Laura Stirling JoffrionFashion Institute of Design & Merchandising: Professional Portfolio

Sunday, May 6, 2012

Letter of IntroductionApril 15, 2012

To Whom It May Concern,

I currently work full-time as the eCommerce manager for a retail start-up, Hlaska, in the San Francisco Bay Area. I took over this position after successfully managing all of our physical stores in the Bay Area. It has been an amazing opportunity for me to help build a solid team for this rising-star brand. In addition, because we are a small brand, I work directly with the merchandise planner to oversee deployment of merchandise to each store. Prior to Hlaska, I had a successful career in public relations, with an emphasis in online music streaming technologies.

In addition to working full-time, I also attend the Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising in San Francisco as a full-time professional designation student where I have focused my studies in Merchandise Marketing. I am highly involved in the school as a member of the Honors Society, Phi Theta Kappa, and Premiere Marketing Group. Overall, this program has given me extensive insight into brand management, merchandise planning strategies, as well as trend forecasting. I have been challenged and pushed out of my comfort zone repeatedly. However, I have grown as a person and professional leaps and bounds because of the diligent nature of my curriculum and dedication from my professors.

I am moving to New York this summer after graduation and am very excited to enter the industry. I am looking forward to hearing from you and would be thrilled to begin the interview process with such a dynamic organization.

All the best,

Laura Stirling Joffrion

Sunday, May 6, 2012

C (619) 772-0321T (415) 895-0580laura.joffrion@gmail.com

Laura Stirling Joffrion

SKILLS SOFTWARE

• eCommunications • Merchandising Strategies • Store Management• Territory Planning • Training & Development • Social Media Relations • New Media Marketing

• JDA Allocation Software• Microsoft Office• iWork Suite• Wikipedia Editorial• Magento Enterprise• Word Press• Cision & Vocus

ECOMMERCE MANAGER, HLASKA Responsible for managing the online channel for the Hlaska brand through website maintenance, social media campaigns and strategic virtual media outreach. • Lead sales ensuring goals are met in terms of both dollars and client satisfaction• Online inventory management and forecasting of product volumes• Provide updates of online channel results and performance to upper management• Serve as primary contact for eCommerce buyers, production manager, and project

managers• Review and recommend process and system improvements• Utilize customer relationship management, order management and sales data to sell

and support the client experience• Ensure timely order processing, communicate relevant updates on product, and

expected order volume• Maintain relationships with new media contacts through active outreach for product

reviews• Responsible to craft the strategic online marketing campaign through affiliate

networks, social media outlets, and search engines

STORE MANAGER, CACHE • Exceeded sales quota by 200 percent as a Co-Manager• Promoted to Store Manager after company-wide recognition by CEO and CFO for

excellence• Exceeded sales plan by 146 percent in two months at new location, the highest volume

since November 2004

EDUCATION

Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising -- Associate of Science Degree, 2012• GPA: 3.8, Honor Roll• Phi Theta Kappa• Premiere Marketing Group

Louisiana State University -- Bachelor of Science, 2003

A business-savvy professional demonstrating proven success with raising brand awareness and increasing sales through creative store operations and online merchandise marketing strategies in the fashion industry.

AREA MANAGER, HLASKA Held responsible for the management of area retail activity including achieving store sales goals, implementing seamless store operations, lowering losses through detailed inventory management, maintaining visual merchandising, hiring and training of store staff, and strategic brand marketing consultation within three locations. • Increased store sales by 32% in the last quarter • Allocated and distributed all inventory to stores• Created formal store operations and training manuals with Chief Operations

Officer • Managed the Hlaska trade show booth at MAGIC Marketplace and developed

strategic relationships with vendors

PUBLIC RELATIONS AND SOCIAL MEDIA SPECIALIST Crafted messaging plan strategy, managed product review campaigns, and provided social media strategy and council. Wrote and distributed press releases as well as speaking and award recommendations.• Eastwick Communications: Managed accounts for Seagate, ShoreTel, Lucid

Imagination, Pentaho, StrongMail and NetBase• Sparkpr: Managed accounts for MOG.com, Jelli.net and The Symbian

Foundation

3835 19th Street, Apt 203San Francisco, CA 94114http://www.linkedin.com/in/laurastirling

Sunday, May 6, 2012

Merchandise Marketing Strategies

• Merchandise Strategies

• Math/ Buying

• Marketing and Brand Strategies

• Business & Management

View of downtown San Francisco from FIDM Campus

Sunday, May 6, 2012

Merchandise Strategies

• These courses and projects provided an opportunity to understand the trends that predict consumer buying patterns and how a variety of strategic decisions separate your organization from the competition.

