The Institutional Affiliation
The Professor's Name
Abstract
The report is aimed at providing the information about the Pilgrim Cleaners business locations in the Saint Antonio area. It discusses both the company and the clearing industry. The paper provides a short background and the history of the company. It also discusses in details the 4 P's of marketing, including the types of the services provided, the pricing, the places where the clients can use the company's services, and the advertising methods. The report defines strengthens, weaknesses, threats and opportunities of business by the Pilgrim Cleaners. It provides recommendations on how to improve and develop the existing potential.
Keywords: dry clearing and laundering industry, services, cost, locations, San Antonio area, advertising, marketing strategy, strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, recommendations, threats.
Background.4
Individual discussion of the 4 P’s of marketing5
Product.5
Place..6
Price .7
Promotion..8
SWOT Analysis.9
Recommendations10
Background of the company
Pilgrim Cleaners specializes in dry cleaning and laundry. The largest and most successful company was started in 1940. The name of the company, its owners and operating principles has changed since then. Nevertheless, the business always was, still is and will always be dedicated to the quality and the client.
Pilgrim Cleaners and Launderers, the largest and most successful dry cleaning company is based in Minnesota and provides services in 25 other locations within the twin cities area. The Cleaners ensure quality and professionalism gained over the years. They position themselves as a team of friendly staff who pay attention to unique needs of each and every client. Pilgrim Cleaners companies function on the rest of the territory of the United States, in particular, in Texas. They are represented by numerous locations, in particular in Huston, San Antonio, and other areas. The first one, for example, has 35 locations and the second one – 7 which ensures access to the services to people who live in the distant settlements.
Pilgrim companies have experienced many changes, including the range of services, marketing techniques, technology, etc. The business developed significantly during the last 75 years. The element called perchloroethylene or perc became a revolutionary cleaning product in the 1950s. It was much more effective compared to the products used in the industry after the World War II. Today cleaning business, in particular, the Pilgrim Cleaners use computerized washers and dryers, safe and organic cleaning agents and detergents, and the latest technologies that prevent clothes from leeching, shrinking, etc.
Today, cleaning and laundering are not only the client but environment oriented. Pilgrim Cleaners is committed to the healthiest cleaning and protecting both clients and the environment from the harmful effect of substances. Pilgrim company located in Minnesota, for example, uses green cleaning technology. Other Pilgrim locations adopt this experience and compete in being America's favorite Cleaners.
Individual discussion of the 4 P’s of marketing
Cleaning and laundering are a competitive business which requires a lot of marketing efforts to make it profitable and successful. Simple at a first glance, it needs to be backed up with the right product at the reasonable price, offered in a right way, at the right place, and to the right client. The Pilgrim Cleaners company offers a wide range of services to the clients. Each and every customer can refer to the Pilgrim Cleaners services in the most convenient way using a variety of service options. The pricing policy is reasonable, prudent and deliberate. The company's services are affordable and available to clients with different incomes. The place of the business is limited but apposite. It includes six locations in the San Antonio area and a route office. The promotion has been an important part of the Pilgrim Cleaners business. The company constantly improves the services, develops a new option for more convenience, offers coupons and other features to keep the clients satisfied. The success of the Pilgrim Cleaners lies in simplicity and quality. These are some of the main strengths that make the business stand other similar trade. Despite positive reputation and clients’ loyalty, Pilgrim Cleaners should not stop working on improving and implementing new technology, expanding the locations, etc. I would recommit the board of directors to work on the marketing strategy, in particular, outdoor and online advertising.
Product. The range of services offered by Pilgrim, as well as other similar companies, is quite limited. Nevertheless, the creative and thought-out approach towards the cleaning businesses expanded the range of services. Dry cleaning and garment care received new features and options which made them convenient and beneficial for more market segments. Pilgrim Cleaners in the San Antonio area offers the following services: dry cleaning, laundry, fire and mold restoration, wedding gown heir looming, household items care, leather and fur cleaning, expert alterations. Such set of services is smaller than the range of services offered by Pilgrim Cleaners in other cities. Nevertheless, the experience has shown that the quantity doesn't necessarily mean quality. I consider the company's supply to be a perfect choice that satisfies all the most common demand of people who refer to the cleaning and laundering services.
