Strengths And Lows Of Kohls

The Highs and Lows of Kohl’s

In a consumeristic society, such as in the United States, there are multiple retail options available for consumers. Even with todays economy beginning to shift from in store to online purchasing processes, there is no lack of retail options. Kohl’s, one of the United States top 100 retailers, operating 1,160 department stores, is one such option (Romell, 2014). Examining Kohl’s pricing and retail strategies of the past, present, and future illuminates successful and unsuccessful retail strategies in the Unites States.

The High/Low of the Past Kohl’s has been one of the popular high/low pricing retails of modern marketing (Chernev, 2012). High/low pricing is marketing strategy relying on temporary price reductions to encourage purchases (Grewal and Levy, 2014). For example, high/low pricing is generally indicated to consumers with advertised pricing exhibiting a regular price, followed by a sale price/percentage. The intent is for consumers to evaluate the sale information, and perceive dramatic savings, thus inciting a purchase. Initially, high/low pricing appears to be a common, acceptable, form of promotion.

Ethical Complications In 2010 a lawsuit was brought up against Kohl’s for “false advertising” in it’s pricing promotions (Coster, 2014). The argument against Kohl’s featured in the lawsuit,

As one would expect, the notoriety of a celebrities name increases the price (perhaps even perceived value) of the products in which they are featured. Now, when a customer goes to Kohl’s looking for the traditionally reasonably priced, moderately durable wares, they instead encounter over priced celebrity lines (Bogenrief, 2012). As Bogenrief states, “Kohl’s, then, appears to be suffering an identity crisis between what it thinks its competition has become, what it thinks its customer wants, and what it should, in turn, offer”