Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Hired by Rexall
Acquired the small chain from Rexall
Financing from Adohr Milk Farms
Adohr got acquired by 7-11 which Coulombre found it untenable
Set up Trader Joes
First Trader Joes in Pasadena
Acquired by Aldi North
With Coulombre still as CEO
Stepped down in 1988, John Shields took over as CEO
Expanded beyond Southern California base
North California 1988, Arizona 1993, East Coast
John Shields stepped down, replaced by Dan Bane
Launches Charles Shaw Winery
In 2013, expanded to approximately 400 locations across 37 states and the District of
Columbia
1. Valuable Resources
Network of suppliers that are willing to maintain secrecy in their business relationships
with the organization and provide them with quality, diverse products that are then
of their competitors
Ability to attract and retain high volume of extremely loyal customers, with minimal
marketing which is attributed to their well-trained staff and perceived low prices for quality
investment
2. Rarity
Most organizations tend to lean towards more bureaucratic process and procedures
and physical retail locations. Instead, Trader Joes gave their employees autonomy to
do as they please they could decide how they wanted to place their products in the
store as they felt that the employees know the clientele the best.
Most organizations rely on advertising, special sales, and coupons to attract
customers to make purchases. Instead, Trader Joes had minimal marketing and yet
members are trusted to adhere to these values and implement them into all aspects
creation
Resources
Tangible
o Customers provide free advertising for Trader Joes through WOM marketing
Intangible
o Located near centers of learning allowed Trader Joes to be located near their buyers,
prices as well as bring a company that many would want to work for due to their
Capabilities
staffing methods
Logistics Management
o Stock keeping unit lower than most grocery chains, yet demand is still high with no
profits
In replace for
Couldnt do public relations to Secrecy it had to keep
increase sales
People
o Consumers who appreciated Trader Joes product variety = voluntary advertising =
WOM Marketing
o Employees who were fun-loving, funky whom related well with customers, and the
environment, clear core values aligned with employees in the beginning, employee
benefits
Process and Practices
o Low SKU given small land area and low stock outs = efficient logistics systems
o Free sampling for customers despite small size of shops
o Autonomy given to their employees to make decisions based on their experience
Capital
o Aldi North acquired Trader Joes gave Coulombe the autonomy to run Trader Joes as
he wished
Main threats to Trader Joes Competitive Advantage (See SWOT Analysis Threats)
Substitutes such as Retail Giants like Wal-Mart who had similar operating strategy everyday
low-pricing
Evolving consumer preferences. Must do R&D regularly to identify pereferences and match
SWOT Analysis
Strengths
management
o The organizational structure enables the company to provide goods and services as
Weaknesses
Opportunities
concerns
Rising demand of private labels
o Rising demand of private labels due to budget constraints
Business expansion
o Increase number of stores in United States provides proximity to reach out to even
more customers
Threats