Sunday, May 6, 2012

Merchandise Strategies• The first three slides in this section deconstruct

Marc Jacob’s core concepts in his recent collections. These slides are only a part of the presentation prepared for this exercise. They show the original source referenced in the collection along with a comparison to other designers who used similar sources.

• The second set of slides focus on the concepts of using color trends as a marketing tool. In this presentation, I chose a color trend and then presented how this color theme is being used in interior decorating, beauty, and automobiles.

Sunday, May 6, 2012

Retro Play: 1950’s Throwback• Art Deco Inspirations

• Inspired by the 2011 Canne Film Festival award-winning movie “The Artist”

Sunday, May 6, 2012

Retro Play: Cloche Hat

Marc Jacobs Ralph Lauren Alberta Ferretti

Sunday, May 6, 2012

Retro Play: Drop-waist Shape

GucciChloeMarc Jacobs

Sunday, May 6, 2012

2012 Color Palettes • Bellflower: a distint ornament purple, exudes

uniqueness and creativity.

• Sodalite Blue: classic maritime hue, brings order and calmness to mind. This dependable color works with every color in the palette.

• Diftwood: blend of beige and gray with a slightly weathered feel grounds the palette and offers depth.

• Sweet Lilac: this delicate pinkish lilac adds a touch of romance to the palette while evoking fresh scents of summer.

• Tangerine Tango: enticing orange, is a vivacious and appealing refresher that lightens things up this spring.

• Cabaret: sensual and intense rosy-red which adds a sense of sensuality to the 2012 color palette.

• Cockatoo: tactile blue-green that adds a whimiscal touch to the palette and makes a statement this spring

• Starfish: warm summer neutral is a complimentary color to the palette.

• Margarita: this yellow-green lifts spirits with a refreshing glow.

Zeigeist: Leatrice Eiseman, executive director of the Pantone Color Institute, “Consumers look to spring for renewed energy, optimism and

the promise of a brighter day”.

Sunday, May 6, 2012

2012 Interior Color Trends• 1. Cabaret, Cockatoo, and

Solidate Blue - silk and linen blend

• 2. Margarita, Solar Power, and Cockatoo

• 3. Solar Power/ Starfish blend, Cockatoo, Sodalite Blue; contrast to Cockatoo, Bellflower, Diftwood; contrast to Bellflower, Solar Power, and Diftwood

• 4. Bellflower and Sodalite Blue, blend with the tiniest hues of Starfish

• 5. Cabaret, Tangerine Tango, Sweet Lilac

• 6. Front - Soladite Blue blends with Cockatoo; Back - Margarita

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Sunday, May 6, 2012

2012 Cosmetic Color Trends• Eyes: Peachy tones make a huge statement

this year with combinations of Tangerine Tango, Cabaret, Sweet Lilac even blending with Solar Power.

• Lips: A lot of focus in lip color this season allowing pops of color. Classic Cabaret mixed with Tangerine Tango, and Sweet Lilac are embrassed as are Experimental colors such as Bellflower, Cockatoo, and Margarita.

• Scents: Fragrance designers played with color dimensions and contrast this season. Using Sweet Lilac and Cabaret as the base tones, they expanded on them with Solar Power and Tangerine Tango to create a powerful experience. Cockatoo and Bellflower also make an appearance.

Sunday, May 6, 2012

2012 Auto Color Trends

• Toyota: Tangerine Tango

• Ford: Solar Power

• Subaru: Blended Tangerine Tango with Solar Power

• Renault: Solar Power with Margarita

• Bentley: Classic White

Sunday, May 6, 2012

Math and Merchandise Buying

• Buying strategies is an analyzation of a retail business through merchandise planning, purchasing, and allocation. This technical skill set is essential in the success in today’s fashion marketplace.

Sunday, May 6, 2012

Math and Merchandise Buying

• The first slide in this section is a department analysis for Macy’s private label, Studio M. Through this project, I successfully broke down this department by class, then analyzed each class by price point percent to total department, by color percent to total department, and size percent to total department. This analysis reflected the department framework and helped deduct changes I would make in order to yield a greater margin.

• The second slide for this section is a six-month stock to sales plan. I developed a detailed sales plan using beginning of month, units to buy, and purchases for Studio M based on the mock history given.

