This paper discusses Customer Relationship Management objectives, strategy, and tactics of Kroger, Inc. Kroger, founded by Bernard Kroger in 1883 and currently operates over 2500 supermarkets in more than 30 states. Managing customers is top priority for this company and is much of the reason it is the top grossing supermarket chain in the country.
OBJECTIVES
From the very beginning, Kroger worked to please customers. He believed in never selling anything that you yourself, would not buy and set out satisfy customers and provide goods and services that were needed in the Cincinnati area. In those humble beginnings, Kroger invested his life savings of $372 and due to his commitment to what we now call Customer Relationship Management techniques, grew to the multi-billion dollar chain that it is today.
Walk into any Fred Meyer’s/Kroger/Safeway store in the country and you will be met with bright lights, friendly smiles, and shelves stocked with enticing quality goods. The legacy left behind of the son of merchant who had selling in his blood, is one of tradition, of low prices, of meeting the needs of those who need them.
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Kroger was also an inventor, of food products. What was born in his mother’s kitchen, of just a tangy German sauerkraut has grown into over 30 facilities that manufacture the Kroger brand. Just another example this company meeting its objective to serve and please its customer base. Kroger understood from the very beginning, the value of the customer base, which according to the text Managing Customer Relationships is simply put, is to get, keep, and grow customers and is the very objective of the Kroger brand. Mr. Kroger was a natural born leader and servant and built this concept into the very framework of the company. Every step he took, focused on this premise, and soon he built a successful model that many other merchants fervently attempted to duplicate. The modern supermarket owes it roots to this early adventure in
Customers will have certain needs which want met because they are interested in the business because its where they shop, they may demand lower prices or better value for money , new and improved products could be something they want because they are loyal to the supermarket so they want to see it improve and get better over time. Employees are also a part of the stake hold system, they will request higher salaries, better working conditions and job security and even in some cases they will want a job
Headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio, The Kroger Company is one of the largest supermarket retailers across the United States. Founded in 1883, Barney Kroger invested his life savings of $372 to open his first grocery store at 66 Pearl Street in downtown Cincinnati. (Kroger, 2011). Barney was quite proud. He was the first grocer ever to have a bakery, to sell meat, and to sell other groceries all in one store. From the start, Barney operated his business with a simple motto: “Be particular. Never sell anything you would not want yourself.” (Kroger, 2011). Today, one hundred and twenty-eight years later, the Kroger Company is still following Barney’s motto.
Unlike Carnegie, as Sam Walton's business grew he took out more and more competition from other department stores. His store led in sales and profits even when it was newly opened. Sam made this possible by properly stocking all the shelves with a wide range of goods with very low prices, keeping his store centrally located so it was easily accessible to many customers, stayed open later than most stores especially during Christmas seasons, and experimented with discount merchandising.
David Dillon has been CEO of the Kroger Co. since 2003 and is the 10th CEO in Kroger’s 130-year history. Joseph B. Hall held the CEO position from 1946 until 1964. Hall started with Kroger as a real estate manager in 1931 and later moved onto merchandising. His accomplishments as CEO was taking Kroger from a collection of 1,430 small, of mom-and-pop style corner stores into a unified chain, introducing advances in private label, product manufacturing and the company’s distinctive blue-and-white logo. Like todays manager, Hall was concerned with developing a close relationship with Kroger’s shoppers. Halls approach to gain the knowledge needed was that he and his fellow executives would actually visit shoppers in their homes to discuss their needs and concerns as part of a program known as “Kroger Calls”. Today Kroger’s CEO can simply utilize data and purchase history stored on a customer’s loyalty card to tailor their marketing strategy (Kroger CEOs, Past and Present, 2012). Halls creation of a modern day supermarket company nearly quadrupled sales to $2.3 billion.
