Accounting Module 1, Act 5

Module 1, Activity 5

Bakerview’s strategy is to develop a core consumer base by segregating themselves from their competitors through industry niches which meet current societal demands and product differentiation. Bakerview has established its own niches in its industry to pursue the solitary of product differentiation. One of its niches is establishing Cowlix Natural Ice Cream which is their own featured brand name product. Crafting your own brand name product creates product differentiation by allowing themselves to articulate a product line to their customers which is segregated from their other products. This generates loyal customers and encourages customers to be exposed to their other goods because they have been satisfied with this certain line of products. Bakerview satisfies certain industry niches through their Cowlix brand ingredients. Cowlix brand’s ingredients come from dairy cows which are not given synthetic additives but instead receive natural vitamin supplements. This element of their product line is very relevant to the current consumer who is more conscious of their own health. More so now, than ever before are consumers conscious and aware of the additives and health risks which they are consuming. These trends are shown in Figure 2: Consumption of ice cream, ice milk and sherbet, but Bakerview ensures that their product has a lower percentage of fat than any of its competitors. Two other dairies of comparable size to Bakerview are The Kawartha Dairy Company (http://www.kawarthadairy.com/) and Hewitt’s Dairy (http://www.hewittsdairy.com/). Both Kawartha and Hewitt have similar strategies to Bakerview in that they emphasize that their products nutritional value is superior to others. The nutrition heading on the Kawartha website is especially noteworthy in that they market themselves as being a brand which is consciously aware of these niche demands in the dairy industry. Neither Hewitt nor Kawartha have their own featured brand name product which is segregated from their other products like Bakerview has done. Instead Hewitt and Kawartha establish all of their products under the umbrella of their founding names. Based on the analysis of Bakerview’s disclosed statements, their capabilities are not nationwide. After analyzing the financial statements of Parmalat Canada and other larger industry leaders, it is apparent that Bakerview’s capabilities reach the extent of supplying a few cities or possibly a province. Based on this analysis, Bakerview’s competitors are other dairy farmers which are located within their own province who supply the same products to the same cities as them. In terms of the dairy industry and substitute products on the market, there are few to none. The main substitute product for dairy products are soy products which is a very niche market and isn’t a legitimate threat to their industry. I agree with Bakerview’s strategy because they have established product differentiation and met certain niche demands although I do not agree with the emphasis which they have placed on healthier products in comparison to their competitors.