Attracting Customers - a Study of Bang & Olufsen Fortitude Valley

Attracting Customers

- A study of Bang & Olufsen Fortitude Valley

This dissertation project is confidential and must therefore not be published or distributed to parties not mentioned in the discretion agreement. Author:

Mads Baandrup Toft

Project Returned: Supervisor:

May 4th 2010 Kurt Nørgaard Petersen

Declaration

I certify that this project does not incorporate without acknowledgement any material previously submitted for a degree or diploma in any university; and that to the best of my knowledge and belief it does not contain any material previously published or written by another person where due reference is not made in the text.

Acknowledgements

I thank Christopher Hogben (Showroom Manager) and Rachel Burton (Sales Consultant) from Bang & Olufsen Fortitude Valley, Julian Kipping (General Manager) of Bang & Olufsen Australia & New Zealand, and Kurt Nørgaard Petersen (Senior Lecturer) from University of Aarhus Institute of Business and Technology for their interest, assistance and support in the preparation of this report.

Confidentiality Agreement

This dissertation project is confidential and must therefore not be published or distributed to parties not mentioned in the Confidentiality Agreement (appendix 1).

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Executive summary

Bang & Olufsen (B&O) was founded in Struer (Denmark) in 1925 and is today a world-famous manufacturer of high quality audio, video and multimedia products. B&O is present in Australia with 11 stores and one of them is located in Brisbane, Queensland. The Brisbane showroom, which more precisely is located in the suburb Fortitude Valley, has difficulties attracting customers and this fact is the main purpose and research problem of the report. Over the last couple of years Bang & Olufsen Fortitude Valley’s (B&OFV) revenue has decreased by 20% and the number of visitors had dropped by 10%. In order to determine the severity of B&OFV’s problems, an interview with the Showroom Manager, Christopher Hogben,...