CASE ANALYSIS

CLUBB INTERNATIONAL PRIVATE LIMITED: MARCHING AHEAD TO NEW TRAVELS

1. CASE SYNOPSIS
The case on Clubb International Private Limited is not just a business case but an inspirational story of a
young man who came from nowhere but had the imagination and zeal to build a small enterprise that in
all of its 26 years had never stopped innovating and reinventing itself. What started as a great story was
challenged by macro factors- such as opening of the economy; change in the mindset of the Indian
consumer; and micro factors around the strategies adopted by the chief protagonist of the case- Tarun
Mullick, Managing Director of Clubb.

Clubb was a travel goods and accessories company and had an array of products that ranged from soft
luggage, to handbags, belts and wallets and even raincoats. A small enterprise that started with INR
10,000 and a single employee, in 2017 had 100+ employees including the family members. The product
range, design and manufacturing were initially handled by the entrepreneur himself and later by his wife
Rita and son Arup. The protagonist had a simple bootstrapping philosophy and believed in a complete
ownership model. This was one reason why the company moved ahead slower than companies that
worked on external funding and collaborative models. The firm in 2017 had over 200 products. While in
2004 it had ventured into its first off-factory-site brick and mortar retail, it took them more than a decade
to get into e-tail. Clubb’s retail armed consisting of 3 physical stores, an international and domestic e-
commerce site were rechristened as ClubbCart from 2014 onwards. Major developments happened in the
last 2-3 years since Arup Mullick- the Clubb MD’s son had graduated and was taking an active role in the
organization.

It was March 2017, and the firm needed to seriously re-examine its business philosophy. Arup wanted
Clubb to attain a leadership position in the travel goods and accessories market in the country. He was not
content being a SME (small and medium enterprise) any longer. He wanted the brand to reach a stage
when they were not playing a low margin, conservative volume game. Yet, aspiring for a leadership
position and a bigger market share meant a more aggressive and altered business strategy. Clubb had at its
core; a legacy of innovation, quality and a bootstrap philosophy that may not be conducive for the goal
Arup had envisioned for Clubb. So change was definitely on the horizon. The question was where did one
begin - in the product or the retail strategy? Could the complete ownership and no advertising mantra still
achieve the desired scale of operations? Or was it time to re-examine the company’s business philosophy?
As Arup steered the ship towards its next voyage, the critical question was to understand whether Clubb
and more importantly Tarun Mullick ready for the change?

1. What will be the role of the macro environmental factors in shaping the future marketing
strategy of Clubb? Support your analysis with suitable arguments.

The sector which includes a wide range of products from bags, suitcases, rucksacks, backpacks, laptop
bags to umbrellas, raincoats, trekking equipment etc., may be broadly classified into leather and non-
leather goods over hard and soft luggage variants. While leather dominated the travel goods and
accessories market, the instructor needs to point out that for Clubb, leather is not the only raw material as
they are also into jute-leather diversified, jute, nylon, corduroy etc. However, since 90% of the sector is
dominated by leather, most of the macro analysis is mot likely to revolve around leather.
Political/Legal The trend in the political and legal climate is quite conducive to the growth of the
industry. Government’s protective attitude towards indigenous manufacturers, with special privileges and
subsidies for the MSME sector is quite encouraging. Moreover, Government’s strong recommendation
for the leather industry- as top priority sector for India’s economic prosperity by way of its huge potential
as a foreign exchange earner is also expected to create a favorable environment. However, some students
may point to some recent political bans on animal slaughter in certain states. This may impact the
availability of superior quality leather in the future.

Economic Compared to the global market the Indian travel goods and accessories market recorded a far
more positive trend at a CAGR of 18% over an average rate of 5% in the global market. The expected
figure of 24 million outbound tourists by 2021 is sure to have a positive impact, backed by the rising
disposable income of the Indian middle class and rising number of independent women workforce.

