Relationship Marketing Strategy and implementation

Gerald Ratner’s infamous 1991 speech—where he jokingly called his products “total crap” and claimed prawn sandwiches outlasted Ratners’ earrings—triggered a £500 million market value collapse and became a textbook example of preventable crisis mismanagement. The fallout and subsequent rebranding of Ratners as Signet Jewelers in 1993 offer critical insights into Situational Crisis Communication Theory (SCCT), demonstrating how leadership […]

Tesco’s private-label penetration has surged to 45% of its UK grocery sales, reshaping competitive dynamics and challenging FMCG brands across categories. By leveraging retailer power, data-driven agility, and tiered private-label strategies, Tesco has eroded traditional brand loyalty while capturing margin advantages. This report analyzes Tesco’s dominance and outlines actionable strategies for FMCG brands to defend shelf space […]

British Airways (BA) has emerged as a leader in omnichannel loyalty, seamlessly integrating mobile app functionalities with in-flight services to create a unified customer journey. By applying Lemon & Verhoef’s customer journey model—spanning pre-purchase, purchase, consumption, and post-purchase phases—BA demonstrates how strategic digital and operational alignment fosters loyalty in the competitive aviation sector. Lemon & Verhoef’s […]

For over three decades, The Body Shop’s Community Trade Program has redefined corporate responsibility by embedding ethical sourcing into its core business strategy. Established in 1987 as Trade Not Aid, the initiative now partners with 30+ global communities across 22 countries, exemplifying Michael Porter’s shared value creation model—where business success and societal progress are inextricably linked. This report analyzes the program’s […]

Nordstrom’s ability to maintain 79% customer loyalty despite a negative Employee Net Promoter Score (eNPS) of -5 reveals a paradoxical yet instructive dynamic in retail HR strategy. By analyzing this tension through Frederick Reichheld’s loyalty framework, we uncover how targeted employee engagement and cultural empowerment can drive customer advocacy even amid broader workforce dissatisfaction. The Nordstrom Paradox: Low eNPS, […]

The Six Markets Model, developed by Payne, Ballantyne, and Christopher in 1991, redefines relationship marketing by expanding its scope beyond traditional customer interactions. This framework identifies six interrelated market domains—customer, referral, supplier, recruitment, influence, and internal markets—that collectively drive organizational success. By strategically engaging each market, businesses like Nestlé and Tesco have cultivated competitive advantages, […]

Guardian Royal’s dual distribution model—leveraging both traditional brokers and its direct channel, Guardian Direct—exemplifies the challenges and opportunities of hybrid strategies in insurance. By applying Stern & El-Ansary’s conflict resolution framework, Guardian Royal can mitigate tensions between channels while capitalizing on their complementary strengths. This report outlines actionable strategies to balance broker-direct dynamics, fostering collaboration over […]

Cafédirect’s 2024 micro-influencer campaigns achieved a 300% increase in social media engagement by embedding farmer narratives into its digital strategy, aligning with Karen Freberg’s authenticity framework (sincerity, truthful endorsements, visibility, expertise, uniqueness). As a pioneer in ethical coffee sourcing, Cafédirect leveraged micro-influencers to bridge the gap between smallholder farmers and conscious consumers, proving that purpose-driven storytelling can outperform traditional […]

The 2011 Fukushima earthquake and tsunami exposed critical vulnerabilities in Toyota’s supply chain, particularly its reliance on geographically concentrated, single-source suppliers. In response, Toyota implemented a transformative risk mitigation strategy that combined supplier diversification, multi-tier visibility, and adaptive Just-in-Time (JIT) principles. By 2024, these measures enabled Toyota to reduce supply chain disruption recovery times by 60% while maintaining 98% […]

Laura Ashley’s 2024 ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) implementation exemplifies how strategic internal communication can dismantle organizational silos and synchronize design, sales, and logistics operations. By applying Doyle’s partnership model—which emphasizes linguistic alignment, shared mental models, and cultural cohesion—the retail giant achieved a 23% increase in operational efficiency and reduced interdepartmental conflicts by 40%. This report analyzes Laura Ashley’s […]