MillenniumMart
Execution
Marketing & Sales
Marketing Plan
The most critical element of MillenniumMart’s success will be its marketing and advertising. Convenience stores serve the entire purchasing population of its geographical area but focuses on customers who need to purchase items outside of normal working hours such as swing shift employees and quick shoppers looking for snacks and related items. In order to capture attention and sales MillenniumMart will use prominent signs at the store locations, billboards, media bites on local news, and radio advertisements to capture customers. Many of the initial customers will be drawn to the unique nature of the store and will then have the opportunity to realize the cost savings of MillenniumMart. Since automated shopping is still in its infancy, the firm expects to invest a great deal of its available cash and revenues in marketing efforts.
Sales Plan
Since our store will be a stand-alone, remote facility, there is little in the way being able to directly influence how we close the sales other than to have an attractive storefront with our low prices and easy-to-use system. We believe that this in itself is its own seller. One critical procedure to ensure top customer service and reliability will be establishing a method for keeping enough inventory of all our products. We will be using industry data on inventory for other convenience store chains to assist us.
Operations
Locations & Facilities
MillenniumMart is the convenience store of the 21st Century future, fulfilling a need that will continue to exist into the future – the need for speed. MillenniumMart will be the first fully automated, 24 hour convenience store that is more like an enormous dispensing machine than the traditional store.
The company expects to capture market share by becoming the low cost leader in the convenience store industry by significantly reducing one of the primary expenses, which is labor. Through our completely automated shopping experience, customers will have the chance to shop for everyday items at reduced prices, thus undercutting competition such as 7-11, AmPm, Circle K, and other local convenience store chains. The possibilities for expansion are excellent not only in the local area, but in neighboring communities as well.
Technology
The Products/Services
MillenniumMart will sell the same products as other convenience stores in the same packaging sizes, quality, and quantity as other stores. This includes newspapers, magazines, soft drinks, fruit juices, sport drinks, hot and cold snacks, a limited number of grocery items such as canned soups, microwaveable meals, condiments, bread, auto products such as fuel additives and cleaning supplies, pet supplies, paper products, toothpaste, etc.
All products will be locally or nationally branded such as Frito-Lay, Coca-Cola, Jolly Green Giant, Charmin, Stouffer’s, etc. In addition each computerized transaction machine can dispense cash, stamps, Lotto and phone cards and other coupons and will have the ability to create personal accounts that can display preferred items, retain shopping lists and other services. An automated, interactive "customer service rep" will be able to answer questions and pass on comments to the company’s management.
In addition, the company is looking into ways to sell restricted items such as beer, wine and cigarettes and to set up a separate Internet area for remote access to the Web and email for its customers.
Milestones & Metrics
Key Metrics
Our Key Metrics are:
- inventory turnover
- sales per square foot
- Sales per square foot by major category
- cost of operations
- customer reorders/favorites
- # of new vs returning customers
- costumer requests
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