Socio-demographic/ Cultural Growing fashion consciousness among consumers along with deepening
brand associations are likely to impact the industry in a big way. While fashion conscious, independent
urban women showed positive trends in their spending habits related to personal accessories like bags and
watches, this could mean a greater opportunity for marketers who are good with innovative and fashion-
cum-utility oriented products. Variety seeking attitude would also result in more frequent purchases; and
this bodes well for the industry.

Technological: considerable innovations in both manufacturing and processing functions across the
different material mediums would be tabled by the students. In the MSME sector, manufacturing is
largely dominated by manual processes of cutting, printing, stitching or pasting especially for the soft
luggage products. Secondly, the internet penetration and availability of multiple e-commerce have
lowered the entry barriers and heated up the competition in the sector. The smaller players with limited
distribution can now expect to find access to a global marketplace by virtue of these platforms.

Environmental Students are likely to take note of environmentalist concerns over the toxic wastes of
tanneries having some impact on the availability of good quality processed leather for the industry that
may have some adverse effects. However observations on Clubb being more into a whole lot of non-
leather materials apart from leather products may be used to nullify such concerns. This may be further
put forth with discussion on Clubb’s success with their jute-leather diversified products which has the
advantage of being green and organic with limited use of leather.

2. Critically assess the competitive landscape of Clubb with the use of an appropriate strategic
analysis tool?

The Competitive landscape’ clearly points out that there is competition from two ends

Current Competition: Clubb faces competition from 3 main categories of players in their medium to low,
non-premium market segment. The foreign brands like Samsonite getting aggressive with their mid-
market offerings like American Tourister being the first category; followed by a host of well-established
home-grown brands like VIP, Safari as well as upcoming indigenous brands like Wildcraft, etc. and also
the large unbranded market selling cheaper local products, counterfeit brands and Chinese made products
giving tough competition.

Potential Competition: This could come from Indian Brands like Nappa Dori, who will soon become a
force to reckon with in the affordable luxury segment. Then there are the luxury brands like Burberry who
are eying the evolving and experimenting Indian consumer as a lucrative segment to target. The learners
are also likely to mention the growing trend of lifestyle and apparel brands like Titan Fastrack, United
Colors of Benetton, Reebok, Puma etc. going for line filling strategies by introducing luggage options in
their product line as a potential competition to deal with. For the purpose of critically assessing the
 overall competitive landscape of Clubb an industry 5 forces (Porter, 1979) 1 analysis can be carried out as
follows:

Competition among Existing Firms (High): Considering the large number of organized competitors as
well as competition from the grey markets and those of unorganized players dealing in cheaper Chinese
products offering a similar range of products with low perceptible differentiation in the same price range
hints at a high degree of competitive intensity. The instructor may further put forth an interesting
dimension in this, by referring to the differences that may pertain to the submarkets of leather and non-
leather. The non-leather segment is likely to be even more competitive and fragmented than its leather
counterpart.

Potential Competitors/ Threat of New Entrants (High): A closer look at the barriers to entry in this
industry reveal that owing to the easily replicable nature of the product, favorable economies of scale,
government’s encouraging policies for the MSME (Micro Small and Medium Enterprises) sectors would
naturally keep the threat of new entrants very high. Though some students may argue that the legal
requirements; political standpoints like ban on slaughter houses in some states and relatively high capital
investments may deter new entry- particularly in the leather goods segment. Yet the non-leather segment
will remain attractive for new entrants.

Power of Substitute Products (Low): Inherently from the point of view of the consumer needs, travel
goods and accessories as a category can hardly be substituted. But the submarkets within the industry
specifically those in the exclusive leather, or jute, or synthetic luggage have high threat of close
substitutes being offered by each other. Students are likely to point out that for Clubb, since they
manufacture luggage and bags with different kinds of raw materials in different price range, they are
actually offering a wide range of substitutable products by cannibalizing their own offers leaving little
room for substitutes being a potential threat.

Customer Power (High): Owing to the availability of umpteen choices from large number of
manufacturers and marketers at different price-quality ranges, customers enjoy a certain amount of power
to dictate the service terms and condition associated with the products. Marketers continuously thrive to
render the best possible services to keep loyal customers in a market where switchers are extremely
common. Some students may bring in a strong argument for building a strong brand presence in this
discussion as it may turn out to be the only possible measure to keep customer deflection under check.
Whatsoever, in the luxury and premium segment the dynamics favour the hi-end brands where customers
are not overtly concerned about price.