Dry cleaning and laundering, restoration, household items care, leather, fur cleaning, wedding dresses preservation are what most clients look for. Very rarely they look for tailoring or similar utilities at cleaning places. In the opposite, most customers look for simplicity. What is more, a significant part of users of laundries trust companies that have narrower but proven reputation. Cleaning and laundering service must be quality, fast, affordable and close. Pilgrim Cleaners absolutely meet the requirement. Dry cleaning services include both casual and formal wear, laundry refers not only to garments but to household items which, in their turn, include cleanable and washable pieces. All types of dry washing, cleaning, and restoration guarantee that the clothes will be cleaned, hand inspected, and ready for taking out. Pilgrim Cleaners pay special attention to leather and fur items, wedding and other special occasion gowns. The Pilgrim specialists ensure extra careful handling and preserving of such wardrobe elements. Another common and useful option offered by Pilgrim Cleaners is restoration. It allows renewing items damaged by mold, smoke, fire, water, etc. The last but not the least, the company offers useful expert alterations. It ensures immediate feedback anytime a client has a question or needs an advice.
Place. Pilgrim Cleaners offer their services on the territory of the San Antonio. There are only six locations available in the area. Nevertheless, they are evenly distributed throughout so that each and every client can easily reach one of them. Demand for the services offered by the Pilgrim Cleaners is inelastic which means that they do dry cleaning, laundering, and washing regardless the external factors.
Pilgrim Cleaners have their own room service delivery, equipped with the needed equipment and technology. Most clients prefer cozy and separate cleaners rather than laundry places in a shopping center or a mall. Besides the actual place of providing the service, it is also important to make sure that the clients can easily find the information about it when they look for a cleaning company. Pilgrim Cleaners provide the needed information online so that the person can quickly find an address of one of their locations when they look up for similar places on the Internet. Home pick and delivery simplify an access to the services even more. Besides the fact that the Pilgrim Cleaners net locations are close to the majority of the San Antonio area population, the company also provides home delivery and pick up. It is one of the biggest advantages a dry cleaning and laundering business can offer. A lot of clients admit that being able to use the service without leaving the house has been very useful in a variety of situations. It is especially helpful when a person doesn't feel well, has other urgent issues at home, there is no one to babysit a child, no transportation, when there is an unexpected meeting or event, etc., but the laundry still needs to be done. In such case, the Pilgrim Cleaners professionals will come to the client's house and help them with the order, take it to one of the locations themselves and bring it back if needed.
Price. The cost of the product is one of the most important indicators and characteristics of the product or service. With an intense competition among any industry businesses, in particular, the dry cleaning and laundering, the companies must develop reasonable and effective pricing policy. Pilgrim Cleaners offers their services at fair and acceptable cost. As it has been already mentioned before, the demand for the cleaning services is inelastic because cleaning their clothes is one of the basic needs for everyone. Nevertheless, the customers don't consider such service to have any special and extraordinary value, something that is limited or rare. That's why they expect the prices for such services to be affordable.
There are no established price points for the services in the following area. It depends on the company's name, brand and reputation, types of services, methods and techniques used for providing the service, quality, quickness, etc. Moreover, most Cleaners provide their new and loyal clients with special offers, coupons, and discounts. In some cases, it can be a determining factor in choosing a cleaning company since the frequent use of such services urges many clients look for ways to save the budget. The Pilgrim Cleaners in San Antonio area are available at a little less cost in comparison to the services offered by Pilgrim Cleaners in other location, in particular, in Houston or twin cities area. The San Antonio locations offer a narrower range of services but cover it with other advantages such as the opportunity to pay less. Pilgrim Cleaners and Launderers that serve the twin cities provides their clients with options like curbside service, same day dry cleaning and laundry, express bag service, drive-through, wash-dry-fold option, garment movement service, wet cleaning, frequent cleaner program, and other. Offering particular services that are rather rare for most Pilgrim Cleaners justifies the higher cost. The Pilgrim locations in the San Antonio area focus on the most common types services which do not require any additional costs and are offered at very affordable prices.
Promotion. Pilgrim Cleaners, like most companies on the market, pays a lot of attention to choosing the most effective methods of communicating their messages to the clients. Taking into consideration the fact that modern buyers not only search but make purchases online, Pilgrim company considers the Internet one of the most effective advertising tool. The information is provided to the consumers via special search sites, online catalogs, the official website, and social networks. The official website of the Pilgrim Cleaners is the most comprehensive source of the information. It provides a detailed list of services, locations, special offers, and other useful advice. With a help of the Internet advertising the company gets across its messages to the clients 24/7. One can also access the information about the Pilgrim Cleaners anywhere regardless their current location.
