Critical evaluation †blood brothers Essay

The play did not open with the curtain going up but instead with the lights going up. My seat was in the gallery, which is quite high up, but after I got over the sense of vertigo my view of the play was fine. I could not see the gantry at the back of the stage or the very front of the stage, but very little of the action took place in these areas. The play was written in the early 1960’s by the Liverpudlian playwright Willy Russell and was first performed in the early 1980’s. The play is a ‘slice of life’, or an impression of life starting in Liverpool in the early 1960’s through until the 1980’s, of poor working class families. The play combines music and song with narrative. The set of Blood Brothers consisted of, on either side of the stage a row of terraced house fronts. At the back of the stage there was a gantry which was used by the narrator and once by Mrs. Johnston when she sang a song that was an overview of the action that had just taken place, there was a countryside backcloth with two moveable ‘brick wall’ flats which moved across to cover this. The set was very appropriate for the play, it combined well with the ‘slice of life’. The props were minimalist and brought on stage by the actors. There were four moveable flats, two that slid across the floor and two that came down from the ceiling. All the costumes and fixings were appropriate for the era of the play, they worked well together producing a realistic setting. The play opens with the twin brothers, lying down on stretchers and then being carried away. The narrator then informs the audience of the events that have just happened and then the play begins. The play is about Mrs. Johnston, a working class mother of seven children who after her husband has left her for a younger woman discovers she is pregnant with twins. Mrs. Johnston is a cleaner who works for a middle class couple, Mr. and Mrs. Lyons. Mrs. Johnston tells Mrs. Lyons of her predicament and so Mrs. Lyons who can not have children of her own and whose husband has gone away on business for six months offers to take one of the twins for herself and bring him up as her own. After some persuasion Mrs. Johnston gives one of the boys to Mrs. Lyons. She finds it difficult to keep Mrs. Johnston on as her cleaner because she can see that there is a bond between mother and child and so fires her. Several years pass, the boys are now seven, nearly eight, they meet when out playing, become great friends and ‘Blood Brothers’. Both Mrs. Johnston and Mrs. Lyons try to keep the boys apart but are unable to do so. In a desperate attempt to separate the boys the Lyons move to a house in the country well away from Mickey and the estate where the Johnston’s live. A few years later the council decide to demolish the estate where the Johnston’s live and relocate the families to the countryside close to where the Lyons now live. Mickey has a girlfriend, Linda, a girl he has known since childhood. One day when they are out walking they come across Eddie, (Mickey’s twin), and rekindle their friendship. The twins are now sixteen years old and their friendship continues to grow until it is time for Eddie to gone away to university. However Eddie declares his love for Linda before leaving but she continues her relationship with Mickey and soon falls pregnant with his child and so they marry and move into Mickey’s home. Mickey’s older brother, Sammy, gets into trouble and Mickey agrees to help him out but instead ends up taking the fall for Sammy killing a man and goes to prison for seven years. During this time he becomes depressed and withdrawn from Linda. She turns to Eddie for support and they soon become emotionally attached. When Eddie’s mother becomes aware of the romance she tells Mickey who, now out of prison, goes to Eddie’s work place. Mrs. Johnston now feels she must tell the boys that they are brothers but this is too much for Mickey to understand in his present mental state, distressed and confused he shoots Eddie. Just as Mickey is doing this a policeman takes aim and fires killing Mickey. Both men are dead. On the whole the script and the play were very good. At first it took a little time to get in to the play but it soon flowed naturally. The play held the audience’s interest by the use of the narrator who appeared on the stage behind the action and would burst into song. A lot of information was given on the characters through the use of song, so the audience received much of the necessary information without realising it. The part of Mrs. Johnston was played by the singer and actress Dennis Nolan. Ms. Nolan described the history of her character through the song ‘Just like Marilyn Monroe’. Her story is not extraordinary or uncommon. A girl from a Roman Catholic working class family who falls in love with a young man who takes her dancing and says she ‘looks a lot like Marilyn Monroe’. Romance soon fades once the babies start arriving. Possibly because of her faith, which would have instilled a belief that children are a blessing, she soon has a large family and her husband begins to look elsewhere for what he first found attractive in his wife. He begins to go dancing with a girl who he says ‘looks a lot like Marilyn Monroe’. When he leaves home Mrs. Johnston discovers she is pregnant with the twins of the story. This is when the events that lead up to the final tragedy really begin. Mickey is the twin that Mrs. Johnston kept. He grows up in this very poor working class family but as a child is mainly happy and full of mischief. He does not expect an easy life and accepts who he is and what his future will be. He does not expect to go to university like his friend Eddie because in his mind and at this time it was usually only children from better off families who went. Mickey would have been happy to work and bring up his children in a working class family. It is unemployment and bad choices that take away his pride and his future. He becomes very depressed, feels worthless and finally sees his marriage fall apart. The actor who played Mickey had to act the part of a child through to an adult, his mannerisms were very good and his gestures appropriate for the different ages. When he was seven Mickey acted and moved as if he was seven and when he was twenty he acted and moved like a twenty year old. His voice changed as well, it moved from a high quick voice to a deeper more solemn one. Linda is the childhood friend of Mrs. Johnston’s children and especially of Mickey. The two children grow up together, play together and become girl and boyfriend. This relationship is threatened by Linda’s attraction to Eddie, Mickey’s twin, but although she realises that it is Eddie that she loves she does not end her relationship with Mickey. When Eddie goes away to university she becomes pregnant with Mickey’s child and marries him. Linda’s role in the play is huge, it is her relationship with Eddie which finally destroys Mickey and leads to the final tragedy. The play contained quite a lot of swearing but this was only used to aid the script and made it more realistic. At the end of the play many people in the audience were in tears which showed how good the performances had been. As a straight play this would have been a very sad story of some very hard lives but because the story is told partly in song the mood is much lighter. It shows that there can be laughter in even the most difficult of lives, but also how our own upbringing, superstitions and prejudices can make our lives more complicated and more difficult.

