economic and technological factors, has also managed to keep up with the changing trends related to clothing and food (Perrigot and Pénard 2013). The values of the company include quality, affordability and efficiency of services provided to clients, thus, M&S aims to enhance the market share through differentiation of products and maintaining cost leadership strategies to fulfill the desired goals and objectives.  The major clothing brands like Zara, Vero Moda and other companies are more inclined to follow the strategies that are implemented by M&S to extend its product range and make more products and services available to them for easy accessibility, thereby aim to increase the profit level and sales generation too.

The strategic analysis means the assessment of strategic skills, competencies and capabilities of the organization to enable value creation and thus keeping the clients satisfied as a whole. This has been aimed at fulfilling the needs and requirements of clients, furthermore create scopes for higher revenue generation along with gaining competitive advantage in business too (Belleflamme and Peitz 2015).

The Resource Based View of RBV is an effective managerial framework that helps in determining the strategic resources possessed by an organization to gain a competitive edge over its competitors in business. The resources are exploited properly considering the fact that the competitors are not ignored before making any decisions to generate higher revenue and gain a sustainable competitive position within the business environment. The demands and preferences of clients change from time to time and thus M&S needs to implement long-term plans for meeting the emerging needs (Waldman and Jensen 2016).

The Resource Based View should create a long term fit between the needs and references of clients and the capabilities and competencies that the organization current possesses. This would help in strategic development and growth along with prioritizing on the major resources needed to achieve the goals and objectives effectively. According to the resource-based view, the major abilities of M&S include distinctive capabilities and core competencies. The architecture includes allocation of more resources to enhance the uniqueness and creativity of clothing designs and meet the emerging demands of clients. The network of relations with the suppliers, designers and production units further has helped in meeting the needs of fashion conscious clients (Ruigrok and Van Tulder 2013). M&S possesses good reputation, a positive brand image, and the 40 plus aged clients fall in the targeted market segments, which creates ease for M&S to stay ahead of competitors like Next, Zara, etc. The core competencies include the competitor differentiation where focusing of the young fashion market segments is also important (Kant Hvass 2014). The company has also targeted the clients of older ages by acquiring their knowledge, reputation and values managed, which include quality, service innovation, value, trust and integrity.

The resources and capabilities of M&S include having a market leading share of the clothing industry, close relationships with the suppliers, empowerment of suppliers with design responsibility, excellent working conditions and great quality customers’ services offered. The company maintains a great workforce that comprise of employees who are skilled and knowledgeable and have committed themselves fully to the organizational performance. M&S boosts of an innovative and learning culture that nurtures employees and kept the employees motivated and influenced, which has resulted in committing to the welfare of employees and ensured competitive rewards package too (Glavas and Mish 2015). The physical resources are freehold locations, i.e., ne percent occupancy costs versus up to 9 percent industry average while the intangible resources are brand reputation achieved through customer recognition and loyal employees, which has reduced the turnover of employees. The capabilities include proper supply chain management where the costs are lower and quality of goods is high and the management has fewer levels of hierarchy, which ensures successful management of multiple departments and business functioning with convenience (Amini and Bienstock 2014).

Marks and Spencer holds good dynamic capabilities that are managed to enable continuous improvement of the resources base of the organization. The resource based view allows for identifying the dynamic capabilities including the valuable, rare, inimitable and non-substitutable resources that are associated with the improved business performance and allowed the firm to gain competitive advantage in business as well. The great marketing strategies, good quality clothing products, management of product differentiation within the clothing industry and positive brand name and image further contributes to the fulfilment of business goals and objectives and enabling incremental changes to the resource base for continuous improvement and gaining competitive advantage in business too (Acklin 2013). The ability to evolve business by using digital platforms and management of e-commerce technology has further contributed to the improvement of resource base and acquisition of resources effectively as well. The plan A corporate social responsibility enables innovating the products and services and managing sustainable lifestyle and clothing accessories (Marksandspencer.com 2018).

The core competences of the organization are responsible for the development of string brand image, name and allowing the company to produce excellent quality products and services along with great customers’ services. The core competencies combine the dynamic capabilities of the organization including advanced technologies and management skills required to gain a leadership position in the development of clothing products within the concerned industry (Runfola and Guercini 2013). In spite of the core competencies possessed by M&S, the rigid structure of management created inflexible options for responding to the changing market conditions and affected the proper implementation of decision and policies, due to which, decisions made at the top were not challenged as well (Caniato, Moretto and Caridi 2013).

