Manorama opened a retail outlet in Bengaluru selling readymade fashionable garments like t-shirts, skirts, kurtis, etc. for girls. Her decision was based on recent trends in clothing of young girls. Since fashion changes very fast in the garments business, Manorama not only wanted to understand the business environment but also wanted to adapt it to succeed in the long run. So, she monitored fashion trends through social media and introduced sustainable clothing. A keen watch on the trends in the environment had sensitized Manorama to the changing needs of customers. By doing this, Manorama is concentrating on one of the points of importance of environment. (a) Identify the point of importance of environment discussed above. (b) Explain with the help of one more point how sensitivity to environmental factors is crucial for an entrepreneur.

Question

Accepted Answer

(a) The point of importance of environment discussed in the case is **Sensitisation of entrepreneurs to cope up with rapid changes**. Manorama monitored fashion trends through social media and introduced sustainable clothing. A keen watch on the trends in the environment sensitised her to the changing needs of customers.

(b) Another point showing why sensitivity to environmental factors is crucial is **Identification of opportunities to get first mover advantage**. By keeping in touch with the changes in the external environment, an enterprise can identify opportunities and find strategies to capitalise on them at the earliest. For example, Volvo, the Swedish brand, holds 74% share in the luxury bus segment because it had entered India earlier and identified the opportunity before competitors.