Description
This is detailed document about EBusiness Strategy at LULU which is supermarket chain based out of the Middle East.
Lulu.com
E-business
Lulu.com
Problem Statement: ? ? ? Should Lulu stick with its original business of print on demand of books and become a niche player. Should it expand its reach to Asia Should it start new business models and increase its breadth.
Analysis As mentioned in the case Mr. Davis has special interest in overseas opportunities. He feels that if it Lulu does not expand outside North America then it will be left behind in the race. As it already has an experience in expanding outside, in the form of setting up office in London. I don’t think it will find difficult to expand in Asia. The major problem they have is finding the right resource, who has the inclination towards writing, music or art. They also will have to finalize where to set up their office. They have options like Singapore, Hong Kong, Japan, India, etc. I think to expand in Asia they first should finalize the person who is going to head Lulu in Asia. Once they have done this the person should take the responsibility in increasing Lulu’s reach in Asia. The location in Asia can be chosen where they have maximum possibility of customers. To spread awareness of Lulu in other countries they can hire representatives as they have done in Europe. Expanding outside will not be a huge task as the back end operation will still remain the same. They will have to set up a facility to print the book. Once printing is done for couriering the book to the user/buyer they can outsource it to a courier service. The stuntology in Asian countries should be toned down as most of these are conservative. While promoting Lulu or its service in each country care should be taken that it is customized to the national language of the country, for better reach. To do the accounting and office administrative work they could hire another person to help Rhonda, as data will have to be collated of three continents.
Along with expanding in other countries they could also look at providing other services simultaneous. In 2006, the online music industry had already established itself in US; they could leverage on it and start a similar service. They can provide a service where a user will upload his/her original music; it can be any kind of music. A portion of it will be available for other users to listen. If they like it they can order that track or make a compilation of tracks of different artists on Lulu and make a CD. This will be in line with print on demand business that they already learn successfully. In this the revenue earned can be shared with the artists whose music track has been sold. This can be a success as amateur artists find it hard to approach record labels to make a music CD. This will also help the amateur bands to publicize themselves throughout the world. Along with this they will have to come up with more business models to sustain as their models are imitable. To help Lulu to sustain they will have to come up with more out of the box service models. Conclusion ? ? It should first expand to other parts of the world like Asia as it will not be expensive since it will use existing framework. It should try to start other business model to help it to sustain. One of which can be record on demand of a music track.
doc_979810892.docx
This is detailed document about EBusiness Strategy at LULU which is supermarket chain based out of the Middle East.
Lulu.com
E-business
Lulu.com
Problem Statement: ? ? ? Should Lulu stick with its original business of print on demand of books and become a niche player. Should it expand its reach to Asia Should it start new business models and increase its breadth.
Analysis As mentioned in the case Mr. Davis has special interest in overseas opportunities. He feels that if it Lulu does not expand outside North America then it will be left behind in the race. As it already has an experience in expanding outside, in the form of setting up office in London. I don’t think it will find difficult to expand in Asia. The major problem they have is finding the right resource, who has the inclination towards writing, music or art. They also will have to finalize where to set up their office. They have options like Singapore, Hong Kong, Japan, India, etc. I think to expand in Asia they first should finalize the person who is going to head Lulu in Asia. Once they have done this the person should take the responsibility in increasing Lulu’s reach in Asia. The location in Asia can be chosen where they have maximum possibility of customers. To spread awareness of Lulu in other countries they can hire representatives as they have done in Europe. Expanding outside will not be a huge task as the back end operation will still remain the same. They will have to set up a facility to print the book. Once printing is done for couriering the book to the user/buyer they can outsource it to a courier service. The stuntology in Asian countries should be toned down as most of these are conservative. While promoting Lulu or its service in each country care should be taken that it is customized to the national language of the country, for better reach. To do the accounting and office administrative work they could hire another person to help Rhonda, as data will have to be collated of three continents.
Along with expanding in other countries they could also look at providing other services simultaneous. In 2006, the online music industry had already established itself in US; they could leverage on it and start a similar service. They can provide a service where a user will upload his/her original music; it can be any kind of music. A portion of it will be available for other users to listen. If they like it they can order that track or make a compilation of tracks of different artists on Lulu and make a CD. This will be in line with print on demand business that they already learn successfully. In this the revenue earned can be shared with the artists whose music track has been sold. This can be a success as amateur artists find it hard to approach record labels to make a music CD. This will also help the amateur bands to publicize themselves throughout the world. Along with this they will have to come up with more business models to sustain as their models are imitable. To help Lulu to sustain they will have to come up with more out of the box service models. Conclusion ? ? It should first expand to other parts of the world like Asia as it will not be expensive since it will use existing framework. It should try to start other business model to help it to sustain. One of which can be record on demand of a music track.
doc_979810892.docx