Godiva Chocolatier and Godiva Gems

1.Identify the product offered by Godiva. Identify the different levels of product. Discuss the
attempts made by the management to come up with an augmented product.
All over the years, Godiva has worked harder and harder to be able to meet the needs of
increasingly demanding consumers. Godiva has fought against numerous problem linked to the
economic crisis to be able to continue to offer its premium quality of handmade Belgium
chocolates. The company is a landmark when it comes to bonbons, truffles, flavored coffee,
cocoa,mixes, cookies, ice creams, and liqueurs. One distinctive product offered by Godiva is its
GoldenBox (very expensive line of product between 57 and 76 Euro). In 2009, the crisis won the
battle and in order to keep its head above water, Godiva has to go mass market and produced a
low- 1 price line product called Godiva Gems. This line of product was much affordable and
accessiblefor the consumer as the price was now between 5 and 10 euro and the products
available to over10,000 retailers (before Godiva were only available through Godiva Shop).
The three levels of the product are:

The core of the product. Godiva has built its reputation a decade ago and was actually one of the
first brand that combines Chocolate with Luxury. This reputation was mostly based on the fact
that a Belgian created the brand, and as we all know, Belgium is the number one country when it
comes to chocolate. For those reasons I think that the origin and long history of the brand
constitute the coreof the product.

The actual product

The actual products are the Godiva Gems.Those are chocolate individually wrapped in smaller
sizes.

The augmented product

In this specific case, I think that the fact that the product is available through more than 10 000
retailers and its low price (but high quality) constitutes the augmented product.
In my opinion, the management has done a great job here! They are adapting their products
offering to the market and to consumer that are most than ever searching for relation of price with
quality.

2. Do you think that the Godiva brand could be damaged after the introduction of the new product
to the lower end of the market? Do you see any risk of cannibalization of this line extension for
the existing product line? Why or why not?Explain.
The big problem with such luxury companies is that they are afraid to go out of their comfort
zone when they are trying to expend their portfolio. It was a very risky bet to produce such
mass-market product, when we know that the success of Godiva is based on its exclusive
status. This risk would be highly rewarded from consumers that have to cut on their expense
because of the crisis, they are going to be happy to find Godiva chocolate in their supermarket
and to enjoy them at a low price.
Also, I dont think that there is a danger of cannibalization of this line extension because, for picky
consumers, Golden Box and primary chocolate are still available on Godivas Shop. Likewise, it is
important to highlight the fact that Godiva did not compromise the quality of its chocolates for low
prices. One last comment we would like to make about this, is that we all love chocolate. It is an
unconditional must have in every fridge (especially for women! (65 to 75% of consumer are
women)), but Godiva gems will never replace a well packed Golden box when it comes to gift or
celebration, so at least this aspect of consumption will never disappear.

3. Is Godiva Gems an international or global product/brand? Discuss whether the brand holds
global brand characteristics.
Characteristics of global products are: The company name is the brand name distinctive identity
in the mind of consumer ( e.g ;Coca-cola ); stability in the relationship with consumer ,
consistence is quality ; adaptation of products to meet local needs and tastes ; adopting local
culture ; presence on international markets ; strong importance given to distribution ( where and
how the product is sold) Based on those characteristics, it is easy to see that Godiva is a global
brand.

4. What are the possible impacts of the country of origin and packaging in motivating consumers
to purchase Godiva chocolates?
Concerning the country of origin as we said before, Belgium is the number one for chocolate.
The
Made in Belgium for that kind of product is always a good incentive and a sign of prestigious
know-how. This characteristic can only be a positive thing to motivate consumer to buy Godivas
product.
Regarding the packaging, there are thousands of different kinds. You can find small boxes or
larger ones(250gr to 1kg) or chocolate individually wrapped (that look alike candy). To enhance
the exclusivity of the brand again, Godiva produce different sort of packaging that are part of
different collection (just like jewellery). The packaging contributes to the image of the brand and
the different packaging makes it easy for anyone to consume Godiva anytime, anywhere. Again,
this is a good motivation for consumers to buy Godiva.

5. Godiva is entering new markets like China and Turkey. What Strategy would you offer to the
company in its global product planning decision in terms of
standardization versus adaptation?

Why we would not choose standardization: we sincerely do not think that standardization is the
orientation that Godiva should take. Chocolate is a very delicate product and every culture has a
significant different way to enjoy it. I think that if Godivas products are standardized, there will be
no difference between Godiva or X, Y others chocolate factories. The strong point of Godiva is its
sensitivity to culture.
The strategy we would offer in case of adaptation:
There are different approaches: - Godiva could make deep research and try to find how Chinese
and Turks use Chocolate and try to exploit this to make different packaging or promotion;
conduct research to find how those culture like chocolate (strong, soft, milky.. etc. ( Nuts are
reallyappreciated in Arabic countries , so Turks may enjoy chocolate with more nuts on it )
;conduct research and find what is the most appropriate place to sell chocolate or find newplaces
(airports, restaurants, airplanes,..) ;surf on different trends (e.g. healthy trends (people that are
now rejecting junk food or fat and embracing healthy foods, adapt the products packaging thus.

Bucsa Oana, Bechet Camelia &

Bradeanu Stefan, Bugheanu Radu