A survey of product differentiation strategies adopted by firms in the water bottling industry in Nairobi
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Date
2006-01Author
Achayo - Alome, Kasera
Type
ThesisLanguage
enMetadata
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The bottled drinking water a few years back was treated as a reserve for the well
to do. This is no longer the case as the demand for safe drinking water has been
on the increase in all sectors. This demand has been catalyzed by the failure of
local authority in the provision of a clean drinking water. Despite being in its
early stages of development the water bottling industry has experienced
reasonable competitive rivalry. This has driven firms to attempt to differentiate
their products and offerings to prospects.
This study was conducted with the objective of determining the extent of
product differentiation strategies adopted by firms operating in the bottled
water industry and if any differences existed between the adoption of product
differentiation strategy with respect to size of enterprise. Other factors
investigated included the factors influencing choice of these strategies.
This was a descriptive survey with the population of interest being waterbottling
firms located within Nairobi city. The study focused only on registered
firms (totaling to 59) therefore, a census was conducted. Data was collected
using structured questionnaires. The respondents were marketing managers or
their equivalent.
Data was collected and analyzed using percentages, mean and standard
deviation. The results of the survey indicated that firms do exercise product
differentiation strategies and firms, depending on size will often adopt different
strategies. The results also revealed that various factors influence strategy
selection. Financial strength emerged as a major determinant of strategy
selection, whereas the market trends dictated product differentiation strategies
for adoption. Small and medium firms expressed concern for stiff competition
and were pessimistic about the future. On the other hand large firms were
optimistic that there was still a lot of market potential that needs to be
exploited.
During the survey several huddles were encountered, however on that stood out
was the number of firms approximately 49% who never participated in U1e
exercise due to varied reasons. Out of these 24% out-rightly refused to
participate, 15% never returned the questionnaire and 10 % had moved
premises and we were not able to locate them for interview. This reduced our
response rate to 51% compared to the initial target of 95%.
This study only focused on KRAregistered firms, however evidence indicates
that there are other water bottling firms operating but are not registered with
KRA.Wewould therefore recommend for further research to be carried out that
will involve all the players in the industry.
Citation
Masters Of Business Administration (MBA) Degree, University of NairobiPublisher
University of Nairobi School of Business
Description
A management research report submitted in partial
fulfillment for requirement of The Degree of Master
of Business Administration (MBA), Faculty of Commerce,
University Of Nairobi