Student Assessment Submission and Declaration: A Reflective Performance Report on the Fall and Revival of Juicy Couture

Student Assessment Submission and Declaration

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Module name and code:	A2: Individual Reflective Performance Report (Based on Business Case Study given on Moodle)
Title:	The Business Environment
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Contents

SL no	Description	Page no
1	Introduction	3
2	Description	4
3	Feelings	4
4	Evaluation	5
5	Analysis	6
6	Conclusion	7
7	Action Plan	7
8	Conclusion	9
9	References	10
10	Appendix: Case Study Solutions	11

A Reflective Performance Report

Introduction

The following reflective report discusses the fall of Juicy Couture and the strategies of the brand to bring it back to life. Collectively, by applying Tuckman and Jensen’s group development model as a means of categorising a set of strategic decisions, participants engaged in examining the consequences of tactics covering the fast fashion market. The report discusses the difficulties encountered and the experiences gained while implementing the group work model.

Figure 1: Juicy Couture Logo and symbol, meaning, history, PNG, brand

(Source: 1000 Logos, 2024)

1. Description

The case study defined Juicy Couture, a brand that gained popularity in the early 2000s and traditional velour tracksuits and glamour branding. However, by the decade of 2010, the brand experienced a lot of challenges such as a shift in customers’ behaviour and growing competition within the fast fashion category. The case analysed the decline of Juicy Couture (2024) and the steps that the company can take to reestablish itself amidst stiff competition. It underlined the problem, which every fashion business faces today the problem of how to remain indispensable in an industry that changes faster than most other industries, and where the buyer’s approach to purchasing is slowly but steadily changing for the better, towards fair and reasonable.

Juicy Couture is in the fashion industry with a specific product life cycle known to be fast fashion that deals with the production of cheap fashionable clothes. Puma was first built around the celebrity endorsement trend that was evident in the early 2000s, and when this faded the company was unable to sustain the growth (e Sá, 2021). Analysing the case of Juicy Couture, the organisation had to reassess the business model, brand identity and product portfolio to reclaim its position in the market.

In connection with the class discussions, we identified different approaches that Juicy Couture could take to reinvent the brand. The group development model by Tuckman and Jensen was used in our group to define the flow of working together. To be specific, we are in the forming stage where we are not expressive about our ideas and opinions and we are very formal. When we transitioned to the storming phase of the team development, conflict of ideas emerged especially over whether Juicy Couture should tap into the past or change drastically. There was some tension in this stage, but it helped to focus and develop our ideas. During the norming phase of the group development, we integrated our efforts and brought the aspect of brand history into correlation to today’s sustainable practices. At the performing stage, our group had an organised and integrated approach that we deemed suitable to assist Juicy Couture in regaining the attention of the target market, coupled with the micro environment factors of challenge within the fast fashion industry.

2. Feelings

At first, I was confident that Juicy Couture could be developed and become both qualitative and quantitative, comparable to the results achieved by a Kaws store in New York City. The brand has a good history and well-established brand recognition, especially in consumers’ memory of the concept of luxury casual wear in the early 2000s. This sentiment can be a highly valuable resource in promotional and identification initiatives.

The fast fashion segment is characterised by continuous transformations, particularly about customer preferences in terms of sustainability and ethical production (Wijeweera, 2024). This shift raised major concerns as I lacked adequate knowledge of business strategies and at the same time tried to know how Juicy Couture could be positioned with ease in a new market without losing its identity.

In addition, more brands are introduced in the competitive environment and mainly they can quickly adapt to changes, which creates a tendency toward undue pressure on key performers such as Juicy Couture (Distanont, 2020). Deciding to always stay relevant proved to be an oversight that I, within this context, underestimated because it was obvious that such a status would demand a major strategic shift.

I also came to understand that as much as modelling is key in the fashion industry, flexibility is central in the fast fashion niche. It emphasised that a strategic decision must be made based on the notion of the changing consumer behaviour and industry environment. To be able to excel in these tasks, I realised the importance of further growth in the understanding of strategic marketing, consumer psychology and sustainability practices.

3. Evaluation

What Went Right?:

Another strong aspect of our group working on the case analysis of Juicy Couture is that we were able to collect the opinions of various authors. This made it easy to generate new ideas and to look at a problem from a different perspective when solving it because this is helpful in a dynamic field such as fast fashion (Liu et al., 2020). The freethinking culture we created ensured that we had active constructive communication and encouraged coming up with solutions. There were some difficulties seen during the storming phase since people had conflicts with the opinions and ideas of other colleagues, which made the analysis too long. This stage was an avenue to also learn some of the components of inter and intra-personal communications, especially in groups and solving conflicts arising in any group. Some possible recommendations I came up with need clear guidelines for decision-making to avoid pulling and trenching politics (Gutman and Goldmeier, 2021). 

