SEGMENTATION AND DIFFERENTIATION OF AGRI-FOOD NICHE MARKETS: EXAMPLES FROM THE LITERATURE

ABSTRACT Niche marketing has recently received a great deal of attention in the agri-food trade press and in academic circles as a legitimate strategy for small- and medium-sized agri-food firms. Due to the limited theoretical treatment of agri-food niche marketing strategy, the paper will apply marketing concepts from the general management literature (e.g., Porter; Linneman and Stanton) to agri-food industries. The first objective of the paper is to introduce the three elements of niche marketing strategies and show how these elements can be used to form a strategy identification matrix. The matrix is intended to be used by agribusiness decision makers to assist in the development of niche marketing strategies. The second objective is to provide examples of successful niche marketing strategies that have appeared in the literature related to agricultural markets. More than forty such examples have been identified and collected. These case studies will be analyzed, and their relationship to the niche strategy matrix will be examined.