<p> Anthony’s Fine Cars1</p><p>Situation Anthony’s Fine Cars, sells late model European prestige vehicles and older classics. Denton Anthony, owner of Anthony’s Fine Cars is facing a dilemma. Net sales have declined over the last two years and in his mind there is excessive inventory that does not seem to be moving too quickly (see Exhibits 1 and 2). He has asked you for some marketing assistance to try and get his business back on track.</p><p>Company Details</p><p>The company is located in Catskills Alberta, a population of about 67, 000 people, with a trading area (150km radius) of about 120,000 people. Catskills is located about 200 km south east of Calgary, between Lethbridge and Medicine Hat.</p><p>Denton has been in business for eight years, and with the exception of the last two years, sales have risen steadily (Exhibit 1). Denton buys his cars from auctions in Calgary, Edmonton, and Saskatoon. He feels he has a competitive advantage in the Catskill area, since there is no direct competition in the European prestige automobile market. There are however, many other car dealers (see Exhibit 3) in and around the local trading area.</p><p>The operation consists of Denton (owner and general manger), a service manager, and three mechanics, one part time and two fulltime. Denton contracts out the detailing of the vehicles and all the firms accounting work to local firms in the area. His wife Tahnee on occasion will come in and help “man” the front of the operation while Denton is buying at auctions or doing other business activities. In addition to automobile sales, a big part of Denton’s operation is servicing the automobiles he sells and other import vehicles in and around the local area. The service portion of his business started in March of 2002. </p><p>Advertising and Promotion</p><p>Currently Denton does very little advertising, since much of his business is created through word of mouth. The only “real” advertising that Denton does consists of a large sign outside the business, and the occasional ad in the local newspaper and Auto Trader (see Exhibit 4 as a sample) magazine. One of Denton’s close friends, Neil Maltby, has suggest that he try other forms of advertising. Denton does not really think it is necessary, since he has never done so in the past. Another friend, Bobbi Hiltz, has suggested doing something called a SWOT analysis to identify where the business may be experiencing troubles. The SWOT analysis Hiltz says will also identify opportunities for Anthony’s Fine Cars. 1 This case was prepared for the BSAD 231: Foundations of Marketing by Denton Anthony. 2</p><p>Exhibit 1 – Gross Sales (2001-2006)</p><p>2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006</p><p>$600,000 $1.1 million $1.55 million $1.8 million $1.7 million $1.4 million</p><p>Exhibit 2 – Inventory as of October 31, 2007 – by year and model</p><p>Volvo Land Rover</p><p>2003 Volvo S80 Sedan 2000 Land Rover Range Rover LE</p><p>2000 Volvo S70 Sedan 2003 Land Rover Discovery</p><p>2004 Volvo S60Sedan 2003 Land Rover Freelander</p><p>2001 Volvo V70 Station Wagon Mercedes Benz</p><p>2003 Volvo V40 Sports Wagon 1999 Mercedes Benz 300D</p><p>2004 Volvo Cross-Country Station Wagon 2003 Mercedes Benz C320 Wagon</p><p>2004 Volvo XC90 SUV 2004 Mercedes Benz E320</p><p>BMW Other vehicles in Inventory</p><p>2000 BMW 328 I 1982 Fiat Spider (convertible)</p><p>2003 BMW 330CI Sedan 1975 Triumph Spitfire (convertible)</p><p>2004 BMW 745I Sedan 2001 Audi A4 Quattro</p><p>1999 Jaguar XJ8 Sedan 3</p><p>Exhibit 3 – Area Vehicle Dealerships</p><p>New Car Dealers in Catskill Trading Area Used Car Dealerships in Area</p><p>Samson Honda Tim’s SUV’s and Van’s Catskill Nissan Catskill Motors Western Pontiac-GMC Anthony’s Fine Cars Tri-Tack Chevrolet-Oldsmobile Parolin Auto Sales Mary-Ellen Chrysler Western Used Car Sales Southwest Ford Watkins Motors Killey Ford Jim’s Auto Sales Borden Pontiac-GMC Yoka Kia-Hyandai Stewart’s Volkswagen Clark Toyota</p><p>Exhibit 4 – Sample Ad in Auto Trader</p><p>Anthony’s Fine Cars – Come see our fine selection of Prestige European Automobiles. Catskills, AB. 1 (780) 443-3498, or 1 (888) 443-3435 for more information.</p><p>Questions:</p><p>1. Complete a SWOT analysis of the current situation.</p><p>2. What other types of marketing related information may be helpful in solving Anthony’s Fine Cars financial stumble. </p><p>3. List several ways in which the Advertisement in Exhibit 4 could and should be improved. Be specific. 4</p><p>4. Evaluate the current marketing efforts for Anthony’s Fine Cars. Suggest ways that you would improve the overall communication plan. In your response, be sure to consider the various promotional tools and media considerations. What should Denton do differently? Be specific.</p>