Sunday, May 6, 2012

Math and Merchandise Buying

Class 1

Tops 30% Price Points 39.98 58.00 88.00

% of Total 40% 50% 10%

Sizes XS S M L XL

% of Total 10% 20% 30% 30% 10%

Color Ways Black Gold Plum Green Mustard

% of Total 40% 15% 20% 15% 10%

Class 2

Pants 30% Price Points 39.98 78.00 88.00

% of Total 35% 45% 20%

Sizes 0 2 4 6 8 10

% of Total 5% 10% 10% 20% 20% 20%

Color Ways Black Brown Plaid Tweed Navy Camel

% of Total 30% 20% 15% 10% 15% 10.00%

Class 3

Dresses 25% Price Points 88.00 98.00 118.00

% of Total 25% 30% 45%

Sizes XS S M L XL

% of Total 10% 20% 30% 30% 10%

Color Ways Black Gold Maroon Camel

% of Total 40% 20% 15% 25%

Class 4

Jackets 15% Price Points 98.00 138.00 158.00

% of Total 40% 30% 35%

Sizes XS S M L XL

% of Total 10% 20% 30% 30% 10%

Color Ways Black Brown Plaid Leather Fur

% of Total 25% 20% 15% 15% 15%

Macy’s: Studio M

Department Analysis

Sunday, May 6, 2012

Math and Merchandise Buying

Macy’s: Studio M Six-Month Assortment PlanThis Year - 6 Month Plan

Plan AUG SEPT OCT NOV DEC JAN Total

BOM 575.3 1229.7 857.6 820.4 1025.5 565.5 5074.0

Sales 159.8 614.9 372.9 341.8 512.8 217.5 2219.7

Markdowns 68.8 100.3 121.7 89.9 129.9 68.8 579.4

Purchases 883.0 343.0 457.3 636.8 182.6 979.3 3482.0

EOM 1229.7 857.6 820.4 1025.5 565.5 572.1 5070.8

This Year Class: TopsClass: Tops Class %: 30.00% Avg. Retail: $61.99

Plan AUG SEPT OCT NOV DEC JAN Total

BOM 172.6 368.9 257.3 246.1 307.7 169.7 1522.2

Sales 47.9 184.5 111.9 102.5 153.8 65.3 665.9

Markdowns 20.6 30.1 36.5 27.0 39.0 20.6 173.8

Purchases 264.9 102.9 137.2 191.0 54.8 293.8 1044.6

UNITS TO BUY

4273 1660 2213 3082 884 4739 16851

EOM 368.9 257.3 246.1 307.7 169.7 171.6 1521.2

This Year Class: PantsClass: Pants Class %: 30.00% Avg. Retail: $68.66

Plan AUG SEPT OCT NOV DEC JAN Total

BOM 172.6 368.9 257.3 246.1 307.7 169.7 1522.2

Sales 47.9 184.5 111.9 102.5 153.8 65.3 665.9

Markdowns 20.6 30.1 36.5 27.0 39.0 20.6 173.8

Purchases 264.9 102.9 137.2 191.0 54.8 293.8 1044.6

UNITS TO BUY

3858 1499 1998 2782 798 4279 15214

EOM 368.9 257.3 246.1 307.7 169.7 171.6 1521.2

This Year Class: DressesClass: Dresses Class %: 25.00% Avg. Retail: $101.34

Plan AUG SEPT OCT NOV DEC JAN Total

BOM 143.8 307.4 214.4 205.1 256.4 141.4 1268.5

Sales 40.0 153.7 93.2 85.5 128.2 54.4 554.9

Markdowns 17.2 25.1 30.4 22.5 32.5 17.2 144.9

Purchases 220.8 85.8 114.3 159.2 45.7 244.8 870.5

UNITS TO BUY

2178 846 1128 1571 450 2416 8590

EOM 307.4 214.4 205.1 256.4 141.4 143.0 1267.7

This Year Class: JacketsClass: Jackets Class %: 15.00% Avg. Retail: $131.34

Plan AUG SEPT OCT NOV DEC JAN Total

BOM 86.3 184.5 128.6 123.1 153.8 84.8 761.1

Sales 24.0 92.2 55.9 51.3 76.9 32.6 333.0

Markdowns 10.3 15.0 18.3 13.5 19.5 10.3 86.9

Purchases 132.5 51.5 68.6 95.5 27.4 146.9 522.3

UNITS TO BUY

1008 392 522 727 209 1118 3977

EOM 184.5 128.6 123.1 153.8 84.8 85.8 760.6

Sunday, May 6, 2012

Marketing and Brand Strategies

• The target market for a given retail/ business environment is researched and the appropriate marketing and branding strategies are developed to ensure success in a competitive marketplace.

