Leaving the field wide-open for competitors
As your company deploys all its resources and attention to other territories, is it leaving the field open to foreign competitors who wish to obtain a place of choice in your own market? On several occasions, I lost the hard-won shelf-space I had acquired in my own market by neglecting it in favor of export markets that were consuming more of my attention and my energies. We had neglected the customers who encouraged us since the beginning, and we did not understand the importance of always renewing our marketing efforts on our own territory.
Moreover, the return on investment is much more tangible in the local market than in the external ones. We understand now, and it seems that the philosophy of local sourcing is making a lot of headway in public opinion, which is to our detriment in foreign markets, but it certainly represents a great opportunity in our own market…
The recipe for success… is also to be master of your home turf
On several occasions in the history of La Fourmi, we were told to change our identity in order to conquer new markets, adjust our recipes to facilitate exports, create customized packaging when we did not have the volume or the means… I finally understood that we still had a lot to gain in our own market and that our lack of focus left the field open to all our competitors. Today, we are an important player in our niche, our prices are very competitive, and we focus most of our efforts on our local market.
To maintain our competitiveness and develop the means to perform in new markets, we must constantly work to adjust and improve our brand, methods and processes while focusing our attention on quality and customer experience.
As a manufacturer, the growth in volume and variety of products offered requires constant adjustments. As for marketing, we needed to adapt. At first, we were the product in the little brown bag, and we wanted to keep that artisanal image. Later, we had to evolve to create some commercial credibility in our own market. It is what it is. The business “recipe” changes constantly and you need to know how to adapt to your market.
There are things that have not changed: the name of our brand is still La Fourmi (ok, minus the initial La ), our classic granola recipe and the local quality products that you can find in it are still the same. The recipe for healthy and sustainable business development is not only to conquer new markets, but also to always sharpen your processes, always reinvest yourself and your profits, always seek to move forward and to evolve in all aspects of the company, and above all, never stop impressing your loyal customers.
