SWOT Analysis: Upcoming Opportunities for Kroger

In this part of the series, we will continue with the SWOT analysis for Kroger and will look at the upcoming opportunities for the company. In Part 19 of the series, we will discuss the threats that the company faces.

Customers are increasingly becoming conscious about health and wellness, and they are moving toward adopting natural and organic products for their everyday needs.

The Kroger Co. (KR) is a well-established player in the natural foods market. The company offers over 15,000 natural and organic food items. Kroger’s organic brand Simple Truth and Simple Truth Organic has been very well accepted by its customers and has become a billion-dollar brand within two years of its launch.

The company can take advantage of its established position to further capture the market from Walmart (WMT), Whole Foods Market (WFM), and Costco (COST) and boost sales by increasing the proportion of natural foods in its offerings.

Kroger has lagged behind its peers like Walmart (WMT) in the fast-growing online grocery sales segment. However, its recent mergers with Harris Teeter and Vistacost.com have set the stage for market share gains from the online business.

According to Brick Meets Click data, online grocery sales as a percentage of total grocery sales should go up from 4% in 2014 to 11%–17% in 2023.

The retail clinic industry is growing rapidly. Consumers appreciate the convenience of in-store advice on basic healthcare needs such as vaccinations and blood pressure monitoring. Kroger is well placed to take advantage of this opportunity as it has The Little Clinic under its umbrella, which it acquired in 2010.

Kroger is rapidly expanding its chain of The Little Clinic. The company opened 38 new clinics in fiscal 2015, bringing the total number of clinics to 148. Patient visits to these clinics also registered an impressive growth of over 35% versus fiscal 2014.

Kroger (KR), along with its peers Costco (COST), Walmart (WMT), and Whole Food Market (WFM), is included in the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY). Together, they account for 1.2% of the index.