Business Concept







A manufacturing company designing, producing and distributing aftermarket
accessories and upgrades for the Jeep Wrangler line of vehicles.
There are a multitude of companies producing aftermarket accessories and parts for
the Jeep Wrangler. There are companies that produce low-quality, low-cost
products mainly intended for cosmetic purposes that will not hold up in the face of
moderate to difficult off-road conditions. There are also companies, while fewer
than those providing low-end merchandise, still numerous, producing high-end
parts that are out of the price range and need for all but the most serious of off-road
enthusiasts. The goal of Currahee Designs, LLC will be to bridge the gap between
these two markets and provide parts that will provide the function needed to handle
all but the most difficult off-road conditions.
Initial products will include front and rear bumpers, spare tire carriers, rock rails,
fender flares, and undercarriage protection. All products would initially be made of
steel.
Owners of current (JK) model Jeep Wranglers that participate in easy to
moderately difficult off roading activities with their primary vehicle.
Direct to consumer sales would be available utilizing a company website with
shipping to be handled by an established freight company. Primary distribution
goal would be either Quadratec and/or Extreme Terrain. Both companies have
infrastructure in place and are local to the area.
Growth is possible by expanding products to other vehicles with similar uses
(Toyota FJ Cruiser, the Ford Bronco and Ranger line expected to hit the market in
2020) and other model Jeep Wrangler generations (YJ 1986-1995, TJ 1996-2006)
as well as the undesignated next generation Jeep Wrangler, expected to hit the
market in 2017. If initially successful production, could begin to incorporate more
complex parts that have a higher production cost, such as suspension and engine
components.
Design and manufacture quality parts at a reasonable price, utilizing existing sales
and distribution networks to tap into an overlooked market segment.
Industry Analysis

Currahee Designs LLC, is in the aftermarket automobile parts industry. This
industry focuses on creating aftermarket parts for all sorts of automobiles (SUV’s,
sedans, coupes, trucks, etc.)



Porter’s five forces analysis: When it comes to supplier power in this industry, it is
not very strong. There are many companies that are more than willing to help
produce and create aftermarket auto parts for our company. Buyer Power is very
low when it comes to our company because our product is different from other
companies because we offer aftermarket parts on a car (Jeep) that doesn’t have
many suppliers for aftermarket parts. But in the overall industry, buyer power is
high because there are many substitutes. This ties into the threat of substitution. If
we stick to cars that don’t have many aftermarket parts associated with them (Jeeps,
BMW 135i’s, Mazdas), then we will not have to worry about the threat of
substitutes. We will not deal with much competitive rivalry because our products
are not widely made by other companies to the vehicles that we cater to. The threat
of new entry is a huge issue unless our company is able to patent our products. In
the automotive industry, reverse engineering is very common and any company
may be able to copy our products and reproduce them.
Industry attractiveness (based on above analysis): This industry is only attractive
under two conditions. The first, as long as we can differentiate our product and
quality from other companies, we should be profitable and make solid sales. The
second condition is that we are able to create patents that will restrict companies
from reverse engineering our products. If we cannot do this, then the threat of new
entrants driving the price down will be a big problem.
SWOT analysis of our company: Our Company has many strengths. We already
have a whole team of individuals that already have product designs and products
developed. This puts us ahead of the other competitors in the industry. We also
are an American-based company that offers high quality and reasonably-priced
products. The people want quality and not something that is made in China or
overseas and will break soon. Our weaknesses lie in the fact that our Americanmade product can backfire due to high production costs. We also do not have
many connections within the United States; these connections are for
manufacturing our products. We see that Jeeps clearly do not have high quality
aftermarket parts. This gives us a great opportunity to provide the market with
products that no one else offers. This allows us to maximize profit (in the short
run) before any other competitors become involved. We also see that many other
cars and companies lack aftermarket parts, such as Mazda. If our experiment with
Jeeps is successful, we can move onto other automobile companies. We have
many threats from our competitors. Our biggest threat is being quickly driven out
of the industry because bigger, more established companies decide to produce
similar, cheaper products. We also have the problem of having our competitor’s
match of quality but lower prices because of outsourcing manufacturing.
Although we have weaknesses and threats, our company’s strengths and
opportunities are greater. We believe that our company can remain competitive
because we can differentiate our

Competitor analysis: We have many top competitors that have been very
successful. Our major competitors are: Continental Corp. ($44.9 Billion in global
sales), DENSO Corp. ($39.2 Billion), and Aisin SEIKI Co. Ltd. ($29.3 billion in
global sales). These companies are the main aftermarket auto parts distributors in
the world. They have the top engineers and have perfected giving the consumer
market a wide variety of options in terms of products, cost, and quality. This
allows these companies to control a large market share because they cater to all
budgets (low quality and low prices versus high quality and higher prices but
lower than OEM prices). This makes the consumer very happy because it gives
power to the consumer to choose the quality and price that they are willing to pay
for aftermarket auto parts. All of these companies have very good websites and
decent customer service. Our company will stand up to these companies and
compete by finding a niche, this niche being aftermarket parts for Jeeps. These are
parts that these companies do not focus on. We will also make it known that our
products are American made and high quality. Our competitors have poor
customer service because their customer representatives have poor English
because they are overseas. Our customer representatives will be strictly English
speaking with the option of speaking to other representatives that can speak other
languages (Spanish, Russian, German).

