Advent Corporation has successfully marketed a series of audio products and is now considering entry into the large-format television market. Alternatively, the company may enter high quality television in traditional sizes. At this point, the company must find a way to determine the best direction for its various products, and capitalize on the reputation of its founder and its reputation for producing high quality products at competitive prices. This may necessitate a departure from the way in which the company has conducted its business and marketing in the past.
Advent was founded by Henry Kloss, an entrepreneur with previous business experience in consumer electronics. Much of Advent's success can be traced directly to Kloss' reputation in the market and his personal guidance of Advent (this is true of the companies which he formed and then left in the past, as well). Advent does not participate in much market research, nor does it actively pursue research and development activities for their own sakes. Instead, the company notes what its competitors are doing in the market and finds ways to produce similar products (perhaps taking them a step further) and do so at a lower price. In one case, the company realized that a product manufactured by DuPont would lead to a higher quality recording tape medium, so it pursued that course. However, Advent built on work that DuPont had done rather than engaging in its own research and development.
Financially, the company is not particularly strong. It has an upside-down current ratio (with more current liabilities than assets), and a high level of debt overall. From a marketing standpoint, the company depends on a high level of personal selling in order to get its products into retail outlets, but it has good success in keeping shelf space since its products are recognized as being of high quality.
The dependence on Kloss is not a good factor for the company's long-term s...