Supplier Power (Low/ Moderate/ High): the supplier side of the market is equally fragmented across the
various types of raw materials. The industry serves as a major source of demand for a large number of
suppliers in jute, nylon, corduroy, leather and other such markets. It may be pointed out that suppliers of
high quality hides and leather may exercise some amount of moderate control over the manufacturer. On
the other hand, in the dealers markets across wholesalers, physical retailers and e-tailers the manufacturer
and markets are hardly in a position to dictate terms facing huge competition over commission structures
offered by the larger brands and established players. A graphical representation of the competitive
analysis using the industry five forces is given in Exhibit TN-2. Competitive Analysis for Travel
Goods and Accessories Industry.

3. Examine the time line of the Clubb journey so far. How would you identify the business
orientation of the firm?

1
Michael .E. Porter: How competitive forces shape strategy. Harvard Business Review, 1979, 57 (2), p. 137-145.
Once the instructor has been able to establish the context- in terms of the travel goods and accessories
market the discussion may be steered to examine the Clubb business model. However, discussion on the
firm by examining its origin may be useful here. Thus, the authors have found that it is interesting to have
a prelude to the discussion and ask the students-

- What is your opinion of Tarun Mullick? His vision and strategies as he took the company forward?

The learners are likely to hold a similar perspective in terms of the inspirational nature of Tarun Mullick’s
story of struggle and tenacity as he single-handedly built Clubb to what it is. However, there may be a
near equal division between those who agree and those who disagree with his strategies. Some points of
similarity and difference that may emerge here are presented in Exhibit TN-3. Tarun Mullick:
Conservative or Forward Thinking Entrepreneur? The points listed in the exhibit are indicative and
not exhaustive, but the discussion at this point would have established that the entrepreneur cannot be
stereotyped into a single mold, which is why the discussion for the final question on what should be the
road ahead for Clubb will be divergent and therefore a true learning opportunity for young would-be-
professionals and entrepreneurs alike.

To discuss the company orientation the instructor may ask the learners to examine the seminal and
established five possible company orientations as described in chapter 1 of Kotler & Keller (refer reading
list). The case is intriguing as it presents possibilities to argue for both:
- Product concept which submits that consumers favor products that performs well on quality,
performance and innovative features.
- Marketing concept which proposes a customer-centered philosophy that delivers superior
customer value with the objective of offering the right and most wanted products that satisfy
customer needs.

The authors’ suggest that the arguments may be run in parallel as the students examine the Clubb
inception and timeline of events till the current time period. The discussion may be organized as
presented in Exhibit TN-4. Clubb International: Product or Marketing orientation?

The discussions would again be divided and almost equally balanced here. As the instructor moves to the
current time period and the necessity to plan ahead; both groups- those arguing for product and those for
marketing concept would have strong arguments why the chosen path is correct, however it may be
prudent to stagger this discussion till the final question on what should Clubb do as it enters a new phase.

4. What are the key elements of the Clubb international’s business model? What according to you
are the key strengths and weaknesses of the same? Justify. [15 minutes]

By the time the Class discussion is almost half way through, the learners would have a clear perspective
on the Clubb philosophy and business model. With this question the learners would be able to appreciate
the firm’s modus operandi. The author may begin by asking about the typical Clubb consumers.

Who is the Clubb consumer? Is the person different from the typical travel goods and accessories
consumer?

The discussion would point out that clearly Clubb has two set of consumers:

Business consumers: These are the institutional consumers who place big orders for bags, folders, laptop
bags and other items as corporate gifts. They are loyal and keep placing repeat bulk orders.
Individual consumers: These are consumers from across the country-essentially the middle and upper
middle class consumers (refer case exhibit 6). They seek the best designs but at an affordable price.
Interestingly, since the company has explored online platforms as well, the reach has increased and Clubb
has been able to regain its lost customers, like the ones who were in Maharashtra/Mumbai.

