Campus Designs, Inc. NOTE: To: Michael From: Rick Sub:

Campus Designs, Inc. or CSI, a firm designing and producing activewear with university-licensed logo designs, has reached the limits of its present line of development as a small, generalized firm in this rapidly growing market. At present, the company principals focus on designing creative logos which they have imprinted on "blank" garments, which are then sold to retailers through distribution representatives.

CSI faces the options of more fully integrating its operations, of diversifying them, or of concentrating in a more focused way on the creative aspect of the business. In view of the proven strengths of the company's principals, the last option is the preferable one. CSI cannot compete head-to-head with larger firms having extensive production or distribution resources. It can, however, capitalize on its ability to create new and exciting designs more rapidly then these competitors.

In particular, CSI should seek opportunities to enter into partnerships with cutting-edge young activewear designers. The total product here is the combination of an exciting garment with an exciting design. In working with fashion designers, CSI can benefit from a synergistic relationship in which each partner offers a unique capability to the other, with their combined efforts offering a greater selling punch than either can achieve alone. In pursuing this line of development, the principals of CSI should consider more firmly defining the role of e

ng, and Seth Chapman in marketing. Note that creative design and marketing are closely linked in this industry. In effect the product is design and advertising, in the form of the designs on garments or other products. Potential customers see the product being worn or used, like the design, and wish to have one for themselves. The great weakness of CSI at present is its narrow range of control over the product; it buys "blanks" (unmarked garments) from large manufacturers, depends on another small firm for production, and relies on independent marketing reps for distribution into stores. Another potential weakness is the lack of organizational structure in the firm. At this point, job titles are purely formal, and rotate at random among the partners. While this encourages creative interaction, down the road it may lead to a lack of focus on key functional areas. III. External Audit The great opportunity offered by this industry is the rapid growth of the market base referred to above; these garments and (potentially) other products are not just for college students any more. They have entered the general popular culture. In the long term, the general market may move on, but that should not be an immediate concern, th

Category: Business - C