Greenpeace Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Greenpeace - Case Study Example In other words, Greenpeace has a reputation of an organization that is not afraid to take bold actions in order for the society to change its current perspective on the relationships with nature. In the case that will be examined in this paper one is able to see the following situation: Greenpeace has been a long proponent of switching from harmful substances that are used in refrigerators to those that are environmentally friendly. Finally, it was able to success in it by finding a company that would be willing to introduce the changes. This marked the transition from a conflict based approach of promoting environmental values to an approach that relied on cooperation and reasoning. Nowadays, Greenpeace is known to have promoted its environmentally friendly coolant almost all over the world, excluding the United States. However, there is hope that one day it may change since large companies are many certain steps towards it. To begin with, it may be rather useful to evaluate the tactics that was used by Greenpeace in the Greenfreeze campaign. First of all, one might mentioned that the organization in question tried to target the brand that directly interact with the consumers and, therefore, value their reputation. Indeed, this is a rather smart move since big industrial corporations never contact with people to whom they sell their product and they can hardly be influenced. On the other hand, big bands are willing to gain a competitive advantage by trying to attract their customers with the use of new environmentally friendly technologies (Kaufmann, 2014, p. 103). What is more important is that these brands are able to have a direct impact on the manufactures; so, by targeting them Greenpeace made a right choice. Another aspect of the strategy that should be mentioned is the fact that it promoted the technology worldwide by making sure that companies

Personal Conflict Essay Example for Free

Personal Conflict Essay It was on January 2006 when I first set my feet in USA, a day I will live to remember. I was eighteen years old then and had just graduated from high school. I was the best student in my previous school so I got a scholarship to further my studies. Since childhood ,I was fascinated by people especially their cultures, religions and other aspects of their lives but what really amazed me was the way they communicated and the different languages that they used. My life had revolved around one language that was Arabic and therefore when this chance came I was very excited and without second thoughts took the opportunity to study English as my second language. I chose English because it was an international language and I knew it would help me communicate with many people from different parts of the World. More so, it was to be of great assistance to me especially in my stay in the USA. When this day came, I was amidst mixtures of feelings. Even though I was very excited, terror and confusion took the better part of me. The thought of leaving my parents and my younger siblings really terrified me and all of a sudden, I felt lonely. Earlier on after waking up, prayers had been arranged for me and all people wished me a safe journey to America. I was escorted by my friends and family members to the airport where they bid me farewell. This was my first time to travel from my home country and the first to travel in an airplane. While in the plane many thoughts crossed my mind. I thought about the people I would meet and wondered how they would receive me. I also thought about the college I would be enrolled to and my classmates to be . I wondered if there were people from my home place, how many will they be and above all how I would communicate since I was not familiar with English by then. I was in this state when suddenly an air hostess brought me some snacks . Tasty as they looked, I never took a bite. What I could not understand about the air hostess was that she appeared composed and friendly and completely unaware of my predicament. She was young, energetic and cheerful and nothing seemed to trouble her. Contrary, I was deep in confusion and uncertainty . I lost my appetite something which seldom happens to me. In fact , I rarely choose food and anything edible is good to me provided it is not harmful . More so, being the first time to travel by plane I was really uncomfortable and the experience was horrifying. At one time a thought of the aeroplane crushing crossed my mind and it really got me scared. Sleep never crossed my eyes during the whole journey and it took exactly fourteen hours to reach my destination. I arrived at the JFK airport in New York at around 10 pm . The night was chilly and many people wore heavy clothing to keep their bodies warm . I had carried a light jacket which I wore to protect myself from the cold . The environment was new and everything about this place seemed new to me. I was really getting more and more confused and thought it was even better when I was in the plane. My light jacket did not seem to be of much help to me because the cold weather was getting the better of me. Though out of place, a thought crossed my mind. I wondered of how it used to be unusually hot at home and how I had adapted to that kind of climate. I wondered how long would it take for me to get used to this new environment. I do not know exactly how long I had been standing there but what I recall is that I found myself all alone, confused, scared and lost and attracting some policemen. I felt out of place and the way they were looking at me was scaring. Did they see me as a terrorist or something? I never got to answer that question because one of them came directly to where I was and asked whether I was Mr. Mohammed. Though at first I could not understand what he was driving at, the mention of my name made me realize he was out to find me. Upon receiving my answer, he took my passport and asked me to follow him. They took me to one isolated room where they begun interrogating me. Little did they know that I could not understand whatever they were talking about. From their faces I could tell they were suspicious of something. One police officer who was taller than the rest and had a pointed nose with glaring eyes called the others and got outside of the room. I heard them whispering but could not tell what they were discussing. I do not know exactly what transpired but the moment they came in I sensed danger. I was forced to take off my clothes which apart from being humiliating experience it really made me nervous. They might have thought that I had some atomic bomb with me. What made me extremely terrified was the way they were pointing guns at me. For a moment I thought I was going to die. Here I was, people back at home hoping the best for me but not having a clue of the deadly situation I was in at that particular time. The thought of my mum losing me, made me collapse and when I came back to my senses, I was bed ridded in a hospital. At the hospital I got acquinted to the nurse who was