Marketing Strategy and SWOT Analysis of Pick n Pay

A good portion of everybody’s lives is revolved around going to grocery stores and filling the house with necessary items. Those can be foods, beverages, household items, and etc. Some supermarkets even offer books, clothing, and other fun things. One of those awesome supermarkets has managed to establish around 1628 chains in different locations. You can choose to go to one of their stores or add your groceries to your online cart and pay right away. Easy, right? It is probably due to that convenience that this company has grown so much over time. We are going to talk about Pick n Pay today.

To begin with, we are going to take a look at the mission and vision statements of the company.

The mission statement of the company is as follows:

“We serve. With our hearts we create a great place to be. With our minds we create an excellent place to shop.”

The mision statement that the company has chosen to go with rhymes very well, making it pretty memorable. The company has taken three aspects into consideration with its mission.

The first and most important point is that this is a service company. Thus, it has got to do everything of its power to bring happiness to everybody that is involved in the equation. That includes employees, customers, etc. Everybody that steps out of their home to enter a Pick n Pay store appears in a warm environment. Here grocery shopping is fun, not stressful.

That is only a possibility because everybody puts their heart and soul into their job. Employees are aware that they are accountable for consumers’ satisfaction.

For most people, grocery shopping looks like just another chore that they want to cross off their list. That is why different stores need to make sure that customer experience is not dreadful.

Now, let us look at the vision statement of Pick n Pay:

“We are passionate about our customers and will fight for their rights. We care for, and respect each other. We foster personal growth and opportunity. We nurture leadership and vision, and reward innovation. We live by honesty and integrity. We support and participate in our communities. We take individual responsibility. We are all accountable.”

This statement once again proves that everybody is passionate about doing their job right at Pick n Pay. Consumers should always leave the stores with a smile on their faces.

All employees are given a chance to grow in their fields continuously. That, in turn, helps the company to develop even further as well.

Moving along, let’s unravel the archetype that Pick n Pay belongs to.

To do so let’s have a look to the following Instagram post:

Lunch is probably the most stressful meal of the day since its timing is in between working hours. Nobody has time to meal plan for it ahead of time. Hence why, a lot of the time, people go for what is easy, which is fast food.

But why ruin our health worse and worse every day, if there is an easy solution.

In the post, we see different variations of salad toppers. Salads are healthy, nutritious, and delicious. Pick n Pay gives consumers an option to pay R60 for any three toppers of their choice. For reference, R60 is equal to 3.86USD, which is such an amazing deal.

It is important that people eat something fresh in order to be able to lead a healthy lifestyle.

One of the options, for instance, is radishes, cheddar cheese croutons, and creamy mustard salad dressing. All you have left to do to create a tasty meal is add some sort of protein, like beef strings, and why not, some cheese.

That is one easy, simple, quick, and mouthwatering meal.

And, of course, the caption has to mention that you can do your grocery shopping in-store, online, or through the app.

Now, what can we gather from this post?

The first thing is that food is actively used in people’s daily lives. It is essential for survival. So people are going to always grocery shop from stores like this.

And the second hint is the pricing. The deal that the company offers with this post is incredible and a go-to for many people. One can not find three items with that price in many places.

At this point it is obvious that the archetype that Pick n Pay belongs to is Everyman.

What do we know about it?

Desire: contact with others

Aim: to belong, fit in

Strategy: create ordinary substantial virtues, the common contact, blend in

These are the messaging levels of the archetype.

Level One: loneliness, separation

Level Two: the orphan, feeling ditched and isolated, pursuing partnership

Level Three: the joiner, discovering how to connect, fit in, receive support and friendship

Level Four: the humanitarian, acknowledging the innate dignity of every person in spite of his or her powers or circumstances

The Everyman provides a good identity for brands:

• whose usage allows people to fit in or sense that they belong
• whose role is something typically used in everyday life
• with pricing that is average to low (or that is an exclusive version of a product that would ordinarily be affordable)
• created or marketed by a business with a down-home organizational culture, and
• that want to distinguish themselves in a positive way from a higher-priced or more elitist brand

Further along, we are going to discuss the SWOT analysis of Pick n Pay.

Strengths

Cost advantage: The economies of scale of Pick n Pay give it a great cost advantage. You might be wondering what we mean by economies of scale. Well, it is not that complex. When manufacturing becomes efficient, companies receive price benefits.

Rapid online growth: At this point, it is pointless to even mention how tremendously the tech world is growing. People prefer doing all sorts of shopping from their homes. This saves them lots of time and energy. That has become a reason for this company to grow even further through its online websites.

Customer loyalty: As it has already become understandable from the mission statement, customer service is pretty exceptional in this company. Because these people enjoy their experience, they only come back to Pick n Pay. Hence, the latter gains a great number of loyal customers.

Strong brand equity: This company has been around for over fifty years. Along with that, it has managed to establish its stores in over 10 countries. That allows its name to own some great recognition.

Efficient supply chain: Over 50000 people work to provide goods to consumers. Everybody in this sphere does their job quickly and efficiently.

Strong brand reputation: This company has taken many measures to maintain its relevance. For example, back in 2007, the company underwent a significant rebranding. What is more, is that CSR programs and support have provided the company with an image of a family store.

