This essay looks at the various differentiation strategies for a company in the fashion industry. The chosen fashion company for this study is Zara. The reason for this is that Zara is a relatively new company which has grown quickly and today has a big market share. The aim of this thesis is to decide which differentiation strategies are the more relevant ones for Zara to attract new customers. This will be done through a discussion and analysis of all five of the differentiation strategies which are; product-, channel-, image-, service- and personnel differentiation. The theoretical framework gives an overview of the differentiation strategies; it also provides the reader with a description of branding, consumer decision process, competitive advantage, strategic customer and key competitors. These marketing factors can be describing and supporting factors to the most suitable differentiation strategy for Zara. The methodology chapter provides a description of the method choices for this thesis; this study is done by a qualitative approach. The methodology chapter also consists of a part about secondary sources, interviews, different question types used in the interviews and source criticism. The empirical findings consist of information gathered from face to face interviews. The interviews where done with three managers of Zara in France, Paris. In the analysis chapter there will be a discussion about the differentiations strategies that are mentioned in the theoretical framework, this will be combined with the empirical information gained through personal interviews with the managers at Zara. There will also be an analysis and discussion about the marketing factors mentioned above. The conclusion will conclude the analysis of the empirical and theoretical parts of this thesis and answer our research question. In the conclusion there is a description and summarize of the various differentiation strategies. In the conclusion there is a description and summarize of the various differentiation strategies discussed in the theoretical chapter. As a conclusion there is a need for improvements to the personnel-, service- and channel differentiation strategies. The needed future improvements will be discussed closely in the conclusion.

Titel: Recept på differentiering – En studie om differentiering och kundlojalitet på den svenska apoteksmarknaden Författare: Elin Enblom & Anita Music Handledare: Richard Afriyie Owusu Examinator: Bertil Hultén Kurs: Examensarbete på magisternivå 30 hp. Civilekonomprogrammet inriktning marknadsföring, Linnéuniversitetet Kalmar, VT2017. Forskningsfrågor: Hur nyttjar svenska apotek differentieringsstrategier för att uppnå konkurrensfördelar gentemot marknadens aktörer? På vilket sätt påverkas kundlojalitet av differentiering på den svenska apoteksmarknaden? Syfte: Syftet med studien är att utreda och analysera hur differentieringsstrategier nyttjas av apotek och vilken påverkan förevarande har på lojalitet hos kunden. Syftet kommer att undersökas utifrån både konsumenternas och apotekens perspektiv för att ge en mer objektiv syn. Studien ämnar att tolka de båda perspektivens syn på apoteksbranschens nuvarande arbete gällande differentiering och kundlojalitet för bidra till ökad kunskap inom området. Genom det önskar vi att bidra med teoretiska implikationer till den befintliga teorin. Studien ämnar även att bidra med generella praktiska implikationer för apoteksmarknaden och dess framtida utveckling inom området för differentiering och lojalitet. Slutligen kommer studien att bidra med mer specifika implikationer till uppdragsgivaren Apoteksgruppen AB på hur de borde differentiera sig för att kunna påverka kundernas lojalitet positivt. Genom dessa förslag önskar vi uppvisa hur Apoteksgruppen AB kan stärka sin konkurrenskraft gentemot marknadens övriga aktörer. Metod: Studien har nyttjat en kvalitativ inriktad fallstudie med en abduktiv ansats. Datainsamlingen av primärdata har skett genom fokusgrupper och intervjuer utifrån både ett kund- och företagsperspektiv. Resultat & slutsatser: Differentieringsstrategier som nyttjas av svenska apotek och som ger konkurrensfördelar är varumärke, erbjudande, plats och lojalitetsprogram. Differentiering har en positiv påverkan på såväl beteende- och attitydaspekter av lojalitet där främst plats, service och erbjudande påverkar. Teoretiska & praktiska implikationer: De teoretiska implikationerna består av en reviderad undersökningsmodell där sambandet mellan differentiering och lojalitet på den svenska apoteksmarknaden förklaras. Studien ger både generella praktiska implikationer samt implikationer specifika för Apoteksgruppen AB där de utvecklingsmöjligheter som finns för marknaden presenteras. Nyckelord: Differentiering, differentieringsstrategier, lojalitet, beteendelojalitet, attitydlojalitet, apotek. / Title: Recipe for differentiation - A study in differentiation and customer loyalty in the Swedish pharmacy market Authors: Elin Enblom & Anita Music Supervisor: Richard Afriyie Owusu Examiner: Bertil Hultén Course: Master Thesis 30 ECTS, Business Administration and Economics Programme, Linnaeus University Kalmar, Spring 2017. Research questions: How does Swedish pharmacies use differentiation strategies to achieve competitive advantages against the market actors? How is customer loyalty affected by differentiation in the Swedish pharmacy market? Purpose: The purpose of the study is to investigate and analyze how differentiation strategies are used by pharmacies and what impact this has on the loyalty of the customer. The aim will be examined from the perspective of both consumers and pharmacists to provide a more objective view. The study aims to interpret the views of the two perspectives on the pharmaceutical industry's current work regarding differentiation and customer loyalty to contribute to increased knowledge in the field. Through this we wish to contribute theoretical implications to existing theory. The study also aims to provide general practical implications for the pharmacy market and its future development in ​​differentiation and loyalty. Finally, the study will contribute more specific implications to the client Apoteksgruppen AB on how they should differentiate to positively influence customer loyalty. Through these proposals, we wish to display how Apoteksgruppen AB can strengthen its competitiveness against other actors in the market. Method: The study has used a qualitatively oriented case study with an abductive approach. The data collection of primary data has been conducted through focus groups and interviews based on both a customer and business perspective. Results & conclusions: Differentiation strategies used by Swedish pharmacies and which provide competitive advantages are brand, offer, location and loyalty programs. Differentiation has a positive impact on both behavioral and attitudinal aspects of loyalty, primarily in terms of location, service and offerings. Theoretical & practical implications: The theoretical implications consist of a revised survey model explaining the relationship between differentiation and loyalty in the Swedish pharmacy market. The study gives both general practical implications and implications specific to Apoteksgruppen AB, where the opportunities of development available to the market are presented. Keywords: Differentiation, differentiation strategies, loyalty, behavioral loyalty, attitude loyalty, pharmacy.

