Cirque Du Soleil - Managerial History and Use of the Blue Ocean Strategy

The title for one of Cirque du Soleil’s earliest productions, “We reinvent the circus” could not provide any better description for the company. When Cirque entered the circus market, circuses focused on increasing their market shares at the expense of their competitors by “generating new acts by dressing up what already existed” (Williamson 6). This includes securing better-known clowns and animal tamers, all of which raise the overall operating costs of the traditional circus without substantially altering the circus experience. In comparison, Cirque du Soleil has offered its clients the thrilling experience of the circus coupled with the intellectual sophistication and artistic richness of the theater. Compared to Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Circus, Cirque has eliminated some of the more costly pieces that characterize the traditional circus industry, such as a “ringmaster, animal acts, and aisle concessions” (Williamson 3). Specifically, in designing performances, Cirque has evaluated the traditional components of circus and found that many, once considered essential to the thrill of the circus, were unnecessary and costly. For example, animal acts are quite expensive due to the costs of training, veterinarian care, shelter, and transportation. Additionally, with the strong presence of animal rights activist groups in society today, Cirque correctly analyzed the rapidly decreasing demand for animal-focused performances. Cirque’s reduced cost structure has enabled it to combine more sophisticated elements from theater with its circus that appeal to both adult and corporate audiences in addition to its corporate sponsors, such as themes, original scores, and enchanting sets, all of which change throughout the various shows they perform each year (Williamson 3). This added value has come to captivate adults, most of which had not been to a circus since their youths and has also provided them with a reason to come back more frequently, thus creating a...