Across the two groups, the core reason for buying Clubb products was great designs that were innovative
enough to offer variety and change from the usual offerings. The second reason was for the decision
being an affordable price point. Most of Clubb customers came back to buy more from the brand; this
meant that the products were able to deliver satisfaction. Some may even argue for the products
delighting and exceeding customer expectations and this being the reason for repeat purchases.

Thus, the students would be able to capture the buyer profile through the case facts and the details
provided in Case exhibit 6. However, there is likely to be a difference of opinion on the reasons for
market success. Students arguing for the product concept would cite great product designs with constant
innovation to develop new product ideas as the primary reason. While those vouching for a marketing
concept will identify a clear customer focus leading to satisfy the apparent as well as latent needs of the
consumer resulting in delight for customers in international and domestic markets.

Arup Mullick (Case exhibit 6) had indicated a demographic shift in the typical Clubb consumer profile
where the current consumer are much younger in age. He stated that since he had taken over the product
design and innovations at Clubb; his designs and products were for a younger and trendier consumer.
Hence , the likelihood of this consumer being price conscious over design is rather less probable. Also,
the new age consumers who shops on multiple platforms including offline and online- were found to be
more indulgent, impulsive and less likely to show loyalty towards a single brand. Thus, both Tarun and
Arup Mullick need to recognize that to believe that their typical consumer is any different from the new
experimental young Indians may be a gross oversimplification of the reality.

To discuss the business model and the marketing mix to identify the strengths and weaknesses of the firm,
the instructor may ask the students to center the discussion along the following heads: Clubb
Management; Clubb operations; and the 4 Ps- product, price, place and promotion. The likely discussion
and the points that may emerge are tabled in Exhibit TN -5. The Clubb Business Model.

An alternative to the above discussion method can be worked out where the students may be asked to
highlight key aspects of the business model. Subsequently, the instructor may use the inputs of the
assignment questions 1, 2 and 4 to put forth on the board a SWOT analysis (Exhibit TN- 6: SWOT
Analysis for Clubb International).

5. How is the financial health of Clubb? Does Tarun Mullick need to take drastic steps in the light
of your answers? Why/ why not? [10 minutes]

On the last four questions the instructor would have clearly established the macro (environmental and
competitor analysis) and micro (company orientation and business model) aspects of the Clubb’s story. In
this question as the students attempt the financial analysis and calculation of ratios, they will be able to
evaluate the effectiveness of the business strategies in more concrete terms.

After a thorough look at the Clubb financials as given in Exhibit 4a and 4b of the case, it is quite apparent
that the business model of Clubb is primarily based on the revenue generated by the sale of its products
that contributed to the tune of 98.31% of the total revenue in the last financial year, FY15-16. On
examining the sales figures one can see that the company has had an average sales figure of INR 20.2
million with a slight peak of 24.5 million approximately in 2013-2104. This could be attributed to the fact
that the company took a conscious decision to become more aggressive in its distribution and went for
expansion through both company owned Clubbcart.in and Clubbcart.com – as well as through aggregators
like Flipkart, Amazon, eBay and the likes. However, post 2013-2014 even though the contribution from
the e-commerce increased the company pruned its dealer network from 128 to 40 around 2010 and further
down to a 15 in 2017. Thus, the sales in the next two years stood at INR 20 million without any increased.
When one examines the profits that the company is making; the figures are fluctuating significantly and
showed a definite peak in 2013-2014 at INR 548006.29. Thus, despite more or less consistent but
plateauing sales, the profits of the company over the last five years are not satisfying, in terms of their
pattern. The reason for this can be attributed to the fluctuating profit margins (Exhibit TN-7. Clubb
Financial Ratios). Although Clubb has been able to tackle its manufacturing processes well as the
material expense ratio has declined over the years; however the rising employee cost expense ratio has
been pulling the profit figures down.

