2. Kathleen Sperling
Originated in Harrisburg, IL then expanded to
Carterville, IL
Store Offerings
Bridal gowns
Bridesmaid/Floral girl attire
Shoes
Accessories
Men’s tuxedo
Prom dresses & accessories
3. The Problem
Lack of awareness of Prom dresses
Kathleen’s Competitors
Joyce’s Bridal Boutique
Christine’s Bridal
Mr. Tuxedo & Bridal
4. S.W.O.T. Analysis
Strengths
Full service bridal boutique
(dresses, hair, & nails)
Reasonably priced prom dresses
Only bridal boutique in Southern Illinois that carry
David Tutera gowns
Weaknesses
Don’t offer in store alterations (referrals)
Small selection compared to other bridal boutiques
Don’t offer in store alterations (referrals)
5. S.W.O.T. Analysis
Opportunities
Upcoming Prom season
Expand selection of prom dresses
Move store to populated location
(suggestion: near a mall)
Threats
Other bridal boutiques with greater selections:
Joyce’s Boutique
Mr. Tuxedo
Macy’s
Dillard’s
6. Objective
Goal
To raise awareness and traffic flow of the Prom
department at Kathleen’s Bridal in Carterville, IL.
Benchmark
The prom department is currently slow, during last
prom season, only 153 dresses total were sold.
Timeframe
Since Prom is seasonal, time is crucial, December 1st
2012-May 1st 2013.
7. Target Market
Aimed towards teenage girls ages 15-18
Promote Kathleen’s Bridal to the general public
Students’ Parents
They are the ones willing to spend the appropriate
amount of money on prom dresses and/or
accessories
Focused on reaching high school girls around
Jackson and Williamson County
Mainly the towns of Carterville and Carbondale, Illinois
as well as other surrounding towns.
8.
9. Age 18 18 17 18 17 18
Long or Short
Dresses
Long Long Long Long Short Short
Friends have impact
on where to
No No No No Yes Yes
purchase dress
Prom dress price
range
<$300 None <$500 <$400 <$400 <$350
Shop locally or out
Locally Online Both Both Out of town Out of town
of town
None Online None Anne’s Bridal Mr. Tuxedo Joyce’s
Favorite prom store
Wanting local shops
to market their
Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
stores more
Interested in sales
alerts
Yes Yes Yes No No Yes
Attention grabbers
of stores
Ads Ads Images Images Images Ads/images
Big or small store
Either Either Big Big Either Either
No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
Interested in pre-
prom promotional
events
Regular or sale price
Regular Sale Sale Regular Sale Sale
Order dress or buy
in store
Order Order In store Both In store In store
Multiple Multiple Multiple Multiple One store multiple
Purchasing dress &
accessories in one
store or multiple
10. Purchasing Habits
According to Seventeen Magazine’s Spending Survey in
2009, teens are spending money on products to look
good
Nearly three-quarters are spending the same or more this
year on either:
cosmetics (70%)
clothing (72%)
hair products (71%)
skin care (74%)
Demographics
These next two charts show what percentage of the
population is our target market for Carbondale and
Carterville, of which both are prime locations
11. Age:
Carbondale, IL
% of Males % of All % of Females % of All % of All
0-9 years 10.2% 5.2% 10.4% 5.1% 10.3%
10-19 years 11.8% 6.1% 11.8% 5.7% 11.8%
Age: Carterville, IL
% of Males % of All % of Females % of All % of All
0-9 years 13.7% 6.6% 12.9% 6.6% 13.3%
10-19 years 15.3% 7.4% 14.1% 7.3% 14.7%
12. Current Resources Available used by Kathleen
Promotional Website
Store : http://www.kathleensbridal.net/
Radio Air
Receive air time one weekend, once a month
$325/30 Ads
Newspaper
Kathleen has 1 article every month through Mt. Vernon
Publishing
Price: $160/month
E-mailing list to current clientele
The mailing list is for both prospective & current
customers
Customers who make a purchase at Kathleen’s have
the option of getting on the Mailing List for future
updates of sales
13. Package/Branding
1. Custom “Kathleen’s” shirt give away with dress
purchase (Colorful, Kathleen’s shop name and address
printed on the back)
2. “Kathleen's” pens to give away in store/events
3. Update online website to make it more
appealing and eye catching (attract new customers
and keep existing customers aware of new dresses and
accessories)
4. Hire a local photographer to take professional
photos to include on website as well as Flickr
and Tumblr accounts
14. Sales Promotion
1. Create your own Referral Program by offering a
discount or coupon to any prom customers that
recommend their friends to order as well
2. Create mobile promotions (send mass texts to current
customers with latest sales)
3. Have a Mother/Daughter prom sale
4. Work with a local tanning salon to offer a 10%
discount on dresses
5. Align a sales event with a local charity
6. Have scratch off giveaways for 5, 10, 15 or 20%
off
15. Public Relations
1. Network with other businesses to do work (Ex:
Collaborate with thrift stores such as “Used Not Abused”)
2. Booth at Herrinfest/Apple Festival
3. Put promotional flyers on cars at high school
games
4. Encourage customers to either email or post on
a Facebook page feedback about their shopping
experience
16. Advertising
1. Work with CIL FM Radio Station to promote
Kathleen’s during the upcoming prom season
2. Create magnetic car detailing
3. Create a Southern Illinois TV commercial
4. Make a LinkedIn account
5. Have a float in local parades
17. “As You Wish” came up with promotional ideas
that aim towards our target market of high
school girls and their parents
Since there is not much revenue currently being
made during prom season, we used ideas that
were very cost efficient while helping the
promotion process of Kathleen’s Bridal
An inspiration for these ideas was to get
Kathleen’s more involved in local
events/functions and to get the stores name
more recognized