CASE STUDY: Singapore Animal Husbandry Enterprises Pte Ltd (SAHE) Summary:

Singapore animal husbandry enterprises (SAHE) was formed by 100 livestock farmers in 1979, they commenced business in 1989, having a capital of $5 million and an annual turnover of $13 million. The aims of the enterprise were: 1. Reduction of production costs: they cut down production cost by purchasing raw material in bulk by negotiating from manufactures and suppliers. 2. Central farm management: this unit is meant to provide farmers with up to date technical knowhow in animal breeding, diseases control farm management and production. 3. Marketing of farm product: they were doing direct marketing because it was beneficial to producers as well as consumers. The company wished to be identified with marketing high quality pork and poultry Management philosophy: Each department has certain responsibilities 1.
Animal veterinary medicine department Wholesale department Farm product supermarket

REVENUE GENERATING CENTERS OF SAHE

2.
Administrative and personnel department Accounts department Purchasing department

Recruitment, supervision, employee welfare, appraisals, book keeping, purchases of dry foods and groceries and stock checking

3.
Animal feed and veterinary medicine department Wholesale department SAHE farm product supermarket

Direct marketing and direct business is involved

MAJOR BUSINESS ACTIVITES:

Farm product supermarket: SAHEs farm products supermarket retail pork, poultry, eggs, seafood, fresh fruits, vegetables, frozen food, dairy products, groceries, canned food etc Wholesale department: Wholesale department sells live pigs as well as pork, poultry, fresh fruits and vegetables; eggs etc directly from their shareholders, sales were done on credit terms, ranges from one week to three months. Import and export department: This department imports and export all kinds of fresh and frozen food, animal food, veterinary medicine and farm equipment Animal feed and veterinary medicine department: It acts as a central purchasing agent for its shareholders as well as pig farmers; they take orders farmers and make purchases from local or foreign suppliers. SAHE is also a sole agent of several brands of farm equipment.

Competitive edge of SAHE:

SAHE DRY MARKET CONCEPT: It was a new trend in Singapore and it was introduces by SAHE for the first time. Dry market is air-conditioned and equipped with cold storage facilities, customers can buy fresh farm products without worrying about wet floors Distinctive feature of the dry market is that customers are able to buy fresh pork in whatever quantity of their choice under hygienic conditions.

 LONGER BUSNIESS HOURS: SAHE supermarkets have longer business hours. The operating hours are 7:00am to 9:00pm daily, including Sundays and public holidays. The marketing objective of SAHEs farm products supermarket is to create public awareness about the new dry market concept and attract more customers to the store. MARKETING MIX strategies of SAHE: A) Product and product mix strategies: The sales of SAHE farm products supermarket consists of 80% of fresh food and 20% of dry food. Besides retailing fresh pork in seven retail outlets, they also sell wholesale fresh pork to other supermarkets private shopping centres restaurants and food processing factories. B) Pricing strategy: Its retail prices are 5-10% cheaper than those in the open market & 10-15% less than other supermarket branch manager have the ultimate authority to say what to purchase, whom they want to purchase from and when to make a purchase they targeted the middle and low income group in Singapore thus prices of fresh pork and poultry should be low enough to attract them to buy from them instead of buying from wet markets C) Placing: with the objective of serving lower and middle income people, the enterprise is expanding in new towns so that it would be in reach of every citizen D) Promotion: SAHE advertise occasionally in Chinese newspaper when there are special offers on fresh pork etc. Pamphlets and posters are also distributed among the people outside the stores RESPONSE ON DRY MARKET CONCEPT: As Singaporeans have changed their lifestyle and consumption patterns, thats why SAHE has introduced dry market concept Its for those working women who cannot manage to shop because they are working at regular office hours .SAHE has late operating hours so the working women or housewives no longer have to rush to do their marketing within restricted time period in morning hours.

SAHES STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESS: Strengths: It lies in the fact that their main products that are fresh pork and poultry are supplied by its shareholders, ensuring their steady supply. It was shown from a survey that customer agree that products are fresh and comparatively cheaper at SAHE than in wet markets Weakness: It has been said that lack of management expertise has been a weakness of SAHE and the turnover rate is high especially at managerial levels Opportunities: There is a good opportunity for SAHE to expand its business into various new housing estates, since government policy of not building any more wet markets in new housing estates ,new town are the potential locations for such outlets

Q1:

Identify the major environmental trends which took place in Singapore during

periods 1984-86. Carryout a trend-impact analysis for three trends you consider most important to SAHE. Ans: The concept of dry market which was being introduced and implemented in Singapore by Singapore Animal Husbandry Enterprises Pte Ltd. was leading to a measure shift in the trend being adopted by the Singaporeans when it comes to their household shopping. The traditional wet markets were being replaced by these dry markets which are actually more convenient and providing lot more benefit to the customer. As dry market is air conditioned and equipped with cold storage facilities. The hygiene factor was the main key feature of the dry market and that it is being an attraction for the customers. Previously the customers in wet market were worried about the hygiene of the product that thy r buying because of the unhygienic conditions in the wet market. Now the trend shifts towards the dry market concept as the customer is satisfied with the hygiene and the environment that they are being provided to do shopping. the longer business hours that SAHE is conducting is also creating an ease in todays fast moving life, as most of the women are working and that for grocery they dont get time as they are on work at that time and when they get off the shops are by then closed so for their convince and to attract more customers

SAHE used this strategy of longer business hours. the environment from 1984-1986 has greatly changed the customers are being attracted to the dry market concept and that they posses more interest in buying their products from here as compare to the wet markets but still wet market is competitor to the dry market . Yet various factors are there that signifies the individuality and far strong standing of the dry market concept and making it successful. The basic key element in the concept is the ultimate quality control of the farm product and providing the hygienic environment to the customers.

