Growth strategies: Kohl's
...l’s obtained a strategic alliance with The Estee Lauder Companies Inc. Kohl’s is in a state of growth by opening new stores each year. With the vertical integration strategy, Kohl’s is able to compete with other major retailers and continue to increase their market size. The strategic fit of the company is irrelevant to Kohl’s because the company is a single business. Growth Strategies: Kohl’s has been in a rapid expansion process. In 2003, the company added 85 new stores increasing the base from 457 to 542 stores nationwide. In addition to the stores, Kohl’s increased the number of associates it employed by 10,000. Kohl’s has been using a form of market penetration to compete with its competitors. In the future, the company plans to open 95 stores in 2004 and also continue to increase store square footage by 15%. The Kohl’s Corporation is also using market development internally. The company launched its new product line called Oh Baby! , specializing in baby products for the working mother. Other products that have been launched include Havana Jack’s Café (assorted female tropical clothing), expansion of Nine & Co. (specialized sizes for women), Axcess for men, and Jantzen for men. The external growth of Kohl’s is most noticed in the Junior’s and Jewelry departments of the store. Kohl’s has setup alliances with companies such as P. Miller, Dickies, Gotcha, U.S. Polo, and Fubu in their Junior’s department. One of the major additions this year was to the Jewelry and Makeup Department. The company launched an alliance with The Estee Lauder Company to carry their line of makeup. Kohl’s tries to offer preferred products to its customers at moderate prices. The cost of providing high demand products does not allow the company to reduce the price drastically. Kohl’s has done a marginal job at providing customers products at a marginal cost. Another competitive measure the company uses to conduct business is to operate different from its competitors. The idea of Kohl’s is to create a family or...