The VRIN framework defines the capabilities of the organizations and how it has influenced various aspects including the management of loyalty with the customers, corporate social responsibility, management of skilled workforce and managing sustainability too for achieving competitive edge over its competitors (Pesic, Milic and Stankovic 2013). 

The value chain analysis is done for identifying the support activities and primary activities associated with M&S. The support activities are based on the primary activities and this has created a positive impact on the technological implementation, procurement of strategies, and management of human resources and improved the organizational infrastructure.

Inbound logistics- The inbound logistics operations have helped in storing, retrieval and distribution of inputs that are associated with the production of outputs. The Plan A sustainability program adopted by M&S has facilitated management of changes in the global supply chain, which has been effective for gaining competitive advantage through sustainability (Mathur, Jugdev and Shing Fung 2013).

Operations- The major business operations and processes are managed to improve client experience through management of client visit and training the employees to improve their skills and knowledge. The shareholders of M&S have invested in upgrading the IT systems to manage the supply chain networks properly and enabled proper protection to databases for preventing any loss of important data and information.

Outbound Logistics- The outbound logistics are related to the storage and distribution of the clothing items that are produced by the organization (Koc and Bozdag 2017). The warehouses are managed properly through investments furthermore to manage the supply chain and distribution properly.

Marketing and Sales- The digital division of M&S implemented lean startup technologies, which has further assisted in using multi-channels through digital platforms and improving the online shopping experience. The social media platforms have further engaged clients and with the high impact promotions, customers are provided with high value, which formed trust and loyalty between the business and its clients.

Service- The services are delivered considering maintenance of customer loyalty program and even consistently providing additional offers, discounts on every purchases (Mohajeri et al. 2014). The trial scheme has enhanced the size of food halls and reduced the space that provides fashion and clothing items.  

Key Partners · M&S Bank · M&S Energy · SSP · BP · Compass · Moto · WHS · Reliance Retail · Martel Group · Central Group	Key Activities · Retail operations · Communicating with clients about sustainability issues · Delivering clothing and food items · Delivery of enhanced customers’ services · Supply chain management · Distribution of products and services in the marketplace	Value Propositions · Expansion of business globally · Changes in strategies · Launching great quality clothing terms · Introducing loyalty schemes  and managing M&S website (Joyce and Paquin 2016)	Stakeholder    Relationships · Partnership with small clothing firms · Good relationships with suppliers · Focusing on clients’ needs and preferences	Customer Segments · Customers who prefer premium quality fashion and clothing items · Female clients
Key Resources · Extensive brand exposure · Brand image and positive outlook · Multiple suppliers · Improved promotional and marketing abilities (Dudin et al. 2015)	Channels · Internet · Social media platforms · E-commerce channels
Cost Structure · Cost leadership strategy is considered · Keeping costs under control for arousing interest among clients	Revenue Streams · Online purchases · Store purchases · Branding · Marketing

The NPD model has allowed M&S to boost its food sales through innovation and by introducing new lines of products along with providing additional seasonal offers to overcome crisis situations and attract clients conveniently (Roblek et al. 2013). The company has invested in prices without making any compromise to quality, which has created more opportunities to enhance sales revenue and profit level. 

The new business model helped in strengthening the resources and relationships with stakeholders and preserved the natural resources by doing something good for the community and developing the human resources through enhancement of skills and knowledge of employees. It has not only fostered innovation and creativity, but also has acted responsibly by inspiring other smaller firms and through maintenance of values and integrity (Marksandspencer.com 2018).

The strategic change enabled implementation of cost leadership strategy for lowering the costs of operations and gain economies of scale, furthermore become a cost leader within the fashion retail industry. Strategic change has brought standardization of business activities along with expanding the enterprise scale to ensure successful business functioning (Coes 2014). The human resource policies were implemented remaining consistent with the requirements of national laws and legislations to manage the company values and ethics properly. The Discrimination and Equal Opportunities have enabled forming a workplace free from discrimination and providing equal opportunities to everyone (Mossop et al. 2013).

The corporate governance enabled monitoring the various policies and legislations that are followed by the organization to accomplish the business goals. The Data Protection Policy has set different rules and regulations that the employees need to follow for keeping the customer related information safe and prevent any kind of unauthorized access too. The personal data and information should not be accessed, rather business purposes must be considered for managing business legally (Tricker and Tricker 2015).  

