Father Daniel Mary Case

Father Daniel Mary, the Prior of the Carmelite Order of monks in Clark, Wyoming was a former high school football player, boxer, bull rider and man of great faith. Father Prior Daniel Mary was known to never back down from a challenge, a challenge which would take precise planning and execution to complete. This challenge would require Father to rally his group of men...his monks, to get them all focused on this common goal Father Prior had envisioned. This vision was to create a new Mount Carmel in the Rocky Mountains. His vision of altering the small brotherhood of 13 monks living in a small home into a 500-acre monastery that would include: accommodations for 30 monks, a Gothic church, a convent for Carmelite nuns, a retreat centre for lay visitors and a hermitage; these visions all presented the daunting challenge.

Father Prior had located a nearby ranch for sale (Irma Lake Ranch) that met his requirements but the current listing price was $8.9 million dollars which presented a financial obstacle. It didn't help that Father Prior Daniel Mary did not have a great deal of experience in business, he lived as a Carmelite hermit in Minnesota before moving to Clark, Wyoming to establish the new monastery. While Father had proclaimed a very detailed future direction for his monks and monastery, he hasn't created the strategy needed to achieve such expectations. Father Prior currently has unclear vision, mission and value statements; the monks need to progress forward with the same common goal in mind but at this point there is no evidence this exists. The monks daily religious routine (core values) of prayer, reflection and meditation seem to interfere with their corporate responsibilities, this can cause conflict which could hinder operational profitability. Operating with no clear business model along with no evidence of corporate structure can severely alter Father Prior's vision.

Here is a list of six key issues that may compromise Father Prior's ability to acquire the 8.9 million dollar ranch (Irma Lake Ranch):

Short-Term Issues

An evaluation of the monastery's Mission Statement

An evaluation of the monastery's Vision Statement

An evaluation of the monastery's Value Statement

Long-Term Issues

An evaluation of the monastery's Coffee Operations

An evaluation of the monastery's Strategy Execution

An evaluation of the monastery's Business Model

After much deliberation we have come to the following key findings in regards to Mystic Monk Coffee:

The need for a realistic business plan

The need for vital business experience

The need for a shared vision

The need for sustainable financial strength

The need for greater support from the community

In closing we would like to make the following recommendations in regards to improving Father Prior's future direction for the Carmelite Monks of Wyoming:

Contract out the coffee operations to a market leader (ex Starbucks)

Have the monks strictly focus on improving marketing strategies

Push the idea "use their Catholic coffee dollar for Christ and his Catholic Church" to generate more donation funding

Appendix I (SWOT Analysis)

Strength (Internal - Capitalize on them)

Ability to collect donations due to who they are and what they stand for

Specific target market of 69 million Catholic Americans

Majority of coffee revenue processed ONLINE

Weakness (Internal - Shore them up)

Lack of financial strength

Prayer being the primary daily focus

No evidence of a shared vision between Father Prior and the monks

Opportunity (External - Invest)

The local businesses started a foundation to help raise money

Globalization through the Catholic Church

Potential collateral business

Threats (External - Identify)

Growing competition of similar quality coffees

Geo-political concerns

The economy

Appendix II (Fitness Test)

Rate questions 1 - 4 on a scale of 0 - 4 (TOTAL 20)

How current are your business and marketing plans?

2. Are you ready and capable of taking the next step?

3. Do you have the proper marketing mix?

4. Do you still market to the correct segment?

5. Does your company have an effective website that generates business?

18 - 20 (There is room for added value)

15 - 17 (Additional value to be added)

< 14 (Need some help building business)

Appendix III (Financial Analysis)

Last Fiscal Year

Sales(Coffee & Accessories) $678,000

Cost of Sales ($203,400)

Inbound Shipping ($128,820)

Broker Fees ($20,340)

Gross Profit $325,440

Operating Expenses

Utilities ($94,920)

Supplies ($81,360)

Telephone ($6,780)

Web