The company gradually excludes TV, radio, papers and magazines from its marketing strategy. Nowadays, businesses in all industries actively use the Internet for advertising and communicating with the clients. Technical progress urges the companies to adjust to new habits and lifestyles of the customers and diversify their marketing tools. What’s more, new types of advertising, in particular, online advertising proves to be more effective in comparison to the traditional advertising methods. It is less time consuming, more cost effective, allows to receive a feedback from the customers and to react to it almost in no time.
Pilgrim Cleaners promote their services a year round; there is seasonality or timing in the market. Nevertheless, the company constantly offers coupons and discounts, in particular, at the end/beginning of a season when people change their wardrobe, change coats and jackets to summer clothes, etc. The competitors in the dry cleaning and laundering industry don’t use any advertising methods that differ significantly from the Pilgrim Cleaners advertising techniques. However, many of them actively use social networks that raise the degree of the awareness about the product among the potential customers.
SWOT Analysis .
Strengths. The company has numerous advantages which allow it to maintain a stable position on the market. It is local and well knows among the clients of the San Antonio area. The audience is clearly defined in terms of the geographical location and population. It assures quality service and customer’s satisfaction. Many businesses disperse their efforts trying to provide the services to way too big and different consumer groups. The practice has shown that this is not always the best option. It can be more reasonable to concentrate the narrow the territory of providing the services. Dry cleaning has no alternatives when it comes to specific types of clothes which are another advantage of the business. Many sectors such as schools, hospitals, food places, etc. are bound to follow strict hygiene rules. Moreover, most of the people are regular clients of the cleaning services which assure a continuous demand in the industry. Pilgrim Cleaners offer services that are quick and convenient. In particular, pickup and delivery option saves up to 90% of the client’s time. The cost of the services provided by the company is reasonable and fair, it is affordable for families that consist of many members, organizations and other clients who often submit big orders. Pilgrim Cleaners offer convenient discount opportunities, in particular, 50% off entire first order for new route customers, etc.
Weaknesses. Competition on the following market is rather intense. The company has to introduce new services and innovative technology in order to keep a leading position in the region where it operates. Pilgrim Cleaners is not as experienced and well knows as other similar services. Lack of background and a high number of competitors might require extra efforts in conducting the business and establishing an effective marketing strategy. The dry cleaning business is mature and developed. There is very limited possibility for the Pilgrim Cleaners to impress or hit with something fundamentally new in this area.
Opportunities. There are a lot of services which haven’t been introduced by the Pilgrim Cleaners yet. Curbside or express bag service might be very successful addition to the already existing options. There is also an opportunity to develop the business in a door-to-door or corporate type of service. Another opportunity comes from people who have no time to wait for their order to be processed and need it back the same day, as well as from hostels, small hotels, etc. that also become regular clients of the Pilgrim Cleaners.
Threats. New competitors are the largest threat to the company. Since the industry is characterized by a stable income, many franchised businesses extend the borders of conduction the business. New technology is also partially flawed. Innovative equipment usually does not pay back during the first month since it is rather expensive and requires extra costs. The industry is a subject to legislation that’s why it is very important for the Pilgrim Cleaners to be not only clients but environment oriented. Wrongful use of the cleaning agents and other chemicals can lead to restrictions.
Recommendations
I would recommend the Pilgrim Cleaners to diversify their services. It will bring more clients, positively influence the reputation of the company, help to maintain competitiveness and increase the revenues. The company should also work on increasing the awarenes about their services. It has very apt and relevant slogan, however, Pilgrim Cleaners in other locations have established a reputation of an experienced and well known business that is present on the market for many decades, which a great advantage for companies that work in the following industry. I suggest considering a few locations outside the San Antonio area to popularize the company and increase the volume of the service provision. I also recommend promotion such as distributing flyers with helpful tips how to save and preserve clothes, etc.
I believe that a lot of clients pay attention to the level of the environmental orientation of the company, therefore, Pilgrim Cleaners must accent more attention on their contribution to clean and healthy environment. The last but not the least recommendation is to use social network in advertising on a regular basis. It requires no spending but brings great results. Social network brings the company closer to the clients, establish convenient and effective communication lines, encourage the potential client to share their feedback and experience.
References
Pilgrim Cleaners. Pilgrim Cleaners Official Website. Retrieved March 28, 2016, from
http://www.pilgrimsanantonio.com/index.htm
Pilgrim Cleaners and Launderers. Pilgrim Cleaners and Launderers Official Website.
Retrieved March 27, 2016, from http://www.pilgrimdrycleaners.com/
