After reading the description, Applying the risk management process, Should Coe's expand to Mexico ? Justify your decision? Why? Or why not ?

Understanding Business
12th Edition
ISBN:9781259929434
Author:William Nickels
Publisher:William Nickels
Chapter1: Taking Risks And Making Profits Within The Dynamic Business Environment
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After reading the description, Applying the risk management process, Should Coe's expand to Mexico ? Justify your decision? Why? Or why not ?
A U.S. lease-to-own chain considers whether to test its business in Mexico.
Coe's opens the 1000 store. When Stan's father, Terry, opened the first Coe's back in the 1950s. He'd invested $600 in
32 chairs to rent out to auction houses, and the business expanded from there into party equipment and sickroom gear.
In the 1970s he shifted to residential furniture and other household goods. When Stan started as an assistant manager,
in 1984, the same year Coe's went public, Terry had expected him to work harder than everyone else to prove his
worth. And Stan had. Coe's now took in over $2 billion a year in revenues.
Unlike many of its competitors, Coe's had always emphasized ownership: More than half of its customers became
owners by the end of their leases, compared with 25% for Mr. Rental. Coe's offered a monthly payment schedule and a
shorter contract period (12 months versus four or five years), which meant higher fees each month but a lower cost of
the eventual purchase. Also, Coe's managers were trained to approve lease agreements only for people who could
afford the payments. "Are we getting any of Mr. Rental's cus-tomers?" Stan asked his new store manager. "Some. But I
think our strong opening is thanks to the recession more than any-thing. We're seeing people in here who'd never have
considered Coe's before-wealthier folks who are nervous about committing to big-ticket items outright."
At headquarters," Stan said. "We've been considering Mexico, and Europe. Our investors expect us to keep
growing. Still, we need to do it smartly.Stan had led a successful expansion into Canada in the 1990s when he was the
COO, and Coe's had over 100 stores there now.
But a venture into Puerto Rico a few years before had failed miserably: He'd been forced to close the pilot store after
only 12 months. Too many customers had skipped their payments and walked away with the products, and the store
manager hadn't been able to handle the massive amount of collections. Several analysts had downgraded the chain's
stock as a result, and its share price had plunged. Stan didn't want to make the same mistake twice. "It's a good time
for us and potentially a great market. But it's also a risky time."
Back at the office, Stan stopped by to see his CFO, Carl Amirault. He wanted to be sure everything was ready for
the executive team meeting later that day. They were set to discuss the firm's five-year growth strategy-again. Stan
discuss with him the idea saying " Mexico might be easier- maybe starting small with two or three stores in Juárez and
testing the model. Your own team's analysis showed how many people don't have access to credit there."
"Yes, but we're still mapping the regulatory environment," Carl warned.
"The environment has to be better than here," Stan said. In the height of the reces-sion, U.S. consumer protection
advocates had attacked the rent-to-own industry, claiming the total price of goods-often 60% to 90% higher than that of
traditional retailers--amounted to predatory financing and caused undue hardship for customers. Stan and other
industry CEOs argued they were providing a much-needed service: giving people without access to credit a chance to
acquire household items, in a way that suited their cash flow, preserved their credit, and allowed them to eventually
own the item outright. It worked just like a car lease--and those weren't seen as predatory. And if at any time
leaseholders couldn't make their pay-ments, they could return the items with no penalty and resume the contract where
they left off whenever their financial situation improved. But he knew the fight was far from over. Karen, the general
counsel of Coe's, says "Congress is going to be all over this in the spring". "I doubt it. They have bigger fish to fry" Carl
argued. "Besides, you can't legislate what customers want."
"That's true. Still, I'm just concerned. The bottom line is we need to diversify our risk. And Latin America might be a
relatively inexpensive place to do that, considering the lower transportation, labor, and real estate costs," Stan said.
"My team's analysis says we have a 35% chance of success in Mexico. However, there are plenty of growth
opportunities right here in the U.S. We should be putting a store next to every Walmart. We have the same customer
base, and people need an alternative when they've been turned down for credit. Or we could experiment with our
product line, try the rent-to-own concept for goods beyond basic household items. We've got lots of options without
taking a risk abroad. We're not seeing shrinking margins yet," Carl said. "Yet." Stan shot back. "But why would we add
the complication and risk of international expansion when it's not necessary? In this economy, investors want growth,
but they also want to play it safe," Carl said. "And I don't need to remind you about Puerto Rico." Stan expelled a deep
breath. "I'm concerned about building a growth strategy solely on U.S. revenues. I'm worried that things are going to
get too restricted here, and if that happens, we may regret not having gone elsewhere to continue growing."