The pool represents the entire market and organizations that coordinate with each other to manage economic transactions. In case the internal transaction costs are lower than the external transaction costs, the company is growing while if the internal transaction costs are higher, the external transaction costs tend to be lower, which can make the company be downscaled by the outsourcing activities (Massa and Tucci 2013). The costs incurred while making an economic exchange are the transaction cost economics of Marks and Spencer.

Marks and Spencer has been involved in various outsourcing activities, which has saved a lot of costs and allowed the company to use that money for other purposes. M&S outsourced most f the in-house IT department and employees to India to become a digital first business. The retail company has implemented the Technology Transformation Programme with TCS to focus on technological improvements and become commercially and technically more feasible (Casadesus?Masanell and Zhu 2013). By outsourcing over 250 jobs, it has created vast employment opportunities to individuals and this has contributed to the growth in economy of both the nations, thus establishing god economic trade relations between these two countries as well.

M&S has merged with TCS through outsourcing of many jobs in India and has also acquired Per Una and Autograph along with aims of acquiring brands like The White Company that could suit the vision and mission of the organization. The company also considered working as a joint venture with Next, Zara, etc.

The strategic alliances or partnerships are formed to target multiple market segments and ensure that the business overcomes crisis situations with ease and make sure to generate higher business revenue with much ease and efficiency. M&S and Microsoft has launched the strategic partnership to transform the retail experience and this has been possible with the implementation of artificial intelligence (Claessens and Yurtoglu 2013). It has transformed the entire digital retail experience and ensured improvement of customers’ services effectively too. The strategic alliance between Microsoft and M&S helped in understanding the potential of artificial intelligence and technology, which should enhance the in-store experience and allow for improving the business operations’ efficiency within the retail industry (Marksandspencer.com 2018). The company also considered working as a joint venture strategic alliance with Next, Zara and other retail clothing companies for enhancing the wide range of clothing items while with the combining of distinctive resources, it has become easier for M&S to strengthen its supply chain and distribution management processes and improve its strategic growth and development within the industry as well (Brouthers, Nakos and Dimitratos 2015).

M&S has delivered good quality clothing and the sales no longer declined, which has made the company focus on opening 200 grocery stores, because lower margins are responsible for making the new locations less profitable than actually planned. M&S, known for its upmarket range of convenience food items, has often change the prices of products by increasing the actual cost by two percent, which is behind the actual market measures of inflation. With the enhancement in production, the costs will be saved for M&S because production is directly proportional to the costs of savings (Ibarra et al. 2013). There would be no need to produce clothing items again and again and thus making the products available at reasonable prices would save a lot of cost too.

Marks and Spencer has accelerated changes by leading with others through commitment and dedication to involve the Government, regulatory bodies through industry groups, third party sectors and trade bodies. The public policies are shaped according to the business interests within the retail clothing industry and at the same time, share practical knowledge, skills and insights for generating innovative ideas and provide sustainability solutions for benefiting the business effectively (Hussain et al. 2013).

To respond to changes in the target market and accomplish the objectives of internationalization or multinational strategy, M&S should have clear mission statement and vision to manage better marketing and positioning strategies, furthermore ensure meeting the demands of people both locally and globally. Franchising is a great option for multinational strategic implementation and tying up with other companies have also helped in entering new target markets and ensured attracting more clients globally to generate higher revenue in business (Palia et al. 2014).

The opportunities gained by M&S include the economy of UK recovering from the global recession while the demands for fashion and clothing items have increased for the clients aged over 30 years. The clients are more inclined towards online shopping and thus the e-commerce website has been managed properly by M&S to enter both the local and global markets for generating more clients and gaining higher sales revenue in business as well. The overseas market including India and China have experienced growth, which also allowed M&S to evolve its business globally. The healthy eating habits and remaining cautious about the healthy food consumption have further contributed to the production of good quality good items needed to meet their dietary requirements (Glavas and Mish 2015). The challenges could be the intense competition by the fashion and clothing companies that deliver similar kinds of items at lower prices, selling of substitute products and services and also changes in buying behaviors of consumers The clothing industry is in the mature stage of the product life cycle while the increased use of internet and engagement of social media platforms could make clients more informed about the positives as well as the negatives of the company.