taking care of me . She was a very caring and pleasant lady. She did not like it when I told her (she understood me inspite the language barrier) how the policemen had treated me . She failed to understand how people sometimes could be so inhumane. It was from her that I learnt of how I ended up in an hospital and she also told me that our embassy had been contacted. All this she claimed was through the concerted effort of the management of the hospital . Through her kindness and assurance that all will be well, I was beginning to have hope that things would be better for me. I failed to understand how things could contradict themselves. It was simply not easy to relate the caring and treatment I received from the hospital with the ‘reception’ I received from the policemen. I had been at the hospital overnight and I got discharged at around 10 am in the morning. This happened when the Saudi Arabian embassy sent one of its agents to intervene . All was set right and I could not believe it when one policeman was sent to apologize on the behalf of the others and he even offered us a ride to a hotel. The ride was short but I did not fail to notice how the roads were smooth and carefully constructed. If it were home the journey would have taken a little bit longer because most of them need to be tarmacked and they are dusty. When I arrived at the hotel, I took a bathe, had lunch and then slept after 28 good hours of unrest. I woke up at around 10 pm and realized I was all alone, the agent from the Saudi Arabian embassy had promised to drop by the following morning to pick me up. He had informed me that he would take me to his house and where I would be staying for awhile while we sort matters out. I could not get sleep that night. All my thoughts directed to the kind of life I was to lead in the USA. Foremost, being an Arab and a Muslim I wondered where mosques could be found and whether I would learn to communicate in English. Also I thought about the encounter with the policemen and realized the matter had been made complex due to ineffective communications. All these and other thoughts ran across my mind through out the night. In spite uncertainty facing me, I kept on hoping believing and having faith that everything will turn out right for me and I would enjoy my stay in the USA and eventually make it my home. It has been three years now since I arrived in the USA. A lot of things have changed mostly with me trying to catch up with the American way of life. I have made new friends from different backgrounds and we assist each other in times of troubles. Even though I am different in my culture, religion and way of thinking, I get along with others through their support and understanding.

Current and future strategies

Current and future strategies 1. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Purpose: The purpose of this report is to understand and analyse the current and future strategies of NEXT in terms of its market in the United Kingdom. This report also considers the tactics to reach potential markets and expand into newer market segments. Approach: In order to conduct a comprehensive study of the company, the factors taken into account are an internal and external analysis, the generic strategies used by NEXT and a thorough understanding of the 4 Ps, PLC, BGM and Ansoffs Matrix has been done in correlation with the future and currents strategies. Findings: Next is the second largest clothing retailer in the UK operating through 500 NEXT retail stores within UK and Eire with over two million active customers. Next aims to provide high quality and beautifully designed products to their customers. From the internal and external analysis of the market strategy of Next, results conclude that next has been a mid market retailer for nearly two decades. It has achieved huge amount of success in the internet and online shopping environment and have been able to cope to with the recent recession within UK and globally. Limitations: Next has suffered sales in the last year due to the recession in the UK and has been moving from a low price retailer to a design and quality product provider. In achieving this aim of providing high quality and designed products it has suffered loss in the UK in sales and growth. It also needs to be aware of the risks of increasing their shop sizes, as the store space to sales growth ratio is very poor. New out of town stores has not been great success and has only added additional costs. 2. INTRODUCTION The only way to attain the successes the company has experienced in the past few years in terms of growth of sales and profits is to see what opportunities lay on the horizon. The Marketing Department of Next Plc has performed a series of internal and external scans throughout the company in order to identify these opportunities. This report contains an analysis performed on the structure, culture, and the micro and macro environment of NEXT PLC. The outcomes are presented in the form of a SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats) analysis of the company. A PEST analysis focuses on the environment that the company now is in (Political, Economic, Social and Technological) and a scan based on the Five Forces Model of Michael Porter. Furthermore, there is the presentation of mix map model, which analysis the 4 Ps (Product, Price, Promotion and Place) and product life cycle, Boston Group Matrix, Ansoffs Matrix of NEXT. An executive summary has been constructed to provide the company vision and a sense of direction with the help of data gathered by the Marketing Department. The above mentioned activities are performed In order to discuss and evaluate the current marketing strategy of NEXT PLC and to recommend an appropriate strategy for the near future to expedite further growth. 2.1 MISSION ANALYSIS NEXT is a retailer of clothing, footwear, accessories and home products. Next clothes are designed by in-house design team to offer consistency of style, quality and value for money with a contemporary fashion edge. The company operates through five reportable business segments namely: Next retail, Next directory, Ventura, Next sourcing and other. NEXT PLC aim to provide â€Å"Exciting, Beautifully designed, Excellent quality clothing and home ware that reflects the aspirations and means of our customers† (Nextplc, 2009) and keep providing quality products for their target markets. In lay-mans terms, a mission statement describes what business the firm is in (Thompson and Martin, 2005). Objectives describe the kind of results the business seeks to achieve while the strategies simplify the way to achieve the desired objectives. Market can be defined as location where the buying and selling of merchandise takes place and marketing can be defined as the process of identifying a target market and developing appropriate strategies for product development, pricing, promotion and distribution (Burns, 2002). NEXT also aims to respond to the particular needs of their customers through the package of measures, which they believe support all customers including those with additional