Competitive strategy: position, fit, equilibrium
Introduit| English | Sens |
|---|---|
| activity system | the map of reinforcing activities that delivers the position |
| dominant strategy/ˈdɒmɪnənt ˈstrætədʒi/ | a move that is best whatever the rival does |
| stuck in the middle | neither cost leader nor differentiator - the profitless position |
| differentiation/ˌdɪfəˌrenʃɪˈeɪʃn/ | winning on willingness to pay |
| cost leadership | winning on the cost curve |
A position, not a wish
- Premium quality at a value price is not a strategy; it is a wish with two adjectives. A strategy is a position - premium or value - and a system that only makes sense in it.
- The supermarket in-store bakery costs 1.60 a bun at 200,000 a week. Nimbus costs 2.30 at 19,200. Nimbus cannot win cost; it can win willingness to pay: 2.50 against 1.20 - a 108% premium.
The activity system is the moat
- Six activities reinforce the premium position: the 5 a.m. fermentation, the festival brand, the loyalty app, the pooled supply, the employee crew, the licence design.
- Activity system 活动系统: each activity makes sense alone; together they are fit - and fit, not secrecy, is what a rival cannot copy in a season.
Price 2.50 against 1.20. The premium, in % (nearest whole)?
Difficulté 2/5 · 140 pièces + un petit bonus lors de la première réussite aujourd'hui
(2.50 - 1.20)/1.20 = 108%.
Match each cell to its payoffs (Nimbus / rival).
Difficulté 2/5 · 140 pièces + un petit bonus lors de la première réussite aujourd'hui
The rival reads the columns, Nimbus the rows.
The game: equilibrium, not hope
- Payoffs (Nimbus / rival, weekly contribution thousands): Premium-Ignore 22/14; Premium-Match 12/10; Standard-Ignore 15/12; Standard-Match 13/9.
- The rival's Ignore is a dominant strategy 占优策略 (14 > 10, 12 > 9). Against Ignore, Premium 22 beats Standard 15. Equilibrium: (Premium, Ignore).
Strategy or costume?
Route each proposal to what it actually is.
The value line: price 1.80, cost 1.95. The margin per bun?
Difficulté 2/5 · 140 pièces + un petit bonus lors de la première réussite aujourd'hui
A -0.15 margin: the middle, at a loss.
The game’s unique equilibrium:
Difficulté 1/5 · 100 pièces + un petit bonus lors de la première réussite aujourd'hui
Ignore dominates for the rival; Premium wins against Ignore.
Premium is NOT a dominant strategy for Nimbus because:
Difficulté 1/5 · 100 pièces + un petit bonus lors de la première réussite aujourd'hui
It wins against Ignore only; the rival’s move decides.
The value line that loses money
- A Nimbus Value bun at 1.80 with a 1.95 cost is a -0.15 margin - unprofitable, and it spends the brand's scarcity to attack the one rival whose cost curve Nimbus cannot beat.
- That is stuck in the middle 夹在中间 wearing a growth costume.
A rival can copy the buns and profitably carry the rest of the system within a season.
Difficulté 1/5 · 100 pièces + un petit bonus lors de la première réussite aujourd'hui
Matching one activity buys the cost without the willingness - that is why Match pays 10 against 14.
Stuck in the middle means offering both premium and value lines with neither system behind them.
Difficulté 1/5 · 100 pièces + un petit bonus lors de la première réussite aujourd'hui
Both costs, neither advantage - the -0.15 bun.
Recap
- Differentiation 差异化 at a 108% premium, carried by fit; cost leadership 成本领先 belongs to the supermarket.
- Equilibrium (Premium, Ignore): 22/14. The value line dies at -0.15.
- Match the buns and you buy the cost without the willingness - fit is the defence.