Weaknesses

Limited marketing communication: The company does not particularly advertise itself well to the public. There are many resources that it could benefit from that it has not yet taken upon. People are well aware of the products that Pick n Pay sells. However, they are not as well informed about Pick n Pay’s image.

Loss of market share: The enormous size of the company has been a reason for some arrogant procedures. As a result, the company has lost a significant amount of its market share.

Lack of presence in emerging markets: This company is pretty great at maintaining its traditional marketing tactics. However, it is always encouraged to join emerging markets from a business perspective. This is something that Pick n Pay has not been so great at.

Opportunities

Emerging markets: Pick n Pay could definitely benefit from joining more emerging markets. What could be even greater is entering those markets from abroad.

Supply chain technology: Pick n Pay could follow the footsteps of other companies in its category. It could invest in and introduce innovative supply chain technology.

Product expansion: The company’s broad product range has brought it a long way. Following its earlier success, the company can introduce more product categories. History has shown that it has been a beneficial move.

Broader distribution channel: The company has a presence in more than 10 countries. It also has 710 locations nationally. Especially in the local area, it can open up more stores.

Rebranding the younger audience: Again, this is where innovations come to the picture. This company can rebrand itself and have a stronger presence on social media to attract more Gen Z consumers.

Threats

Global competitors: This company has traveled its way through many countries. Unfortunately, there are many other stores in this category available globally. Among those are Walmart, which is pretty well known and sells great.

External changes: Tax policies, government regulations, and other issues are very likely to take a toll on this company’s development.

Lower cost competitors: Although the prices of Pick n Pay goods are pretty affordable, some companies offer even cheaper goods. That definitely gives those companies some advantages, as people make more purchases from them.

Last but not least, we are going to unravel the segment that Pick n Pay has chosen to target.

This video is pretty much about a mother and daughter bonding moment. We watch them attempt to bake a cake. The first try fails since the cake does not rise.

And then they come up with a solution. They start using products from Pick n Pay. Those are eggs, milk, flour, bananas, and plain low-fat yogurt. Every time an ingredient appears on screen we also see how much of each item needs to be added to the batter.

And in the end, we see a delicious-looking naked cake decorated with icing and shaved walnuts.

The first hint we get is the excitement of these women. Baking a cake is a pretty normal everyday activity. But they try to make it interesting, fun, and exciting with their attitude.

The second hint is the presence of home. They could have bought a cake or gone out to a cafe to have a slice each. But what they picked instead was a meaningful quality time together at home.

The third hint is pretty closely associated with the previous one. Cooking is not something that all people enjoy. Some are very against it. But the characters of this video are undoubtedly pretty fond of it.

So, obviously, the segment that Pick n Pay has chosen to target is Sharers.

Lifestyle and values:

Sharers make sure that every moment they live is enjoyable. They love including adventure, risks, and change in their everyday tasks. For them, life would be boring without spicing up every single day.

Sharers adore their family. They love taking care of their loved ones. Especially they love being with family and friends around the home. After all, that is the environment they have managed to decorate pleasingly and cozily.

This segment spends a considerable amount of their time at home in the kitchen. They enjoy cooking delicious meals for the whole family to enjoy. Those foods also have to be healthy, though. Hence, they do not even hesitate to spend some extra money on healthy and quality food.

Regular visits to different stores are a great leisure time activity for this segment. They spend their money pretty wisely. However, sometimes, they might make a careless purchase if they really like something.

Sharers’ career is about enjoyment and financial stability all at once. They measure their success with the amount of money they make.

This segment also values having good physical health. This contributes to a nice appearance and an overall great feeling. They make sure to dress fashionably. Active physical lifestyle is another significant aspect of their life.

Attitude towards shopping:

Every once in a while, Sharers may buy something from a luxurious brand.

They usually purchase quality products only. This segment is brand-oriented. However, they really enjoy trying out new brands.

They not only do that out of curiosity but just pure excitement to try something new.

Sharers generally shop a lot. It is an entertaining leisure time activity. Finding new brands and products is always a fun way to spend some time.

Sharers love spending time with family, even when out shopping. It is always lovely when you wear something and hear a second opinion about it before adding it to your cart.

When Sharers want to buy a high-end item, they will make sure to search for every discount and special offer that they can.

Other interesting facts:

• Appreciate fixing things; renovations, furniture assembling, etc.
• Adore watching films and entertaining themselves with magazines
• Sometimes will pick up a book or two about cooking, health, gardening, and home
• Every once in a while they will consume fast food in cafes, or pubs
• If a cultural event catches their attention, they will watch it on TV
• It is very rare for Sharers to go on vacation. They would rather learn about different sides of the world through media
• Love staying up-to-date about the buzz regarding celebrities
• Politics, society, or economical issues are not an area of interest for them
• Love watching TV because it allows them to escape from reality and focus on entertainment
• Are moderate radio consumers
• Have not really followed the development of technology; thus new devices make them uncomfortable

And that, ladies and gents, was the ‘Marketing Strategy and SWOT Analysis of Pick n Pay’. This company is highly successful and pretty popular. So, in this blog, we mentioned the different tips and tricks that it uses to stay relevant and grow even further. Make sure to check out our main website if this got you interested. We constantly come up with new updated blogs on our feed.