1.      Introduction

The microenvironment of an organisation refers to the collection of all forces, individuals, and some particular institutions that are outside the control of a business. Nevertheless, these factors affect the operations, performance, and sustainability of an enterprise. An enterprise needs a business environment to sustain itself (Allen et al., 2017, p. 6). The needs of an enterprise range from finance, social support, the market, and customers. These factors can be explained in terms of the value they bring to the business and their usefulness. Financial resources are necessary because the company needs money to fund its projects. The firm has to depend on society for many things. This is because a business becomes irrelevant if the community has not accepted it. Thus, social norms and acceptance are relevant to an enterprise. This is because the enterprise depends on society for its survival. The market matters a lot because the business has to make sales and also buy some of the raw materials. This implies that there must be proper market conditions to get the enterprise going. Customers are essential since, without them, the business would have no viable market.The sale of products or services that the enterprise is providing depends on the size of its customer base.

More so, labor requirements cannot be ignored because production cannot take place without the presence of human resource. Nonetheless, natural resources such as raw materials to be used for the creation of specific goods and services are essential. Additionally, legal and political factors play a crucial role since they are the dimensions that affect the business. It is important to note that they may contribute positively or negatively to the given enterprise.

2.      Description of Waitrose

Waitrose supermarkets are known to be the largest retailer in Britain.Waitrose has a revenue of about £ 5400.4 million. It serves online clients and exports its products to over 52 countries. Wallace, Rose,and David started the business in 1904. In1908, David left the store, and the two remaining founders adopted the name Waitrose (Petljak et al., 2015, p. 47). The chain of supermarkets opened its branch in Streatham, and the expansion continued all over London. The chain has some of the unique selling points that have opened up the business.Recent research that was done on marketing revealed that Waitrose is one of the most ethical companies in Britain. Waitrose has done and is still carrying out community work. For instance, Waitrose has previously sponsored football clubs such as Reading and the England National Cricket Team. These are some of the works that add up as a positive signal to the corporate social responsibility for Waitrose. Advertisement and much of the marketing is done by the corporate social responsibility roles that are played by the firm.

Understanding the business environment isessential for the growth of any enterprise.The business understands the needs and requirements of customers so that it can predict what they want to buy from the market. For example, knowing the client base specifications and details boosts sales. Customers are always happy because they are served with their interests being put as a priority by Waitrose. Waitrose launched a value range of products so that it could not be viewed as a strict food products retailer. Waitrose 1 product was launched as the premium brand in the food market which was lauded as the best brand ever to be hurled by Waitrose.

3.      The Business Micro-Environment of Waitrose

The microenvironment of a business refers to the things or situations that the firm has full control over (Birkin et al., 2017, p. 15). In these factors, the management of the enterprise has the power to influence or vary them as it sees best. Not all companies in an industry suffer the same implications of the operation of micro-environmental factors. This means that each business has to deal with its problems in a unique way since these situations are internal. More so, the capability, size, strategies, as well as the capacity of different businesses vary. This implies that these situations have to be handled in a differing manner (Ejlerskov, 2018, p. 125). For example, the concessions given by the suppliers of raw materials to companies differ. In some of the situations, the suppliers prefer large companies to small ones. The permits mean that the size of the business determines the way they are allocated. In the same manner, businesses that are competing against each other do not mind about rivals who are small in size. This is because they are less likely to affect the client base of big enterprises, and even if they do, the effect will be minimal.

Nonetheless, when the size of the rival is large, the business in question that is competing against it would tend to be mindful of its steps. It would want to watch and beware about what is happening to the challenger. In some rare cases, the micro-environment of businesses in the same industry is similar.

• Analysis of Competitive Rivalry

The largest competitors of Waitrose include Tesco, ASDA, Sainsbury’s, and Safeway. The Competition Commission has been there to make sure that there are no unfair practices by the companies in the grocery market (Sodhi, and Tang, 2018, p. 885). Healthy competition is promoted between businesses and the commission curbs any practices that seem to fix prices so that sellers may benefit as customers suffer. Therefore, the setting of rates is strictly prohibited in the industry. Thus, the big four in the supermarket retail industry market cannot just come together to agree to sell a particular product at a specified price. Heavy penalties are stipulated for those who are caught in malpractices in the supermarket retail market.

