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Executive Memo – South End Night Market
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TO: Dr. Ruth Kassel, Ph.D. Assistant Director, Academic Community Engagement and Kaciem
Swain, Managing Partner at Capital Curbside, Founder at Flagship Ultra
FROM: Madison V. Kenney, Marketing student
CC: Professor Natasha Adams, Instructor of Management
DATE: April 21, 2021
SUBJECT: Analyzing the South End Night Market and Assessing a Plan of Action
I. Introduction:
This executive summary will outline the current state of the South End Night Market in Albany,
New York. I will assess the current strengths and weaknesses of the market, as well as provide
feedback on how to further improve organizational structure and Marketing strategy.
II. Who is South End Night Market
The South End Night Market of Albany, New York is a charitable organization that aims to
provide local citizens with access to essential necessities. The South end of Albany has been
lacking in providing locals with access to healthy food, healthcare and financial services, and
products for everyday use. Many citizens of Albany find it increasingly difficult to travel to areas
where they can access fresh, healthy produce. As Michael Williams has noted, additionally,
finding transportation to the nearest supermarket is a challenge (Michael Williams, 2020, para.
4). The South End Night Market strives to provide an underserved community with essential
needs by creating a market in which people can walk around and shop for produce and any hair
or skin care products they may need (Polacinski, 2020, para. 9). The organization has a firm
focus on promoting a Black wealth initiative and inclusivity, and as Michelle Polacinski states,
seeks to help entrepreneurs grow their small, local businesses that may have suffered due to the
Covid-19 pandemic (Polacinski, 2020, para. 4). Creating a sense of community in an area where
many individuals tend to keep to oneself is a goal of the South End Night Market. The
organization places emphasis on providing an outlet for entrepreneurs in the Albany area, as well
as taking on the responsibilities of increasing overall community involvement in the South end
by providing individuals with the convenience they seek.
The South End Night Market has been successful in creating an outlet for local businesses. The
market has approached the issue of a significant lack of resources in the South end of Albany by
including multiple vendors on Warren Street that each serve a specific purpose. The vendors of
the Night Market sell products that range from freshly grown fruits and vegetables, to hygienic
products (Mercedes Williams, 2020, para. 2). By providing local citizens with convenient access
to essential products, the Night Market has taken a hands-on approach. In the past, as Michael
Williams notes, the Night Market has dealt with issues such as finding an appropriate day of the
week and a consistent time to host the market, to ensure that adults can shop at the market after a
day’s work, and children can walk around after a school day (Michael Williams, 2020, para. 6).
The Night Market now hosts its vendors every Thursday from 5:00-8:00 pm to tend to the needs
of families in the area (AVillage, About Us). Currently, the Night Market encounters difficulty in
involving youth groups in the South end, as well as seeking out more local vendors who can help
to provide Albany citizens with other essential needs. Another challenge that persists within the
Night Market is spreading awareness of the market, and attracting new customers. In the future,
the Night Market may run into some challenges such as additional funding for the organization,
and getting more publicity and advertisement to spread the word about the market and its vision.
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III. How South End Night Market Functions
By assessing the strengths and weaknesses of the South End Night Market, I have been able to
identify where the organization thrives and where it could use improvement. From studying the
organization and its main goals, I have found in my research that the Night Market has been very
successful in promoting entrepreneurship, as well as establishing significant growth from within.
I have found that the market has seen growth in the number of vendors supplying goods and, as
Michael Williams states, the organization was able to bring seventeen vendors together as of July
6, 2020 (Williams, 2020, para. 8). When considering the areas of Management that I have
learned this year, I have found that the Night Market is successful in the planning and execution
aspect of the Management functions. The organization has set clear goals and aspirations for the
future, and has a vision of where they would like to see improvements, such as in rebranding the
market and showcasing its own entrepreneurs to the surrounding community (McBreen, 2021).
