The Collapse and Fall of Montgomery Ward
Montgomery Ward was once one of America’s leading retail store’s and chains. The founder of Montgomery Ward, Aaron Montgomery Ward was the first in history to come out with the first dry-goods mail-order catalogue, witch listed 163 items. What happen to this company and its great ideas? With this paper I intend to help you realize how important it is to communicate within a business. This business probably would have been more successful and reached higher greatness if they had greater communication with the public.
A little background information. Montgomery Award was founded in 1872, and had its first free standing retail store in 1926 in Plymouth, Indiana. Montgomery Ward did not face any king of problems when it was first introduced, it succeeded in everything it did. The mail-order catalogue was great and doing well. By 1883 the company had a 240 page catalog with lists of 10,000 items all together. This is how the company got big and famous. By 1875 the company was doing so well so they come out with the catch phrase “Satisfaction Guaranteed or Your Money Back.” In 1928 Mr. Ward opened 244 stores nation wide, and by 1929 he had over 531 stores. In1968 Montgomery Ward had major merges with Container Corporation of America and Mobile Oil corp. In 1988 they stray away from the mail-order business and concentrate on a specialty store strategies. In 1988 management undertakes successful 3.8 billion dollar buyout, making Montgomery Ward a privately held company, and in 1991 they resume the mail-order catalog business. Then in 1997 Montgomery Ward files ch11 bankruptcy. They eliminated 450 national office jobs, 250 stores, and 10 distribution centers in 30 states.
The major problem that Montgomery Ward fell victim to was an increasingly competitive retail environment, and a fast-paced world where aggressive discounters are forcing old-line operators to change radically or become ancient history. They just could not keep up. The communication was all wrong near the end, they were not able to give what the customers and the buying public what they wanted, a good quality product with low fair price. Even though they were making money it just wasn’t enough. In 1900 they recorded 8.7 million in sales but fell behind Sears and Roebuck which generated 10 million in sales. Another great reason why Montgomery Ward fell is the communication, the communication between the corporate headquarters and the public.
In the 1930s, with the Great Depression approaching Europe, Selfridges felt the consumer confidence decreasing and eventually the recession came over. However, Harry Gordon was still being praised by his work: “He has not merely transformed Oxford Street into one of the world’s finest shopping centres, he gave a lead to the entire store trade”, wrote Drapers Record magazine (Woodhead, 2013). After thirty years of revolutionising London’s retailing, in 1939 Mr Selfridge was in deep debt to the store, which forced him to retire with the title of
As the private brands may not achieve or maintain market acceptance these brands may provide the adverse results expected. Financial condition and results of operation can be negatively affected if pricing, quality and other factors are not up to customer’s satisfaction levels. With all brands sold by Dollar General there is the unfortunate shrinkage that may occur. Profitability may be negatively affected by inventory shrinkage and the inability to properly manage the inventory balances. Effective inventory management is a key component of Dollar General’s business success and profitability. If the company’s buying decisions do not accurately predict consumer trends, excess inventory will negatively affect financial results. Inventory turnover has improved and the company is aware and focusing on addressing all of these risks in the most productive way possible. The biggest risk that the company is facing from a consumer’s perspective is that their sector is highly competitive. Operating in a basic consumer goods market there is already a strain on margins, and low prices are necessary to stay competitive. This restriction on increasing prices may result in a loss when costs increase. The objective is to keep overhead, salaries, marketing and all costs to a bare minimal. Other competitors have saturated the geographic market where Dollar General once was
Kmart, contrarily, entered behind Wal-Mart as the second largest retailer in the United States after Sears’ reign. They, however, suffered a similar affliction to what felled Sears when Kmart ruled discount retail so heavily that they seemed almost unstoppable. However, with lack of solid knowledge on the business’ purpose and Wal-Mart as a strong competitor, there began a steep decline, along with Sears, that led to filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy (New York Times 2002).
...e cooperation. Conaway immediately made major changes to Kmart financial performance to head south. He announced that 72 unproductive stores would be closed. This forced store managers to perform to the best of their abilities raising sales everywhere. Conaway also brought back the “Blue Light Always” that had been shelved since 1991 also bringing in more customers. (Kmart Corporation History)
The retail stores of JC Penney and Sears have face headlines of “Which is Worst: JCP or Sears?” The end maybe near for both companies (Andersen2014). The customers look at the employees like their idiots. The public believes that poor management is the reason for the down fall of these companies. Eddie Lambert and Ron Johnson are the CEO’s of being credited to running these companies with wrong management strategies (Andersen 2014). Ron Johnson who is now the former CEO was highly qualified with his retail instincts tried to run the store like a retail boutique. He never took the time to consult a survey on what the consumer’s thought were and after two years he jeopardized the company (Andersen 2014). Whereas the CEO Eddie Lambert of Sears
The purpose of this paper is to analyze and discuss the effectiveness of the Target Stores supply chain. Target was founded in 1902 by George Draper Dayton who after partnering with the owner of Goodfellow Dry Goods Company for a year decided he wanted to have more involvement, so he purchased Goodfellows renaming it Dayton Dry Goods Company. After purchasing the store Mr. Dayton remained in management until the time of his death in 1938. By this time the store had seen many changes including a name change in 1911 changing from Dayton Dry Goods Company to The Dayton Company, as well as an addition of the Dayton Foundation in 1918. After Mr. Dayton’s death the family continued managing the business until 1983 in which the last two managing Dayton’s retired, ending 80 years of the Dayton’s family management (Target Corporation, 2014).
