Brand Revitalization by Strategic Repositioning

A growing gap between market needs and the capabilities of the enterprise prompts repositioning (Corstjens and Dolye 1989). This article examines the strategic repositioning of ``Korando Sports`` un-dertaken by SYMC throughout the period from Jan. 2012 to Jun. 2012, to boost sales volume and market share by entering market of active-lifestyle consumers currently occupied by SUVs. SYMC`s experience indicates that it is essential to close the gap between the market needs and the ability of the enterprise to make a shift to new consumer segment with a new positioning. The successful re-positioning framework(Ryan et al. 2007) were employed in this paper. This framework is comprised of six elements; core strategic values, strategic flexibility/learning capabilities. customer awareness and sensitivity, external orientation, management commitment, and belief in the product and brand. The evaluation based on the successful framework also confirms that ``Korando Sports`` case meets all the requirements of the successful strategic repositioning. This paper provides some of the managerial implications with aim of assisting executives in identifying strategic repositioning opportunities. Primarily, the ``Korando Sports`` case affirms the re-positioning as a viable strategy and indicates that repositioning is a feasible means for strategic change, this case shows the influence of a target consumer and SYMC`s repositioning to follow consumer preference for a particular attribute. Moreover, we can understand how a product formerly considered weak in attributes can enjoy benefits in other segments with the same attributes.