On the efficiency front, while the total asset turnover ratio shows a decline, the rising fixed assets
turnover ratio hints at the effectiveness of a lean operations. Further, the return on equity for the company
has also been declining for the past two years and the reason for this is the declining profitability. The
discussion on the financial ratios can be kept at a macro or a micro level depending on the instructor’s
session plan and objective. However, no matter what be the depth of the discussion, the students would be
able to appreciate that the decision to expand through multiple channels was a timely decision. Having
said that the fact that the sales is not increasing and the profit margins are not promising means that Clubb
needs to take strategic decisions on how to improve the margins as it strives towards achieving a bigger
share of the travel goods and accessories market.
 
 6. Arup Mullick is not satisfied with the slow organic growth of Clubb and wants the company to
take ‘a leadership role in the affordable branded segment’? A strong statement, which requires an
equally structured and decisive plan. What according to you should be the short and long term
steps that Clubb needs to take to achieve this objective? [20 minutes]

As the instructor reaches the question on what should be the road ahead for Clubb. One may ask the
learners to refer to the articles listed in the reading list. The instructor using the case for the strategic
marketing course may ask the students to refer to chapter 2 of the book by Boyd et al. (refer reading list).

Enthusiastic learner groups are likely to come up with a list of 3-4 priorities that Clubb faces at the
moment; like professionalizing the product development process, revamping the channel strategy;
focusing on international consumers, rethinking the communication strategy, planning for more
aggressive branding, etc. Though one can begin the discussion on what they deem fit; the authors have
found that it may be more prudent to begin by listing out the long term goals. One may begin by asking so
what are the Mullicks’ envisioning for Clubb? Are they thinking along the same lines or is there a
difference? Some points that may be put forth on the table are:

Tarun Mullick: Is the innovative and yet conservative entrepreneur. He is in the mood for expansion but
is equally vehement about sticking to his business philosophy of complete ownership. He would look at
new states, replicate the Kolkata Clubb model and use the manufacturing unit(s) as a hub for supplying
Clubb products to the neighboring states. This is similar to the way his largest dealer network works in
the North-Eastern states of the country.

Arup Mullick: While inculcated into the cautious and lean approach to handling the enterprise,
demonstrates a more futuristic vision when he talks about brands like Apple and Tesla, which he admires
and also aspires to be. He speaks of ‘building a brand that has an aura of exclusivity’ and talks about
building blocks that need to be set forth in the short term so that the company can scale up at the right
time.
These arguments would highlight the differences in the entrepreneurial thinking – while Tarun looks at
short term, following a ‘ lean philosophy’, being hypotheses driven and adaptive to topical market forces;
Arup has a futuristic vision that looks at short term that will be aligned to the long term and therefore
more structured. This thought will definitely need a change in the business orientation of Clubb.

The instructor may also ask the students to examine on the board the points they had made earlier –
regarding the company orientation- market or product. Secondly look at the SWOT culled out in the
fourth question. There will be multiple perspectives as well as many solutions. Since the discussion plan
is for an 80 minute class it may be useful to take the above perspectives as representing two ends of a
continuum and take a stand in support of one of the above and table the thoughts in terms of-
- The entrepreneurs vision
- The business orientation
- The marketing strategy
It is interesting to note that those supporting Tarun Mullick’s philosophy would use arguments from
Blank’s article and those favoring Arup would make use of the paper by Johnson et al. The discussion and
the arguments that may pan-out are succinctly put in Exhibit TN–8a &b. Clubb strategy that will
Shape Clubb Road Map: Organic vs Aggressive. It may be appreciated that the combination of
product; distribution and communication strategies that students may come up with will vary. The
instructor may decide to leave them as simply indicative or alternately explore them in detail, depending
on the teaching purpose and learning outcome expected.

WHAT HAPPENED?

