In "Trampler, Tramplee," Robert La Franco examines the rise of a successful small business, Mackie Designs (La Franco, 1996, p. 120). The company manufactures audio mixing boards, and built a reputation for providing high quality boards at prices well below those of the competition. The company has a large market share, but it has recently seen a number of new competitors enter the market and bring with them increased price pressures and well-funded marketing programs.
Mackie's initial success was built on recognizing an opportunity and taking full advantage. Greg Mackie, a musician, took apart mixing boards and determine which components were essential, which could be substituted with less expensive parts, and which had to remain top-of-the-line. At the end of the process, he had engineered a board which provided better quality than was currently available at a lower cost. He successfully marketed the new product, but in doing so, he also caused his larger competitors to take note of his activities.
Recently, the competition has grown more intense as larger companies with large marketing departments (and budgets) have followed product development along Mackie's line. The result is that Mackie Design's own sales have been called into question, and some have criticized the company for not taking full advantage of other opportunities which have come along during the early and mid-1990s. If Mackie had continued to show the same initiative in running the business that he had in starting it, the company might have been able to maintain a commanding lead over the competition.
The experience of Mackie Designs illustrates the interrelationship among competitors in an industry. Mackie was able to build his business because he recognized a niche which was not being adequately addressed by the larger companies; companies such as Yamaha had underestimated the threat of new competitors (according to Porter's model), and
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