2. Competitive data: present competitors (listed and briefly described), competitive advantages and disadvantages of the proposed business
Since Galaxy Rain’s products and services are focused around rainwater harvesting, the largest competitors for Galaxy Rain are other sources of water delivery to homes. Below is a graph depicting how citizens currently receive water in King County.
Seattle Direct
Service Only
37%
Other Cities
24%
Private Wells
2%
Associations &
Businesses
3%
Districts
34%
Competitor
City/District
Water
Wells
From this chart, we see that 95% of residents receive their water either from the city or districts. These suppliers will be our biggest competitors. There are also a limited number of competitors in the rainwater harvesting industry. Non-filtered rain barrels for gardening purposes are sold at a number of home improvement retailers such as Home
Depot and Lowes. Since rainwater harvesting was only legalized in Washington in 2011, there is only one direct competitor that offers full rainwater harvesting systems in King
County 1 . Below is a chart describing our competitors and how we plan to respond .
Product/Service
Offered
Water Delivery
Water Delivery
Advantages Disadvantages Strategic Response
No maintenance required,
95% of residents already use this, no installation cost required
Residents who use wells not inclined to spend money setting up a new water system
Customers must pay monthly fee based on water consumption and water availability, water prices increasing each year
Inconvenient, and requires a lot of maintenance.
The systems we provide will not have monthly fees and on average pay for themselves in six years, additional water collected is essentially free
Offering a convenient method where water is directly plumbed into customer’s house
1 http://www.seattle.gov/util/services/yard/mylawngarden/rainwaterharvesting

Home
Depot/Lowes
Living Systems
Design (LSD)
Non-Filtered Rain
Barrels
Already well established, convenient for customers seeking only a rain barrel
No expertise in specific field of rainwater harvesting nor offer extended services Galaxy
Rain does
Focus our marketing on our more extensive products and personal services that big box stores do not offer
Full Rainwater
Catchment Systems
(including highest level of filtered plumbing)
Already an established company, may have more recognition within the community
Location of LSD in
Northwest corner of King
County, not accessible to centers of population in
King County. LSD does not contract out their jobs, less flexibility
Locate headquarters in
Seattle, the center of activity in King County. Contract out jobs to local plumbing experts, getting the best possible deal for customers and reducing risks for Galaxy
Rain
Overall, Galaxy Rain’s biggest competitive advantages will be the central location, range of products, and long-term benefits of the services we provide. Galaxy
Rain’s focus on personal relationships with the customer will ensure each receives the best service and pricing. Our commitment to our customers will set Galaxy Rain apart from any competition that may emerge. The further strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats facing our company are displayed in our SWOT chart (see Appendix B).
Additionally the external factors that may affect our business are included in a PESTLE analysis (see Appendix C).
2. Competitive data: present competitors (listed and briefly described), competitive advantages and disadvantages of the proposed business
NomChop faces competition in online food companies and industries that offer readymade meals.
Below is a table outlining NomChop’s main competitors.
Competitor Advantages Disadvantages grubHub
● Customer can order food from restaurants through the grubHub website
● Customer can choose restaurant based on location and cuisine
● Customer can save preferences
● More expensive
● Not homemade
● Limited menu
● Tips and tax
● Business run by company, rather than customer
● May not be fresh, may have preservatives
● Customer has little knowledge of ingredients or recipes
NomChop’s Comparative
Advantages
● Customers may rate and review dishes and chefs
● Customer can see chef profiles (“ChopProfiles”)
● Less expensive
● Homemade meals
● Almost unlimited number of options, customizable to customer

Competitive Analysis (continued)
Restaurants
Zaarly
Catering
Services
● Full service, with waiter
● Professional chefs
● Restaurant ambience
● Health inspections
● Customer can find and hire service experts online in several fields, including cooking
● Professional chefs
● Homemade food
● Offers people jobs by letting customers hire their own chefs
● Professional chefs
● Can customize dishes
● Health inspections
● More expensive
● Not homemade
● Limited menu
● Tips and tax
● Business run by company, rather than customer
● May not be fresh
● Customer has little knowledge of ingredients or recipes
● More expensive
● Denies business to chefs who do not meet their standards
● No ratings, reviews, subscriptions, or social media to help customers navigate and assess quality
● No way to save preferences
● Long and tedious process of choosing a chef
● Caters to upper class, a smaller market in King
County than NomChop’s target markets, the upper and lower middle classes
● More expensive
● Not homemade
● Limited menu
● Tips and tax
● Business run by company, rather than customer
● May not be fresh, may have preservatives
● Customer has little knowledge of ingredients or recipes
● Must buy in large quantities
● Offers people jobs by letting customers hire their own chefs
● No tips or tax required
● Business run by customer; customer can generate profit through sale of dishes
● Background checks on all Choppers
● Fresh and healthy
● Customer has full knowledge of ingredients or recipes
● Customer may choose portions and quantity
● Unprocessed; health can be ascertained through ingredients used
● Follows the rising market of online shopping
● Restaurants and catering services are able to become
NomChop customers by selling their food through the company’s website or app
Grocery
Stores
● Readymade microwaveable dishes
● Large number of options
● Health inspections
● More expensive
● Not homemade
● Tax
● Business run by company, rather than customer
● Not fresh
● Customer has little knowledge of ingredients or recipes
● Often processed and unhealthy

Competitive analysis is crucial as it allows a new business to compare itself to existing business in the area. This will help the company plan and respond to the competition in order to make it successful. The car maintenance industry has a lot of competitors that have been in business for years and years. We are determined to provide customers with the most convenient and satisfactory service they deserve.
Dealership:
Many litter the area like Barrier Motors, a luxury dealership company that sells Audi, Mercedes
Benz, Volvo, and Porsche. The company provides specific maintenance to the meticulous

requirements of these luxury vehicles. Other local dealerships include Evergreen Ford and
Michael’s Chevrolet in Issaquah as well as O’Brien Lexus, Toyota and Scion in Kirkland. The numerous dealerships available to target cities have solid reputations for specific services for their cars and genuine parts. However, the real appeal of Renewed Maintenance is its friendly personal attention and convenient options. Instant gratification through on the spot maintenance at the availability of the customer is a very attractive service. Renewed Maintenance will be focused on providing general car maintenance in order to buy parts and supplies at wholesale. We will provide the option of customized parts where the customer can order specific parts that they want for their cars and pay just for our technician’s service.
Auto Maintenance Shops: Jiffy Lube and Oil Can Henry’s
These businesses are owned by oil companies like Shell and Valvoline so they have contracts with these heavy suppliers and are known throughout the community. Many are franchised like
Jiffy Lube and are very popular in our target region. However, with both dealerships and maintenance shops, service is spotty and inconsistent. Technicians are paid based off of time and how fast they can finish a job 2 . They paid for the average time it takes to do a job, no matter how much actual time they spend on it. Many mechanics will take shortcuts since customers cannot detect changes on the insides of their cars. Renewed Maintenance will pay technicians annual salaries. They will receive training for detailed and careful maintenance as well as friendly service. Customer satisfaction surveys of convenience and quality will also play an important influence in employee pay and training.
The Auto Parts Retailers :
These stores have fairly limited reaches in our region. They provide the tools for those who want to fix up their own cars. However, the region has a very high average income and fairly busy families with little time. Many people do not know how to do the maintenance themselves or do inadequate services. It is a dirty and tedious job that few want to do themselves, but we will
2 Conaway, Laura. Comp: How Mechanics Get Paid

counter these stores by marketing our high quality services, and convenience. More advantages and disadvantages of Renewed Maintenance are in the SWOT and PESTLE Analysis located in the Appendix.