In the mid-2017, Clubb continues to carry out its zealous product innovation and development process
and bring in new styles and designs to attract new customers and deliver delight to their existing customer
base. In May 2017, Arup decided to extend their product line by adding an entirely ‘new to the company’
umbrella product. The newly launched Clubbrella (the name given to the Clubb umbrella) had a unique
‘new to the market’ design inspired by a foreign market product. The stand-able, non-dripping, no-pinch,
double-spoked design was adopted to effectively face strong winds and had the inbuilt utility of a
convenient hand-free close-C-shaped handle. Tarun had immediately liked the new product extension
idea, which also came with a number of critical advantages over a traditional umbrella keeping the urban
dweller’s usage requirements. The umbrella had an inside out design that needed the minimum gap for
closing and opening that would make getting into the car on a rainy day less messy and came with a
slightly higher price tag of INR 995 for a piece. Tarun shared the design and utility video with some of
his close aids and bagged a deal of 100 odd umbrellas from one of his institutional clients on the very first
day. The product extension looked promising with a lot of potential to make the Clubb brand stand out
with its unique offer. On the retail front, May 2017 also saw the inauguration of Clubb’s fourth ClubbCart
store in a posh new Mall in Howrah, Kolkata.

While the new store in the mall supports Tarun Mullick’s complete ownership strategy; the launch of the
Clubbrella, seems to support Arup’s vision of being a one stop shop for travel goods and accessories.
Thus it is interesting as does not clearly indicate whose vision and therefore strategy does this support.
The only thing that would be clear is that Clubb seems to be looking at taking a more aggressive approach
to expansion. The direction and effectiveness of this would be interesting to observe in coming times..

Exhibit TN-2: COMPETITOR ANALYSIS FOR TRAVEL GOODS & ACCESSORIES

Source: Authors’ representation based on case facts and M.E. Porter (1979): How competitive forces shape strategy.
Harvard Business Review, 57 (2), p. 137-145.

Exhibit TN-4. CLUBB INTERNATIONAL: PRODUCT OR MARKETING ORIENTATION?

Orientation
Clubb Timeline
Product Concept Marketing concept
1980 Identified an uncluttered With no technological & communication
Mullick identifies the soft nascent opportunity; less capital advantage; only way a new player could
luggage market as a and technology intensive. survive was to be customer-centric and fulfil
lucrative opportunity. the apparent/unmet customer needs.
1980-1990 The order/ subsequent orders – Big & repeat orders for most of the leading
Obtained a large order to Bata, Puma, Duckback, Lotto brands; indicated a sound marketing/
make nylon bags for etc. indicated excellent product customer-centric (business-to-business
Bata’s sub-brand Power. quality & performance. customers) approach.
1991 Better designs & quality at For a market where the customers were
Launches Clubb brand competitive prices; aggressive largely value driven; Mullick’s idea to satisfy
(registers company- Clubb dealer margins were key the customer needs with great designs at
International private business strategies for survival affordable prices was definitely customer
limited) and logo. and success. centric.
1991-1994 Product development with Products favored by government (police
Experiments with innovations in design & raw force) and local (fashion conscious customers
different raw materials- material demonstrate a strong in Kolkata and new markets) are strong
jute/ jute diversified etc. product focus. Emphasis on support for a marketing focus. Focus on
New customer segments product development as a buying the best quality raw material at the
RAW/ Kolkata police and constant process. Changing best price. No advertising meant low
new states e.g. product range every 2 years; overheads and enhanced value through
Maharashtra etc. with addition of 8-10 products/ affordable pricing.
month.
1994-2000 Innovative jute & jute-leather Clubb created value by addressing the
Clubb products marketed combination was a huge hit in apparent as well as hidden needs of the
to many International both international as well as the customer with a variety of jute/ jute-leather
markets with UNDP fashion and exclusivity seeking diversified designs. Supports the logic of
funding received by the domestic customer markets. customer delight as this novelty came at
firm affordable price points.
2000-2004 Focus on innovative practices, A loyal customer base and no advertising
Clubb faced tough times, product development along with meant that the brand delivered substantial
post the entry of big dealer support (with better value to the customer for it to survive a stage
international and national margins and great quality) of heavy competition and loss of territory.
brands with more capital helped the company to tide over
& communication power. tough times.
2004 Though this move does not Move towards company owned retail
Clubb opens its first off- indicate a product philosophy indicates a customer centric marketing
factory-site retail outlet. directly, however company orientation. Own retail meant enhancing the
owned retail, extended the buying experience. This ensured that the end
product experience and provide consumer is serviced and engaged better with
a better opportunity to the Clubb products.
showcase the product quality
and features.
2011 The second generation Arup aspired to reach the new age
Arup Mullick completes entrepreneur brought new experimental and innovation seeking
college and formally joins design/approach to product consumer and talks about making products
Clubb as Director development- both in terms of that are more likeable by the younger
design & product innovations. consumers resulting in rising popularity with
College-goers (refer Case exhibit-6)
2014-2016 Making Clubb offerings Careful emphasis on customer appeal and
Starts national available on multiple platforms better recall during designing/redesigning the
(Clubbcart.com)/ meant that the array of product Clubb logo or even selecting the name Clubb
international offerings would have to be (refer Case facts) are indicative of
(Clubbcart.in) e- changed constantly and fast. marketing/customer focus. The
commerce platforms; 1 The learners would be able to entrepreneur’s firm belief in satisfied
more physical retail store support the product perspective customers’ word of mouth (WOM) as the
established. Opens an with ample quotes from case best publicity was another indicator of
office-cum-retail outlet at section on Clubb Product line. customer-focus.
the factory premises. The
Clubb logo is redesigned.
2017- Clubb eyes a leadership positon in the soft luggage market and prepares to plan the road ahead.
Source: Authors’ representation based on case facts
Exhibit TN-5. THE CLUBB BUSINESS MODEL

