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Signature
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Name (typed or printed)
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Date
4.0 Financials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
4.1 Break-even Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
4.2 Sales Forecast . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
4.3 Expense Forecast . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
5.0 Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
5.1 Implementation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
5.2 Marketing Organization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
5.3 Contingency Planning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Wheelie Deals
Wheelie Deals is a wholesale distributor that serves the retail bicycle industry. Wheelie Deals will
carve out a focused niche within this industry, providing closeouts, last year models, and seconds.
Large wholesalers will occasionally have a closeout to offer, however, the availability of special
deals is spotty. As prices continue to rise, and people's discretionary income decreases, more and
more people are attracted to finding good deals. This trend will allow Wheelie Deals to generate
sufficient business to reach and conquer profitability.
Wheelie Deals will quickly become the #1 source of deals that will provide retail shops with above
average margins. Wheelie Deals will grow rapidly and take away market share from the more
traditional wholesalers.
Wheelie Deals is lead by Dan Psycle, MBA, a veteran of the bicycle industry. Dan has modeled
Wheelie Deals off an already successful wholesale distributor business model and will quickly gain
market share. Profitability will be reached by month eight with profits of $61,000 by year three.
Wheelie Deals is entering their first year of business. Through careful market research, it is
forecasted that Wheelie Deals will be well received. A cohesive marketing strategy will be required
to bring the company to where it would like to be in terms of revenue. The company offers a wide
range of closeout and other specials of assorted bicycle components and gear to retail bicycle
shops.
Wheelie Deals has compiled good information regarding their market and the target customers that
make up the market. Wheelie Deals will leverage this information to better understand who is
served, their specific needs, and how Wheelie Deals can better serve them.
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Wheelie Deals
Target Markets
The profile for Wheelie Deals' customer consists of the following geographic, demographic, and
behavior factors:
Geographics
Demographics
Behavior Factors
• Tend to go out of their way looking for deals, looking for ways that they can save money,
and pass the savings onto the customers.
• The shops will often have last year's model bicycles.
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Wheelie Deals
Wheelie Deals is providing retail bicycle shops with a wide assortment of bicycle-related items,
including clothing and components significantly discounted from the normal wholesale prices.
Wheelie Deals seeks to fulfill the following benefits that are important to its customers.
• Selection: A wide selection of components, wheels, clothing, bicycles and accessories will
be offered to the customer.
• Accessibility: The entire catalog is available to all bicycle shops in the U.S.
• Customer Service: The customer will be impressed with the level of help and attention
that they receive in all interactions, whether sales, returns, etc.
• Competitive Pricing: Because all of Wheelie Deals' products are closeouts, specials, etc.,
they will be better priced than other wholesalers.
The market trend for the last six to nine years has been an erosion of margins for bicycles. Profits
are recaptured through higher margins found in accessories and service departments. Because the
bicycle shops must rely on accessories and service to generate profit, it makes it increasingly
difficult for local shops to compete with the large mail order houses. Consequently, there has been
an exodus of customers heading toward the mail order catalogs. It would be quite attractive to the
local bicycle shops if they suddenly had the capacity to compete with the mail order houses.
Currently, the industry is served by 10-15 different wholesalers. Each wholesaler has their own
niche to some degree, but generally they have a fairly wide product offering. Bicycle retailers in
need of parts will contact a distributor and purchase their products from them. Some or most of
the wholesalers have a sale or closeout section, but this typically makes up a small percentage of
their business.
It is well known that the margins in the retail bicycle industry are small. 30% for the bicycles, 75%
for components, and 100% for clothing. Closeouts are a great way to increase store traffic and
significantly help out the shop's bottom line with nice margins.
Page 3
Wheelie Deals
Market Forecast
30,000
25,000
20,000
5,000
0
2002 2003 2004 2005 2006
From 1991-1999 bicycles shops enjoyed growth of up to 11%, primarily from the popularity of
mountain bikes. Within the last year and half, sales of mountain bikes have grown flat, decreasing
overall bicycle shop growth to 4%. The one saving grace to this predicament is a resurgence of
growth for road bicycles.
