Background

LoExposure Outerware, a Calgary-based company, sells two primary product lines to specialty outdoor stores throughout North America. One product line, called No-Sun, protects consumers from exposure to sunshine, and the other (No-Cold) is functional in cold temperatures. LoExposure has been in business for eight years, and has become a favourite of outdoor enthusiasts who value quality over price. Accordingly, LoExposure is among the higher-priced suppliers in the market. LoExposure promotes it brands through social media, with avid followers on Facebook and Instagram. Occasionally the company will use extreme athletes to promote its brands at specific events, but does not believe in hiring celebrity spokespersons on a longer-term basis. LoExposure does no formal advertising or sales promotion, preferring word-of-mouth and social media to spread the word about its product lines.

Current Situation

Kelly Kinard recently joined LoExposure as a sales representative in southwestern Ontario. Kellys primary customers are outdoor specialty stores, the university towns of Guelph and Waterloo, and nearby ski areas such as Glen Eden and Blue Mountain. With the No-Cold and No-Sun product lines available, Kellys potential for year-round sales is excellent. Kelly is a recent graduate with a degree in marketing. He had several part-time jobs as he worked his way through university. He also did an internship with LoExposure during his senior year and was excited to land a full-time sales position upon graduation. During his internship with LoExposure, Kelly became totally sold on the quality of the products. By the time he finished his initial product knowledge and sales training with the company, Kelly was genuinely enthusiastic about representing LoExposure in his sales territory. After a few months in the field, Kelly was doing well with existing customers and had added several new accounts. After a great week in the field ended with adding a new retail account, Kelly told a friend, This is a great job. The products are so good, they practically sell themselves!

Despite his success, Kelly had run into an obstacle with UpMountain Gear Shop, a small chain with four stores in his territory. When Kelly first began pursuing UpMountain, he did some Web-based research on the company. Kelly found that UpMountain was proud of its sales growth in recent years and that the company attributed a lot its success to providing the highest-quality products at competitive prices. Its customers seemed very pleased according to posts on UpMountains Web site and in social media. According to Kellys research, UpMountain seemed concerned about the environment, taking an especially strong stance against the throwaway society. Kelly was pleased to learn these things about UpMountain, as his company had similar views. LoExposure also attributed its success to providing the best customer experience possible. In addition, LoExposure made extremely durable products backed by a generous repair warranty that kept its products in use well beyond the typical life span for outdoor clothing.

When Kelly first approached Amanda Wilson, the lead clothing buyer for UpMountain, things went well. Amanda was impressed that Kelly had done his homework on UpMountain and pleased that the two companies shared core values related to the customer experience and environmentally friendly practices. In their first meeting, Kelly had provided Amanda with an overview of his two product lines and tried to determine what would be important to Amanda if she were to further consider adding LoExposure as a supplier. Amanda was open with Kelly and indicated that she was impressed with the products, but not sure they would fit in her stores. Near the end of their first meeting, the following conversation took place:

Kelly: Amanda, I hope you will agree that our products fit the bill in terms of high quality at a competitive price.

Amanda: I agree on the high-quality piece, but am not sure about the pricing. Our customers want high quality, but they also want really good value.

Kelly: I understand completely and we have thousands of customers who tell us that our products are worth the price. And of course you know that a higher retail price means more profits for UpMountain.

Amanda: Well, yes thats obvious if it is something we can sustain in the long run. But if we get greedy, we can lose those loyal customers.

Kelly: We both know that customers vote with their dollars and we have a great record of pleasing our customers. In my opinion, your customers will see the value and price will not be a major concern. Sure you have some customers who wont buy our products, but those who are seeking long-term value will gladly pay the price.

Amanda: They may, but I am not convinced just yet.

Kelly: I know we are running out of time before your next meeting, so could I summarize where we are for now?

Amanda: Sure, go ahead.

Kelly: You like our products, but you are not sure the price point fits your customer base. You like the durability of our products and the fact that we dont sell throwaway items. Am I right about those two things?

Amanda: No arguments from me.

Kelly: I think the only way to answer the price-point issue is for you to give our products a try. I am sure they will sell without any problemlet the market decide.

Amanda: Well, I am not prepared to make that decision today and I really do need to get to my next meeting.

Kelly: Is there anything other than the price-point issue that we need to discuss before you make a decision?

Amanda: Well, yes there is. I ask all of our suppliers to give me a plan for how they would help drive consumer traffic to my stores and then, through merchandising and personal selling, help convert that traffic to sales in the store. I have to run now, but I would be willing to meet again if you have some concrete ideas on those topics.

Kelly: That works for me. Would 2 p.m. next Thursday work for you?

Amanda: I will put it on my calendar, see you then.

Kelly left Amandas office with mixed feelings. It was clear that Amanda did no

t think LoExposures products would sell themselves as Kelly believed. Further, Kelly was concerned that Amanda wanted marketing ideas for driving consumer traffic to the UpMountain stores. LoExposure did not use traditional advertising or sales promotion. Kelly thought, Well I am a salesperson, and I could definitely train UpMountains salespeople on how to sell the products in the store. Maybe I can come up with something on driving consumer traffic to the stores and merchandising our products in the store. Later that day, Kelly scheduled a meeting with his sales manager, Shannon Morin, to plan his upcoming meeting with Amanda.

QUESTION:

1) How would you evaluate Kelly's performance in the situation? Include any positive and negative aspects of Kelly's performance.

2)What recommendations can you make for Kelly's next meeting with Amanda?