Domain Details Strength Weakness

Clubb - A lean and flat organization. + Lean structure so -A small family
Management - Mullicks were respected and well quick decision making group; may not have
connected in the Kolkata elite and implementation. the management or
class. + Low attrition and a professional skills
- All major management decisions family like set up necessary to scale up.
are taken by the senior Mullick amongst the small - Older employees
- Family-owned/driven: product group of workers. may possess expertise
design/ execution & retail but may not be
- SME with 18 managerial and 80+ adaptive to new
skilled/semi-skilled workers practices.
Clubb - All raw material and sourcing + to ensure the - One-man-show will
Operations from a dedicated group of supplier quality be deterrent when the
and handled by Tarun Mullick. /design/affordable firm wants to expand
- The company had its own units
pricing combination- into new products or
(four) in central Kolkata.
sound vendor territories.
- Belief in the bootstrapping and
relationship to get best -Bootstrapping would
complete ownership model in
material at the best be a huge deterrent for
order to manage best margins and
price achieving the scale of
product performance and quality
+ ownership ensures operations that Arup
consistency in terms of Mullick hopes to gain
product quality and
customer satisfaction
Product - Has more than 200 products at a + Completely new -Non-standardized, un
given point in time range every two years structured processes in
- Apart from soft luggage has and every month add 8- terms of product
products such as raincoats and 10 new products development and
plans to sell complimentary + Fusion of design and design-iterative in
products like umbrellas to be material to come up nature
ultimately recognized as a one- with unique and novel - Too dependent on a
stop travel shop. product composition single man’s belief
- Focus on product development + Constant innovation about the product
and innovation and product decision.
improvement- e.g. the - Disorganized in its
weight of the airplane new product
strolley. development process
+ Unique go-to-market and sometimes scrap
approach and observe the product if it does
trends and being a lean not sell for a fortnight -
company response tie is this may result in heavy
less as compared to the loss.
bigger player.
+ Revives out-of-style
 products to cash on
nostalgia and heritage
value
Price - Best material at best price; + Complete value in - The new age variety
complete ownership model means terms of the most seeking consumer;
the focus of the company will be affordable offerings and those looking at
to keep the price points 10-15% trendy designs may
lower than the competitor prices. not always be
focused on price.
Place - Aggressive margins and a strong + In 2 years enormous - Complete ownership
dealer (40) network –mostly in the growth through the e- and no rentals will not
north-eastern Indian states. channels work as the company
- Have a dedicated sales force to + Company owned scales up
service the dealer network. retail ensures a - The stringent policy
- Company owned retail-2 in high personal customer of not keeping anything
end malls and 1 in the factory connect even on the but Clubb products at
premise aggregator platforms the retail stores may be
- Sells through its own national like Amazon counterproductive for
and international portal as well as + Supply directly to its dream to be a one-
through 9 online portals. retailers –no stop shop for travel
wholesalers to ensure goods and accessories.
better dealer margins. - The digital Clubb
+ Customer grievance platforms are extremely
handling with very high static and do not
importance. In case of a generate any kind of
rare case of customer customer engagement.
complaint, the
customer is given a
replacement without
even asking for a
return.
Promotion - An absolute no-advertising + In a connected world - In a cluttered and
policy where the best growing market place
- The entrepreneur is in the news incentive for sales is that has a range of big
for his training and talks on customer’s own international and
entrepreneurship where he keeps experience with the national brands on one
sharing the Clubb story product and his hand and the cheaper
- One event around the biggest jute advocacy to others, Chinese and
bag largely highlighted in the local Clubb strategy is Vietnamese alternative
news as well as holds a record in absolutely in place on the other, a no-
the Limca book of records. + Saves enormous advertising strategy can
-Believes in ‘whisper publicity’ or advertising expenditure never work
positive customer word of mouth that go a long way in - For a brand to
maintaining the resonate with its
affordable pricing customer it must
 strategy communicate and
engage with its end
users.
Source: Authors’ representation based on case facts