This recent growth is in part fueled by America's Lance Armstrong's domination of professional
cycling in the last three years of the Tour de France. What makes this all the more incredible and
inspirational is the fact that his first Tour win came two years after recovering from what was
thought to be terminal cancer. The other factor that has contributed to the resurgence of road
bikes is the increase in bicycle paths and bicycle lanes that has been built within the last several
years.
While the retail bicycle industry is not forecasted to grow at the same rates as it did in the early
nineties, it is likely to grow around 6% a year for several years. Since the wholesale bicycle
industry is so tied together with the retail side, growth rates for the two generally mirror each
other.
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Wheelie Deals
9.00%
8.00%
7.00%
6.00%
5.00%
4.00%
3.00%
2.00%
1.00%
0.00%
Independent bicycle shops Chain bicycle shops
The following SWOT analysis captures the key strengths and weaknesses within the company, and
describes the opportunities and threats facing Wheelie Deals.
2.2.1 Strengths
2.2.2 Weaknesses
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Wheelie Deals
2.2.3 Opportunities
• Wheelie Deals' business model addresses the problem that the retail industry faces
decreasing margins.
• The ability to spread fixed costs over a larger area as sales increase, increasing profit
margins.
• While the bicycle industry is affected to some degree by the circular nature of the economy,
bicycle and accessory sales never fall completely flat since there are many people that ride
bikes regardless if it is economic boom or bust.
2.2.4 Threats
• Entry into this market niche from an established distributor, recognizing this is the area for
growth in the industry.
• A decrease in the willingness for manufacturers to sell their closeouts to retailers via
wholesalers, instead selling all of their excess directly to the mail order houses.
• Seattle Bike Supply: this is a national distributor with several warehouses spread out
across the country. Seattle sells some closeout products, but they make up a small portion
of their business.
• Quality Bicycle Products: this is a relatively high-end bicycle component distributor that
operates on a national scale, however, they only have one warehouse in Minneapolis, MN.
• Riteway: this is a national wholesaler with multiple warehouses. Riteway has an extensive
product catalog and does offer a decent amount of closeouts, in part due to a minority
holding of the GT bicycle company.
Bicycle retailers tend to favor one type of distributor for certain things. Some variables that
influence decision is price, availability, shipping time, and available terms. The retailers will often
use one main wholesaler and aggregate as much as possible into an order to save shipping costs.
Page 6
Wheelie Deals
Wheelie Deals is a wholesale distributor of bicycles and bicycle components. Wheelie Deals
specializes in closeouts, last year models, and seconds. Some of the manufacturers that Wheelie
Deals sells are:
• Shimano;
• Campagnolo;
• White Industries;
• Syncros;
• Mavic;
• Chris King;
• Tioga;
• Michelin;
• Easton;
• Rock Shox;
• Answer Racing;
• Salsa;
• Race Face;
• Sweet Parts;
• Grip Shift;
• Ritchey;
• Wellgo;
• Pearl Izumi;
• Bellweather;
• Swobo;
• And many more manufacturers.
• Unbeatable selection.
• Outstanding customer service.
• Good inventory management.
Wheelie Deals is still in the speculative stages as a wholesaler. Its critical issues are:
• Continue to take a fiscal approach, expand at a reasonable rate, not for the sake of
expansion in itself, but because it is fiscally prudent to do so.
• Continue to build brand awareness, driving customers to Wheelie Deals.
• Maintain good relationships with suppliers.
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Wheelie Deals
• Trade Shows: Wheelie Deals will be visible at the two major industry trade shows. 75% of
the retail bicycle shops attend at least one trade show a year. The shows provide retailers
an opportunity to view upcoming products and chat with representatives from the
companies as well place pre-season orders.
• Website: Wheelie Deals will develop a website that includes a current catalog of their
offerings. This will be the most up-to-date source of product information and availability. All
advertising activities and trade show presence will highlight the website as an indispensable
source of information.
3.1 Mission
Wheelie Deals' mission is to create the largest selection of closeout bicycle parts. We exist to
attract and maintain customers. When we adhere to this maxim, everything else will fall into place.
Our services will exceed the expectations of our customers.
