Global Assessment of the Glass Tableware Market

Client Situation

Our client is a leading strategic investment holding group for the food and retail sectors in the MENA region. With a presence of 40+ years, the client has companies under two entities. It operates almost 205 grocery stores and produces everyday household staples with a presence in over 50 countries. It was considering expansion into the glass tableware market.

Cedar’s Approach

The client mandated Cedar with performing a global market analysis of the glass tableware market to aid in its decision for market entry. Cedar’s approach was as follows:

• External assessment using Cedar database and secondary research
• Review of all relevant internal documents provided by the client
• One-on-one interviews with relevant members of industry-specific stakeholders
• Integration of the internal assessment, external assessment and one-on-one interview inputs to develop a thorough global assessment
• Presentation of recommendations to senior management

Outcome

Following were the key recommendations provided by Cedar:

• Analysis of the global glassware market by each continent and country using the following parameters:
1. Domestic shares and domestic production
2. Increase or decrease in the volumes and values of imports and exports
3. Comparative country overview
4. Continent and country-specific competitive overview
5. Evaluation of popular distribution channels
• Some of the key insights from the North American market analysis were as follows:
1. Acquisitions had been growing as a strategy to improve market share and broaden product portfolio
2. Major distribution of glass tableware came through mass merchandisers, accounting for about 35% of all sales
3. Department stores accounted for 23% of all sales, primarily due to their strength in crystal ware and other high-value products
• Some key insights from the Latin American market analysis were as follows:
1. Mexico was the leading producer and exporter of glass tableware
2. The value of glass tableware production in Brazil grew by 10% between 1996-2002
• Some key insights from the Asian market analysis were as follows:
1. China had emerged as the region’s leading exporter of glass tableware
2. Indonesia continued to be the main low-cost production base in the region for tableware
3. Japan was the leading importer of glassware in the Asia-Pacific region, with imports of over $ 174 million. The major share of glassware imports into Japan was contributed by France, which had a market share of 26%
• The analyses conducted by Cedar provided deep understanding of these markets, which aided the client in segmentation & targeting strategies to tap onto these geographies