State College is a town in Pennsylvania that developed as a result of the college in the area. Regardless, it is more than a college town with a lifestyle and people who show lots of taste for new things, especially food. The town has a lot of people, and most of them are visitors seeking to enjoy the State College’s exciting nightlife. Because of the stream of visitors, businesses like hotels, motels and inns are plenty in town. These businesses target to provide the best of services to their customers so as to ensure that the influx continues to rise. The town has a lot to do even though it is small, including indoor and outdoor activities. Some of the recreational activities include golfing, biking, fishing, arts, culture and music (“Top 10 Hotels in State College, PA | Hotels.com”). The best hotels in the area include the Penn Stater Hotel and Hilton Garden Inn. Using the Competitive Profile Matrix (CPM), this memo will provide a preliminary insight into the nature of competition that Shake Shack will face in State College Pennsylvania.
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The CPM used for this analysis studied thirteen critical success factors of the two major hotels in the area. The most vital ones included quality of services, market share, market expansion, financial position, competitive prices, sales distribution, and innovation. Following their weighted scores, Shake Shack comes out at the top because it has several critical success factors that it has utilized significantly. It has a weighted score of 3.21 whereas the other two hotels had 2.76 each. The key factor that Shake Shack performed poorly was advertising where it depicted minor weaknesses. The other two restaurants in State College showed minor strengths in this dimension where their advertising rates were at least higher than Shake Shack’s. To be even more competitive at State College, Shake Shack has to improve its advertising to entice more locals and visitors to utilize its resources.
The CPM also provided critical strengths that the Shake Shack depicts in its current market. For example, it has a strong financial position, an established brand, and high-quality services (Jones par. 1-4). All these factors ensured that it had a higher weighted score when compared to its possible competitors in State College. Despite this, the other two hotels depicted growing strength in their financial status. This is because they showed minor strengths and with their growing economy, they are bound to expand and improve their position. Just like Shake Shack, the Penn Stater Hotel and Hilton Garden Inn have an established brand in the area with regards to their position in the market. In other words, Shake Shack would have to enhance its strategies to alter their strong positions in the area. With regards to the performance in the CPM, Shake Shack has a good chance of surviving in this area.
Attachments: The CPM for Shake Shack, The Penn Stater Hotel, and Hilton Garden Inn.
- Jones, Adam. “Analyzing Shake Shack’s Fine-Casual Concept – Market Realist.” Market Realist – Investment Research & Analytics, 14 Jan. 2015, marketrealist.com/2015/01/analyzing-shake-shacks-fine-casual-concept/.
- “Top 10 Hotels in State College, PA | Hotels.com.” Hotels.com – Earn Free Nights on Cheap Hotels Near You, 2017, Hotels.com, www.hotels.com/de1528505/hotels-state-college-pennsylvania/.