needs. NEXT PLC operates through 500 NEXT retail stores within UK and Eire, Next directory, a direct catalogue and transactional website with over two million active customers and NEXT franchise which includes around 170 stores worldwide. Online shopping was introduced in 1999 and was first in home shopping in the UK. Like other retailers, NEXT has also suffered sales decline due to the recession but aim to carefully manage costs, whilst maintaining and retaining the talent and skills to ensure a positive position within market and emerge stronger than before. NEXT PLC also believes in the importance of maintaining healthy relationship with communities in which they operate and also work with charities to ensure their part in public welfare. NEXT is positioned firmly in the middle mainstream fashion market, targeting 25-45 year olds (upper, middle and lower middle class consumers) who are fashion followers. Easey (2009) maintained that fashion marketing is the application of a range of techniques and a business philosophy that centres upon the customer and potential customer clothing and clothing-related products and services in order to meet the long-term goals of the organisation. In recent years NEXT has been criticised about their marketing methods and has not been seen as a retail business wi th up to date marketing strategy. The word ‘strategy is used frequently and loosely, and is often no more than management jargon. There is obviously a deeper and more practical meaning to it. Strategy is about how an organization sets about getting to where it wants to get it is about setting, pursuing and achieving its mission and objectives (Thompson and Martin, 2005). Knowles (1996) maintains that applying the concept of strategy to an organization implies that the organizations managers try to allocate resources, establish policies and procedures, assign responsibilities and give direction to the organization. Strategic planning is a precise discipline and a process designed to fully utilize the collective expertise of the decision makers through a facilitated process which results in a strategic plan. In the following paragraphs, current in depth marketing strategy of NEXT PLC will be thoroughly discussed. 3.SITUATIONAL ANALYSIS As discussed earlier, success of an organisation in todays competitive world depends on to a large extent on strategy formulation and implementation. An analysis of the internal and external environments provides a look in towards building and developing current and future strategies. Situational analysis is a planning step which helps us examines the current situation of our organization and its external environment so that we can identify and agree on major issues which affect how we plan for the future. SWOT Analysis is a strategic planning method used to evaluate a firms strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats involved in a project or business venture. Strengths and weaknesses are considered to be internal factors of the organisation while opportunities and threats are considered to be external factors as opportunities or threats lie in the external environment. This analysis is called as SWOT analysis (Stahl and Grisby, 1997). In order for a firm to carry out SWOT analy sis it needs careful and critical examination of these various internal and external factors which are often unique to an organisation depending on the type of business. After a SWOT analysis has been performed the managers are able to formulate a strategic plan which comprises of objectives and subsequent strategies. Next always seeks to give the price, value and quality products and services, the upper hand when turning towards customers. Next aims to provide an inclusive high level of service to all customers, whether they shop in high street, shopping centre or retail park stores, the Next Directory, or online through our website. This can also be seen in the way the company sees the importance of its personnel in relation to its customers. NEXT PLC needs to look into the future for improving the customer care by streamlining activities. It also wants to continue the same success pathway it has had in the last 5 years which is demonstrated by (Verdict, 2009). 3.1 INTERNAL ANALYSIS Internal factors are those factors which influence the strengths and weaknesses of an organisation. These strengths are internal to the organisation, its strategies and its position in relation with their competitors (Mercer, 1999). Given below is an internal analysis of Next plc. 3.1.1 Structure In terms of structure, Next plc operate on a centralised system. Their target market is 25-45 year olds (Next, 2009). The company logo ‘next in lower case signifies a different approach, more trendy. There are3 main channels of distribution used by next to ensure their products reach the desired customers: Next has around 500 stores in the UK which acts as its main point of sale. (Next plc, 2009). Next directory which is an online web portal which allows customers to buy products through the web site. There are almost 2 million active next directory customers (Verdict, 2009). Around 170 international stores make up the third channel of distribution. 3.1.2Culture Jackson and Shaw (2009) define culture as the attitudes, values, standards and behaviours of a group that are often defined by nationality. According to Vignali et al, (2008) culture is made up of both abstract elements such as values and ethics, and material components such as cars and foods, which allow us to describe, evaluate and differentiate cultures. Approximately 30% of the clothing bought in the UK is from MS, Arcadia and Next (Jackson and Shaw, 2009). They further state that during 2006 Next lost their market dominance. This means the culture affects consumer behaviour to a great deal. However Next plc, was one of the first to develop and adopt an internet based shopping branch as a high street retailer (Next plc, 2009). Next operates on a role culture concept with which they have a principal board committee which includes the audit committee, remuneration committee and a nomination committee which work on their own in the company (Next plc, 2009). 3.1.2.1Cultural Web Stories: These are the past events and what people talked about inside and outside the company (Mindtool, 2009). Rituals Routines: The daily behaviour and actions of people that signal acceptable behaviour (Mindtool, 2009). Symbols: These are the visual representations of the company (Mindtool, 2009). Organizational Structure: This includes both the structure defined by the organization chart, and the unwritten lines of power and influence (Mindtool, 2009). Control Systems: The ways that the organization is controlled (Mindtool, 2009). Power Structures: The pockets of real power in the company (Mindtool, 2009). 3.1.3Value Chain core competencies Value chain is a framework for identifying where value is added and costs are incurred within a company. It embraces the key functions and activities within a company or organisation such as NEXT (Thompson and Martin, 2005). Core competencies: NEXT make use of an Internet based home shopping and has also established a good brand posture with individual style, beautiful design, excellent quality and affordable price (Next, 2009). NEXT stores are specious and they also make use of standalone lime stores. 