<p>ABSTRACT</p><p>Background: The current condition of the U.S. housing market has created a</p><p>possible shift in the way people are purchasing homes today.</p><p>U.S. housing statistics show that the average person moves</p><p>every five years, but now with a cooling market people are no</p><p>longer making quick capital gains off of their property. This</p><p>means that people are now becoming more conscious of what</p><p>they buy and why they are buying. People are realizing that</p><p>home ownership may be moving towards a long term</p><p>investment rather than a quick flip.</p><p>Housing is the Seattle, Washington area is expensive.</p><p>Environmentalists are urging U.S. residents to research ways</p><p>they can make their homes more efficient and friendlier to the</p><p>environment. However, the problem really lies in the</p><p>construction techniques of the U.S. housing industry. People</p><p>pay enough for their poorly constructed homes as it is, most</p><p>families are unwilling to pay the extra expense that is necessary</p><p>to increase the efficiency of their home. StålbroHouse noticed</p><p>this gap in the U.S. market and wants to bring Swedish</p><p>prefabricated homes that are superior in construction and</p><p>design elements. They also require a fraction of the energy</p><p>U.S. homes consume and are affordable for the average middle</p><p>class family.</p><p>Before beginning operations, to get some initial knowledge</p><p>about the industry, trends, customers etc., we contacted the</p><p>Washington State Housing Finance Commission. In addition,</p><p>an informal interview was conducted to enhance our</p><p>knowledge on the typical customer and what customers</p><p>commonly base their purchasing decisions on. In order to get</p><p>an even better understanding about the customers, we visited</p><p>the annual Home Show at the Seattle Convention Center in</p><p>January of 2008. We distributed feasibility surveys to get an</p><p>even better understanding for what people want in a home.</p><p>This enabled us to get closer to the target group. To get a better</p><p>idea of competitors and in particular their marketing efforts, we</p><p>called a couple of them directly. In some cases, we spoke with</p><p>their marketing managers.</p><p>Purpose: The purpose of this Thesis/Business Plan is to outline the</p><p>direction StålbroHouse plans to take in its first years of</p><p>operation as well as explain why we think this is a viable</p><p>business. This document will also serve to communicate the</p><p>companies ideas and projections to future investors and (or) so</p><p>that we can obtain a bank loan to assist in the capital necessary</p><p>to begin operations.</p><p>Method: We used a combination of relevant theory that was applicable</p><p>to the desired outcomes of the Thesis/Business Plan. Relevant</p><p>industry statistics, charts, and information was incorporated</p><p>with the theory that enabled us to produce a business plan that</p><p>was backed up by academic findings as well as market</p><p>research. This aided in the creation of a Businesss Plan that</p><p>would allow StålbroHouse to demonstrate their projections for</p><p>the first years of operations.</p><p>However, as with any business plan, it is important to</p><p>remember that outside factors, market changes etc. can mean</p><p>the need to deviate from the initial plan.</p><p>Sonna Stålbro & Yanko Todorov</p>
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:UPSALLA/oai:DiVA.org:hj-1367 |
| Date | January 2008 |
| Creators | Todorov, Yanko, Stålbro, Sonna |
| Publisher | Jönköping University, Jönköping International Business School, Jönköping University, Jönköping International Business School |
| Source Sets | DiVA Archive at Upsalla University |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Student thesis, text |
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