🎒
Build Your Bag Brand
You have £50,000 and a brilliant idea — a brand new backpack brand called PACK. Can you find the right gap, design the right product, set the right price, and make it sell?
🗺️Find your gap in the market
🎒Build & price your product
🚀Launch and see if PACK survives!
What you'll learn
The Marketing Mix — The 4 Ps
Every business that sells a product has to make four big decisions. Together these are called the Marketing Mix — or the 4 Ps.
🎒 Product — What are you selling? What makes it special?
💲 Price — How much will you charge? Why that amount?
🏪 Place — Where can customers actually buy it?
📣 Promotion — How will people find out it exists?
Get all four right and your business can succeed. Get one wrong and it can sink even a great idea.
🎒 Product — What are you selling? What makes it special?
💲 Price — How much will you charge? Why that amount?
🏪 Place — Where can customers actually buy it?
📣 Promotion — How will people find out it exists?
Get all four right and your business can succeed. Get one wrong and it can sink even a great idea.
🗺️ Phase 1: Find the Gap
The market already has bag brands. Your job is to find a space where nobody else is — or where you can do better. Drag the PACK badge on the map to choose your position.
Key Idea
What is a Market Map?
A market map (also called a perceptual map) shows where different products sit in a market. We use two axes — in this case Price and Style. Products that are similar cluster together. A gap in the market is an empty space where customers might want a product but nobody is selling one yet.
🎒 Real world: Before launching, Herschel Supply Co. spotted a gap for stylish-but-affordable bags between fashion brands and plain school rucksacks. That gap made them a global brand.
🏷️ Brands already in the market:
↑ Lifestyle
Functional ↓
Budget ←
→ Premium
🎒
PACK
👆 Drag the PACK badge to choose your position — or click anywhere on the map!
Your Marketing Mix so far:
🎒 Phase 2: Design Your Product
Now design PACK. Every choice affects how much each bag costs to make — and what kind of customers it will appeal to.
🎒
PACK
Your brand is taking shape...
Cost per bag: —
Key Idea
The Product P — Adding Value
Adding value means making a product worth more than its raw materials. A bag made from £8 of fabric and zips can sell for £95 if the brand, design, and quality make customers feel it's worth it. That difference — between cost and selling price — is where profit comes from.
👟 Real world: Nike trainers cost roughly £25 to make. They sell for £120+. The extra value comes from brand, design, and what wearing Nike means to people.
🧵 Choose your bag quality
🟢
Basic
Simple materials, lightweight. Does the job but nothing more.
Cost: £8 per bag
Like: Primark bags 🏷️
🔵
Good Quality
Durable fabric, neat stitching, padded straps. Solid everyday bag.
Cost: £14 per bag
Like: JanSport 🎒
⭐
Premium
Top materials, waterproof coating, ergonomic back panel.
Cost: £22 per bag
Like: Osprey / Fjällräven ⭐
🔧 Choose your features
🎒
Minimal
Main compartment plus one pocket. Light and simple.
Adds: £0
💼
Standard
Laptop sleeve, water bottle pocket, organiser pockets.
Adds: £4
🔌
Tech Pack
Everything standard plus built-in USB charging port and hidden anti-theft pocket.
Adds: £8
🏷️ Choose your brand style
📐
Functional
Bold logo, plain colours. "It does exactly what it says."
Target: students & commuters 🚌
✨
Lifestyle
Colourful, social-media friendly. "This bag says something about me."
Target: teens & trendsetters 📱
🏆
Premium Heritage
Understated logo, quality finish. "Built to last a decade."
Target: adults & professionals 💼
Your Marketing Mix so far:
💲 Phase 3: Set Your Price
How much should PACK cost? First pick a pricing strategy — the reason behind your price. Then set the actual price using the slider.
Key Idea
Demand — Why Price Matters So Much
When a price goes up, most customers buy less. When it goes down, they buy more. This is called demand. The chart below shows this relationship — the higher the bar, the more bags you'd sell at that price.
The catch: selling more bags at a low price doesn't always mean more profit. You need to find the sweet spot between volume and profit per bag.
The catch: selling more bags at a low price doesn't always mean more profit. You need to find the sweet spot between volume and profit per bag.
☕ Real world: When Greggs raised its sausage roll price from £1 to £1.15, they sold slightly fewer — but made more money overall because the margin per roll increased.