3.2 EXTERNAL ANALYSIS The external factors may be threats to one organisation while offering opportunities to another such as technological change, legislation, socio-cultural changes, etc. It can also include changes in the market place or competitive position (Mercer, 1999). 3.2.1 Forces Influencing the Market Porters five forces is a model that helps marketers to analyse the competitive environment by identifying five major forces that continually impacts on organisations. These forces are: Bargaining power of suppliers Bargaining power of consumers Threat of entry into the market by new entrants Threat of substitutes into the market Level of competitive rivalry amongst existing firms (Porter, 1980 cited by Jackson and Shaw, 2009) The bargaining power of our suppliers is very low and the prime problem exists in achieving the quality we ask from our suppliers. Most suppliers only deliver into this market, yet can also change to other markets (professional clothing) that are less profitable and the level of competition is great. With the availability of many suppliers, this force acts positively but can affect the quality aspect of NEXT brand name if suppliers are changed on regular basis. For the consumer bargaining power, there is not much leverage from their account: their money spent on clothing per person is not substantial enough when compared with, our total sales and their total spending budget (Next annual report, 2008). As, per person spending power is not huge it does not provide customers any bargaining power. NEXT can also consider this force as positive but needs to be aware of the customer demands in order to maintain this positive nature of the force. The threat of new entrants is rather low, yet, as said before, the German ESPRIT company is trying to enter the market. This is an exemption, because ESPRIT has a lot of resources that make this possible as well as a lot of experience. In words of product differentiation they are in the league of Levis and others (Verdict, 2009). These brands have extra benefits: Image and superior quality. This force acts as a positive force, as the threat of new entrants is low for NEXT plc but caution needs to be taken in order to maintain this force as positive. The products that can reduce our sales in the form of substitute products or services are not there, however a ‘threat of Internet portals and other forms of home shopping does exist. This is not a severe threat for the company as it already is active in this channel of selling. The discount retailing of A-brands e.g. Levis in outlets through parallel imports can be a problem. New internet portals and other home shopping forms are the only form of substitution threat to NEXT, but as they have been achieving a huge amount of success with NEXT directory and Ventura (Nextplc, 2009), this force does prove to be positive for them. There is some rivalry in the ranks of the market, for there are declining sales due to a decreasing market. In order to attain customer base, companies have increased their discounts and that leads to the destruction of the market. The main cause for this is the fact that people do not want to pay the full price amount of the products and companies have to suffice with lower profit margins. NEXT is the second largest clothing retailer in UK but has also suffered a decrease in sales. While most of its competitors struggled from the declining market Next manage to increase its market share and during the present recession they maintain their stand in the market (scribd, 2009) 3.2.2 Political, Economic, Social and Technological (PEST) analysis: All organisations operate in market places that are affected by forces outside their control ( Jackson and Shaw, 2009, pp 300).Factors considered within the macro environment affect not only the company but all the other members of its micro environment, namely its suppliers, consumers, etc ( Easey, 1995). An analysis of the external factors that influence the firm is known as the PEST analysis i.e. Political, Economic, Social and Technological. Political Politics will affect both the producer and the consumer in various ways (Bohdanowicz and Clamp, 1994). A stable political surrounding is the basis for long-term decisions. The United Kingdom, as a Member State of the European Union, fulfils this prerequisite. The government has to act within a definite political framework to achieve the conditions of the European Union and this guarantees NEXT PLC a higher scope of economic actions. Another advantage of the European Union is the open transfer of goods. This makes it easier for NEXT to sell their products in the different European countries. There are no trade barriers that aggravate sales and it also provides as a means of direct form of participation within the foreign markets (Hines and Bruce, 2001). Economic Vignali et. al, (2008), express that economic trends are extremely important for the business and that they depend to a great extent on the governments politics. Investments in Europe for NEXT PLC are very interesting. The British currency nowadays is exceedingly strong (ex., 2009). This is due to the independence of the British pound to the Euro and has several effects. First, foreign investments for NEXT are relatively inexpensive, and second, it is costly for outside firms to establish in the United Kingdom. The effects of exchange rates also need to be monitored closely. The devaluation of the sterling in 1992 led to a rise in the cost of imports to UK while making manufactured items more competitive. However, many countries are reluctant to engage in trade because of these reasons. In the face of a truly difficult trading environment it is a case of survival of the fittest. Being good is not good enough, retailers have to be exceptional and stand out from the crowd. (Verdict 200 8). Chief executive of Next states â€Å"The outlook for the consumer economy remains challenging and as we have said before, the first half will be particularly tough (Wilson, 2009) Social Changes in lifestyle and opinions influence the demand and the way of selling products (Vignali et. al, 2008, pp. 364). Key Note (2009) estimates that in the year 2036 more than 64.9 million people will be living there. This statement would mean two possibilities. This means a lot of new customers for NEXT PLC but the age of the population is increasing. On the other hand, the social structure has changed dramatically. The progress in medical service and the self-awareness of living leads to increasing life expectancy. Following development of sex education and rising numbers of career women, the birth rate has dropped. These reasons are responsible for declining figures in the NEXT 20 to 40 year old target group. Bohdanowicz and Clamp, (1994) analyse that young people no longer feel the pressure to be married or have children, and therefore many are living a single life or are cohabiting. Technological As in all areas of industry new technology is making great inroads to improve quality of life and increase speed and quality of manufacture (Easey, 1995).The age of Internet and the reception of new media reveal a lot of potential opportunities for NEXT to boost profit. Some companies in the United States already offer online-orders where the customer can exactly define his wishes and measurements, and send it to the place of production. 