MKTG1268 Final Assessment piece Semester 1, 2022
No late submissions will be accepted. The total word count expected is 1750 (+-10%). All tables, diagrams, graphs and photos are also NOT included in your word count.
You are expected to complete in-depth secondary research for each question (such as Vihari’s website, competitor’s websites, general google searches, jewellery store websites, reports on innovative ideas that retailers are using post COVID-19, to name a few). Therefore, in text citations and a Reference List using Harvard referencing are expected. The reference list is NOT included in your word count.
Please develop your own Title Page showing your full name, your RMIT student number, your local lecturer’s name and class and the total word count. Please put this page at the front of your submission. It has no bearing on Turnitin.
You are responsible for submitting your final assessment on time. If circumstances prevent you from being able to submit, you will need to apply for an extension. Please review the application process on the General Information for ALL assessment pieces on canvas. It outlines that if you need to apply for an extension you need to complete the application form and send it together with the required documentary evidence and email them both to your course coordinator. Please ensure you read the list of documents required as the application cannot be approved without these.
If you have any technical issues at submission time, then please take a screen shot and email it to Kathleen at the above email. Then keep trying to submit it, even in the morning of Monday 25th April.
Please note that this assessment task is to be done individually and without consultation or discussion with other students. Any student who is found to have breached this requirement through any form of media or consultation will be investigated for academic misconduct as plagiarism in any form is not accepted.
Your final assessment piece is a case study with two (2) compulsory questions. One of the questions has four (4) parts. All questions and all parts are compulsory. This case study will be marked out of 50. It is worth 50% of the total marks for this course.
Vihari Jewels
Brand owners and retail entrepreneurs are rethinking design and ramping up experience – adding unique elements to their spaces to entice customers to linger.
Founded in 2006, Vihari Jewels has created a niche market for discerning clientele who value heirloom pieces composed of rare, opulent, one-of-a-kind, investment grade stones. More recently, the brand has also started offering a seasonal line of trendier jewellery that, while more affordable, still boasts rare stones that will carry their value across generations.
Headquartered in Singapore, with a base in Hong Kong, Vihari Jewels specialises in meticulously crafted heirloom pieces which showcases the beauty of the exquisite stones that the house sources from around the world. The design aesthetic of the brand is classic contemporary and counts many of Singapore’s social elites among its customers. Operating initially as a by-appointment-only boutique, Vihari Jewels serves as a jeweller known for acquiring extremely rare, coloured diamonds, Colombian emeralds and Burmese rubies.
When you step into Vihari Jewels’ new flagship boutique at Paragon, do not be alarmed by the giant rocks protruding from the ceiling. The lifelike structures made of graphite are simply meant to re-create the atmosphere of a diamond mine, where the brand’s precious stones are sourced.
There are also simple mining tools interspersed between the display cases. It provides a starting point for educating customers on gemmology. Set up like a jewellery exhibition, the space spotlights the brand’s investment-grade heirloom pieces in the centre, with its more affordable ready-to-wear ranges showcased at the sides.
The front of the store is conceptualised as a dark diamond mine, where the brand’s jewels are mined. Deeper inside, the 1,340 sq ft store turns bright. It was designed as a lifestyle space with a living room, “walk-in wardrobe for jewellery” and even a bar for customers.
The store was envisioned to feel like a museum and designed to be a creative space, simulating an industrial mine – the heartbeat of where gemmology and jewellery begin, so that customers have the opportunity to learn about the origins of the various stones. With an island bar taking centre stage on the shopfloor, they hope customers would feel relaxed and comfortable to hang out in store, whether it’s jewellery shopping or whiskey tasting.
The idea is to take the business of jewellery beyond “just over the counter” dealings, The store marks the brand’s transition from bespoke jeweller and purveyor of rare stones to a retail-ready brand. Over the pandemic, they started offering seasonal collections of trendier, more “accessible” jewellery pieces that start at $5,000. The biggest thing for them was to translate the bigger investment pieces they’ve been selling for 15 years into something more affordable; to go after different segments of the market but, at the same time, keep the quality. For instance, customers who fancy the priceless 50-carat Burmese Star Ruby on display can take home something similar like the ruby-studded Lady Luck Earrings ($15,142).
Tying old traditions with new memories, the jewellery house looks set to herald a new dawn with more engaging lifestyle events and one-of-a-kind designs at its new location. Vihari also aims to educate clients on how to select jewellery and provide consultations for those who would like to know which pieces are a good fit for their private collections.
Before, it was by appointment only, which can be a bit intimidating. Now, people can just browse, so that’s a lot more welcoming. The mysterious-looking storefront has drawn a number of walk-in customers.
To celebrate its flagship store’s opening, Vihari Jewels has launched another exciting collection this holiday season with a glamorous and luminescent selection of pieces that are reminiscent of the brand’s commitment to celebrations and festivities while being enveloped in familial love. Titled “The Eternal Orchid”, the collection pays homage to Singapore’s national flower – the Vanda Miss Joaquim, to celebrate the jewellery house’s very first boutique in the city. The 7-piece collection showcases bold and sophisticated pieces with understated glamour.
With the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and the decline of large-scale events, they note that there’s been a shift in consumer behaviour when it comes to gems and trendier, quirkier and less formal pieces are more in demand and the jewellery house continues to create conversation pieces that are perfect for intimate gatherings.
Questions
- Discuss the Vihari store’s physical evidence (one of the 7Ps of services marketing) to analyse and evaluate the elements introduced by Vihari to maximise their sales and gain/maintain customers. (5 marks)
- (a) Identify and discuss in detail two (2) new segments of customer who Vihari could target. (5 marks)
- Complete in-depth research on the promotions of two (2) competitors, as well as what promotions each of your two segments (from (a) above) will respond to and why. (10 marks)
- Then develop a 12-month promotion plan for each of these two segments PLEASE UNDERSTAND THE TWO QUESTIONS HAVE TO BE ANSWERED SEPARATELY AND NOT COMBINED TOGETHER. (24 marks)
- Explain your 12-month promotion plan, though a detailed list of suggestions for each of your target segments. The promotion show be designed with an objective to increase Vahari’s sales. (6 marks)