Kmart SWOT Analysis, Competitors & USP

Kmart

Parent Company

Sears Holdings Corporation

Category

Discount Retail Store Chain

Sector

Lifestyle and Retail

Tagline/ Slogan

There's smart, then there's K-mart

USP

Promotional Pricing and Weekly Mailers

Kmart STP

Segment

Urban Market Segment

Target Corporation Group

Middle Class and Blue Collar customers

Positioning

Positioning on low price similar to Walmart

Kmart SWOT Analysis

Strengths

Below is the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities & Threats (SWOT) Analysis of Kmart :

1. Exclusive Product lines like Joe Boxer, Route 66 etc.
2. Most stores being located in urban areas with concentrated populations
3. Special Lay away plan for people who want to pay in installments
4. Excellent customer service

5. Brand loyalty is high among the smaller customer base

6.Brand Equity is high due to early presence in the retail segment

7.Great quality in food and perishable articles

Weaknesses

1.Overleveraged financial position, applied for chapter 11 bankruptcy
2.Inability to compete with walmart on price due to poor supply chain systems

3. Closure of stores affected brand

Opportunities

1. Emerging Markets and Expansions abroad
2. Private label growth to enhance brand & margins
3. Opportunity to cater to multi-ethnic groups in US with new ethnic marketing efforts

4. Expand services to culinary schools, healthcare, others

5. Target Corporation newer customer segments during lucrative Black Friday sales

6. Increase market presence through store growth in rural regions where it has a low presence

7. Acquisitions of newer brands and labels can improve sales

Threats

1.Economic slowdowns will shift customers to stores with cheaper offerings like walmart
2. Competition from three fronts: high-end (Whole Foods) and price competitive (Wal-Mart and Target Corporation) Increasing Market Share
3. Price wars can drive down already low profit margins

4. External changes (government, politics, taxes, etc)

5. Inability to absorb price increases due to smaller scale vs. national competitors

6. Economic downturn affecting core shoppers’ wallets

7. Declining profits can put pressure on already weak financial positions

Kmart Competition

Competitors

Below are the 3 main Kmart competitors :

1.Walmart
2.Target Corporation
3.Macys