48 hours later he receives his package. Using this method the companies can react instantly to changes in behaviors. Social networking site facebook also provides as a means of information and education and also helps in advertising for NEXT PLC (Facebook, 2009). Some new entrants in UK market such as Zara use latest technology body scanners and follows fast fashion which is contrasting to NEXT. 4. SWOT Strength: 1. Performance in recent years. (Verdict, 2009) 2. Next Directory sales. (Verdict, 2009) 3. Good promotion. 4. Powerful design philosophy. Weakness: 1. Overpriced. (Verdict, 2009) 2. Profit margin declined than previous years. (Verdict, 2009) 3. No celebrity brand ambassador. (Verdict, 2009) 4. More formal wear than average. Little underwear.(Verdict, 2009) Opportunities 1. Optimize store space. (Verdict, 2009) 2. Consolidate internet marketing and buying. (Verdict, 2009) 3. Expansion into new markets. (Verdict, 2009) Threats: 1. Marks and Spencers biggest competition. (Verdict, 2009) 2. Arcadia and Primark trying to overtake. (Verdict, 2009) 3. Target market reduced. 5. GENERIC STRATEGIES According to Kotler 2004, strategy is the roadmap for achieving the envisaged goals. The strategic decision made by a commercial organisation is concerned with establishing the basis upon which it intends to compete, develop and sustain a competitive advantage and outperform competitors. Porter defined strategy as creation of a unique and valuable position involving different set of activities. Strategy can be formulated into 3 generic types Overall cost leadership Here a business aims at delivering its products at the lowest prices in the market and win a large market share. Such businesses require being good at engineering, purchasing, manufacturing and distribution. A disadvantage of this strategy is that some other company will eventually emerge with still lower costs. Brands may be able to achieve cost leadership at category level if they have sufficient market share (Jackson and Shaw, 2009). Focus- Here a firm concentrates on one or more narrow market segments. It first identifies such a segment and then pursues either cost leadership or differentiation in them. Differentiation- Here a business aims at achieving superior performance in an important customer area valued by a large chunk of the market. It could strive to be the service leader, the quality leader, the style leader or technology leader. Differentiation of one company from another is extremely important due to the ever changing customer demands (Oelkars, 2004).It is also considered as strategy based upon being different from the competition through a range of factors such as design, style, image, trend, product quality etc (Jackson and Shaw, 2009). NEXT prides in offering consistency of style, quality and value for money with a contemporary fashion edge for their target market. NEXT marketing departments have been taking a differentiation approach which has helped them achieve superiority above their competitors. NEXT has differentiated their products from their competitors on the basis of above qualities such as style, design, quality and value for money. However, in this ever changing fashion industry nothing can be permanent. On the basis of porters five forces discussed above NEXT have all the forces in their favour but there are few issues which they need to consider in keeping these forces on the positive side. NEXT needs to be aware of the risks of changing suppliers in case of conflict as new suppliers may provide good products with change in quality which can easily damage the brand name. Due to global recession, textile firms in Mauritius that supply Europes biggest high-street stores are looking forward to tough 2009 . With 10% decrease in sales, these stores fight among themselves to achieve better prices, which results in middle market stores to suffer like NEXT (Scribd, 2009). Only a small amount of internet portals threat has emerged for NEXT but their Directory has been a success and continues to do so (Verdict, 2009). 6. MIX MAP MODEL 6.1 MARKETING 4 PS The marketing mix consists of 4 Ps that are product, price, promotion and place. Product and Price are the product related elements where, price can also be consider as an element of its own. The other two are parts of the delivery system which is about delivering the physical product and the sales message (Mercer, 1999). Product: What business offers customers to satisfy their needs e.g. Quality. According to the mission statement of NEXT, their focus is providing high quality and beautifully designed product for their customers. For this reason maintaining and improving their quality and design of their products is very important for NEXT (nextplc, 2009). Price: Amount customers are ready to pay for products e.g. discounts. NEXT has been one of the known retailers to provide huge discounts on festive occasions, with discounts upto 70% on many products. It also provides special discounts for taller and plus-size customers (next, 2009). Being a mid-market retailer, in order to maintain its competitiveness it is very important for NEXT to provide special discounts schemes and offers during the festive seasons. NEXT also relies on linked selling, one of the biggest areas of sales. For example, it recommends fashion accessories to customers buying clothing online (next, 2009). Place: involves getting the product to the customers e.g. warehouse. Location of retail stores and shops has always been considered as the prime method to increase sales and growth. NEXT has always been one of the high street retail stores. It also has many different store types, eg flagship sores, factory outlets (nextplc, 2009). For this reason it is really important to have different location for customers to choose from. Promotion: It includes ways that encourage customers to buy a product e.g. magazines (Oelkers, 2004). NEXT hugely promotes a great deal of its products through magazines e.g Vogue and also produce great deal of discounts in store and on online shopping. It recently plans to introduce extra 16 billion pounds in advertising its products and online sales records 530 million pounds (Mintel, 2009). 