Q2.

Carry out a consumer analysis for the food retailing business in Singapore.

Do you consider the enthusiasm for the dry market concept to be an enduring one? Why? Ans: Customer analysis is the process of determining customer segmentation, value, purchasing behaviour and motivation in order to better target marketing and increase sales. Consumers can buy all their required products in air conditioned, mini-super markets in Singapore. 70% of the customers are women, which include working women as well as housewives, they no longer have to rush to purchase products because of the longer operating hour, as well as consumers can buy all their needs and wants under one roof. There is an increasing demand for convenience goods, including the preparation and information about health and safety conditions. There is a great variety of convenience goods offered to consumers: takeout food, ready to eat, frozen, microwavable dishes, fresh fruits, fresh bakery good. The concept of dry-market is enduring because of great variety of convenience goods offered to consumers, it offers long operating hours including weekends, consumers wish to pay more for food products with higher quality, better taste and variety and for fresh products, Safety is an important factor which consumers are getting in mini-super markets because of the dry and clean environment as compared to the wet-markets which are considered as unhygienic markets. Food safety considerations are becoming an important item in consumer behaviour thats why the consumers preferred to market from dry-markets.

Q3.

Critically examine the major business activities and marketing strategies of

SAHE. What are its strength and weakness, and distinctive competencies? Ans: There are four major business activities and also SAHE has implemented marketing strategies. MAJOR BUSINESS ACTIVITIES: Farm products supermarkets: SAHEs farm products supermarkets retail fresh pork, poultry, eggs, seafood, fresh fruits, vegetables, frozen food, daily products, groceries, canned

food etc. and its combination of the traditional wet market and the westernized mini supermarkets .SAHE has an image of offering good quality products at reasonable price. Wholesale department: The SAHE act as an intermediary and sell live pigs as well pork, poultry, fresh fruit and vegetable, eggs etc. directly from different place like restaurant, hotels, canteens etc and sales are all on credit terms, which range from one week to three months. Import and export department: This department import all kinds of fresh and frozen food, animals food, veterinary medicine and farm equipment. Most imported products are member-farmers consumption while food products are marketed through the farm product supermarkets. Animals feed and veterinary medicine department: This department works as a purchasing agent for its share holders as well as other pig farmers .its also supply all types of raw materials such as maize, soya bean fish powder, flour and yeast. SAHE is also sold agent of several brands of farm equipment, such as automatic feeding systems, feed transportation system and pig-waste treatment plants. MARKETING STRATEGIES Product mix strategies: SAHE farm supermarkets to get more customer to their stores is fresh, high quality market produce, such as pork, and poultry vegetable as well as other fresh stuff in reasonable price..

 Pricing strategy: SAHE farm supermarkets have the retail prices are 5 to 10 percent cheaper than those in the open markets and 10 to 15 percent less than other supermarkets. All the retail transaction is done on cash basis. And wholesaling is done on credit basis on term from one week to three months. The target market of SAHE is middle and low incomes group in Singapore so they are making their price low enough to attract the customer to buy them instead of wet markets. In This strategy SAHE has been quite successful in the pricing of its products. Place: In place strategy, there are seven SAHE farm product supermarkets in Singapore are present .Now they are open a new branches and manpower were there major concern of the co-operative. Promotion: As promotion strategy are concern SAHE advertises in local Chinese newspapers, featuring special offers of fresh pork, poultry, and dry goods items. And also SAHE invites writes-ups in the local press on fresh items for publicity.

STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESS: Strengths: Compared to a stall in the wet market, SAHEs scope of operations is relatively larger. They also purchase product in bulk. The prices of the product are low then its competitor The SAHE is maintain the two most important factor freshness and price Longer business hours Weakness: Lack of management expertise The management staffs have worked their way up to their present position The turnover rate is high especially in managerial level.

Q.4

What are the opportunities and threats facing SAHE? How ready is SAHE to

tap the opportunities or face the threats? Ans: OPPORTUNITIES: Implemented a traditional wet market and a westernized super market. Many private shopping centre developers have also invited SAHE to setup outlets in their shopping centres to attract customers. SAHE has also decided to establish to establish retail franchising system under the name of HA-HE Farm products Mini super market, in which SAHE receive an initial fee of $5,000 to $10,000 initial fee and an annual management consulting fee of $3600 to $10,000. Under this scheme, the franchisee would receive assistance on site location, store design, and renovation, store facilities and displays, start-up practices, management training, merchandise-mix, co-operative advertising as well as on strategies to deal with problems. Looking forward to increase their number of retail branches. Majority of customers came from middle to high income brackets. THREATS: Competition for SAHE has grown keener with the inception of bigger supermarkets. Within the primary trading areas, SMARTS and Shoppers Supermarkets, Daichi Food mart and other farm products mini-market chains which are backed by live-stock farmers, provision suppliers as well as retailers are the primary competitors. Other rivals are NTUC Fair price super markets, Emporia, Econ Mini-Mart, My shop and 7Eleven. Change in customers product preferences. In addition to the numerous competitors, there are many independent neighbourhood provisions stores. In view of the emerging sophisticated and professionally managed supermarkets and mini-market chains, proper marketing plans and efforts are essential for survival. SAHE is ready to tap the opportunity by Expanding its business into various new housing estates, since the government policy of not building any more wet markets in new housing estates came into effect in 1984. New towns are potential locations for such outlets.