Wal-Mart is a classic example of a category killer. By being cheaper, bigger, more convenient, and more well-known, it has an advantage over smaller stores and specialty stores. A wide selection of merchandise is a common characteristic of a category killer.
A category killer is a large retail chain superstore that dominates its product category and puts less productive and highly specialized merchants out of business.
A category killer is a large everything-in-one store that dominates a product category. It's a serious competitor for other smaller stores as it usually has a wide selection of products and lower prices. Its market penetration, pricing, and product assortment provide such big-box stores with a competitive advantage.
Online Category Killers Category killers don't have to be brick-and-mortar retailers. E-commerce giant Amazon could be considered an online category killer.
PetSmart in the USA is a category killer in pet products, including live pets; it has already spawned imitators in the UK (Pet City) and France (Mille Amis).
Ulta Beauty Founded in 1990 in suburban Chicago, Ulta has 1,241 stores and an estimated $7.4 billion in sales. The retailer adopted an old formula, the off-mall category killer, and added a couple “new retail” twists.
Since they are category specialists, they can use their buying power to negotiate lower prices, excellent terms and assured timely supply. They can thus manage to offer such low prices that can virtually kill a category of merchandise for other retailers. Therefore, they are also known as category killers.
This larger scale also comes with higher marketing budgets and higher brand magnetism. Bed Bath & Beyond is a category killer in the home goods arena. Wal-Mart dominates the discount space.
In summary, just as category killers led to the demise of mom-and-pop shops, e-tailers are leading to the death of the big-box category killer.
Bernstein estimates. Last year the division, which also includes the Paris department store Le Bon Marché Rive Gauche and two duty-free shop operators, accounted for 28 percent of sales, leaving LVMH better set than rivals such as PPR to weather stagnating luxe demand. “Sephora is a category killer,” says Sanford C.
Definition of hypermarket : a very large store that carries products found in a supermarket as well as merchandise commonly found in department stores.
Furniture stores, florists, sporting-goods stores, and bookstores are all specialty stores. Stores such as The Athlete's Foot (sports shoes only) and DXL Big + Tall (clothing for large and tall…
Since they are category specialists, they can use their buying power to negotiate lower prices, excellent terms and assured timely supply. They can thus manage to offer such low prices that can virtually kill a category of merchandise for other retailers. Therefore, they are also known as category killers.
This larger scale also comes with higher marketing budgets and higher brand magnetism. Bed Bath & Beyond is a category killer in the home goods arena. Wal-Mart dominates the discount space.
Bernstein estimates. Last year the division, which also includes the Paris department store Le Bon Marché Rive Gauche and two duty-free shop operators, accounted for 28 percent of sales, leaving LVMH better set than rivals such as PPR to weather stagnating luxe demand. “Sephora is a category killer,” says Sanford C.
In summary, just as category killers led to the demise of mom-and-pop shops, e-tailers are leading to the death of the big-box category killer.