Applying the risk management process, Should Coe's expand to Mexico ?
Transcribed Image Text:A U.S. lease-to-own chain considers whether to test its business in Mexico. Coe's opens the 1000 store. When Stan's father, Terry, opened the first Coe's back in the 1950s. He'd invested $600 in 32 chairs to rent out to auction houses, and the business expanded from there into party equipment and sickroom gear. In the 1970s he shifted to residential furniture and other household goods. When Stan started as an assistant manager, in 1984, the same year Coe's went public, Terry had expected him to work harder than everyone else to prove his worth. And Stan had. Coe's now took in over $2 billion a year in revenues. Unlike many of its competitors, Coe's had always emphasized ownership: More than half of its customers became owners by the end of their leases, compared with 25% for Mr. Rental. Coe's offered a monthly payment schedule and a shorter contract period (12 months versus four or five years), which meant higher fees each month but a lower cost of the eventual purchase. Also, Coe's managers were trained to approve lease agreements only for people who could afford the payments. "Are we getting any of Mr. Rental's cus-tomers?" Stan asked his new store manager. "Some. But I think our strong opening is thanks to the recession more than any-thing. We're seeing people in here who'd never have considered Coe's before-wealthier folks who are nervous about committing to big-ticket items outright." At headquarters," Stan said. "We've been considering Mexico, and Europe. Our investors expect us to keep growing. Still, we need to do it smartly.Stan had led a successful expansion into Canada in the 1990s when he was the COO, and Coe's had over 100 stores there now. But a venture into Puerto Rico a few years before had failed miserably: He'd been forced to close the pilot store after only 12 months. Too many customers had skipped their payments and walked away with the products, and the store manager hadn't been able to handle the massive amount of collections. Several analysts had downgraded the chain's stock as a result, and its share price had plunged. Stan didn't want to make the same mistake twice. "It's a good time for us and potentially a great market. But it's also a risky time." Back at the office, Stan stopped by to see his CFO, Carl Amirault. He wanted to be sure everything was ready for the executive team meeting later that day. They were set to discuss the firm's five-year growth strategy-again. Stan discuss with him the idea saying " Mexico might be easier- maybe starting small with two or three stores in Juárez and testing the model. Your own team's analysis showed how many people don't have access to credit there." "Yes, but we're still mapping the regulatory environment," Carl warned. "The environment has to be better than here," Stan said. In the height of the reces-sion, U.S. consumer protection advocates had attacked the rent-to-own industry, claiming the total price of goods-often 60% to 90% higher than that of traditional retailers--amounted to predatory financing and caused undue hardship for customers. Stan and other industry CEOs argued they were providing a much-needed service: giving people without access to credit a chance to acquire household items, in a way that suited their cash flow, preserved their credit, and allowed them to eventually own the item outright. It worked just like a car lease--and those weren't seen as predatory. And if at any time leaseholders couldn't make their pay-ments, they could return the items with no penalty and resume the contract where they left off whenever their financial situation improved. But he knew the fight was far from over. Karen, the general counsel of Coe's, says "Congress is going to be all over this in the spring". "I doubt it. They have bigger fish to fry" Carl argued. "Besides, you can't legislate what customers want." "That's true. Still, I'm just concerned. The bottom line is we need to diversify our risk. And Latin America might be a relatively inexpensive place to do that, considering the lower transportation, labor, and real estate costs," Stan said. "My team's analysis says we have a 35% chance of success in Mexico. However, there are plenty of growth opportunities right here in the U.S. We should be putting a store next to every Walmart. We have the same customer base, and people need an alternative when they've been turned down for credit. Or we could experiment with our product line, try the rent-to-own concept for goods beyond basic household items. We've got lots of options without taking a risk abroad. We're not seeing shrinking margins yet," Carl said. "Yet." Stan shot back. "But why would we add the complication and risk of international expansion when it's not necessary? In this economy, investors want growth, but they also want to play it safe," Carl said. "And I don't need to remind you about Puerto Rico." Stan expelled a deep breath. "I'm concerned about building a growth strategy solely on U.S. revenues. I'm worried that things are going to get too restricted here, and if that happens, we may regret not having gone elsewhere to continue growing." Applying the risk management process, Should Coe's expand to Mexico ?
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