6.2PRODUCT LIFE CYCLE According to Jackson and Shaw 2009, as with all types of product, fashion follows cycles and products follow the Product Life Cycle. In a broader sense, no product can go on selling forever. Once a product has been introduced into the market and accepted by consumers, it goes through a phase of growth, maturity and decline until it becomes obsolete. Stages of a product life cycle: Design Development Stage: This stage is undertaken ahead of the product launch. Design development costs create negative profitability as the sales at this stage are zero (Jackson and Shaw, 2009). Introduction: Introduction is a period of slow sales growth as the product is introduced in the market. Profits are non existent at this stage because of the heavy expenses done for the product introduction (Kotler, 2004). Growth: This is a period of rapid market acceptance and substantial profit improvement. Maturity: This is the period of slowdown in the sales growth because the product has achieved acceptance by most potential buyers. Profits decline or stabilize. Decline: Sales show a downward drift and profits erode. Although the PLC is an accepted underpinning of all marketing theory and practice, Jackson and Shaw 2009, cite the major problem for the fashion marketer to grapple with is the fact that the actual position of a fashion product on the cycle at any point in time is hard to define accurately. Hence an accurate mathematical model of the PLC is impossible. PLC is an important issue for NEXT as it provides growth for the company and has highest operating profit margin amongst its competitors (Verdict, 2009). It also has a increase in store size by 50% from 2004-2008 (Verdict, 2009). Therefore Next is positioned in growth stage of PLC with signs of improvement. 6.3BOSTON GROUP MATRIX As a visual tool for managing portfolios, the Boston Consultancy Group has developed a matrix known as BGM. The BGM offers a very useful map of the organisations products strength or weakness (Mercer, 1999). A typical BGM is given below. The matrix is in a four box quadrant layout. The horizontal axis is expressed as the market share of the business compared to that of the market leader, whilst the vertical axis shows the average annual growths rate of the market that the business is operating in. The four quadrants are called stars, question marks, cash cows and dogs, which explain how the business stands relative to the market leader. Stars are market leaders in high growth markets. They are generally expensive in terms of promotional expenditure (Jackson and Shaw 2009). Generally businesses start off in the quadrant of question marks. Cash cows operate in a market where the growth rate is less than 10 percent. Dogs are a decline stage where a small share of limited and stagnant market. Growth of NEXT has been an important issue for the company with a higher amount of concentration going towards increasing store size. Since 1997 the average store size has increase from 3500 sq. feet to 10,500 sq. feet (Verdict, 2009). In their mission statement Next aims to provide excellent quality and design for its customers and target younger market. Next chief executive admits 2009 being a tough year for NEXT. (nextplc, 2009). NEXT appears to be existing in between the dogs and question mark stage and needs to concentrate to achieve position to the other end of the BCG Matrix. 6.4 ANSOFFS MATRIX Ansoffs Matrix provides four different growth strategies by considering ways to grow via existing products and new products, and in existing markets and new markets. As seen in the diagram above; The Market Penetration strategy seeks to achieve growth with existing products in the current market segment, aiming to increase market share. Market Development strategy seeks to achieve growth by targeting existing products to new market segments. The Product Development strategy develops new products targeted to its existing market and the Diversification strategy helps the firm to diversify into new businesses by developing new products in new markets. With increasing number of new retailers entering the market NEXT has achieved a great level of success in maintaining their market share and has also grown their business in new products such as directory and online shopping (Verdict, 2009). NEXT has always been an innovative retailer, as it was the first retailer to introduce internet shopping in 1999 (nextplc, 2009). Since then it has introduced many new products and Next Directory has been a great success. 7. RECOMMENDATION On the above data analysis it is proven that NEXT has been one of the successful retailers in UK. It has grown immensely in the last decade both in regionally and internationally. Being the first clothing retailer to introduced online shopping; it has improved

Clean Air Act Title VI Essay -- Environment Geology

Clean Air Act Title VI An Examination of the Goals, Plans for Implementation, and the Effectiveness at Achieving these Goals Introduction and Background Ozone is a substance which plays a pivotal role in anthropogenic life. Formed by having three oxygen molecules bond together, it becomes a molecule whose formulaic makeup is 03. While contributing to only a small amount of atmospheric makeup, this is a molecule that without which, human life could not survive. Ozone is the one gas which absorbs long wavelength UV radiation (UVB). This radiation has been known to cause skin cancers, increase risk for glaucoma, and damage the immune system. 90% of all ozone is found in the stratosphere, with the other 10% making up tropospheric smog (http://earth1.epa.gov/oar/oaqps/peg_caa/pegcaa06.html). Located between 9 and 31 miles above the Earthà ­s surface, ozone is situated in roughly a sphere-like shape through diffusion across the atmosphere. This sphere is constantly changing in cycles through the natural breakdown and buildup of ozone. Stratospheric ozone depletion did not become a problem until after the 1950à ­s, when CFCs began to be manufactured. These chlorofluorocarbons were found in propellant aerosols, any type of machinery which was required to lower temperature, solvents, fire retardants (halons) and as byproducts of styrofoam production (http://ess.geology.ufl.edu). While CFCs are highly stable molecules in the lower atmosphere, upon entering the upper atmosphere, they encounter UV radiation. This radiation splits the CFC and releases a free-roaming chlorine molecule. The chlorine molecule destroys ozone at an alarming rate, with one catalytic Cl being able to account for the destruction of 100,000 ozone molecules... ...e previous years had shown a general trend of increase in ozone hole size. Now, the effects of the Clean Air Act being realized. Hopefully, through the efforts of the EPA and other groups throughout the world, the problem of stratospheric ozone depletion can be handled and even decreased. But more can be done. While the US has championed the cause towards a better world with ozone, many other countries choose to ignore the dangers of UVB through extensive lobbying by companies that have stakes in the production of CFCs. Without full cooperation from the global community, the problem will never be completely solved, as shown here (http://ess.geology.ufl.edu). If nations follow the lead of the US, utilizing alternative chemicals as propellants and finding new chemicals for air refrigerants, then the problem of stratospheric ozone depletion will be a problem no more.

