Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.
In the late 1970s, the chicken company Mike Helgeson'sgrandfather founded faced two choices. The family-owned St. Cloud,Minnesota, enterprise could continue to compete in a middle marketthat was becoming crowded with chicken from low-cost producers. Orit could go after the higher-end market.
After much thought, the company decided to develop its ownbrand, Gold'n Plump, and position itself as the high-qualityalternative to store brands and other low-priced options. "Ithink it's been successful," says Helgeson, CEO ofGold'n Plump Poultry Inc., of the strategy. "We'vedoubled [revenues] in the last five years."
Today, companies in a variety of industries are ponderingsimilar choices, thanks to the growing influence of a conceptcalled two-tier marketing. Its premise is that, beginning about thetime Gold'n Plump was making its move in the late '70s,American society began separating itself into haves and have-nots.At the same time, the middle class--long the growth engine of massmarketers of all stripes--was becoming less influential.
The rest of this article is locked.
Join Entrepreneur+ today for access.
Already have an account? Sign In