• Independent Bicycle Shops: The large majority of bicycle retailers are independently
owned sole proprietorships. They are usually owned by one person and range from three to
ten employees, depending on the season.
• Chain Bicycle Shops: Although chains are not the predominant business form, most large
cities (over 200,000 people) have at least one chain serving the community. Sometimes the
chains are franchises with different owners, other times they are same owners with multiple
stores.
The majority of sales will be to the independent bicycle shops. The reason for this is most of the
Page 8
Wheelie Deals
chains have a very uniformed product offering that does not deviate for specials and closeouts. The
chains tend to value consistency of product offerings at the expense of increased profit margins on
special items.
3.5 Positioning
Wheelie Deals will position themselves as the premier bicycle wholesaler of closeouts, specials and
other deals, providing retailers with increased margins. Wheelie Deals will leverage their
competitive edge to ensure the proper positioning.
Currently wholesalers in this market are not specializing their product lines. Everyone tends to
carry a fairly wide range of things. It is a clear advantage to be focused and only concentrate a
specific niche. By focusing on closeouts, retail shops can contact Wheelie Deals and always find
products that offer very nice margins, uncharacteristic of the bicycle industry.
The trend of the industry in general is of consolidation. By offering value-added services such as
closeout items which provide the retailer with better than average margins, Wheelie Deals is
developing value that creates a steady flow of customers helping to not force them into a
consolidation arrangement until they are truly ready.
3.6 Strategies
The main objective for Wheelie Deals is to position themselves as the premier source for bicycle
and bicycle component deals within the U.S. The marketing strategy will seek to first create
customer awareness regarding the products offered, then develop the customer base, and finally
work toward building customer loyalty and repeat business.
The message that Wheelie Deals seeks to communicate is that they are the one-stop source for
great deals. This will be done using several different methods. The first method will be participation
at the national trade shows. Wheelie Deals will develop a visible booth to highlight the products
that they offer as well as communicate to the manufacturers that they are a source for getting rid
of their overstocks.
Wheelie Deals will also be developing advertising in the Bicycle Retailer, the premier industry
journal. Lastly, Wheelie Deals will have a robust website displaying all of the different products that
they have as well as current availability, and the option of ordering online.
Wheelie Deals' marketing mix is comprised of the following approaches to pricing, distribution,
advertising and promotion, and customer service.
• Pricing: The pricing scheme will be a complex formula that takes into account profit
margin, the forecasted period that the product will be inventory, and the availability of the
product to other wholesalers.
• Distribution: All products will be distributed from Wheelie Deals warehouse to any shop in
the U.S.
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Wheelie Deals
• Customer Service: Retail shop personnel will be surprised at the level of customer service
that they receive. Wheelie Deals' business practices and customer training emphasize the
importance of exceeding customer's expectations. If this is accomplished, profits are
virtually guaranteed.
During the last industry trade show, Wheelie Deals was able to conduct two focus groups with
various retail shop owners/employees. The focus groups were designed to elicit information
regarding the owner's buying habits. Through careful development of the questions as well as
skillful observation and recording of the focus groups, these activities generated a wealth of
information. The focus groups supported Wheelie Deals belief that their business model is likely to
be successful.
Wheelie Deals was also able to conduct a survey at the trade show. While some of the shop owners
partook in the survey, the primary goal of the survey was to gain insight to the different
manufacturers and determine their willingness to 1) use Wheelie Deals as a resource for unloading
extra product, and 2) their keenness on negotiating exclusive distribution agreements with Wheelie
Deals. A fair amount of time was spent on the preparation of the survey. Dan was able to leverage
his knowledge of probability and statistics to create a statistically accurate and significant survey.
Without the assurance that the survey was significant and accurate, the conclusions would be
worthless.
4.0 Financials
This section will offer a financial overview of Wheelie Deals as it relates to the marketing activities.
Wheelie Deals will address break-even analysis, sales forecasts, expense forecast, and how they
link to the marketing activities.
The Break-even Analysis indicates that $31,846 will be needed in monthly revenue to reach the
break-even point.
