Ipswich Shellfish Company example essay topic

516 words
Ipswich Shellfish Company has a very unique marketing channel and strategy. There business is very specialized and their product characteristics will vary by fish, but not by quality. Ipswich is very confident that they can deliver fresh seafood within 24 hours around the world. Another product characteristic that they offer is a extensive variety of exotic seafood that people across the world can now enjoy. Some channel conflicts that they might run into is that they will deliver to anyone for the right price. This is much easier said then done but Ipswich delivers.

To do this they need to have good relationships with their shipping affiliates. If their product goes bad then they lose money. Another problem that they might try to avoid would be sending out substandard seafood. If they do and their buyer tries to back out of the sale, they again will lose money. They are also facing rival businesses that must make their prices competitive and quality one grade better then other's. It sounds like to me that Ipswich Shellfish must run a very tight business to survive.

They are taking risks at many points and are relying for those risks to make profit. Therefore I would have to say that at this time it will not hinder their business to stay away from integration. This definitely will reduce the possibilities of extreme growth within their company, but also will reduce the possibilities of extreme losses that Ipswich could take. This way they are able to keep themselves out of the restaurant business, and out of the fishing business where they would have to sink a lot of money into something that they are not accustomed to. Intermodal coordination is key for this company to be able to distribute in such vast areas in such a small time.

If they cannot coordinate between air carriers, land carriers and sea carriers then there product will go to waste. But on the other hand once they acquire the talent to coordinate their distribution channels they are able to serve many more markets and increase the volume of their sales. Being proficient with their shipping partners will enable them to gain security of their product. Without these companies Ipswich could not deliver shellfish very far, they would die within 24 hours if not properly cared for. This cost is great for Ipswich but essential in their growth process. As long as there is customers willing to pay then this company can be in business.

The last deciding factor is if it can remain being run correctly and efficiently. In the long run these two factors should play very important into whether they would make any forward or backward integration. It is definitely not too early to start exploring those options. By using a few years for research and development at a relatively low investment they are able to give themselves a better chance of succeeding in that integration..