Executive Summary
The company Cowgirl Chocolates was created in 1997 in Idaho by Marilyn Lysohir and her husband Ross Coates. They were looking for ways to continue funding their art magazine. Cowgirl Chocolates was one of many businesses they started. Marilyn’s brother helped her come up with the idea of adding spicy flavor to regular chocolate. The business has been through ups and downs and now it is time for Marilyn to decide what the future holds for Cowgirl Chocolates. She must decide whether she should keep the business running or quit, and what changes to make if she continues. Although Marilyn has tried various marketing strategies she’s been doing most of it on her own. Bringing in resources from the outside could greatly improve …show more content…
Truffles are spicy and come in several flavors including chocolate, orange, mint, espresso, and lime tequila. They come in a variety of packaging including plastic bag, gift boxes, collectible tin, or a drawstring bag. The drawstring bags accounts for sixteen percent of revenue while the collectible tin brings in twelve percent of revenue. Cowgirl Chocolates also offer a sampler, which includes four truffles, that accounts for seven percent of revenue. Together, the various truffles bring in forty percent of Cowgirl Chocolate’s total income. The chocolate bars come in two varieties including lime tequila crunch and orange espresso. These bars bring in fifty percent of the company’s sales. The dessert sauce accounts to only ten percent of total sales. After packaging and ingredients, the dessert pricing is set to bring in sixty-five percent profit margin. Cowgirl Chocolates has won several awards for the chocolate’s themselves as well as the product packaging. The company has been successful with their hot and spicy products but some potential customers and wholesalers are not “biting” on the products because they believe it is too spicy. To combat this distribution problem, they have discussed creating a new “mild-mannered” chocolate that does not the spice of their regular …show more content…
Many local retailers in Moscow, Idaho, carry the products including Northwest Showcase, Moscow Food Co-op, Women Traders, and Bookpeople. Sales from the Mosco Food Co-op makes up ten to fifteen percent of the company’s revenue. Outside of the local area, there are other retailers that carry Cowgirl Chocolates. These include a few retailers in Boise, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, and Ohio. The products are also available at a restaurant in New York. This location has the most reliable sales behind the Moscow Food Co-op. There are also a few specialty stores that carry the products, along with other hot and spicy food. Not much sales come from these retailers because consumers seem to be unwilling to pay the higher price for Cowgirl Chocolates. Cowgirl Chocolates are also sold online through a few different retailers. These sales are not very much either. Even with the stagnant sales from many of the retailers, Marilyn keeps trying to promote the hot and spicy products and has been trying to get more well-known retailers to sell the chocolates. Due to low sales, the Whitney Museum in New York City dropped the product. Cowgirl Chocolates is now focused on getting their products into grocery stores, upscale restaurants and retailers, and specialty food
The company Cowgirl Chocolates was created in 1997 in Idaho by Marilyn Lysohir and her husband Ross Coates. They were looking for ways to continue funding their art magazine. Cowgirl Chocolates was one of many businesses they started. Marilyn’s brother helped her come up with the idea of adding spicy flavor to regular chocolate. The business has been through ups and downs and now it is time for Marilyn to decide what the future holds for Cowgirl Chocolates. She must decide whether she should keep the business running or quit, and what changes to make if she continues. Although Marilyn has tried various marketing strategies she’s been doing most of it on her own. Bringing in resources from the outside could greatly improve …show more content…
Truffles are spicy and come in several flavors including chocolate, orange, mint, espresso, and lime tequila. They come in a variety of packaging including plastic bag, gift boxes, collectible tin, or a drawstring bag. The drawstring bags accounts for sixteen percent of revenue while the collectible tin brings in twelve percent of revenue. Cowgirl Chocolates also offer a sampler, which includes four truffles, that accounts for seven percent of revenue. Together, the various truffles bring in forty percent of Cowgirl Chocolate’s total income. The chocolate bars come in two varieties including lime tequila crunch and orange espresso. These bars bring in fifty percent of the company’s sales. The dessert sauce accounts to only ten percent of total sales. After packaging and ingredients, the dessert pricing is set to bring in sixty-five percent profit margin. Cowgirl Chocolates has won several awards for the chocolate’s themselves as well as the product packaging. The company has been successful with their hot and spicy products but some potential customers and wholesalers are not “biting” on the products because they believe it is too spicy. To combat this distribution problem, they have discussed creating a new “mild-mannered” chocolate that does not the spice of their regular …show more content…
Many local retailers in Moscow, Idaho, carry the products including Northwest Showcase, Moscow Food Co-op, Women Traders, and Bookpeople. Sales from the Mosco Food Co-op makes up ten to fifteen percent of the company’s revenue. Outside of the local area, there are other retailers that carry Cowgirl Chocolates. These include a few retailers in Boise, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, and Ohio. The products are also available at a restaurant in New York. This location has the most reliable sales behind the Moscow Food Co-op. There are also a few specialty stores that carry the products, along with other hot and spicy food. Not much sales come from these retailers because consumers seem to be unwilling to pay the higher price for Cowgirl Chocolates. Cowgirl Chocolates are also sold online through a few different retailers. These sales are not very much either. Even with the stagnant sales from many of the retailers, Marilyn keeps trying to promote the hot and spicy products and has been trying to get more well-known retailers to sell the chocolates. Due to low sales, the Whitney Museum in New York City dropped the product. Cowgirl Chocolates is now focused on getting their products into grocery stores, upscale restaurants and retailers, and specialty food