Sunday, May 6, 2012

Marketing and Brand Strategies

• The first couple of slides presented in this last section of my portfolio feature a selection from my complete marketing analysis of Mini Cooper. The presentation in whole features an analytical depiction of the business as well as recommendations on how Mini Cooper could improve their brand image, product sales performance, and marketing and communications programs.

• The second part of this section include a few selected slides from an investigative report I conducted of Goorin Bros, a hat company based in San Francisco. This project took a deep look into the company’s overall retail environment and made high-level recommendations on how it could more effectively position itself at market.

Sunday, May 6, 2012

Marketing and Brand Strategies

“The MINI COOPER is continuing the heritage of its successful predecessor on an entirely different, brand-new technical foundation.”

Dr. Burkhard Göschel, Member of the Board of Management of BMW AG

MINI. REVIEW.

MOTORING 4.0

MINI. DEFINED.

The MINI brand has been called many things including fun, affordable, fuel-efficient, sporty, technologically advanced.

With a wide bulldog stance, rigid body structure, mult i- l ink rear suspension and ABS brakes with Corner ing Brake Cont ro l and Electronic Brakeforce Distribution MINI is built to deliver a world-class performance in signature MINI style at an affordable cost.MSRP: $20,100 (1)

MINI. GENEALOGY.

The Mini brand originally belonged to British Motor Corporation, which in 1966 became part of British Motor Holdings. British Motor Holdings merged with Leyland Motors in 1968 to form British Leyland. In the 1980s British Leyland was broken-up and in

1988 Rover Group, including Mini, was acquired by British Aerospace. In 1994 Rover Group was acquired by BMW. In 2000 Rover Group was broken-up by BMW, with BMW retaining the Mini brand. (2)

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TEST YOUR HANDLING SKILLS.

BE MINI.

MINI. OBJECTIVES.

Not very many can express brand objective like a board member.

Dr. Burkhard Göschel, Member of the Board of Management of BMW AG, “The MINI COOPER is continuing the heritage of its successful predecessor on an entirely different, brand-new technical foundation. The new generation blends the emotion and heritage of the brand with modern quality, safety, and reliability. You might well say that we have developed the MINI COOPER the way we believe it would have evolved had its predecessor remained in the process of ongoing, continuous development every 10 years.”

Dr. Göschel continues, “This new car carries the MINI brand into the 21st century: It is a brand developed to a higher standard than ever before, borne out by intelligently built and reliable cars tailored to the individual, personal taste of the purchaser.” (3)

MINI. ELEMENTS.

MINI. HISTORY.

The MINI has a long story behind its very distinctive brand. In 1956, during intense fuel shortages there was a pressing need to design a fuel-efficient car. Lord Nuffield of British Motor Corporation (BMC) charged his chief designer, Sir Alec Issigonis to create an “orderly saloon,” that could still compete with the onslaught of fuel-efficient

microcars on the market. The first Classic Mini made its debut on August 26, 1959. The Classic Mini was the first mass-produced automobile with a transversally placed engine. It fit four adults, w a s g a s - f r u g a l , h a d g re a t handling, and was priced under 800. The placement of the engine created a commodious passenger a r e a a n d a l l o w e d t h e proportionately large wheelbase.

Thus, the Classic Mini became the first sedan to truly handle like a sports car. Over the years, the brand has found a special place in hearts throughout the world. From Queen Elizabeth to suburbanite Joe Smith. As we have loved it, the organization has grown and morphed. Now, they use Classic Mini when referring specifically to the older, classic version of the car, and MINI when referring to the new models or MINI as the brand. (4)

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Logo (Above). Motto (Below).

MINI. WEBSITES:

http://mini.comhttp://www.miniusa.com/

Sunday, May 6, 2012

Marketing and Brand Strategies

Mini Cooper: Consumer Brand Mental Map

Sunday, May 6, 2012

Marketing and Brand Strategies

Goorin Brothers: Case Study

Sunday, May 6, 2012

Marketing and Brand Strategies

Goorin Brothers: Case Study

Sunday, May 6, 2012

Business & Management

• The business administration courses at FIDM are designed to prepare students for the responsibilities, skills and challenges required of today’s leaders.