In a market that is so dependent on nature and agriculture, it is reassuring to see a company that values the recompensing of materials back to the natural world. In order for Publix to remain successful, the company must carry the momentum that founder George “Mr.George” Jenkins originally started in 1930. The morals and philosophies that lie at the center of Publix Super Markets are integral to their success. Mr. George believed that customers and employees should be treated like family, and if their business model continues to accurately portray their core values, then they will continue to be successful. The question that looms over Publix is not “What can we change?” it is “What can we elaborate on?” Publix needs to use their positive image to expand into other communities. Publix is well-received in the public eye to the point that they are considered beneficial to a community. A marketing campaign that focused on bringing positive change to a struggling community through Publix and their charitable campaigns would create a want/need for the super market in new, untapped territory. Publix is lesser known in the Northern regions of the U.S., a nationwide marketing campaign would result in well-received
Kmart started off on the right foot back in 1899 and was a major player in supplying goods to the consumers from their small five and dime stores. From there they started to expand, they were a provider of low-cost merchandise but once the competition (Wal-Mart and Target) started opening they started loosing the fight. Since that time they have been through many changes and many hard times. By 1962 they started opening full line discount stores which continued to help the company succeed. From 1980 - 2002 five different CEOs ran the company. Some of their strategies were focused on the same track as the one before them while others had to change direction entirely in order to fight to turn the company around. Kmart has suppliers that they order their goods from so they can keep their shelves stocked. They do not make any of their own products however they do try to differentiate themselves by selling exclusive brands that include Thalia Sodi, Jaclyn Smith, Joe Boxer, Martha Stewart, and Sesame Street. Kmart¡¦s strategy has changed a few times since they started out and may continue to change in order to succeed. They have faced bankruptcy in the past and have fought to continue to compete against their competitors.
The Target Corporation formerly known as “The Dayton Dry Goods Company” is a major retailing company that was founded in 1902 in Minneapolis, Minnesota by George Draper Dayton. It is ranked the second largest discount retailer in the United States and ranked thirty- sixth on the Fortune 500 as of 2013. The Target Corporation has been serving this nation with the best price possible goods since their expansion from “Dayton” and is continuously winning the hearts of consumers with their dedication and service. A phenomenal merchandising strategy and cross channeling has enabled this upscale discounter to serve their purpose of customer loyalty and fulfill their promise of “Expect more and Pay less”.
In only reading this statement, Safeway’s reason for being seems to be both centered on their customers and in making money for their investors. The core value of satisfying customers, gaining their loyalty, is supported by the values of “superior-quality,” uniqueness and innovation (Safeway, n.d.). Price is not mentioned in this statement. The terms used instead point to a strategy of differentiation. The experience of being the center of attention brings people back into Safeway. They find better items in a different atmosphere.
Kroger Timeline. (2013). In Progressive Grocer, 92(10), 30-52. Retrieved January 28, 2014. Retrieved from http://web.ebscohost.com.southuniversity.libproxy.edmc.edu/ehost/detail?sid=e0985541-de1c-4587-93a3-fa8be9bac40f%40sessionmgr114&vid=1&hid=127&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZSZzY29wZT1zaXRl#db=bth&AN=91527502
Mujtaba, B., & Johnson, W. (2012). Case 5: Publix Super Markets--Achieving Customer Intimacy. Weinstein, A. Superior customer value: strategies for winning and retaining customers (3rd ed., pp. 269-286). Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press.
Customer relationship management They have determined the key factors in maintaining and building. their relationships with customers are to provide a problem free experience at their hotels and restaurants and to give each customer personal recognition. Their strategies to build these relationships. are the same as those employed to build their business, they are tied. to each other. They are currently developing a Group-wide Guest History network.
Maklan, S. (December, 2011). Customer Relationship Management (CRM): Making it work. Som.cranfield.ac.uk. Retrieved January 21, 2014 from http://www.som.cranfield.ac.uk/som/p17140/Think-Cranfield/2011/December-2011/Customer-relationship-management-making-it-work.
As Miller states, all organizations perform various operations to provide for their customers (Miller, 2011). In the case study we reviewed we evaluated two large companies, Wal-Mart and Kroger, and identified how they are changing their operations in order to compete with Amazon.
Computer Economics, a research and consulting firm, surveyed 209 IT organization worldwide regarding their IT investment plans. The leading trends “were identified as low risk/high reward based on their cost predictability and their positive return on investment for organizations within two years’ time.” CRM tops the list for 2014 (Mackie, 2014)
Customer relationship management is a cross-functional process to achieve a continuing dialogue with customers, across all their contact and access point, with personalized treatment of the most valuable customers and to ensure customer retention and the effectiveness of marketing initiatives. It is also provide the chance for customers to interact with the brand.