1.

INTRODUCTION
Davis (2005,p. 16) has defined business research process as a set of operations that aids the
researcher in the systematic gathering, recording, and analysis of data to help solve decisisonmaking problems. This paper will illustrate how business research process is used in order to
know whether it would be feasible for a client (Tesco Stores Malaysia) to introduce its own
branded chilli sauce to the Malaysian consumers. In order to gauge the feasibility of this idea
(i.e. introduction of new product to the market), we need to conduct a feasibility study for
Tesco. Feasibility studies are analysis efforts that apply the disciplines of market research and
statistical analysis to understand the competitive environment with the objective of enabling
organizations to make sound decisions about improvements and new ventures.
According to Nykiel (2007, p.134) feasibility study is a sub-category of the generic
business research which means that its process is a subcategory of the business research
process in general. However, Nykiel cautioned that given the individuality of business sectors
and market segments, it is good practice for each project/development to have a tailored
feasibility study process. In other words, researchers may give emphasis and depth on critical
areas of a particular project. According to Nykiel further, there are a number of areas that
almost all research processes and techniques must address in any business project. Some of
these areas that are usually profiled in business research are dynamics of the market,
competition, supply and demand and major economic/financial issues.
In order to conduct the feasibility study for Tesco, we will conduct a business
research process that will consist of four steps namely problem identification and research
question formulation, reviewing relevant literature, research philosophy, approach and
research design and finally data collection method.

2. PROBLEM IDENTIFICATION AND RESEARCH QUESTIONS FORMULATION

Most business research process in the literature follow a linear, sequential steps with one
specific steps preceding another. Blumberg et. al. (2008) in the leading textbook for business
research methodology course, Business Research Methods (McGraw-Hill, 2008) describes
such a linear process and the importance of formulating precise definition of the research
question. According to Blumberg et. al. (2008,p.57) business research process begins with
formulating a precise definition of the research question. According to Blumberg et. al.
further the research question of the business research process must be practical in the sense
that it has to be connected to an existing problem faced by the management. However, in
order to come up with a precise research questions, one must start with problem identification
first.
According to Hair et. al. (2011,p.283), problem identification is the first step that must
be carried out in the first phase (i.e. formulation phase) of business research. Cooper and
Schindler (2001 cited in Coldwell & Herbst, 2004,p.29) suggested that a useful way to
formulate a research question is to do the following :
Firstly, discover the management dilemma by identification of either a problem or an
opportunity. At this early stage, in all probabilities the management will have identified
symptoms rather than problems or opportunities proper. As such at this stage, Cooper and
Schindler suggested that published information source being reviewed and information
gatekeepers are interviewed to understand true management dilemma and not just the
symptoms at the surface.
Secondly, define the research question by using exploratory information collected.
Cooper and Schmidt (2001,p.63 cited in ) state that guided by the collected exploratory
information, the researcher drafts the dilemma or the correction of the symptom in question
form usually starting with, How can the organization......?.

Thirdly, at this stage, several research questions may be formulated. Each question
should consist of alternative action that the management might take to solve the problem.
Alternatives are usually evaluated in order for the management to select the most plausible
action or the one that offers the greatest gain using fewest resources.
Following the above, in the context of Tesco the researcher must ascertain first what
is the problem associated with the feasibility of introducing Tesco-branded chilli sauce in
Tesco stores nationwide. This research proposal (based on exploratory observation of the
researcher regarding chilli sauce available in Tesco) proposed that the problems associated
with this action are as follow :
1.

Tesco branded chilli sauce may not appeal to consumers because of the availability of
other chilli sauce with strong brands e.g. Maggi.

2.

Tesco branded chilli sauce may suffer in term of quality since the its production will
be outsourced to a third party.

3.

Tesco branded chilli sauce may cannibalized other brands of chilli sauce being sold
on the same shelves in Tesco stores, which is not the intention of the management in
introducing the Tesco branded chilli sauce.
Based on the above problems, this research proposal formulated three research

questions to be answered by the proposed feasibility research namely :

1.

How can Tesco-branded chilli sauce compete with other chilli sauce with strong
brand but not to the extent that the Tesco branded chilli sauce cannibalized other
brands of chilli sauce being sold on the same shelves in Tesco stores?

2.

What is the suitable price range of the proposed Tesco branded chilli sauce?

3.

How can Tesco control the quality of the proposed Tesco-branded chilli sauce since it
will be manufactured by a third party?

The decision on whether Tesco decision to introduce its own brand of chilli sauce is
feasible or not will largely depend on the positive answer for the above research questions.

3. LITERATURE REVIEW
3.1 Introduction
Bringing a product from conception of idea to market quickly is a prerequisite for
acquiring competitive advantage in nowadays fiercely competitive business environment.
This part will survey several literatures relating to the importance of conducting a feasibility
study before launching a product in order to give understanding to readers on this subject.
3.2 The review
As has been said above, launching a new product to the market in the shortest time
possible is critical for todays business to stay competitive. But this does not mean that
feasibility study can be dispensed with. Feasibility study is an analysis effort that applies the
disciplines of market research and statistical analysis to understand the competitive
environment and enables an organization to make sound decisions about improvements and
new ventures. The most effective feasibility study systematically collect and analyze data
about the market its trends and threats- to facilitate business decision making process (Hass,
2008).
Hass (2008) surveyed several definitions of feasibility study among them are
feasibility study is a likelihood study- a way to determine if a business idea is capable of
being achieved and an examination of a particular project or business to assess its chances
of operating successfully, before committing large amount of money to it. Hass (2008)
considers several other definition but conclude that all these definition have a similar
emphasis i.e. feasibility studies consider a business problem or an opportunity and potential
solutions before the project is being implemented.

