Development and marketing of a bakery

[ABSTRACT ONLY; NO FULL TEXT] This thesis details a consulting engagement with a bakery. Our team selected this client, because as a going concern, they faced real issues and opportunities that we were excited to investigate. Informed by the client's needs, the scope of this project primarily covered development and marketing. Our team completed a strategic analysis as well as a marketing plan for the bakery that includes suggestions and recommendations to be executed over the next few years. Our approach began by examining the bakery industry using secondary data to complete both a Porter's Five Forces and PEST analysis that detail the external environment. We then considered the business itself, doing an internal functional analysis to tease out the core resources and capabilities of the bakery. This was done through discussions with the client, observation of the operation, financial analysis, and a customer survey administered on-site. Both the external and internal examinations were used to complete a SWOT analysis. Finally, armed with both industry and internal data, we were able to brainstorm recommendations based on the bakery's strategic fit within the environment. These development and marketing recommendation alternatives were weighed against each other, taking various factors into account. In the end, we advised a specific path for development, and provided the client with tools for the journey. These findings and recommendations are proprietary to the client and shall remain confidential. During this process, the most important thing I learned from my team, our client, and myself, is that there is no single recipe for success in business. The successes we observe are the result of a unique combination of resources working in harmony with each other and the environment.