The big retailers have made sure that they increase the size of their businesses such that the volume of the goods they trade increase tremendously. For example, the size of goods traded has increased by nearly 20 percent in the recent four years. This has contributed to market dominance, and the larger players have had their share increased. The players have increased their store sizes and even enlarged the capital that they work with. Most of them have run to the financial institutions and other places to seek for credit facilities. The credit has given the companies a larger financial muscle to edge out their rivals. Through this, Waitrose has been able to push and emerge as one of the leading supermarket chains despite the stiff competition. Since many of the rivals have been beating the supermarket chain with the products that they offer, Waitrose has decided to take another step. It has introduced a variety of products that would see it not only become a grocery giant but also be counted as a major enterprise in the supermarket sector. The sector has noticed some prominent characteristics such as the opening of new branches in the face of expansion. The operation of Waitrose in a mature market where growth is almost impossible has forced it to diversify the products to capture as many customers as possible. More so, there is some notable increase in the concentration into non-food areas such as the sale of electronics and clothes. Consumers are further demanding a large chain that can collect data for a personalized shopping experience that would make them stick to the business.

3.1.2 Analysis of Supplier Power

The analysis of supplier power looks into what other major grocery giants are likely to offer and make Waitrose lose business (Simkin, 2016, p. 271). For example, this enterprise may lose business to Tesco Supermarkets. The suppliers of grocery products in the United Kingdom are nervous. They are not assured of their continued contracting by the supermarket giants such as Waitrose. This is because the situation may not be favoring them,especially considering that big enterprises have a higher purchasing power. Therefore, there is the possibility that companies that have a big financial muscle can avoid the suppliers. Others can import from abroad instead of making local orders. This is because such deals that involve direct sourcing are cheaper and, thus, suppliers fear to suffer the loss of business in case these large enterprises such as Waitrose import directly from abroad to make big profits. The competitors of Waitrose such as Tesco and ASDA are not afraid of going the extra mile as far as the relationship with their suppliers is concerned (Touboulic et al., 2018, p. 12). They strike deals after having negotiated withsuppliers so that they would be buying items at a discount. Waitrose and other bigger retailers also threaten the small retailers in the United Kingdom. The big supermarket chains can get massive discounts and, thus will manage to sell their goods at lower prices than normal. This is because such supermarket giants can import large quantities of products from abroad and thus pass over the discounts to their customers during the promotional activities that are done online. The relationship between suppliers and Waitrose matters a lot because it affects the business as far as freedom and margin are concerned. The profit margin of suppliers can be reduced by competitive rivalry.

3.1.3 Analysis of Threat of Entry

Waitrose majorly deals in the grocery. Therefore, it is advisable to place it under this category at least for now for the analysis of the threat of entry. The grocery market in the United Kingdom is dominated by some few competitors such as Somerfield, Sainsbury’s, Tesco, and ASDA (Baker, 2018, p. 2). There are some of these great competitors who pose a real challenge to potential entrants. For instance, Tesco does throw in a big challenge to competitors who feel that they want to get into the market by giving such strong barriers that the new entrants mostly give up. This is because the advantage of economies of scale to the company coupled with the cost of leadership is available. In most instances, new entrants have found themselves unable to get the finances needed to enter into the market. Thus, it becomes difficult to start any business without sufficient capital. The lack of enough capital comes as a result of the large fixed costs that place the new and potential entrants at a position of losing even the assets that have been accumulated to enter into the market. More so, highly developed supply chains have served well to keep off new entrants. Waitrose has invested heavily in its advanced technology system that is used in the stock check out.This would make a new entrant unable to cope up with the level of technology. Besides, the highly advanced technology is used in the stock control system which means that if a new business enters the market, it would have to struggle to catch up with the likes of Waitrose. Due to the employment of this technology, there is an accumulation of the economy of scale to the companies involved. Therefore, there is differentiation, especially in goods and services.

3.1.4Analysis of Buyer Power

Switching cost is important because it determines the power that is acquired by buyers. The lower the switching cost, the higher the power that is given to buyers (Szydlowska, 2017, p. 7). On the contrary, when the switching cost is high, the power that is yielded to buyers becomes less. To retain customers, Waitrose introduced loyalty cards so that they can be used as a customer retention strategy tool. This means that the client base is available. Therefore, the profitability of the enterprise increases.

3.1.5 Analysis of Threat of Substitution

There are other grocery stores all over the United Kingdom. However, these stores are small scale retailers who do not affect the products that Waitrose sells. Nonetheless, their power and effect are felt because they are many. Therefore, they form a competitive base which could substitute the products that Waitrose sells. Nevertheless, it is not easy to substitute grocery products because of their nature.

Analysis of the Macro Environment

The macro environmental factors refer to the issues that are beyond the reach of the business and, therefore must directly influence the way the company is functioning in whatever condition. Waitrose has managed to react to the changing external environment. It has turned these issues into opportunities to offer growth to the enterprise (Touboulic, and Walker, 2015, p. 20).

