Response strategies to challenges of competition by horticultural export firms in Kenya

Abstract

The study was carried out to determine the response strategies to challenges of competition by Horticultural export firms in Kenya. The objectives of the study were; to establish the challenges of competition facing the horticultural export firms in Kenya, and to determine the response strategies adopted by the horticultral export firms in Kenya to cope with challenges of competition.The study established that horticultural export firms in Kenya are being faced by several challenges including: rivalry within the industry, competition for source of suppliers, competition for warehousing facilities and competition for channels of distribution. Firms must address these challenges to deal with competition from their rivals in the industry. The researcher established that most of the firms don’t have strategy implementation department which means that they face challenges in effectively implementing their strategies. The study however established that firms are using several strategies to deal with competition which include: Turn around strategies- an all-round strategy dealing with competition, product diversification, new market penetration, e-marketing of the company’s products, investing in packaging and product differentiation, target market, out-sourcing of services, differentiating strategies, refocusing the business and enlarged branch network worldwide. This indicates that the strategies are having a positive impact to the firms in dealing with the challenges of competition in the industry. The study therefore concludes that the firms should establish a strategy implementation department to help in implementing strategies hence dealing with most of the challenges and creating a competitive edge.