Feasibility studies is important since it is among the first step carried out in new
product development and launching. According to Clarkson and Eckert (2005,p. 327),
product development process involves a number of stages, including feasibility study, design,
development, production, distribution, operation and recycling. Starting with a product idea
or market need identified during the feasibility study, the decision taken by the design team
will determine the quality and characteristics of the product that will eventually be produced
and sold. The future commercial success of such product is fundamentally dependant on the
correctness or otherwise of this decision. As such, the earlier in the product development
process that an error is identified , the lower the cost to rectify it. Correspondingly, errors
identified when the product already goes into production will be costly and time consuming
to rectify. Thus the importance of feasibility study.
In order to conduct a feasibility study, researcher must have recourse to various
business research methodologies as laid down by academician in the business studies field.
Among this methodologies are those formulated by Blumberg et. al.(2008) discussed in
chapter two above.
Nowadays the lines between disciplines ( in particular between business and other
disciplines) are getting blur everyday as the reality of the days can no longer afford a very
distinct specialization between disciplines. For examples, researchers and scientists in
Malaysian government research institutions and lecturers (who are involved in research
activities) in Malaysian public universities are encouraged to commercialize their research
findings (i.e. bringing their research findings from the lab to the market). In other words,
researchers, scientists and lecturers (who are used to conduct scientific research) now are
required to assume the role of businessmen and businesswomen and conduct a business
research.

The situation depicted in the preceding paragraph calls for a research process which is
common to all disciplines. This is the basic premise of a working paper by Bukova (2009).
According to Bukova (2009, p.1), research activity, as a systematic enquiry leading to the
construction of new knowledge is not the exclusive domain of the scientific realm. In fact, it
is an everyday occurrence research is carried daily by each individual. However, the quality
that separates research by laymen and scientific research is that the latter follows particular
guidelines and procedures to ensure the quality of the research results.
In her working paper, Bukova (2009) compared several research processes as
employed in several disciplines (behavioural science which includes business- and design
science) and attempt to come up with a general research process applicable across disciplines.
Bukova (2009,p.12-15) concludes that a general research process which is applicable across
disciplines is plausible. Her General Research Process (which is represented in a cyclical
continuum) is described in the following steps (the steps are not strictly sequential in that
some steps may precede another and the post-results steps 7,8 and 9 may be omitted
depending on the situation) :
1. Generation of ideas based on practical problems faced by the researchers.
2. Developing and refining the idea into a precise research problem.
3. Defining the research procedures i.e. before the research is carried out the procedures
and the methods of the research must be defined beforehand. Bukova noted that there
is consensus in the research literature that call for the writing of a research proposal
that will serve as a plan for researchers executing the research.
4. Search for funding to fund the research, though in some case this would be the first
step i.e. idea generation can be influenced by available funding.
5. Execution of the planned research procedures (step 3 above).
6. Evaluation of the research findings.

7. Applying the research results to the problem.

8. Publishing of the results.
9. Communicating (formally or informally) with other scientists regarding the results as
a way for the researchers concerned to contribute back to the knowledge base of
his/her discipline.
However Bukova (2009,p.17) cautioned that such general research process essentially
describes individual research and further refinement of the process is necessary if it is to be
applied to collaborative research.
A somewhat non-academic and industrial treatment of business research process is
provided Moskowitz, Porretta and Silcher (2005,p.380). According to Moskowitz, Porretta
and Silcher (2005,p.380), current food product development adopted a stage-gate system
which comprises a structured method to bring new products into the market consisting of 6
steps, of which feasibility study is an integral part. The six steps are as follow ;
1.

Opportunity identification : this stage involves identifying consumer needs which is

still not met by the business.

2.

General feasibility study : the objective of this stage is to discover whether the

needs/ideas identified by consumers represent a feasible business opportunity for the

company and whether the ideas are in line with the business strategies of the company.
3.

Systematic concept evaluation and optimization : this stage involves systematically

testing varied concepts (of the proposed new products) with consumers, with the goal to
create concept models, which will reveal what particular elements in the concepts/prototypes
drive acceptance.
4.

Feasibility analysis : at this stage, relative to the concept product these two questions

need to be answered : a) can we make it and b) can we make money out of it.

5.

Product development : This stage takes the idea from concept into reality and has

various sub-stages, which include prototype development, sensory testing of prototypes, and
determination of the final formula.
6.

Commercialization : this stage involves two steps i.e. production scale up and product

launch.