Group Dynamics

Evaluating this group activity about Tuckman & Jensen’s theory, it is possible to state that our group activity followed the forming-storming-norming-performing cycle. First, we were polite and careful in the forming stage because no one wanted to share his weak points at the beginning of the interaction. Entering the storming phase, people started voicing contradicting opinions, which is an indication of the readability of the participants on Juicy Couture. Despite the discomfort observed at this stage, it was essential for our process to define goals and objectives as stated by Tuckman and Jensen (1977) (McGowan-Kirsch and Lohiser, 2021).

The norming phase was particularly important since during the study, all members engaged and felt the freedom to contribute with their suggestions (Zhou, 2021). This transition made it possible for us to build rapport and goal congruency thereby improving our perceived collective self-efficacy. However, the storming phase of the team processes acted as a message of the need to practise patience and tolerance when working in a group. What I realised was that the place enhances the building of interpersonal skills and strategic thinking skills mainly on how to deal with the complexity of the employees most especially when organising groups in various business environments.

4. Analysis

Strategic Decisions

Our group identified several strategic decisions Juicy Couture could consider to overcome its challenges:

• Rebranding and Modernization: Currently, the primary areas of attention for Juicy Couture should be the update of brand image in the direction of active, environmentally friendly, sustainable manufacturing, and youth-oriented image for the new generation of consumers_. Using sustainable materials and offering clear supply chains can help the brand’s image.

• Targeted Marketing Campaigns: Social media and collaboration with suitable influencers can help revive the desire for the brand. Many fan [bases] are usually built on Juicy Couture’s history and also tap into nostalgia instead of allowing fans to grow out of their love for the brand.

• Diversification of Product Lines: A good example is increasing the product line with more products with more openness to more consumers. The decision to introduce athleisure and sustainable activewear could maybe be related to existing consumer trends.

The Roles of Business Theories

Based on the business theories related to the subject, Porter’s Five Forces model was used to analyse the competitive forces that Juicy Couture deals with (Investopedia, 2024). The threat of new entrants was high in the fast fashion market and therefore differentiation was called for. Moreover, Mintzberg’s strategy formation model can be used to define the primary sources of a strategy that focus on the change in market conditions: deliberate and emergent strategies. This is the greatest or pressing concern facing Juicy Couture because it’s a task to strike a middle ground between the firm’s past and present, thereby ensuring that its decisions reflect the queue of external opportunities

5. Conclusion

So based on the analysis presented it can be noted that for future endeavours in case analysis as well as future group work enhancing certain skill sets will be crucial. First of all, the activity of strategic thinking requires further development. Taking into account that the ability to form and assess strategic decisions will have to become more refined in the future to counter complicated business problems, it is important to detect and focus on the major directions of development to consider.

Secondly, one has to be able to resolve the conflict and this is here that one may also need conflict resolution skills. The improvement of these abilities will contribute to the process of enhancing work in groups, particularly as regards opinion differences within a team, so that it becomes better able to work on differences and reach agreement more quickly.

Last, and importantly, there must be a greater comprehension of consumers and their behaviours. Consumer behaviour is also fast changing since it defines how customers of various products will approach the market in the future.

6. Action Plan

Potential Changes for the Subsequent Stages

To address similar business challenges in the future, I will implement the following action plan:

1. Continuous Learning: Take more workshops or courses which are related to strategic management and consumers to gain improved knowledge of the market environment and competencies in decision-making.

2. Active Participation in Group Work: Ensure that there is free flow of communication in the presence of the members of the group following the procedures of the group by ensuring that even if there is a conflict then the conflict is solved.

3. Research Trends: Monitor the market fluctuations and customers’ behaviour concerning fast fashion to become aware of the context and better solve business problems.

4. Seek Feedback: After group projects, it is necessary to pay special attention and ask the opinion of my colleagues as to what I can do better in the aspect of contributing to the dynamics of the groups or with decision-making.

Conclusion

Therefore, this reflexivity exercise was constructive in realising the significance of strategic analysis, conflict management, and consumer behaviour in fast fashion. Through the improvement of these skills in ways such as furthering one’s education, engaging in a group project, researching trends, and asking for critique, I hope to become a more effective future group project and business-solving member.

References

Craik, J., (2024). Fashion: the key concepts. Bloomsbury Publishing.

Distanont, A., (2020). The role of innovation in creating a competitive advantage. Kasetsart Journal of Social Sciences, 41(1), pp.15-21.

e Sá, N.V., (2021). Nike’s Momentum during times of turbulence: How will the athletic giant shape the future of retail? (Doctoral dissertation, NOVA–School of Business and Economics).

Eyo-Udo, N.L., Odimarha, A.C. and Kolade, O.O., (2024). Ethical supply chain management: balancing profit, social responsibility, and environmental stewardship. International Journal of Management & Entrepreneurship Research, 6(4), pp.1069-1077.

Gutman, A.J. and Goldmeier, J., (2021). Becoming a data head: How to think, speak, and understand data science, statistics, and machine learning. John Wiley & Sons.

