Brittany Ferries

							Brittany Ferries

Syllabus areas 1.2, 1.4, 1.5, 1.6, 2.4, 2.5, 2.6, 3.1, 3.2, 3.3, 3.4, 3.5, 3.6, 3.7, 3.8, 4.1, 4.2, 4.3.



Brittany Ferries is a French-owned car ferry operator, running ships across the Western Channel
between south-west Britain and ports in Brittany and Normandy. The company also operates
between Ireland and Brittany, running ferries from Roscoff to Cork.

Brittany Ferries was formed as a result of Britain joining the Common Market in 1972. The local
farming co-operatives in Brittany joined with the Finistere Chambre du Commerce to create the
company, mainly with the aim of shipping artichokes and cauliflowers from Brittany to Britain. The
farmers recognised the huge potential market in Britain: at the time, the UK was a net importer of
food, whereas France was (and still is) a net exporter of food. The Chambre du Commerce
recognised an equally tempting potential for tourism from the UK: at the time, Brittany was a
somewhat remote part of France, a long way from the Eastern Channel crossing point between
Dover and Calais or Boulogne sur Mer, and not well-served by airports.

In 1978, the company took the brave step of starting a direct route to Spain from Plymouth, making
the crossing to Santander. This route opened up the possibility of taking one’s car to Spain without
having to make the long drive through France, which in 1978 would typically take two days. 24 hours
on a ferry seemed a much better alternative, albeit somewhat expensive. In 2009, the ferry (the
Pont Aven) set a new record for the crossing between Portsmouth and Santander, making the trip in
just over 23 hours. From Plymouth the journey is even faster – 20 hours or thereabouts, depending
on tides and weather. The ship used for the crossing, the Pont Aven, is the largest ferry operating in
the Channel, at 39,000 tons. It has a top speed of 26 knots, approximately 30 miles per hour, which
enables it to make the crossing extremely quickly.

The Pont Aven is more like a cruise liner than a ferry. It has four restaurants, (as one might expect
from a French company), air-conditioned cabins with en-suite facilities, two cinemas, a nightclub, a
swimming-pool, and live entertainment throughout the voyage. It’s a long way from a hammock and
a rusty port-hole.

Brittany Ferries retains much the same ownership structure today as it started out with. It is mainly
owned by the farmers, with some investment from banks, pension funds, and a few individuals. The
company has resisted selling a stake to the French Government, even though many other firms in
France are part-owned by the State.

In common with other ferry companies, Brittany Ferries operates a wide range of on-board facilities.
The ships have cinemas, shops, restaurants, cabins for overnight crossings, and on the Spanish
service they even offer information about the whales and dolphins which inhabit the Bay of Biscay.
The ending of duty-free allowances within the European Union had a severe effect on most ferry
companies, since sales of duty-free cigarettes and alcohol were a mainstay of the on-board shops,
but most companies have recovered well by offering these products duty-paid at French or Spanish
prices. The profit margins are lower, but for British and Irish customers there are still substantial
savings to be made. Brittany Ferries has casinos and/or gambling machines on board: these are legal
on ferries, even though they are not always legal in the countries the ferries travel between.
During 2007 and early 2008 Brittany Ferries found some new competition opening up as the airport
at Brest was expanded. The airport had previously been a somewhat run-down regional airport, but
a massive redevelopment scheme, including an impressive new terminal building, meant the airport
became able to handle many more passengers. Although much of the traffic is for internal flights
within France, low-cost operators such as Ryanair and Flybe have seized the opportunity to operate
flights from Dublin, London, Manchester, Exeter and Southampton. Some of these flights only
operate during the tourist season, but for many people they mean that Brittany has become a
cheap, accessible destination, even for a long weekend.

The company also experiences direct competition on its routes across the Western Channel. At one
time, P&O Ferries operated from Portsmouth to Le Havre or Cherbourg, and also to Santurtzi near
Bilbao, in Northern Spain. However, P&O stopped running its Western Channel routes to France, and
now only operates to Spain: Louis Dreyfus Lines, a French company, took over the French routes.
This company also operates a route from Western France to Spain, but this doesn’t compete directly
with Brittany Ferries.

Competition from the airlines seems likely to reduce as increasing fuel costs, environmentally-driven
legislation, and increased taxes on air travel put the low-cost carriers under pressure. Environmental
lobbyists are especially targeting airlines, and since the airlines are subject to much greater security
constraints than the ferries, many people find that travelling by air just isn’t worth the trouble any
more. Travelling from London to Brittany by ferry means a relatively short drive, a pleasant cruise
across, and another short drive at the other end. There are almost no restrictions on baggage, either
in quantity or type, and the passengers are able to bring back virtually unlimited amounts of cheap
wine and cigarettes. For a family of four, the cost is also very much less than flying, even when
travelling with a low-cost airline.

Brittany Ferries has a somewhat mixed future – the company has challenges to face, including the
economic climate (the strength of the Euro against the pound throughout 2009 meant a fall in
tourism from the UK to the Eurozone, for example) and the rising cost of fuel. Competition from
airlines and other ferry companies, and the possibility of new entrants to the market, will also cause
managers some problems. On the other hand, ecological considerations favour ferries over airlines,
and Brittany Ferries is well-placed to capture a tourist market from people who have become
disaffected with flying. For Brittany Ferries, the next decade will bring interesting times!



Question

You are to assume the role of marketing manager for Brittany Ferries. Prepare a marketing plan for
the company, in particular addressing the following issues:

    1. The future structure of the competition.
    2. Recommendations for carrying out a regular marketing audit, flagging up the key areas
       which Brittany Ferries needs to address.
    3. Segmentation, targeting and positioning.
    4. Problems of implementing your plan.
    5. Possible areas for growing the company’s revenues.
Tutor Notes




                       Case Study: Brittany Ferries




  A good answer is likely to:



                                                                             

     Show an understanding of the marketing audit.                           

     Analyse the case study to generate insights into competitive threats.   

     Show how marketing strategies relate to organizational strategies.      

     Make sensible recommendations about segmenting the market.              

     Suggest suitable targeting strategies.                                  

     Recognise the role of marketing manager.                                

     Suggest appropriate positioning against competitors.                    