Business Strategy Case Study
Case Study: business strategy
Biddy’s Bakery (BB) (strategic and operational decisions)
Biddy’s Bakery was founded by Elizabeth McDoogie in 1984. Nicknamed “Biddy”, Elizabeth started the home style-bakery in Cincinnati, Ohio as a alternative to commercially available baked goods. The mission of Biddy’s Bakery was to produce a variety of baked- goods with old fashioned style and taste. The goods produced included a variety of pies and cakes, and were sold to the general public and local restaurants.
To operation was initially started as a hobby by Elizabeth and a group of her friends. Many of the recipes they used had been passed down for generations in their families. The small production and sales facility was housed in a mixed commercial and residential area on the first floor of “Biddy’s” home. Elizabeth “Biddy” and three of her friends worked in the facility from 6 am to 2 pm making and selling the pies. The operation was arranged as a job –shop with work- stations set up to perform a variety of tasks as needed. Most of the customers placed advanced order and Biddy’s Bakery took pride in accepting special requests. The Bakery’s specialty was the McDoogie Pie, a rich chocolate confection in a cookie crust.
MEETING CAPACITY NEEDS:
Initially sales were slow and there were periods when the business operated a t a loss. However, after a few years Biddy’s Bakery began to attract a loyal customer following. Sales continued to grow slowly but steadily. In 1994, a first floor storage area was expanded to accommodate the growing business. However, Biddy’s Bakery quickly outgrew its current capacity. In May of 2000, Elizabeth decided to purchase the adjacent building and move the entire operation into the much large facility. The new facility had considerably more capacity than needed, but the expectation was that business would continue to grow. Unfortunately, by the end of 2008, Elizabeth found that her sales expectations had not been met and she was paying
Biddy’s Bakery (BB) (strategic and operational decisions)
Biddy’s Bakery was founded by Elizabeth McDoogie in 1984. Nicknamed “Biddy”, Elizabeth started the home style-bakery in Cincinnati, Ohio as a alternative to commercially available baked goods. The mission of Biddy’s Bakery was to produce a variety of baked- goods with old fashioned style and taste. The goods produced included a variety of pies and cakes, and were sold to the general public and local restaurants.
To operation was initially started as a hobby by Elizabeth and a group of her friends. Many of the recipes they used had been passed down for generations in their families. The small production and sales facility was housed in a mixed commercial and residential area on the first floor of “Biddy’s” home. Elizabeth “Biddy” and three of her friends worked in the facility from 6 am to 2 pm making and selling the pies. The operation was arranged as a job –shop with work- stations set up to perform a variety of tasks as needed. Most of the customers placed advanced order and Biddy’s Bakery took pride in accepting special requests. The Bakery’s specialty was the McDoogie Pie, a rich chocolate confection in a cookie crust.
MEETING CAPACITY NEEDS:
Initially sales were slow and there were periods when the business operated a t a loss. However, after a few years Biddy’s Bakery began to attract a loyal customer following. Sales continued to grow slowly but steadily. In 1994, a first floor storage area was expanded to accommodate the growing business. However, Biddy’s Bakery quickly outgrew its current capacity. In May of 2000, Elizabeth decided to purchase the adjacent building and move the entire operation into the much large facility. The new facility had considerably more capacity than needed, but the expectation was that business would continue to grow. Unfortunately, by the end of 2008, Elizabeth found that her sales expectations had not been met and she was paying