Additionally, there is significant strength seen in the leadership aspect of the Management
functions, as the market works alongside their staff in making important decisions. The market
has been successful in selecting a staff that is committed to contributing to the Black wealth
initiative, and all staff members aim to give back to their community. There are areas in the
market’s strategy that need improvement, such as the Marketing department. With a goal of
spreading awareness to potential customers and finding vendors who are willing to contribute in
mind, the Night Market needs to improve Marketing strategies and advertisement. There is a lack
of social media involvement, which is a significant component in increasing community
awareness and seeking local vendors. With the current generation utilizing social media on a
daily basis, it has become clear that the Night Market lacks in advertisement on social media and
content creation. I have noticed that due to the absence of a social media presence, in turn, there
is a lack of social networking, or the interactions that should be taking place between the Night
Market and the younger generation. Many members of the younger generation are not aware of
the organization, and its vision has not yet reached this generational audience. Content creation
and usage of social media for promotional aspects and the showcasing of individual
entrepreneurship is an area that should seek improvement.
IV. What South End Night Market Can Do To Improve
There is an opportunity for improvement in the Marketing aspect of the Night Market
organization. The organization should seek to hire a Marketing executive to improve branding of
the Night Market including all of its local entrepreneurs. An alternative solution to hiring a new
employee if costs do not allow can be to form a Marketing group from within the organization,
and assign the responsibility of Marketing director to a current employee on staff. The two
solutions would allow for an opportunity to create content and advertisement for the market, as
well as utilize social media to the advantage of the market, further spreading awareness and
increasing community involvement. There is an opportunity for growth in branding and
advertising, but the organization should also be made aware of the potential threats that currently
exist from within. There seems to be no such threat of internal or external competition, due to a
lack of resources in the South end of Albany. The organization has made it clear that competitors
are encouraged, and that healthy competition is needed for growth in any market. There can be
threats in the areas of mostly internal forces as opposed to external, and customer bargaining
power and supplier bargaining power. Customer bargaining power can be seen as a potential
threat to the Night Market in that members of the community may not be able to afford some
products being sold, and as a result, may not want to spend the money, or may resort to free food
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alternatives. The suppliers of the goods, in this case, the Night Market vendors, have control over
the prices in which they choose to sell their goods, while working alongside Night Market
executives to establish fair pricing. If the goods are priced too high and executives are not made
aware of the issue, this can decrease overall community involvement. If the prices are set too
low, local vendors may not see any financial growth. It is important to obtain feedback from
community members on appropriate pricing in order to establish a price that will satisfy
customer needs while yielding a positive profit. While competition is encouraged by Night
Market executives, the organization should be aware of new entrants, as new markets can be
established in the future, and regular Night Market customers may choose to spend their money
elsewhere. As a result of any potential new entrants in the area, Night Market vendors may see
decreased profits. These are some potential influences that may have a negative impact on the
market, but overall, the market should work towards improving the Marketing department, as it
will bring in more local customers. First, the organization should seek to hire a new employee for
the position of Marketing director, or they can choose to hire from within. Once a Marketing
director is appointed, he or she should work closely with Night Market employees to create
several social media platforms, such as an Instagram page, a FaceBook group, a Twitter account,
and a TikTok account. Creating content such as posts, short videos, and weekly updates
highlighting individual vendors and their products will yield a positive result and will spread the
word. The Marketing executive should control all social media accounts and monitor content and
posts closely to ensure that content creation is on par. Vendors should be given an individual
spotlight on a weekly basis to highlight the products being sold in the marketplace, as well as
updates on prices and promotions. In following through with this plan of action, the Night
Market will see outstanding growth in social networking, and can reach a new generation of
young students and aspiring entrepreneurs.
V. Conclusion:
The South End Night Market of Albany, New York is a community based organization that
actively seeks to engage community members and promote local entrepreneurship. The Night
Market supplies the South end of Albany with essential food items and hygiene products, and
aims to attract new customers, including the local youth. The Night Market should seek to
improve Marketing strategies that will, in turn, increase community awareness and involvement
in the market further.