3.3 Synthesis of the literature review

From the literature reviewed it is clear that business research process is an integral part in
product development and launching. Business research process which is employed to gauge
the feasibility of new product is known as feasibility study. Feasibility study can be carried
out either employing quantitative approach, qualitative approach or mixed method approach.
Business research is not the sole exclusive domain of academicians, instead it is also carried
out pragmatically by the industry.

4. RESEARCH PHILOSOPHY,APPROACH AND DESIGN

A research design provides a framework for the collection and analysis of data (Bryman and
Bell, 2007,p.40). There are many frameworks which exist for designing a research proposal.
This research proposed to design the research according to the mixed method approach.
Mixed method approach is the combination of quantitative and qualitative approach.
The philosophy underlying the choice of mixed method approach in carrying out this research
is that because one data source may be insufficient. By doing a mixed approach research, this
research will benefit from both approaches. According to Creswell and Clark (2011,p.8),
there are several ways in which one data source may be inadequate for example one type of
evidence may not tell the complete story, or the researcher may have doubt in the ability of
one type of evidence to address the problem. Further, the results from the quantitative and

qualitative data may be contradictory, which could not be known by collecting only one type
of data. It is because of these shortcomings of single method approach that the researcher
proposed the Tesco chilli sauce feasibility study is carried out by using mixed method
approach.
Essentially, quantitative approach describes, infers and resolves problems using
numbers. It put emphasis on the collection of numerical data , the summary of the data and
the drawing of inferences from data (Coldwell & Herbst, 2004,p.15). Measurement is very
critical in quantitative approach and factors that cannot be quantifiable such as feelings, value
and beliefs are in general not included in quantitative approach unless a specially designed
scales are constructed for this purpose. As such, where it is difficult to describe something in
numerical terms, the researcher must resort to qualitative technique (Coldwell & Herbst,
2004,p.15).
Hair et. al. (2011,p.283-p287), describes the qualitative business process which
consist of three post-data collection steps or phases as follow :
1. Data collection phase : refer to the process of obtaining data through several data
collection method such as survey, observation, interviews and going through archival
data.
2. Data reduction phase : data reduction refers to the process of selecting, focusing,
simplifying, abstracting and transforming the collected data into field notes and
transcriptions. The data reduction phase involves process that requires the researchers
to exercise his/her discretion on what should be emphasized, minimized and
eliminated from the data that he/she already collected. The objective of this phase is
to reduce irrelevant data without eliminating anything that is relevant to the study.
3. Data display phase : the second step in the process of qualitative data analysis is data
display. Data display is a process which is more specific than data reduction in that it

involves organizing the information in a way that facilitates the researchers to come to
a conclusion. Example of displays are charts, table or diagrams that enables the
researchers to list, define or link themes that are central to the research. Tables of
verbatim (words) which represents themes and sub-categories of themes are a
common way of displaying data in qualitative analysis. A second prominent data
display device in qualitative research is a flow chart or conceptual model.
4. The third post-data collection step or phase is drawing conclusions and verifying their
accuracy through cross-checking. Drawing conclusions entails the researcher to
decide what the identified themes and patterns mean and how they help to answer the
research questions. Verification involves checking and rechecking the data to ensure
the initial conclusions are credible.

5. DATA COLLECTION METHOD

In the proposed research, the researcher will collect data using quantitative instruments i.e.
semi structured survey form containing questionnaire which asked respondents (Tesco
customers) the following questions:
1.

Which brand of chilli sauce which they like most and why.

2.

What is the ideal characteristics of a chilli sauce.

3.

If Tesco introduce a Tesco branded chilli sauce, would they buy it or not and the
reason for their buying or not buying the Tesco branded chilli sauce.

4.

If Tesco introduce a Tesco branded chilli sauce, what is the price range that they are
comfortable with.

5.

Will they regard Tesco branded chilli sauce as low in quality compared to chilli sauce
of other brands.

The researcher will also collects qualitative data based on in-depth interviews of focus groups
(i.e. Tesco customers) to see if the two types of data show similar results but from different
perspectives. Data collected will then be analyzed in order to frame an answer to question 1
and 2.
This mixed approach will also be used to collect data with regard to question 3. For
question 3, a statistical analysis (quantitative approach) will be carried out to ascertain how
many contract manufacturers are available in Malaysia which can offer the service of chilli
sauce contract manufacturing. After that, the researcher will follow up with a qualitative data
gathering exercise by visiting the premises of several selected contract manufacturers to
identify level of cleanliness and other aspects of good manufacturing practice.

6. CONCLUSION
This proposal shows the justification to conduct a feasibility study before the Tesco branded
chilli sauce is launched by Tesco.The feasibility study is part of business research process
which is a set of operations that aids the researcher in the systematic gathering, recording,
and analysis of data to help solve decisison-making problems (2000,p. 16). It has several
frameworks (i.e. guidelines on how it should be carried our). Among the popular frameworks
are quantitative approach, qualitative approach and mixed approach. Business process has
several methodologies but most of them begins with problem identification and research
questions before the researcher embark on data collection activities, data analysis and
conclusion. It is an integral part of the business research process and cannot be dispensed
with.It is therefore hoped that the proposed research will be carried out to gauge whether the
Tesco branded chilli sauce will be successful in the market.

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