Kathy Kudler founded Kudler Fine Food. She was once the VP of marketing for a large defense contractor. Weary of the constant travel and the pressures of corporate life, Kathy was looking for other opportunities. As it happened, Kathy relieved her stress through gourmet cooking and on a shopping trip for ingredients for a gourmet meal. Kathy suddenly realized there was an opportunity for an upscale epicurean food shop in La Jolla. Kathy developed a business plan, obtained financing and six months later, on June 18, 1998, the first Kudler Fine Foods opened. Within nine months the store was at break-even and was profitable for the year. In 2000, a second store was opened in Del Mar and in 2003 a third…show more content… She will compete in the industry by keeping her prices low and offering the product lines her customers’ requests. Kathy Kudler has done some catering and is considering expanding this division of the company. Kathy “is able to keep costs down and the profit margin is 25% better than product profit margin in the stores” (UOPX, 2003, p. 9). She still wants to oversee much of what happens during expansion for the business.
The 2003 Strategic Plan for Kudler Fine Foods outlines the expansion of the company concerning its SWOT analysis. The focus in the document is concerning ways the Kathy Kudler can keep a hand in the foods and services offered, yet focus highly on the needs of the customers. “As we continue to grow, there is always the possibility that we may be acquired by another company. Kathy could consider such a move in the future as part of her retirement plan” (UOPX, 2003, p. 10). So the company could merge with another company in the long-term, but there will be additional management helping to align the vision of Kudler with another organization.
Threats of Each Approach
Like any venture a company may take, going IPO has many risks associated with it. Probably the biggest risk is that management loses complete control over the company. Going public brings investors onto the scene, all-vying for a piece of the pie. All financial documents are made available to the general public. This makes it easier for secrets to be obtained