The strengths of the organization are its strong brand name and image and is considered as a trusted retail and clothing brand and is known for its great quality products and services offered. The large network consisting of stores with over 1253 stores and ability to penetrate international market have helped in maintaining a reliable and sustainable supply chain, which has managed to keep stocks properly. The large number of employees, i.e., over 85000 employees and growing e-commerce website have further helped in managing a website that has created convenience for clients to make purchases (Caniato, Moretto and Caridi 2013). The weaknesses of M&S are expensive clothing items, the majority of clients are over 50 years, inability to adapt to changes in lifestyles and trends and poor marketing and advertising activities.  

	Strengths · Strong brand name and image · Good quality products · Large store network and ability to penetrate global market · Sustainable supply chain · E-commerce website	Weaknesses · Poor quality marketing and advertising · Major clients are over the age of 50 years · Expensive clothing items · Inability to adapt to changes in lifestyles and trends
Opportunities · Online shopping · Targeting global market · Healthy eating habits among customers · Increased demands for clothing items among individuals aged over 30 years	SO · With the use of a large employee base, it would be easy for managing sales promotions and deliver best quality services for influencing the consumer buying behaviors · With the positive brand reputation, delivery of good quality products and services · Capitalizing on the string brand name and image to manage global expansion furthermore	WO · Increased focus on marketing of fashion and clothing items · Improved IT systems and focus on online shopping with reduced costs of operations · Targeting the younger market segments through social media promotions
Threats · Competition by low cost clothing companies · Substitute products and services · Use of internet ad social media promotes both positive and negative messages among people	ST · Good relationships with the suppliers and delivering high quality goods · Use of global market and managing relationships with suppliers to fulfil the quality standards · Keeping website updated for improving online shopping experience	WT · Involvement in research and development activities to cope up with the latest fashion trends and lifestyles · Making products and services affordable · Increased global expansion opportunities to enter new markets and increase revenue generation

The penetration into market has helped Marks and Spencer to grow on the existing products and services and increase the market share though management of marketing and promotional campaigns along with sales promotions to enhance brand awareness and achieve competitive advantage. The competitive pricing strategy has helped in assessing the prices set by other companies for the products and services, furthermore allow for setting the right prices to influence consumer buying behaviors (Hussain et al. 2013). The overnight shipping facility started by the company has enabled the e-commerce market to penetrate the market quite easily.

The new products include the food items and innovative clothing items that are introduced in the existing markets. The introduction of special events including management of conferences, parties and events have further been considered as development of new products and services by Marks and Spencer in US.

The development of market included the selling of existing products and services in the new markets and Marks and Spencer has successfully managed this by targeting the market segments comprising of people in the age range of 30 years. There were various challenges associated with the penetration into new markets, though with the opening of many stores all over the world has set new trends for Marks and Spencer to reach astonishing heights of success through attraction of more clients and increased revenue generation (Ibarra et al. 2013).

The diversification strategy has allowed for introducing new products and services in the new markets by using the core competencies of the organization. The emerging economies in India, Russia, China and Western countries have further created more scopes and opportunities for the business to innovate the products and services, furthermore market the clothing and food items with ease and effectiveness (Marksandspencer.com 2018).  

The stars are the business units that are resent within the high growth market and higher market share for M&S, because of which, investments are needed and an e-commerce website has been created for managing new products’ distribution. This shows potential of growth and thus chances of revenue generation are high, which males it convenient for making investments and then get transformed into stars and finally cash cows. The cash cows include the food items and lingerie products that represent the actual backbone of the organization and consistently has allowed the company to maintain its good market share (Hussain et al. 2013). The dogs include premium priced clothing that have low market share in a mature yet declining market whereas the maintaining proper balance between the food and clothing items is important for influencing investment decisions along with the implementation of strategies to make progress in business (Marksandspencer.com 2018).  

Conclusion

As a popular and established business within the retail clothing industry, Marks and Spencer focused more on quality and offered products and services ate premium prices, though it lacked proper innovation and creativity. The report focused on the business strategies implemented by M&S and how it had managed to introduce new products and services and even worked as joint ventures to facilitate strategic alliances and deal with the ongoing competition within the industry. To establish a positive brand image and name, the company needs to make technological improvements and at the same time, support value and innovation to manage the internal resources, skills and competencies and attain competitive advantage in business as well.   

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