Sustained Competitive Advantage Strategy of Meat Goat Farmer in Northeastern Thailand

Abstract

The research aimed to study the sustainable competitive advantage strategy of the meat goat producers in northeastern Thailand who had succeeded in producing the meat goats. A collective case study was employed to find the strategy and mechanisms to achieve the sustainable advantage. Based on three farms under study, it was found that they were family-owned ones which had been operating for at least five years. Each farm had about 40-50 does used for the productive purpose. All farms in the study were located in northeastern Thailand. Data were collected by means of an in-depth interview, a semi-structured interview and a non-participatory observation. The results were analyzed by means of a content analysis.
The research findings were as follows. All farms in the study used integrated strategies. The cost leadership strategy was used as a primary one. The secondary strategies were differentiation strategy with product quality and confidence. The competitive advantage came from effective productive activities and trust building activities. The advantage resulted from rare resources available and more efficient use of
them. The farming process included the personality of the goat farmers, competency in the goat stockmanship and managing the farm, competency and relations in a family, resources low in cost and suitable with the farming potential, land title deeds, farm location which was close to cheap feeds and natural pasture, capability to use information and communication technology and relation network.