“In “Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde” and in “The Fifth Child” Essay

â€Å"In â€Å"Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde† and in â€Å"The Fifth Child† an outsider is progressively released into an existing society destroying peace and goodness as it comes† In â€Å"Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde† by Robert Louis Stevenson the outsider is Mr Hyde. Dr Jekyll is a very clever person who does not like having to be a good, respectable member of society and trying to live up to his reputation all the time. After living his life like this for a while and becoming ever more frustrated by living like this he uses his knowledge of drugs and medicine and Mr Hyde is born as the evil side of Jekylls personality. In â€Å"The Fifth Child† by Doris Lessing the outsider is a boy called Ben the fifth of five children from a couple called David and Harriet. David and Harriet wanted a happy family life with many children and a big house. This dream world was going fine until the outsider Ben is introduced. This essay is going to look at the similarities and differences between the two books and the two outsiders. The reader from the first time they are met views both Ben and Hyde as outsiders. Harriet just after she has given birth to Ben describes him as â€Å"a troll or goblin† This is certainly not the usual reaction a mother gives her new born child or â€Å"creature† as Harriet describes him. Ben was not like other new born babies â€Å"he was muscular, yellowish, long† â€Å"his forehead sloped from his eyebrow to his crown. His hair grew in an unusual pattern from the double crown where started a wedge or triangle that came low on his forehead, the hair laying forward in a thick yellowish stubble.† â€Å"He did not look like a baby at all.† The first time we meet Mr Hyde he is attacking a small child in the street â€Å"trampled calmly over the child’s body† whi ch is not normal practice for the normal man in the street. Stevenson makes this more horrific by saying â€Å"it sounds nothing to hear† but I think it does sound quite nasty to hear â€Å"but it was hellish to see† implying that it is much worse than it sounds. Mr Hyde’s appearance made the doctor who would usually have nothing to hold against Hyde â€Å"turn sick and white with the desire to kill him†. Later in the book Mr Utterson tries to describe Hyde â€Å"there is something wrong with his appearance, something displeasing, something downright detestable. I never saw a man I so disliked and yet I scarce know why. He must be deformed somewhere, he gives a strong feeling of deformity, although I couldn’t specify the point†. All this suggests that Mr Hyde is not normal. Stevenson then goes to describe Hyde through his house and his front door. Mr Hyde’s house lies just past a market that is described as having â€Å"an air of invitation, like rows of smiling sales women†. Mr Hyde’s house is nothing like this being situated in a court and is one of â€Å"a sinister block of buildings† this description immediately makes you imagine a dark house with dark anti-social inhabitants. Stevenson then goes on to say the house â€Å"showed no windows, nothing but a door on a lower story† and â€Å"the door which was equipped with neither bell nor knocker, was blistered and distained† all of this is not actually just describing the house but Hyde as well. It says Hyde is a dark anti-social man that does not like visitors and does not generally fit in. In â€Å"The Fifth Child† there is also an object like Mr Hyde’s door used to describe, but this time peoples feelings and what is going on. This is the big table; it is used to show the state of the family and relationships. The table near the beginning of the book before Ben is born is full of people at Christmas who are all happy and Christmassy but when Ben is born less and less people come around until at the end of the book the table is totally empty apart from Harriet. Harriet is imagining what it used to be like before Ben was born with many people all enjoying themselves and how much better it would have been without him. Mr Hyde and Ben are both violent people. Mr Hyde had trampled over a small child in the street and killed an MP with a walking stick; both of these people were people that someone of Hyde’s age should have been stronger than, an old man and a small child. Ben had sprained his older brothers arm and â€Å"attacked an older girl in the playground†, both of these people should have been able to overpower someone of Ben’s age but Ben seems to be abnormally strong. When Ben was a small baby his mother did not breast-feed him like she did with her others because it hurt too much â€Å"the child looked at her and bit, hard†. This may suggest that Ben is more evil than Hyde in being able to attack people that should be stronger than him. Stevenson describes the event of Hyde trampling a small child in a different way to the way Lessing describes how Ben attacks a girl in the playground. Stevenson tells the story through Mr Enfield who is talking to Mr Utterson but Lessing uses Harriet’s thoughts to tell the story of Ben. Stevenson doesn’t just describe what Hyde did to the girl he goes on and makes the incident more realistic and tries to compare Hyde with other things such as a â€Å"juggernaut† to provoke more feeling in the reader â€Å"it sounds nothing to hear but it was hellish to see†. Lessing on the other hand describes Ben’s actions almost as a series of bullet points, stating what he did and nothing else â€Å"he had pulled her down, bitten her and bent her arm back until it broke†. For this reason, that Stevenson