International expansion strategy for Dorchester Inc in consumer electronics

Dorchester Inc. takeovers

Dorchester, Inc. is a U.S. based conglomerate and has the intentions of expanding its operation to international levels. Recently there has been a trend by its competitors to expand their operations internationally as well. This is the prompter to the decision by the management of Dorchester, Inc. To follow their competitors' trend and venture into the new and emerging markets globally as a long-term business strategy. Through this international expansion Dorchester, Inc. hopes to gain a competitive advantage over its competitors. The particular area of expansion targeted by Dorchester, Inc. is consumer electronics. The conglomerate has indicated their interest in purchasing companies that specialize in consumer electronics in three countries that identified herein (Prodi, 2010).

The management of the conglomerate has a task of determining the potential countries to purchase the companies. Before settling on the countries they are to expand into, the management will have to conduct an economic assessment of these countries. The management will further conduct an economic assessment of the specific companies they will have identified from the three countries. This assessment seeks to determine the potential pros and cons of buying a company that is based in each of the three countries. The entire assessment that is carried out by the management entails an analysis of Dorchester's external environments. There are many countries that have companies which specialize in production of consumer electronics. Therefore, Dorchester, Inc. has a wide variety to choose from, however they scaled their choices down to three countries which are South Africa, Japan and China.

South Africa

There are various consumer electronics companies in South Africa. South Africa is an economically viable country to be explored by Dorchester, Inc. due to various reasons. One of the outstanding attractions into the region is the thriving new technologies therein. Within South Africa, old technologies like analog TVs are seen to be disappearing meaning that the country is up to speed with the current technological advancements taking place. The new technology found in South Africa is performing well and accelerating at a high rate. Technology in South Africa is closely behind that of developed countries. This means that if Dorchester Inc. explores into south Africa they will be sure that the consumer electronics provided by the company is the latest technologically. The uptake of new technology is steady since many people within South Africa are responding positively to new technology. This means that the conglomerate will continue being competitive in the market both in South Africa and the rest of the world. Another advantage of exploring South Africa is the fact that there is an increased growth in telecommunication market .This means that if Dorchester, Inc. buys a company within South Africa they will be sure of a ready market for telecommunications products such as smart phones.

There are also accompanying disadvantages if Dorchester decided to buy consumer electronics company in South Africa. These disadvantages are such as the fact that recent reports show that there is poor performance in a majority of the consumer electronics products. There has seen a slowdown in consumer spending and hence the industry is currently under intense pressure. This is due to the fact that people in South Africa often regard the consumer electronic products as being inessential .Therefore it might not be wise of Dorchester to invest in South Africa since there a lot of uncertainties when it comes to the patterns of purchasing these products.

Generally South Africa is a good option for the conglomerate to venture into. I believe that the country has a lot to offer and it will be a wise decision to buy a consumer electronic company from there.

Japan

There are many consumer electronics companies in Japan that have been in existence for sometime. Japan has been dominating the consumer electronic industry for a very long time. There are various advantages that Dorchester has if it invests into Japan, for instance the consumer electronic products from Japan remain dominant not only in Japan but in the rest of the world. For instance Sharp corp, a company in Japan was the leader in the Japanese consumer electronics in 2011. Apart from this, Panasonic Corp, another consumer electronic company in Japan, also registered a success story (Hays, 2009). These companies offer a wide range of products both locally and internationally. This means that if Dorchester buys one of these companies they will have a lot to offer in Japan and the rest of the world.

There are also retailers who specialize in electronic and appliance that help the consumers in Japan access the consumer electronics products. These specialists have gained a higher purchasing power as well as clear pricing advantages over channels used before such as mass merchandisers. There are specialists such as Edion and Yamada Denki who have had a good performance especially when it comes to the provision of customer service.

A disadvantage of the consumer electronic business in Japan is that the consumer electronics are still sluggish due to lack of enough stimulation to the industry by relevant stakeholders. There is low demand for some products whose market is exhausted since almost everyone in the country has purchased them.

Despite the above disadvantage, Japan is still a good country for investment by Dorchester Inc. hence worth the company's monetary commitment.

China

China has been known as a producer of electronic products for a very long time. Most of the consumer electronics are produced in China eventually sold in other countries. Many countries have invested in China due to the potential that exists when it comes to consumer products.