La presente investigación tiene como objetivo principal determinar si la estrategia de diferenciación empleada por las empresas exportadoras de arándanos frescos de la Región La Libertad están relacionadas directamente con el desempeño exportador hacia el mercado de Estados Unidos en el periodo 2018 – 2020, tomando en cuenta como fuente de medición la estrategia de diferenciación desarrollada por Porter (1982). Para el estudio, se aplicó una investigación mixta, con un diseño no probabilístico y análisis descriptivo correlacional. Asimismo, para la recolección de información cualitativa se realizó entrevistas semiestructuradas a 11 expertos del sector agroexportador y en negocios internacionales, dichos entrevistados son representantes de entidades públicas como PROMPERÚ, DIRCETUR, MINAGRI, MINCETUR, representantes de gremios como la Asociación de Gremios Productores Agrarios del Perú (AGAP) y la Cámara de Comercio de Lima (CCL). Dichas entrevistas fueron transcritas, codificadas y analizadas en el programa Atlas Ti. Por otro lado, para el desarrollo cuantitativo se realizaron 33 encuestas, además, se utilizó el software SPSS para realizar el coeficiente estadístico de Rho Spearman, con el cual se obtuvo como resultado que las variables estrategia de diferenciación y desempeño exportador no están relacionadas para el caso de las empresas exportadoras de arándanos frescos de la Región La Libertad en el periodo 2018-2020. Por último, se procedió a discutir los resultados obtenidos y se concluyó que las actividades o acciones diferenciadoras consideradas por las empresas exportadoras de arándanos frescos de la Región La Libertad en el periodo 2018-2020 son requisitos que exige el sector y los clientes extranjeros. / The main objective of this research is to determine whether the differentiation strategy used by the exporting companies of fresh blueberries from the La Libertad Region are directly related to the export performance to the United States market in the period 2018 - 2020, taking into account as measurement source the differentiation strategy developed by Porter (1982). For the study, a mixed investigation was applied, with a non-probabilistic design and correlational descriptive analysis. Likewise, for the collection of qualitative information, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 11 experts from the agro-export sector and in international business, said interviewees are representatives of public entities such as PROMPERÚ, DIRCETUR, MINAGRI, MINCETUR, representatives of unions such as the Asociación de Guildios Productores Agrarios del Peru (AGAP) and the Lima Chamber of Commerce (CCL). These interviews were transcribed, coded and analyzed in the Atlas Ti program. On the other hand, for the quantitative development, 33 surveys were carried out, in addition, the SPSS software was used to perform the Rho Spearman statistical coefficient, with which it was obtained as a result that the variables differentiation strategy and export performance are not related to the case of fresh blueberry exporting companies in the La Libertad Region in the 2018-2020 period. Finally, the results obtained were discussed and it was concluded that the differentiating activities or actions considered by the companies exporting fresh blueberries from the La Libertad Region in the 2018-2020 period are requirements demanded by the sector and foreign clients. / Tesis

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