Option 4: Coopers Creek

1. Discuss in relation to theory and available case evidence, how

the strategic capability of Coopers Creek has developed over
recent times, in terms of resources and competences.
(consider here the key concepts incluiding unique resources and
competences)
Coopers Creek developed their external capabilities through acquistions of new
vineyards and joint ventures with other owner-growers to enlarge their resources.
Additionally they increased their incomes by leasing their own land.
The vital strategic capability of cost efficiency was supported by the introduction of
large machineries to reduce work force. This change reinforced the company´s
competitive advantage of crushing a huge quantitiy of grapes (100-120 tones per
day) and enabled them to produce a wide range of different wines in order to sell
them at different price points to international retail chains. This capability was used to
expand their market into restaurants, supermarkets and and wine tasting store. As it
offered the customer a wide procuct range the development of this capability was
significant, as among “the sustainibility of competitive advantage is likely to depend
on stratetgic capabilities being of value to customers”. (Johnson, Scholes &
Whittington, 2008:123)
This shows that Coopers Creek developed their strategic capabilites by stretching
them. Three sales represatitives concentrated on restaurant sales, retail sales in
Auckland and local country areas.
Andrew Hendry expanded his core competence of net-working trough trade shows
and in travelling and visiting different markets occasionally to create customer care.

How can the company continue to build upon these competences in

the future?

Internally for Coopers Creek it´s important to improve the qualitity of theor extisting
products in order advance them to those of their competitors that the customers are
even prepared to pay more for them. They can achieve this by investing into the field
of Research and Development in order to benefit from new inventions as in the area
of production facilities. “The R&D intensity of firms is positively related to their
economic performance.”(Faculty of Economics and Business Administration,
1996:10)
Additionally the training of and development of technical skills and knowledge of their
employees should be considered to keep them up to date and to give them the
feeling of being taken care at their workplace. Incentives and programmes for
employees for sharing new ideas with the community are possibilities to drive the
company to the direction of innovation to make Coopers Creek among up to adapt to
environmental changes.
The external competence of networking can be developed by staying constantly in
contact with their customers to offer them the possiblity for feedback of products and
service. In this way for example defects or failures can be eliminated immediately for
the next delivery what builts and maintains a good relationship to the customers.
Additionally there should be a clear communication with suppliers to be informed
punctually about delays in delivery in order to be able to react timely to such
emergent circumstances.