used more description in parts of his book I can find parts of â€Å"Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde† more believable and mare memorable. These parts of the two books also show how far apart they were written. In Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde Stevenson uses the word juggernaut, which then meant a large unstoppable force but in today’s world has become to be associated with large lorries. Also in Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde there are few women and the ones we do hear about are servants or maids but in the Fifth Child there are many women and one of the most important people in the book, Harriet, is a woman. We also do not hear many people called by their first names in Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde but in the Fifth Child last names are seldom used. The title of this essay I agree with most of except for the part that says, â€Å"progressively released†. This part of the statement is true for Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, as Mr Hyde is only really understood at the end of the book â€Å"he is not easy to describe†. In the Fifth Child Ben is thrown into the middle of everything suddenly and can even be different before he was bourn â€Å"David felt a jolt under his hand†. The second part of this statement â€Å"destroying peace and goodness as it comes† I totally agree with. In Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, Hyde causes Jekyll so much pain that eventually he commits suicide. In the Fifth Child Ben scares Harriet and David off having any more children and breaks the family apart by making some of Harriet’s other children go to boarding school and by making them go and live with relatives.

The Three Musketeers Book Report Profile

The Three Musketeers Book Report Profile The first step in writing an excellent book report is reading the book and marking interesting phrases or notable features in the margins. You should use active reading skills to retain the most from the text. Your book report should contain all of the following, in addition to the plot summary. Title and Publication The Three Musketeers was written in 1844. It was published in serial form in the French magazine, Le Siecle over the course of 5 months. The novel’s current publisher is Bantam Books, New York. Author Alexandre Dumas Setting The Three Musketeers is set in 17th century France during the reign of Louis XIII. The story takes place predominantly in Paris, but the protagonist’s adventures take him across the French countryside and as far as England. Though the novel is based on historical information, and many of the events, such as the siege of New Rochelle, really occurred, Dumas has taken artistic liberties with many of the characters. It should not be looked at as a factual account of this period. Instead, the novel should be recognized as a fine example of the genre of Romance. Characters D’Artagnan, the protagonist, a poor but intelligent Gascon who has come to Paris to join The Musketeers and make his fortune. Athos, Porthos, Aramis, the Musketeers for whom the novel is named. These men become D’Artagnan’s closest friend and share in his adventures, his successes, and his failures.Cardinal Richelieu, the second most powerful man in France, the Cardinal is the enemy of D’Artagnan and the Musketeers and the chief antagonist of the novel. He is great statesman and strategist but is driven by a need for control to commit devious acts designed to advance his own cause.Anne de Breuil (Lady de Winter, Milady), an agent of the Cardinal and a woman devoured by greed and bent on vengeance. She becomes a particular enemy of D’Artagnan.Count de Rochefort, the first enemy D’Artagnan makes and an agent of the Cardinal. His destiny is closely tied to that of D’Artagnan. Plot The novel follows D’Artagnan and his friends through several court intrigues and amorous encounters. These accounts are entertaining adventures that not only advance the plot but, perhaps more importantly, describe the fundamentals of court society as well as revealing character. As the story develops, its focus narrows to center on the struggle between Milady and D’Artagnan; the heart of the story is the war waged between good and evil. D’Artagnan and his friends, even considering their immoral actions, are cast as protectors of King and Queen while Milady and the Cardinal represent consummate evil. Questions to Ponder The questions to follow will help you detect important themes and ideas in the novel: Structure of the novel: This book was first published as a serial. How may that have dictated the exposition of the plot?Dumas engages his readers by addressing them directly throughout the novel. What reasons might the author have had for doing this, and how does it affect the overall success of the story? Consider the conflict between individuals: How do D’Artagnan and his friends differ from what we expect of our heroes?Can you find any sympathy for Milady? Why or why not? Examine the traditional roles of this society: What is chivalry?Dumas tells his readers that â€Å"Our modern ideas of pride had not yet come into fashion.† How is the morality of this time different from our own?How does life at court drive the characters toward their destinies? Possible First Sentences Consider these examples as possible first sentences for your book report: â€Å"The genre of Romance always contains the thematic elements of love and chivalry and The Three Musketeers is no exception.†Ã¢â‚¬Å"Milady is a woman centuries ahead of her time.†Ã¢â‚¬Å"Friendship is the most valuable asset one can possess.†