• Emphasis is placed on how to be proactive to changes in the marketplace, develop and implement strategies to accomplish goals and exceed expectations in a team environment.

Sunday, May 6, 2012

Business & Management• The first couple slides in this section focus on a case

study of the GAP, Inc. This study helped to identify significant holes in who the GAP associates as their target customer versus who shops in the store. Through this study I also identified several strategies the company could utilize to gain a greater portion of the consumer wallet share.

• The second set of slides are another case study around Starbucks. Through this project, I analyzed the consumer experience in Starbucks, Pete’s, and Philz. Then, coming up with several strategies to help Starbucks go back to its roots of the ‘coffee shop’.

Sunday, May 6, 2012

Business & ManagementGap, Inc.: Case Study

Gap, Inc. has been a resilient player in the retail space since the Woodstock era. This iconic brand was built in 1969, and has built a strong place for themselves in casual apparel for men, women, and children over the past few decades. Not everyone knows that all of the apparel built for this brand and its sister chains are all private-labeling merchandise made exclusively for the company. From the apparel to the store design, Gap controls all aspects of its trademark. However, it hasn't been all roses for this American-made giant. Gap, Inc. has a history of steep and rocky lows.

After five consecutive years of declining sales, Gap was struggling to stay afloat. In 2007, they decided to make a huge change in leadership and appointed Glenn Murphy of Shoppers Drug Mart to Chief Executive Officer of the company. Since then, Gap has drastically cut back its store count in the United States and has instead built out the brand in Europe (180 stores) and Asia (145 stores). Gap sales fell to $14.2 billion in 2009 after a flourishing profits of $14.5 billion in 2008. That said, the profitability has improved with the net income up to 14% in 2009. Still, profits continue to decline. Thus far in 2011, Gap has reported a 9.26% in net income profit. Also, with competitors like J.Crew and American Eagle creating more diverse lines of clothing with steeper margins and growing consumer support, Gap must continue to solidify its core customer and come up with new and innovative ways to strengthen this customer relationship bond.

Gap's target customer is a member of the young digerati. They are usually less than 50 years of age and have small families. They appreciate good style so they would expect their shopping experience with Gap to offer them cutting edge styles. They are also quite tech-savvy with a deep appreciation for culture, music, and living an active lifestyle. Gap has their target customer spot on, however, they are lacking a stimulating shopping experience. This family wants to be treated with special care. Therefore, Gap would greatly benefit from developing a strong customer relationship management program and training associates on customer service.

Because of the years of experience customers have with this brand, the program would need to a very personalized experience for the customer to buy into it. A large portion of this program should be around the shopping experience such as cultivating the sale through the fitting room. Making these customers feel special and dedicated means giving individual care at this point in the shopping experience. Gap would also want to implement a client follow-back program. Having sales people follow up with customers they serviced the week prior who spent $500 or more in the store. This would help develop a strong bond with the brand and would also help the sales people feel more connected to their individual customers.

In addition, customer service training programs should be an on-going program throughout all the Gap stores. This customer appreciates good service that is consistent and genuine. Therefore, a personalized customer service approach would be best. Having customer service response training would empower the sales associates to approach the customers in their own individual ways while communicating the corporate expectation.

Another way to appeal to this demographic is through their sense of community and social awareness. Therefore, creating a sustainable shopping bag similar to the Bloomingdales small, medium, and large bags would be a small way to show this demographic that the Gap has them in mind. Even creating a marketing campaign around this bag would raise awareness and solidify the Gap as a socially conscious brand.

The merchandise strategy of the Gap should also be addressed to increase the brand loyalty. There is a stronger influence in the product mix for women's pants than tops. Seeing as women typically purchase twice as many tops as they do bottoms this is a problem from the start. In addition, across the board, seasonal merchandise is quite low already. We already half way through the first fall season and only 10% of the mix is sweaters. I also went to J.Crew and American Eagle stores to compare their inventory.

As you can see, both companies greatly expand their tops vs bottoms. They also have a huge amount of sweaters and outerwear in comparison to the Gap. Being in the stores, there is a stark difference in presentation as well. Inside J.Crew and American Eagle, items are outfitted together. They are also placed out in limited size runs, which safeguards the customers from being overwhelmed by a ton of product. I recommend that the Gap start merchandising in limited size runs – maximum two runs of each size in the racks – and have the sales staff restocking more often through out the day. This will help make things look more exclusive to the customer while creating an air of urgency on the sales floor. In turn, giving the sales staff more opportunity to engage with the customers shopping in the store. To wrap things up, creating this customer relationship program while offering customer service training will help deepen the consumer experience. Creating the Gap sustainable shopping bag will help solidify the Gap as an environmentally friendly organization. On the merchandise front, creating a better balance between the tops and bottoms throughout all lines is essential. It is also important to plan better with seasonal merchandise. Another idea would be to go back to the basics of denim by possibly offering a custom fit denim line. The Gap was once a power house in the denim industry and has sense fallen off. With denim really powering back, it would be great to see the Gap reinvigorate this section of its business.