Investopedia, (2024) Available at: https://www.investopedia.com/terms/p/porter.asp (Accessed on: 28/09/2024)

Juicy Couture (2024) Available at: https://juicycouture.com/?srsltid=AfmBOopXs1gOsmYAWQculBiWERJucGE1hqmmv0SNaz37GLQXf5Yn8pcb (Accessed on: 28/09/2024)

Liu, S.Y., Napier, E., Runfola, A. and Cavusgil, S.T., (2020). MNE-NGO partnerships for sustainability and social responsibility in the global fast-fashion industry: A loose-coupling perspective. International Business Review, 29(5), p.101736.

McGowan-Kirsch, A.M. and Lohiser, A., (2021). Progressing through Tuckman’s Phases in a Virtual College Classroom. Post-Pandemic Pedagogy: A Paradigm Shift, p.219.

Sykes, P., (2020). How Do We Know We're Doing It Right?: And Other Thoughts On Modern Life. Random House.

Wijeweera, S., (2024). Purchase Intention Increasing Strategy: Factors contribute to differentiate Fast fashion clothes and Sustainable fashion clothes.

Zhou, Y., (2021). Leadership Influence on Collective Teacher Efficacy in Multi-Cultural Teams: A Mixed-Methods Study (Doctoral dissertation, Seattle Pacific University).

Appendix: Case Study Solutions

1. SWOT Analysis

Strengths:

• Brand Recognition: Juicy Couture has built an association based around its elements and its most famous product is the velour tracksuits.

• Loyal Customer Base: The brand still has a fan base to this day, especially the people who liked the clothing style of the early two thousand.

• Affordable Luxury Positioning: Juicy Couture is an accessories line that targets almost all consumers as an affordable luxury.

Weaknesses:

• Limited Market Penetration: The brand has for most of its existence been narrow, which hampers its growth in the market.

• Perception as a 'Trend of the Past': It additionally involves criticism that the brand is not fashionable anymore and is falling behind the most recent fashion trends.

• Sustainability Concerns: Like many fast fashion brands, Juicy Couture also has many complaints concerning the environment and the people.

Opportunities:

• Rebranding and Innovation: It is evident that opportunities lurk for Juicy Couture to redefine itself with sustainable fashion trends.

• Expansion into New Markets: The brand can turn to newer markets or expand online selling methods to involve younger people.

• Collaborations and Partnerships: Partnering with the appropriate influencer or other brands may help revive its image.

Threats:

• Intense Competition: Fast fashion is an intense industry made up of brands such as Zara and H&M which are the largest in the market.

• Changing Consumer Preferences: The new trends toward sustainable and ethical fashion present a problem to usual fast fashion companies.

• Economic Instability: Recession is known to threaten the expenditure of people on such ‘luxury’ items.

2. Nearest Competitors

Zara can be recognised as Juicy Couture's closest competitor in the UK fast fashion market along with H&M and Uniqlo (Sykes, 2020). These brands are also related and target a similar consumer group, an aesthetically conscious mass with casual wear keying on speed from sketch to store.

3. Current Customer Profile

Demographics:

• Age: 18-35 years

• Gender: Primarily female

• Location: Urban areas across the UK

• Occupation: Students, graduates

• Disposable Income: Moderate to high

• Hobbies: Fashion, social media, fitness, lifestyle blogging

Psychographic Profile:

• Personality Traits: sophisticated, stylish, concerned about brands, and other people (Craik, 2024). 

• Social Convictions: Having issues with social image, product branding and societal relevancy

• Socio-political Persuasions: Overall, consumers can be considered relatively liberal, with recent concern for sustainable consumption starting to emerge.

4. Promotion Strategies

• Brand Repositioning: Juicy Couture has plans to transform the company and shift the focus of their advertising back to the mixture of classic and contemporary styles that can accommodate old and new customers.

• Sustainability Campaign: A particular brand will come up with a campaign addressing the message that the production will incorporate sustainability into its manufacturing processes, using environmentally friendly materials.

5. Marketing/Advertising Streams

The main social media platforms that Juicy Couture will employ are Instagram and TikTok. These platforms are perfect as they are easily recognisable and commonly used by the target audience of the given brand. Organic networks also enable the brand to reach consumers via influencers and make use of the posted content itself.

6. How company tackle social and environmental issues

Juicy Couture plans to address its social and environmental challenges by:

• Implementing Sustainable Practices: Introducing environmentally friendly materials and minimising wastage of water in the manufacturing process.

• Ethical Labor Practices: Providing living wages for workers and improving the health and safety of workers in its supply chain, with written communication about these efforts and their results (Eyo-Udo, Odimarha and Kolade, 2024).

7. Consequences of being a Private Limited Company (Ltd.)

Juicy Couture operates under the Company’s private limited liability company, and this serves to protect the shareholders’ risk from their assets. However, this structure involves the provision of very strict financial reporting and high standards of corporate governance. While attracting funds may be slightly more demanding than in the case of public companies the brand can retain greater control over operations and decision making.