Company’s history
McCain Foods Limited was established in 1957 in Florenceville, New Brunswick, Canada. The McCain brothers identified the need for frozen food in Canada and they decided to come up with a company that would satisfy this need. Andrew McCain discovered that there was a vast market for potatoes across the globe. Therefore, he established McCain Produce Company with an aim of exporting seed potatoes (McCain Foods Limited, 2020).
Later, his sons came up with an idea to establish a business that dealt with frozen foods. The company started by hiring thirty employees, and during the first year, it made sales worth $152,678. Today, McCain Food Limited is one of the multinational companies that deal with frozen foods. Moreover, the company offers jobs to thousands of employees.
Stoffman and Van Leersum allege, “Harrison and Wallace McCain had identified the perfect time to start a frozen food business. They were entering a new industry just when the technology that made the industry possible was being developed” (2007, p. 14). Besides, the McCain brothers established the company at a time when society was undergoing a social transformation.
Many women were now joining the labor force, a move that intensified the need for ready meals across the country. The steady elimination of trade restrictions and market barriers gave McCain Foods Limited an opportunity to venture into the international market. Besides, the company embarked on a recruitment process that sought to recruit competent employees to help it improve its products and services.
Through these employees, the company manufactured quality frozen foods leading to an increase in demand for its products (McCain Foods Limited, 2020). Besides, the employees helped the company to identify emerging business opportunities, which led to the company expanding its operations to international markets.
Expansion to the international market
The demand for frozen food across the globe led to McCain Foods Limited opting to go global. In 1967, the company bought a piece of land in Britain where it constructed a processing plant to help in producing frozen products in the region. The McCain brothers believed that if the company were to maintain its growth, it had to venture into foreign markets. This fueled the desire to build a company in Britain.
McCain Foods Limited avoided the American market due to the competition. In spite of the American market being close, companies like Simplot dominated the market making it hard for McCain Foods Limited to exploit the market (Stoffman & Van Leersum, 2007). To capture the British market, the company forged a relationship with British Wholesalers.
This gave the company an opportunity to come up with a beachhead strategy, which helped it to enter new markets in other countries. The McCain brothers could go to the extent of preparing their French fries in British restaurants as a way to convince the restaurant owners to purchase their frozen foods. Besides, they donated freezers to restaurants to guarantee that they sell frozen foods (Stoffman & Van Leersum, 2007).
To consolidate its operations in countries like Australia and New Zealand, the company exported its expertise to these countries. Qualified personnel was transferred from the already established companies to new ones to help them kick-start their operations. Presently, McCain Foods Limited has 46 manufacturing companies across the globe and 44 sales offices.
Besides, the company sells its products to 160 countries and it liaises with 3,200 growers internationally (Stoffman & Van Leersum, 2007). The company has managed to establish a strong network with suppliers, which helps it satisfy its global market without challenges.
Entry and marketing strategy
Stoffman and Van Leersum allege, “The building of the British and Australian businesses set a pattern that would be followed wherever in the world McCain decided to go” (2007, p. 46). The company enters a new market by first establishing a market “by importing McCain products to sell to the food serving industry” (Stoffman & Van Leersum, 2007, p. 47).
Once the company realizes that there is potential in the new market, it establishes a company in the area to help in manufacturing its products locally. McCain Foods Limited then embarks on entering the retail market to help in distributing its products. The company expands its market by working in liaison with local retailers.
The marketing strategies that the company uses to acquire and sustain substantial market share in foreign markets include aggressive selling, consistent advertising, and product quality. McCain Foods Limited employs an aggressive marketing strategy to reach a bigger customer base. The company works closely with local retailers to distribute its products (Stoffman & Van Leersum, 2007).
Besides, the company identifies all the factors that limit its sales and works on them. For instance, the company went to the extent of donating freezers to local restaurants in Britain after it realized that lack of freezes made it hard for local restaurants to sell its products (Stoffman & Van Leersum, 2007). McCain Foods Limited is consistent in its advertising campaign. This helps customers to know and distinguish its products from those of other companies.
McCain Foods Limited focuses on product quality as one of its marketing strategies. The company deals with a single product, and this gives it an opportunity to work on the quality of the product. Presently, McCain Foods Limited dominates the frozen chip market.
Additionally, steady innovation in the company has helped it to expand its market share. McCain Foods Limited continues to come up with novel inventions in the frozen food industry giving it an opportunity to consolidate its consumer base (Stoffman & Van Leersum, 2007).
References
McCain Foods Limited. (2020). McCain Foods History. Web.
Stoffman, D. & Van Leersum, T. (2007). From The Ground Up: The First Fifty Years of McCain Foods. Canada: McCain Foods Ltd. Web.