Surprising Tiense Suiker With an Interesting SWOT Analysis

Geert Van Aelst is Marketing Manager at Tiense Suikerraffinaderij, the company with the second-best reputation in Belgium (source RepTrak Akkanto 2013).

Tiense Suiker is the Belgian market leader and is active in both b2b and b2c. 4P square helped them develop a marketing strategy for the expansion of their business into the US.

A surprising SWOT analysis with a happy ending: the Tiense Suiker case

“The b2c strategy in Belgium focuses on re-enforcing the brand. Innovation is an important driving factor and this is why we have developed a set of unique sugar products. Starting with these Belgian speciality products, our objective is now to expand our business outside the EU, with the US as our first destination.

The first step we took was to conduct a feasibility study for this project. Because we didn’t have the time or the expertise to do it ourselves, we called on the services of an external company.

And since we had already worked together with 4P square—with excellent results—it seemed logical to use their expertise once again. 4P square’s approach convinced me immediately.

Combined with their passion, this made them the perfect partner for our business development assignment. And we weren’t mistaken.”

4P square did not tell us what we wanted to hear…

“Our ambition is to expand into the US market. One of 4P square’s specialised consultants carried out a thorough SWOT analysis, not only by screening our competition but also by exploring the economic situation, the many legal issues involved and import regulations.

We were then able to crosscheck our plans and build up our future decisions. This not only helped us to approach this foreign market in a more professional manner, but was also useful in contacting distributors.”

“Would I work with them again? If we were to need their knowhow at some point in the future, I would certainly contact them. I especially liked their drive, professional approach and expertise.”