EXHIBIT TN-6. SWOT ANALYSIS

Strength Weakness
 Loyal customer base- especially young urban middle  Conservative risk-averse approach
class women adopted by the founder limits scalability
 Recognized for superior quality & innovation. and reach.
 Trendy designs at affordable price  Total control of operations in the hands
 Remained small and beautiful with a lean structure of the founder restricts the horizon
(26 years) and a bootstrap philosophy  Still following a product concept at the
 Maintains its commitment to personalized customer core
service  Despite loyal customers, lacks a proper
 Complete ownership and control over its brick-and- CRM framework
mortar retail  Slow on retail expansion- both space and
 E-tail sales performance has been picking up and product assortment
going good so far  Recognition more as a local brand; lost
 Growing customer demand from the international ground to aggressive new entrants, e.g.
markets in USA, UK, Australia Wildcraft
 A wide range of products that could serve travel  Sales revenue have managed to remain
needs of any nature well, with at least 200 options to almost at the same level over the last 5
choose from at a single time year period even in a fast growing
 Changing target customer base with more younger market
clientele e.g. College-goers who are more frequent  The no advertising philosophy may
purchasers come in the way of building the brand in
the national/international market

Opportunity Threat
 Sector predicted to grow at a CAGR for 5% globally  Entry of established global brands with
and at an unprecedented rate of 20% by 2017-18 in aggressive plans to market and
India eventually expand into the non-urban
 Growing demand in the semi-urban and non-urban markets as well
markets as well  Presence of strong national brands like
 Growing travel friendly populace in India backed by VIP that enjoyed almost a near
rising disposable incomes and more women in the monopoly for many years
workforce  Unwanted price competition from the
 A varied range of transforming customer needs cheaper Chinese made product and
related to their travel and accessories purposes gives unorganized manufacturers selling low
immense scope for product innovation and quality goods
marketing  Higher involvement with fashion and
 Increasing demand for personal accessories like brand may lead consumers to switch to
watches and bags premium branded segments or even
 Availability of a varied range of quality as well as brand copies
alternative raw materials  Environmentalist concerns over leather-
 Decreasing dealer control with the advent of e- made goods and pollution caused by
commerce platforms that has the potential to cater to toxic wastes
the larger global market
  Encouraging Government policies around leather
industry, and MSME sectors
Source: Authors’ representation based on case facts
Exhibit TN-8a. CLUBB STRATEGY THAT WILL SHAPE THE CLUBB ROAD MAP: ORGANIC

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Source: Authors’ representation based on case facts

Exhibit TN-8b. CLUBB STRATEGY THAT WILL SHAPE THE CLUBB ROAD MAP: AGGRESSIVE
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Source: Authors’ representation based on case facts