Ralph Lauren- Chapter 3

 Ralph Lauren has several internal drivers of strategy and competitive advantage. When conducting a SWOT analysis, their strengths include: brand image, history, and financial strength. Ralph Lauren, as well as Polo, are both highly well known brands. Their high brand loyalty keeps profits afloat during times of recession.

Several distribution centers in Europe have been combined due to their slight growth, in order to raise effectiveness and expansion. The company will use internets sales in the future for growth.

Resources include $671,000 in cash, $841,000 in inventory, $884,000 in property, plant, and equipment, and 997 stores with a total of 269,410 square meters of selling space.  

Weaknesses include global sales which means buying and selling in different currencies can affect cost margins, and the fact that they are dependent on department store sales for 1/3 of overall sales, and this can be low during times of recession.

Return on assets  are 13.09% according to ycharts.com. Ralph Lauren ranks 4 out of 28 in the textile clothing industry.  This shows they are very efficient at using their assets to yield a return.

Ralph Lauren differentiates its products based on image and quality over price.

References:

Johnston, S., Watkins, T., Wright, C. Business valuation of Ralph Lauren Corporation. Retrieved from http://mmoore.ba.ttu.edu/ValuationReports/PoloRalphLauren.pdf.

Ralphlauren.com

Ycharts.com