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6 Common Causes of Brand Failures: Mexx Is Closing All Its Canadian Stores

The document discusses common causes of brand failures, including building a product rather than a brand, lacking brand communication, and failing to evolve with customers' changing needs. Specifically, it notes that some companies focus too much on the product and price rather than developing a strong brand identity. It also says that brands need sufficient marketing budgets to effectively communicate their message to consumers and compete with other brands. Failing to adapt to shifting customer preferences is another issue, as brands that do not evolve may become irrelevant over time.

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59 views2 pages

6 Common Causes of Brand Failures: Mexx Is Closing All Its Canadian Stores

The document discusses common causes of brand failures, including building a product rather than a brand, lacking brand communication, and failing to evolve with customers' changing needs. Specifically, it notes that some companies focus too much on the product and price rather than developing a strong brand identity. It also says that brands need sufficient marketing budgets to effectively communicate their message to consumers and compete with other brands. Failing to adapt to shifting customer preferences is another issue, as brands that do not evolve may become irrelevant over time.

Uploaded by

Verendra
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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BY MICHAELLEAVE A COMMENT

6 Common Causes of Brand Failures

The news earlier in 2015 that Mexx is closing all its Canadian stores came as a huge disappointment
for my family.

Disappointment because The Dutch retail chain was our favorite place to shop for clothes: the quality
was good, and prices reasonable.

Surprise because Mexx stores were some of the busiest places at the malls around us.

The Mexx brand is just one of the few that are struggling, or have disappeared completely. Sony also
announced the closing of all its Canadian stores, while US retail giant Target completely exited the
Canadian market, less than 2 years after launch.

It’s hard to believe that brands that once defined a category have now vanished or struggle mightily:
Nortel, Blockbuster, Nokia (cellphone business), Blackberry.

It’s like saying that Apple will not be around in the next five years.
The first question we ask ourselves as marketers is: what happened? How can a brand that was once
so strong and dominant, become so irrelevant?

A closer look reveals some common causes of brand failures. Here are some of the most “popular”,
ranked in the order of “fix-ability”, starting with situations that can be easily corrected, and ending
with the ones that are almost impossible to recover from.

Building a Product, Not a Brand


There are many companies that offer an exceptional product but fail to build the brand around it. The
Management team that runs these companies invariably believes in the “we offer a great product at
the right price” selling strategy.

Reality has proven the best product doesn’t always win.

From a product perspective, Fage qualifies as the authentic Greek yogurt on the US market: the brand
is owned by the same company that enjoys the leading market position in Greece. However the
undisputed US market leader is Chobani, a brand launched 9 years after the Fage brand.

Lack of Brand Communication


This is another common scenario: the marketing budget for building the brand is not nearly enough
to achieve anything meaningful. In reality, management believes, just like in the above scenario, that
marketing is purely ego-building and a waste of money, and what really sells is product and price.

Consistent communication of the brand message is key to getting into the minds of consumers.
Brands that are not on the radar do not exist. In order to become a player, the brand communication
budget has to be on par with the competitive brands you are trying to displace.

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