Skipper’s Pet Products was started by Steve to sell a range of dog food and treats made from fish. Due to fish being a very perishable product, different methods are used to preserve the life and quality of the product. Arguably, the best method, albeit the most labour intensive and time-consuming, is to dry the fish over several days. This process maintains the nutritional content of the fish, which is often lost using other methods, and it is this that enables Skipper’s to offer a product with a clear USP.
The company is based in Steve’s hometown of Grimsby and he is proud of the local fishing heritage. The fish used in Skipper’s products is sourced from the docks in Grimsby or nearby Hull. Steve says the location of the business means that raw materials and qualified labour are easy to source.
Skipper’s Pet Products have lots of competition, but the competitors buy low quality fish
in China and cook the treats at high temperatures which removes some nutrients so they
are not high quality, healthy dog treats like Skipper’s treats.

The company website allows Skipper’s to sell their dog treats to customers all over the UK. The website sales are increasing each month and generate a larger profit margin than Skipper’s sales to pet shops.

question: Evaluate whether locating Skipper’s close to raw materials was the most important
factor Steve should have considered when choosing a location for his business.
You should use your knowledge of the business as well as the information provided

When considering where you should set up location, it is best to look at the cost of locating your business from various perspectives such as raw material acquisition, transport to suppliers, transport to customers and accessibility.

Depending on the business, some factors would have to be given more weight. In the above scenario, raw material acquisition and transport from suppliers should be given a higher weight because the goods are perishable and so costs would be high if the location is too far from the source of the fish.

Given that technology has made it easier to sell from many places, transport to customers is not as major a factor as transport to suppliers. The most important factor to focus on for this business therefore is raw material acquisition and by locating the company so close to the source, the cost to acquire the raw material from suppliers was heavily reduced so this was the best option.