All in all, the Gap has a lot of potential. However, they do need better management on the store level. The corporate side of the Gap seems to have been rocky and, therefore, it is so important to have solid store management executing the right moves on a daily basis to keep the customer interaction consistent. My hope is to one day walk into the Gap and feel a sense of pride that this phoenix has once again risen from the ashes.

Sunday, May 6, 2012

Business & Management

Sunday, May 6, 2012

Business & ManagementCase Study: Starbucks

Over the last ten years Starbucks has become a household name. The company has had steady growth of over 25% in this time, with its total revenue for 2010 hitting over ten million dollars. Today, the company has over 17,000 stores across the world with 137,00 employees who are all closely trained to give the customer a unified experience every time they walk through the door. The Starbucks experience has changed the way consumers interact with coffee. From the size of your beverage to the manner in which customers order, Starbucks has created its own unique atmosphere within its walls. On the surface, this growth and success may seem positive. However, it has also left customers feeling a loss of a unique, engaging, intimacy they once felt with their local coffee shop. This lack of community and individuality is a serious break from the value once held by the company, which offers room for growth and opportunity. In addition, the target customer has broadened in this timeframe as well. What started out as a small Seattle-based company focusing its sales on coffee lovers, has morphed into a mass-marketed giant that has lost its local flavor. While this business model is profitable, it does not match the company ideals of individuality and community. Instead, many view these stores as being cookie-cutter and corporate.

In 2008, Howard Schultz, the president and CEO of Starbucks, attempted to fix these issues by closing 7,000 stores. In an interview with NPR Schultz said, "The unprecedented decision to literally close stores ― which cost us millions of dollars ― was done to ensure the fact that I demonstrated how serious and committed I was to making sure we go back to the core” (NPR.org). Starbucks remains the exclusive owner and operator of all stores to retain a special bond with its consumers. However, the core values remains the same and, therefore, many ask – was this enough to make the difference?

A deeper dedication to building stronger relationships with the communities in which Starbucks is located would help make an impact on the way consumers view their interaction with the brand. This bond could be formed by implementing three different focuses within local communities.

First, by creating distribution relationships with local bakeries, and selling their products Starbucks would be seen as a company focused on enriching the communities in which it is invested. I spoke with a sales representative at the Starbucks on Market Street at Civic Center who told me that currently all food sold in San Francisco Starbucks come from Parsons City, NV. If they stopped selling food shipped in and shifted focus to sell food made locally, this would have a huge impact on the way the communities view the brand. This would undoubtedly have a massive effect on their margin as well. Without shipping costs, even if the product is a bit more pricey, Starbucks would come out ahead.

Another way in which Starbucks could enrich their community relationships is by strengthening local artist relationships. Most patrons of coffee shops appreciate art and featuring local art would signify a close awareness of the local art community. The local flavor would also create a special environment in each store to help them create a more distinguishable experience for patrons. For example, every week day there is an artist market in Union Square. Many of these artists focus their work around the Gold Gate Bridge and views from the Presidio. Having these works in Starbucks would specialize the atmosphere.

Lastly, Starbucks could deepen the customer experience by creating a more engaging atmosphere by implementing social awareness campaigns and seminars within designated locations in key areas. For example, holding informative seminars on the communities where their coffee is roasted, the methods they use to roast, and people they employ oversees would empower the customer and make it easier for them to feel invested in their purchase.

In conclusion, Starbucks has built a strong company with a vested interest in their consumer experience. However, enriching the consumer experience by creating a more local experience could only help their initiatives to strengthen the existing consumer bond they hold. These suggestions would only enrich the experience within individual stores without taking away from the products they hold so dear.

Sunday, May 6, 2012

Business & Management

Sunday, May 6, 2012

Laura Stirling Joffrionc: (619) 772-0321t: @laurastirlinglaura.joffrion@gmail.comhttp://www.linkedin.com/in/laurastirling

Sunday, May 6, 2012