Applied Marketing Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Applied Marketing Management - Essay Example The report discusses and analyse the overall brand management at Marks & Spencer. This report starts with a brief history and Marks & Spencer and about Marks & Spencer's brand and then extends further discussing its advertisement, brand equity, positioning etc. Main information is gathered through the internet and magazines and the analysis is also done with the help of the above mentioned sources. In the end recommendation are also given in the light of the discussions throughout the report. Marks & Spencer commonly known "M & S" is one of the top British retailer companies. It is ranked amongst the most prestigious chain of stores in the UK and is the largest clothing retailer in the UK by turnover. It also is a multi-billion pound food retailer. Most of its shops sell both of these categories. Marks & Spencer also has a third product line related to home wares such as bed linen, but this is far smaller than the other two. For much of the 20th century M&S was regarded as the leading retailer in the United Kingdom, and an icon of British business. ... In 1997 it became the first British retailer to make a profit before tax of over 1 billion, though within a couple of years it plunged into a crisis from which it has not yet fully recovered. It is now less than one quarter of the size of the UK's largest and most profitable retailer, Tesco. In 2006, M&S has opened a Technology Department in each flagship Store (http://www.marks-and-spencer.co.uk). Branding history of M&S: In the late 1990s, The St Michael brand was discontinued in favour of Marks & Spencer. When Stuart Rose took over in 2004, he introduced a new promotional brand under the "Your M&S" banner, with a corresponding logo. This has now become the company's main brand in its advertising, online presence and in-store merchandising. The clean font and modern colours of the new image are somewhat incongruous alongside the traditional M&S signage and associated fittings that still adorn the stores themselves. In fact the only thing they have in common is the use of M&S traditional green in the ampersand of the new logo. This may seem confusing at first, but the new look has been instrumental in the company's recent resurgence, particularly with the success of a new clothing campaign featuring the legendary model, Twiggy, and younger models associated with the bohemian styles of 2005-6, and the TV ad campaign for their food range featuring Dervla Kirwan and the tagline "This is not just food, this is M&S food". In 2006, "look behind the label" slogans were introduced by M&S and have been extremely successful. Fair trade clothing and foodstuffs are rolled out by all stores and all coffee and tea served in store cafe's are fair trade. Fishing is good for the environment also, so is the way that stores manufacture goods and recycle all of their waste