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Wheelie Deals
Break-even Analysis
$15,000
$10,000
$5,000
$0
($5,000)
($10,000)
($15,000)
($20,000)
$0 $10,800 $21,600 $32,400 $43,200 $54,000
Break-even Analysis:
Monthly Units Break-even 71
Monthly Sales Break-even $31,846
Assumptions:
Average Per-Unit Revenue $450.00
Average Per-Unit Variable Cost $225.00
Estimated Monthly Fixed Cost $15,923
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Wheelie Deals
The first month will be used to secure warehouse space, set it up to accept inventory. and hire
personnel. During the first six weeks relationships will be established with many different
manufacturers of parts. These relationships will be based on Wheelie Deals willingness to take all of
their closeouts. Typically, the manufacturer will call several distributors and eventually will find
someone to take some or all of their product. Wheelie Deals increased willingness to take all
closeouts will create an incentive for the manufacturer to contact Wheelie Deals first.
Month three will mark the first decent month of sales. It is forecasted that sales will steadily
increase after this month.
$45,000
$40,000
$35,000
$30,000
$25,000
Independent bicycle shops
$20,000
Chain bicycle shops
$15,000
$10,000
$5,000
$0
Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
Sales Forecast
Sales 2002 2003 2004
Independent bicycle shops $186,930 $335,458 $365,454
Chain bicycle shops $121,505 $218,048 $237,545
Total Sales $308,435 $553,506 $602,999
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Wheelie Deals
The marketing expenses will be budgeted to ramp up before and slightly after the two major trade
shows each year. The website expenses however, will be consistent throughout the year.
$3,000
$2,500
$2,000
Trade shows
$1,500
Advertising
Website
$1,000
$500
$0
Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
5.0 Controls
The purpose of Wheelie Deals' marketing plan is to serve as a guide for the organization. The
following areas will be monitored to gauge performance:
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Wheelie Deals
5.1 Implementation
The following milestones identify the key marketing programs. It is important to accomplish each
one on time and on budget.
Milestones
Website development
Trade show #1
Advertising series #1
Trade show #2
Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
Milestones Plan
Milestone Start Date End Date Budget Manager Department
Marketing plan completion 1/1/01 2/1/01
Website development 1/1/01 2/1/01 $1,200
Trade show #1 1/1/01 2/31/01 $2,000
Advertising series #1 3/1/01 6/1/01 $2,700
Trade show #2 10/1/01 12/31/01 $2,000
Totals $7,900
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Wheelie Deals
Dan Psycle will be responsible for the marketing campaign. Dan will outsource some of the creative
work, as well as the trade show booth construction.
Page 15
Appendix: Wheelie Deals
Table 4.2 Sales Forecast
Direct Cost of Sales Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
Independent bicycle shops $0 $1,728 $4,272 $6,229 $7,739 $8,727 $9,273 $12,928 $11,394 $10,994 $10,127 $10,057
Chain bicycle shops $0 $1,123 $2,777 $4,049 $5,030 $5,673 $6,027 $8,403 $7,406 $7,146 $6,583 $6,537
Subtotal Cost of Sales $0 $2,850 $7,049 $10,277 $12,769 $14,400 $15,300 $21,330 $18,799 $18,139 $16,710 $16,594
Page 1
Appendix: Wheelie Deals
Table 4.3 Marketing Expense Budget
Marketing Expense Budget Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
Trade shows $2,000 $2,000 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $2,000 $0 $0
Advertising $500 $500 $600 $700 $700 $700 $500 $500 $500 $500 $500 $500
Website $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100 $100
------------ ------------ ------------ ------------ ------------ ------------ ------------ ------------ ------------ ------------ ------------ ------------
Total Sales and Marketing Expenses $2,600 $2,600 $700 $800 $800 $800 $600 $600 $600 $2,600 $600 $600
Percent of Sales 0.00% 45.61% 4.97% 3.89% 3.13% 2.78% 1.96% 1.41% 1.60% 7.17% 1.80% 1.81%
Contribution Margin ($2,600) $250 $6,349 $9,477 $11,969 $13,600 $14,700 $20,730 $18,199 $15,539 $16,110 $15,994
Contribution Margin / Sales 0.00% 4.39% 45.03% 46.11% 46.87% 47.22% 48.04% 48.59% 48.40% 42.83% 48.20% 48.19%
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