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References
Jones, G. R., & George, J. M. Essentials of Contemporary Management (2020). New
York, NY. McGraw-Hill Education.
McBreen, D. (2021). Report on Ampersand Black & Community Wealth Forum
Polacinski, M. (2020, October 14). South End Night Market Brings Opportunity to Local
Entrepreneurs. Albany Proper. https://www.albanyproper.com/south-end-night-market-
brings-opportunity-to-local-entrepreneurs/.
Siena Project Chosen for "The Hill". Siena College. (2020, May 1).
https://www.siena.edu/news/story/siena-project-chosen-for-the-hill/.
South End Night Market. AVillage. (2018). https://avillageworks.org/south-end-night-
market.
Williams, M. (2020, July 6). Farmer's market serves Albany's South End. Times Union.
https://www.timesunion.com/business/article/Farmer-s-market-serves-Albany-s-South-
End-15384499.php.
Williams, M. (2020, May 22). South End Night Market Brings Help to Underserved
Community. spectrumlocalnews.com. https://spectrumlocalnews.com/nys/capital-
region/human-interest/2020/05/22/albany-south-end-night-market.
Appendix
Figure 1: SWOT Analysis
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Strengths
1. Successful in achieving vendor growth
over the past year, despite challenges
from the Covid-19 pandemic.
2. Successful in establishing a website
for informational purposes through
AVillage.
3. Clear set goals and objectives
established by executives.
4. Strong position in leading (decision
making, working with others,
motivating staff).
5. Increased number of customers
visiting the Night Market and
increased community involvement.
6. Partnerships with AVillage, Albany
Law School, Siena College, Flagship
Ultra, & more.
Weaknesses
1. Reaching youth groups in the Albany
area, increasing youth involvement in
the market.
2. Lack of Marketing strategy, no
promotional websites in addition to
AVillage.
3. Lack of social networking and
connecting with individuals from
surrounding areas.
4. No prominent social media presence,
no existing platforms for creating
promotional content and highlighting
vendors.
Opportunities
1. Room for growth in areas of
Marketing and advertising.
2. Increased vendor sales due to an
increase in community involvement
and awareness through Marketing.
3. New potential vendors and local
entrepreneurs looking to expand upon
small businesses in the area.
4. A new demographic of young high
school students and college students
looking to become aspiring
entrepreneurs.
5. Room for youth involvement through
engaging activities and family friendly
nights inclusive towards all children of
the area.
Threats
1. New entrants to the market community
may pose a threat in steering regular
Night Market customers away.
2. Customers may opt for free food
alternatives as opposed to spending
money at the market.
3. Prices can be set too high or too low,
which can decrease community
involvement and/or vendor
profitability.
4. Covid-19 pandemic losses may
discourage entrepreneurs from selling
their products, and may drive potential
customers away due to a concern of
contracting the virus and being in a
public setting.
Figure 2: Porter’s Five Forces
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Level of rivalry among
organizations: Low level
of rivalry in the South end
of Albany, as there are
not any other markets as
such that supply goods in
the area.
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Threat of new entry: It is
difficult for new markets to
develop in the South end of
Albany, due to a lack of
resources. Barriers to entry
include finding local
vendors to supply goods,
and a lack of suppliers.
The threat of substitute products:
There are little to no substitutes
for the products provided by local
Night Market vendors, and there
are no big competitors located in
the South end of Albany who
could provide alternatives. The
only available substitute products
are only accessible with
transportation, a struggle for many
Albany residents.
The power of suppliers:
The only suppliers of
goods in this case are
local Night Market
vendors, profits to
vendors can remain as
there are no competing
food suppliers in the area.
The power of large
customers: A large customer
base determines the prices
at which goods at the market
are sold for, more customers
can bargain for lower prices
if they feel it is too high,
which in turn, can decrease
the profits of Night Market
vendors.