Pike Creek Port Barrel Finish Canadian Whisky-Samples for Student

Question: Discuss about the Pike Creek Port Barrel Finish Canadian Whisky. Answer: Introduction International trade primarily refers to businesses selling their products in the global market. Through international trade, companies can obtain new clients for their products and expand their market base, hence increasing profitability and competitiveness (Armstrong, Kotler, Brennan, 2015). This report explains the introduction of a Canadian whiskey brand- Pike Creek Port Barrel Finish Canadian Whisky into the Japanese market. To achieve this, the report has evaluated the whisky industry, the target market for the product in Japan, Japan's trade rules, key competitor and a SWOT analysis of the firm. Pike Creek Port Barrel Finish Canadian Whisky Our business plans to expand the sale of pike creek Barrel Finish Canadian whiskey into the Japanese market. Pike Creek is a double distilled whiskey produced by Corby Distillers with an alcohol content of 40% (Pike Creek Whisky, 2018). It was re-launched in 2012 giving the brand tremendous opportunities of getting markets externally. There was no sufficient market during the time when Canadian whisky was introduced. The higher end offerings of the product have made it great in the recent years. Pike Creek is designed to appeal to those who like their fortified wine-finish Scotch whiskeys. Country of sale The sale of the whisky brand will be extended to Japan. We have a feeling that the Brand will receive a ready market in Japan. Through formulation of accurate market strategies and target marketing, we feel that the Brand will be sold profitably in Japan Target Market Target marketing involves dividing the market into segments and then concentrating the selling practices on one of the segments (Armstrong, Kotler, Brennan, 2015). It ensures that businesses sell their products in the most profitable segment. When selling the Brand, the business intends to target the middle and high-income adults, aged twenty years and above and living in Japan. The Whisky will be sold in 750ml bottles using different distributors, bar owners, whisky dealers and depot owners. Rules Guiding sale of Alcohol in Japan Japan has some strict laws that regulate the sale of alcohol and alcoholic beverages. First, alcohol vendors are required to obtain General Liquor Retail License to enable them to sell liquor in Japan legally (Carragher, Byrnes, Doran, Shakeshaft, 2014). Therefore, we intend to purchase this license to be allowed into Japan. We will also require an export license to allow as to export this product to Japan. Also, in Japan, the minimum alcohol drinking age is 20 years, and so the whiskey brand should not be sold to any person under 20 years Drivers in Japan are not allowed to drive after drinking. The alcohol content for in drivers should be 0.03% when they are on wheels (Fukuyo Myojo, 2015). We will, therefore, enlighten our customers on these requirements to encourage responsible drinking. The competitors in the Whisky industry With the development of many whisky companies and distillers, the Japanese Whisky has gained tremendous attention. Therefore, when entering the Japanese market, we are aware that we will experience stiff competition from the already-established distillers and distributors in Japan. These may include, Suntory Holdings Ltd., Nikka Whisky Distilling Company Ltd., and Chichibu Distillery among other companies (Independent, 2016). The business can have a hard time dealing with this competition because these competitors products are even more familiar to the consumers. This may call for the business to carry out massive advertising of the product to create awareness to the consumers. SWOT analysis For a business to compete favorably in the market, it must evaluate its weaknesses, strengths, opportunities, and threats (Verboncu Condurache, 2016). Specifically, Pike Creek Brand has two fundamental strengths. First, it is a strong brand, having been sold successfully in Canada. The Whisky Brand is from a well-grounded company which has been operating for a long time. Another strength is that it is a high quality whisky. From the recommendations received from the Canadian customers, this Whisky is unique and of high quality hence is expected to receive a ready market in Japan. Conversely, one weakness of this brand is that it is not well-known in Japan. Therefore, the firm will spend more time and funds on advertising. Also, it targets high-income earners, meaning that it will not be able to derive market from the low-income earners. Japan acts as a possible external market. Therefore, the firm has an opportunity to conduct market research and win customer trust for the Whisky brand. Another opportunity is the ability of the firm to extend to other international markets outside Japan. There are also some threats involved in selling the product. Some of these threats are competition and also high costs involved in advertising. Pike creek product faces competition in Japan where different Japanese whiskey companies are selling various brands which compete with the Pike Creek brand. The organization may also be unable to maintain the high costs of advertising in Japan. References Armstrong, G., Kotler, P., Brennan, R. (2015). Marketing: an Introduction. Pearson Education. Carragher, N., Byrnes, J., Doran, C. M., Shakeshaft, A. (2014). Developing an Alcohol Policy Assessment toolkit: Application in the Western Pacific. Bulletin of the World Health Organization, 92, 726-733. Fukuyo, S., Myojo, Y. (2015). Japanese Whisky (2nd ed.). In Whisky. Independent. (2016, November 18). Eight best Japanese whiskeys: Inspired by the Scottish but distinctively innovative, head east for some of the world's finest drama. Retrieved March 20, 2018, from Independent Web Site: https://www.independent.co.uk/extras/indybest/food-drink/best-japanese-whisky-under-50-100-nikka-suntory-single-malt-10201539.html Pike Creek Whisky. (2018, March 20). Our Story. Retrieved March 20, 2018, from Pike Creek Whisky Website: https://www.pikecreekwhisky.com/s/#!/our-story/4 Verboncu, I., Condurache, A. (2016). Diagnostics Vs. SWOT Analysis. Revista De Management Comparative International, 17(2), 114.