Youdath illustrates some of Kmart’s management changes, Charles Conway wanted to turn Kmart into an “Everyday low price destination,” making Wal-Mart Stores a direct competitor. Conaway cut back on advertising and the results were not profitable. After an unprofitable holiday season in 2001 the company filed bankruptcy. In 2002, James Adamson hoped to improve customer service and restock the shelves within the Kmart Stores. While Kmart was taking time to recover from filing Chapter 11, its rivals like Wal-Mart and Target were stealing its customers. When Kmart was focusing on random in-store discounts, Wal-Mart and Target were pitching low prices, broad inventories, hip products, and a pleasant shopping experience (2002).
Frida Kahlo was born in a suburb of Mexico city, Coyoacán, on July 6, 1907 but claimed July 7, 1910 as her year of birth since 1910 was the beginning of the Mexican Revolution therefore, wanted her life to begin with the birth of modern Mexico. She was best known for her self-portraits and her work had been described as “surrealist”. Her works were also remembered for its pain and passion, and its vibrant, intense colors. Her work had been celebrated in Mexico as a symbol of national and native tradition.
The company had to be the second largest retailer shop in the US; it has many advantages that come along. The customers well acknowledge the company and its brand have been well established.
“The disorder that doctors fear most,” or borderline personality disorder as it is known throughout the medical community, is only one of several personality disorders plaguing society today (qtd. in Aldhous). Unfortunately most people suffering from personality disorders do not attempt to seek psychiatric help and go undiagnosed and the bulk of those who do contact medical professionals are already in the midst of a problem or only search for help following a reckless act (Aldhous). Personality disorders are one of the most prevalent diagnoses of the psychiatric community, with thirty-six to sixty-seven percent of patients in psychiatric hospitals or facilities diagnosed with some sort of personality disorder (Yeandle 21). Even in an age full of so many technological advances in the psychiatric field, an understanding of personality disorders is not common among non-medical personnel, and it is important for people to take a closer look at the types of personality disorders and their respective symptoms, the diagnostic process and its need for reform, and the existing therapies and treatments available for those living with the heavy burden of a personality disorder.
Frida Kahlo was born on July 6, 1907, in Coyocoán, Mexico City. Kahlo was one of the most famous artists in Mexico City. She was viewed by many as an icon of female creativity. Kahlo suffered from polio in 1913, she was only six years old. In 1922, Kahlo was enrolled in a premier school in Mexico. At the age of eighteen she suffered a near fatal bus accident. She suffered many fractures, including her spine, collarbone and ribs, a shattered pelvis, broken foot and dislocated shoulder. The crash left her with a lifetime of pain. After the accident Kahlo decided to leave the study of medicine behind and started to focus on painting. Despite all the pain Kahlo had, she was able to express what she was going through by painting while she recovered in a full body cast. Painting was Frida’s hobby for three months and her self-portraits became a very big part of her life. Kahlo was influenced by indigenous Mexican culture, which explains the symbols and colors in her paintings.
Opening its doors for the first time in 1946, Lowe’s is now the second largest home improvement chain in the world, operating over 1,800 stores in the United States, generating $56.2 billion in sales and $2.6 billion in net income for 2014 (Lowes Newsroom, 2015). Employing around 265,000 personal making them one of the top employers in the nation, there is no question that Lowe’s must be doing something right. According to Lowes Newsroom, “Lowe’s professional customers represent approximately 30 percent of total sales, approximately 16 million retail and professional customers are served each week. (2015, para 3) “Never Stop Improving”, is Lowe’s slogan; encouraging employees and customers to work together to maximize their in store
Montgomery Ward is the name of two generally unique American retail ventures. It can allude either to the outdated mail request and retail chain retailer which worked between 1872 and 2000 or to the first name of the online retailer presently known as Wards. Industry specialists said Montgomery Ward, the 128-year-old retailer that as of late published its end, was the cause all its own problems and was unable to rival other immediate advertising monsters. After the organization affirmed the end of 250 stores and 10 conveyance focuses on Dec. 28, immediate advertising specialists and experts said they were not astounded when the end came. Montgomery Ward, which started list shopping, was described as having neglected to stay aware of the evolving times. It couldn't create a procedure to contend with new confronted organizations, for example, Target Corp, Wal-Mart Stores Inc. what's more other mid-range claim to fame stores that cut into its business.
Historically, Dollar General operated in a highly price sensitive market segment, with 55% of its consumer base earning an average annual gross income of less than $40,000.[2] To attract these customers, Dollar General employed an Everyday Low Price strategy similar to Wal-Mart’s. Thus, keeping costs low and driving high traffic volumes were critical to the company’s financial success. Dollar General achieved this strategy in several ways, including keeping rents and labor costs low, locating in low-income, high traffic areas that offered consumers few substitutes, and offering a wide variety of popular CPG and white label goods.
Frida received an employment from the Mexican government to paint five portraits of important Mexican women in 1941. Sadly she could not finish her job because her father had recently passed away and she was having a hard time dealing with her chronic health problems. Despite her losses her popularity continued to grow and was widely shown to numerous groups in this