A regional supermarket chain in the Philippines has been losing market share to online grocery delivery services. How would you structure your approach to help them regain competitiveness?
RoleConsulting Associate
DifficultyMedium
TopicTechnical
Asked at
Why This Is Asked
BCG's global case interview format tests your ability to break down ambiguous business problems, think analytically, and communicate clearly, all core skills for an Associate.
General Approach
Use a MECE framework (mutually exclusive, collectively exhaustive) to structure your answer. Start by clarifying the goal, then break the problem into logical buckets (e.g., external vs. internal factors), and prioritize areas for deep-dive analysis. Quantify your assumptions and always tie insights back to the client's business objective.
General Answer
First, clarify the client's actual objective, whether it's stopping the share loss, growing overall revenue, or protecting margin, since the right structure depends on which goal is primary. Then split the analysis into two mutually exclusive areas: the online delivery threat itself (their pricing, convenience, and assortment advantages) and the supermarket's own controllable levers (in-store experience, loyalty programs, pricing and assortment, and its own digital or delivery capability). On the online side, assess whether building an in-house delivery and app experience, partnering with an existing delivery platform, or offering click-and-collect is the fastest way to close the convenience gap without a costly standalone build. On the in-store side, look at whether the physical shopping experience, freshness, and service can be leveraged as a genuine differentiator rather than something to defend passively. Prioritize whichever lever has the clearest, most quantifiable impact on the specific driver of the share loss, and propose a pilot in a limited set of stores before recommending a full rollout.
PH Interview Gotcha
A common mistake is to jump straight to 'tara, resolve natin agad' without first listening to the client's full background. Instead, demonstrate a structured, data-driven thought process by asking clarifying questions first.
Sample STAR Answer▾
S
Situation
In my final year of university, I served as a student consultant for a local grocery chain that was facing increased competition from e-commerce platforms.
T
Task
I needed to structure the problem, identify the key drivers of market share loss, and propose actionable recommendations to the management team.
A
Action
I began by breaking down the problem into three areas: customer preferences, competitor offerings, and the client's internal capabilities. I conducted a survey with 200 shoppers to understand their online versus in-store shopping habits and analyzed transaction data to segment customers. I also benchmarked the client's pricing and delivery options against leading online grocers. I synthesized my findings into a framework that prioritized improving the in-store experience and launching a hybrid click-and-collect model.
R
Result
Our team presented to the CEO, and three of our five recommendations were adopted. Six months later, the chain saw a 5% increase in same-store sales and successfully tested an online ordering pilot.
Key Takeaway
Always start with a structured hypothesis tree before diving into data analysis.
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