Distribution channels:
o Our main distribution channel will be our website. Through our website the
consumer will be able to purchase our product as wholesale prices
o Our second distribution channel will be eBay. EBay motors is a very
popular portal in which the consumer can buy aftermarket parts. EBay also
allows for customers to pay with confidence and track their orders with ease.
The buyer protection is state of the art and advanced.
o Our last distribution channel will be private and franchised auto stores. This
will be the most difficult task to accomplish because stores usually do not
accept new products and companies without having an opportunity for huge
profits.
o Since we are designing and producing our own products, we will enter
into the automobile engine and parts manufacturing industry in the US.
Our company will also have an online website for the direct sales to our
consumers, so we will also be competing with the companies in the online
automotive parts & accessories sales industry.
o There are five forces that threaten the performance of the automobile
engine & parts manufacturing industry and the online automotive parts &
accessories sales industry in the US: competitive rivalry, buyer power,
threat of new entry, supplier power and threat of substitution.
Competitive Force
Threat to industry profitability
Low






Medium
Competitive rivalry
●
Buyer Power
●
Supplier Power
●
Threat of New Entry
●
Threat of Substitute
●
High
Competitive rivalry: Competition in this industry is high and the trend is steady.
The number and balance of competitors is medium. However, the concentration
of this company is low. The 15.5% of revenue in 2016 is accounting by the four
largest operators in the US. Since the purchases power for new vehicle is highly
related to the trends in gas prices because they affect the cost of owning vehicles.
The fact that the drop of gas prices in 2015 has given more room in the market for
the new competitors. As a result, the competition in this industry is considered at
a medium level.
Buyer power: The buyer power is a strong force in the automobile engine & parts
manufacturing industry. Consumers have the different options of choosing
product from different manufacture. However, the economy plays an important
role in the consumer's buying power. With the upturn of the economy and the
advantages of our product, it has led us to a nice position.
Supplier power: The supplier power of the industry’s aftermarket products are
considered relatively low. The products are initially made in steel. There are
plenty of steel supply companies in the US. Due to the large quantity of suppliers,
so this is not a large threat to our company.
Threat of new entry: The threat of new entry shows a low to the industry. The
companies entering to the industry will face challenges, since manufacturers are
required to invest in many high efficiency machines, robotics and equipment to
handle molten metal. All these machines would need large amount funding. This
would be the largest barrier for them to entry.
Threat of substitution: The threat f substitution is considered low for our product.
Since we are tending to produce high quality products at reasonable prices, and it
is our largest advantage. Therefore, it will be hard to substitute.
After evaluating the five forces of the analysis, this industry is found to be
attractive. We have decided to target across the US nationwide. As both of these
industries would be affected by the performance of the vehicle sales; the US
economy is growing in the 5 years, which would lead to a growth of the
automobile industry.
SWOT Analysis
Strength
Quality
Improved product
Environmentally friendly
Strong management
Distinct target markets
Weakness
Possible underfunding
Lack of marketing expertise
Lack of experience
Lack of strategic relationship
As new company no track record
Opportunity
Unfulfilled customer need
Customer loyalty
Possible alliances
New materials
Partnerships/
licensing
opportunities
Growing market
Threat
Aggressive competitors
Economic downturn
Supplier - dependent
Natural disasters
Competitor Analysis

Auto Parts Manufacturing in the US
o Denso Corporation
o Denso Corporation is one the largest automotive parts and component
suppliers in the World. This company was originally founded in Japan. These
global operations generated $46.0 billion in the year 2015 and there is 17.6%
of the total revenue comes from the US operations. The company is a member
under the Toyota Group, and it works closely with Toyota. There is almost
half of the revenue is account from the sales to Toyota. Therefore the sales of
the Toyota Company would be a big influence factor of Denso Corporation.
However, Denso also sells its product to other major vehicle company besides
Toyota
o Over the five years to fiscal 2017, Denso Corporation is anticipated to
increase at an annualized rate of 17.4% to $5.7 billion. Although Denso
Corporation acts as a foreign company in the US, it has successfully survive
and penetrated in the US auto market. The company has invested for the
growth in the US markets in the earlier period of the five year period to 2016.
And this has led to a profit fell for the company. However, as time goes on,
the profit increased as the company cut costs through lowered wages and
increase the efficiency through automation.

Online automotive parts & accessories sales in the US
o AutoZone Inc.
o AutoZone Inc. was founded in Memphis in 1979. It is one of the largest auto
parts retailers and a leading distributor of automotive replacement parts and
accessories in the US. The company operates 4,500 retail stores and 8
distribution centers in the US. They offer products for variety of vehicles.
Although they were mainly sales in stores, they have increased putting more
effort on their website which is called Auto Anything. Auto anything is an
online retailer mainly focuses on the specialized automotive parts and
accessories. The website was launched in 1999 and headquarter is in located
in San Diego.
o Over the 5 years to 2015, the company is expected to increase at an annual
rate of 10.4%. The profit margin is at an estimated 19.2% of income in 2015
which is much higher than the average of the industry. Since they carry their
own private-label brand, it helps to get higher profit for the company.
o US Auto Parts Network Inc.
o Auto Parts Network Inc. operates as an online retailer of automotive
aftermarket parts. The company was originally launched in 1995 and the first
website was created in the 2000. Nowadays, the company has over 400
employees and they also have operations overseas. Their products are sold and
shipped to 160 different countries.
o Over the past five years, the company revenue is anticipated to increase at an
annualized rate of 2.6% to $297.7million. However, the US Auto Parts has
been struggled past five years. The noncash write-downs of intangibles and
restructuring charges related to the WAG acquisition were the main costs that
cut down the company’s net income. The revenue had declined 16.4% in
2013.