Answer:

1. What channel alignment constraints face d.light as it thinks about how to establish a channel structure in India? List and describe any legal, environmental, and managerial constraints.

Legal: d.light company would not face any severe legal limitation for starting a business in India or by having a contract with the channel and market various partners to access to the retail stores. For instance, the firm is not needed to make a certain amount of investment to start their activity in the country.

Environmental: This constraint is basically dependent on any specification of the market, structure, and the customers or consumers that the company does not have any particular control or contact. It should be noticed that this constraint is limited to short to medium term long running times of the business.

Managerial: This current constraint is also referring to the overall policies and rules which have been taken to consider by any member of the channel, or it would be the consequence of the abilities another channel member who might impose these limitations on the distribution channel. 

2. What channel alignment constraints face d.light as it thinks about how to establish a channel structure in India? List and describe any legal, environmental, and managerial constraints.

For rural consumers in India, discuss how these channel alignment constraints lead to demand-side misalignments if the company sells through the: 

1. Rural entrepreneur channel, and link these misalignments to restrictions (legal and/or environmental and/or managerial) 

According to cases study, the rural areas are considered to those segments of the customers that do not have a higher income. The next important point is the rural areas of India are very dispersed, and people are living in small villages with a population of lower than 5000 people. On the other hand, this segment, according to the more moderate knowledge, literacy and education they do not access to the media, hence have a lower consuming level. On the other hand, rural customers, due to the lower awareness, are ignorant regarding the d.light’s products and profits and benefits that they might receive. To put in other words, they do not ware of factors that might improve their lives by adopting the firm’s products like low-cost, reliable light and safety.

b. Village retailer channel, and link these misalignments to constraints (legal and/or environmental and/or managerial)

They are unable to move forward their sales to rural areas. Because village retailer channels are ready to proceed with the fast-moving goods for the product consumers; hence, they do not have experience regarding the procedure that they should pass for selling some complex goods like d.light solar systems and lamps. On the other hand, village retailers are often finishing point of long distribution channel that involves different dealers and intermediaries. They are mostly profit cut; they also limit the ability to create compelling interest and ability to put the products on sale. 

c. Centralized shops channel, and link these misalignments to constraints (legal and/or environmental and/or managerial)

These types of shops are not placed traditionally for targeting poor rural Indian consumers. On the other hand, it is not sensible that the business retailers who are performing in centralized shops are eager to employ and train workers to advertise and demonstrate the products to these people and teach them. Additionally, the case shows that rural customers refer to these shops to buy their major and significant products like TVs. These channels are costing much less according to the point that they involve a lower number of intermediaries.  

d. Conclude from this analysis, what d.light’s channel structure (single of a mix of the channel) should be its highest priority, and why?

This case illustrated the analytics of the company that commercializes the leading products in which they are holding social values that they might be sold successfully. Consequently, this case shows the significance of the channel when they are trying to enter the market. The unique challenge which the company might face is when the market is an emerging market. 

From the date of the case, the company started expanding its distribution not only in India, but also all around the world. Based on the material which has been mentioned inside the case, since 2013, the d.light start to make availability of its products to more than 10,000 retailers, which reached more than 15 million customers.

Besides its success, d.light is continuously facing challenges at the time it tries to expand. The most critical challenge is combining the leadership team of both sides of execution experience and also the knowledge which is based on the specific country. This is very crucial when the firm is trying to roll out a solution for marketing channels in a wide variety of global markets. Based on the information of the case, the “one-size-fits-all” solution for marketing channels would satisfy the requirements of rural customers. The firm is also focused on employing those managers who are eager to design an innovative marketing channel solution, especially by having different partners in the business world or with other NGOs. 

References

Coughland, A. & Neuwirth, B. (2015). d.light Design: marketing channel strategies in india. KEL876. Kellogg school of management and northwestern universities.