4.1 Analysis of the Political Environment

The legislation and regulation from the government administer the political environment, and therefore, there is nothing the business can do about it apart from complying (Wells-Burr, 2016, p. 4). The relevant governing bodies have been issuing new regulations. The European Commission had been giving most of the rules on food products because it is mandated to conduct such legislation across the European Union. Waitrose and other businesses have been doing well in this regard. However, Britain has already embarked on Brexit and, therefore, it is no longer a member of the European Union. The competition commission is the only governing authority that has been left giving directions on how businesses should operate. However, this commission comes in to oversee healthy business competition and make sure that unfair business practices are eliminated. Such discriminatory practices involve mergersand price fixing. A business cannot, therefore, arise and start misusing its dominant position on the market for unlawful gain. Nonetheless, Waitrose has complied with the regulating authorities to make sure that its customers feel secure when shopping in these supermarkets. Consumers have, therefore, increased their trust with Waitrose due to the compliance with all the regulating bodies, hence making the business legit.

4.2 Analysis of the Economic Environment

The economic condition of the country always affects firms in a big way. Waitrose has always been keen with these conditions so that it cancaution itself against economic uncertainties. The economy has undergone growth and stagnation at different times, and Waitrose has been there, standing tall and defying the conditions despite the effect these factors have had on the market. The supermarket industry is affected by some economic factors such as inflation, exchange rate, and the purchasing power of consumers. For example, in the year 2008, the United Kingdom entered a period of economic recession whereby interest rates dropped from five percent to zero. This was done in a bid to boost consumer spending. The reduction of interest rates to boost consumer spending was a big advantage to Waitrose because it increased sales revenues. A high percentage of unemployment called for Waitrose to revise its marketing strategies to adapt to the changing conditions in the market. This lowered the cost of labor and increased the number of individuals looking for jobs. Consumers hardly preferred ready meals due to the economic slump.

4.3 Analysis of the Social Environment

The current social-cultural context must be understood by supermarkets because without this aspect being considered, there would be a significant mismatch between the business and the expectations of the society. The changes in the social-cultural environment always affect the needs and wants of customers (Rahman, 2016, p. 22). Waitrose recently discovered that the more the society consists of a young population, the better the business environment. This is because young people tend to spend as opposed to aged people, who have fewer preferences and are conservative. The aging always has to choose what they consume, and their health is paramount. However, young people do not spend less like the older generation. Therefore, the aging population has been hurtingWaitrose and the industry. Furthermore, in the UK, there are more old people than millennials. The trend is set to continue. Waitrose has, therefore, been careful about the quality of foodstuffs that it sells because it has been discovered that 60% of the population is or is just about to fall obese. Therefore, poor quality foods have been put aside because customers have become more health conscious.

4.4 Analysis of the Technological Environment

Waitrose is providing a more enjoyable experience in shopping due to the latest technological advancements (Kim et al., 2016, p. 16). The whole thing has been made quicker and more comfortable after the introduction of online shopping. Here, door-to-door deliveries are made to clients. More so, product scanning and the forecasting technology have brought in a new turn of events at Waitrose. Due to the availability of new technology, Waitrose has even reduced the staff on its shelves because the items are secured using barcodes and technology plus high definition security cameras that can capture whatever is going on in the stores.

4.      Conclusion

Waitrose has emerged from a small partnership business to a world class supermarket retailer that can offer convenient shopping to its customers in the UK. The growth was full of challenges, but the spirit was strong. At one point, the business opened a massive number of shops (300) between five to ten years.

The business has tried to maneuver from the micro to macro business environment to make sure that it fully satisfies its clients in the best way possible. In the micro-environmental factors, the management of the venture has made sure that it takes advantage of issues that it can manipulate for its success. All these have been handled with great care so that the business emerges to be at the top in the industry. From doing an online store to having its delivery service, Waitrose has struggled to put everything under its management to bear the expected fruits. This is why the company owns about six percent of the market share in the food sector, hence winning numerous awards. This has not been an easy path. All the achievements have been attained slowly, and now the business has over 355 shops.

Nevertheless, the external factors have been handled in a way that has allowed Waitrose to achieve a competitive advantage in the market. Every blow is turned into an opportunity. For example, the regulation by governmental bodies is always taken positively. From the above analysis, it is clear that factors such as the power of buyers, social, legal, political, and macro environment as well as supplier power determine the growth and success of an enterprise.

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