💰 Your cost per bag:
£—
Choose a pricing strategy:
Penetration
Start low to get customers
Used by: Spotify, Netflix
Skimming
Start high, lower it later
Used by: Apple, Dyson
Cost-Plus
Add fixed profit on costs
Used by: builders, plumbers
Psychological
£19.99 feels less than £20
Used by: supermarkets, Amazon
£25
£10 cheap£65 mid£120 premium
📊 Estimated bags sold per month at each price:
🔢 Quick Calculation
Work out your profit per bag
Selling price:
£—
−
Cost per bag:£—
=
Profit per bag:
Monthly bags:
—
×
Profit per bag:£—
=
Monthly profit:
🧠 Quick Quiz
PACK is a new brand — most people haven't heard of it yet. Which pricing strategy makes the most sense to get your first customers through the door?
Your Marketing Mix so far:
🏪 Phase 4: Where Will You Sell PACK?
You have £20,000 to set up your sales channels. Each one reaches different customers — but some shops take a cut of your profit.
Key Idea
The Place P — Channels of Distribution
A distribution channel is the route your product takes from you to the customer. There are two main types:
🏪 Indirect — you sell to a retailer (like Tesco or JD Sports), who sells to the customer. The retailer takes a cut of the price — called their margin.
💻 Direct — you sell straight to the customer (online store, market stall). You keep all the profit, but you're responsible for everything.
🏪 Indirect — you sell to a retailer (like Tesco or JD Sports), who sells to the customer. The retailer takes a cut of the price — called their margin.
💻 Direct — you sell straight to the customer (online store, market stall). You keep all the profit, but you're responsible for everything.
👟 Real world: Nike sells through JD Sports (indirect) AND through nike.com (direct). Direct sales are more profitable per pair — which is why brands are pushing DTC (Direct-To-Consumer) harder every year.
🔢 Quick Calculation
How much do YOU keep when selling through a supermarket?
PACK sells for:
£—
Supermarket takes 40%:
You keep:
(selling price minus cut)
🧠 Quick Quiz
PACK sells for £—. A supermarket takes 40% of every sale. How much do you receive per bag sold through a supermarket?
💰 Budget used£0 of £20,000
£20,000 remaining
Your Marketing Mix so far:
📣 Phase 5: Spread the Word
You have £10,000 left for promotion. How will customers find out about PACK? Spend wisely — different channels reach very different people.
Key Idea
The Promotion P — Reaching Your Target Market
Your target market is the group of people most likely to buy your product. Promotion only works if it reaches them — not just anyone.
There are two types of promotion:
📺 Above the Line (ATL) — mass media like TV, radio, billboards. Reaches everyone but expensive.
📱 Below the Line (BTL) — targeted activity like social media, school events, leaflets. Cheaper and more focused.
There are two types of promotion:
📺 Above the Line (ATL) — mass media like TV, radio, billboards. Reaches everyone but expensive.
📱 Below the Line (BTL) — targeted activity like social media, school events, leaflets. Cheaper and more focused.
🎒 Real world: A bag brand targeting 11–16 year olds will spend most of its budget on TikTok and Instagram — not newspaper ads. The platform has to match the audience.
🧠 Quick Quiz
PACK is aimed at secondary school students aged 11–16. Which promotion channel is most likely to reach them effectively?
💰 Budget used£0 of £10,000
£10,000 remaining
🚀 Phase 6: PACK Launches!
Three school terms. Real events. Can PACK survive?
Before You Launch
Why businesses face unexpected events
Even the best marketing plan meets the real world. Competitors react. Trends change. A social media post can make or break a launch overnight. Real businesses have to be flexible — adapting their marketing mix when things don't go to plan.
As you play through each term, think about which P you're adjusting and why.
As you play through each term, think about which P you're adjusting and why.
🔢 Final Calculation
How many bags does PACK need to sell to break even?
You spent £50,000 launching PACK. Each bag earns you £— profit. To get your money back — that's called breaking even — you need to sell enough bags to cover that £50,000.
£50,000 ÷ £— profit per bag =
bags to break even
🧠 Final Quiz
Looking back at your PACK journey — which of the 4 Ps do you think had the biggest impact on your results?
🧑🏫 Teacher Discussion Prompts
Which of the 4 Ps did you find hardest to decide? Why?
If you had £10,000 more to spend on promotion, where would it go — and why?
Can you think of a real bag brand that matches each position on the market map?
Why might selling through a supermarket actually hurt a premium brand like Fjällräven?
What does "breaking even" mean? How long do you think it takes a real startup to break even?