Cypriot Banking Crysis Scr

CY ————————————————- [ ] ————————————————- CSR essay Kozhevnikova E. , Sadokhina A. , Yatisyshina P. [ ? . . ] The problem2 Time-line2 Reasons of crisis in Cypriot banking sector:4 Moral Dilemmas4 The problem The current crisis of banking system in Cyprus had raised difficult moral dilemmas for Cypriot government, members of Euro Union and other affiliated governments.Cypriot banks became unable to secure the deposits due to several reasons: the Greek crisis, crisis in real estate sector. It provided relatively high income on deposits, which is always associated with risky investments. The macroeconomic situation in the world only worsened the situation. To sum up, the some of the banks simply lost the money of the depositors. In this case, the problem o f allocation of losses appeared. Who should bear the losses for the mistakes made by Cypriot banks, which were aggravated by the multiple unfavorable circumstances?The depositors who brought their money to banks? All of them? Prosperous European countries? We should remember, that the ones who are in charge of this situation simply can’t cover that costs (banks have no liquid assets cover the losses). In this paper we discuss the impacts of different possible solutions of this problem from the point of ethics theories. We start we describing the background of the problem including time-line of facts, the reasons for crisis of Banking System, than we move on to reviewing different options of how to save Cypriot economy using theories of ethics.Time-line * 14-15 March – EU-summit as a result of which was reaching the deal between Cyprus Euro Zone and IMF (International Monetary Fund) for a 10 billion Euro bailout on condition that Cyprus imposes a one-off levy of 6,75% t o insured deposits (under 100 000 Euro) and 9,9% to uninsured deposits (over 100 000 Euro). So that Cyprus will provide 5,8 billion Euros to secure the 10-billion bailout. * March 16 – first day of Cyprus Bank closure after the government announced Bank holidays. The idea of imposing a tax on ordinary depositors resulted in mass protest-demonstration of Cypriots, citizens also protested against Germany dictating such hush conditions. It had also caused anxiety in other countries – for setting such an extraordinary and threatening precedent. * March 19 – the Cyprus Parliament rejects a 10 billion Euro bailout package (lawmakers voted 36 against 19 abstaining) arguing that it is unacceptable to take money from regular account holders.The chairmen of the Cyprus Investor Association said Parliaments’ rejection of the deal  «will buy us some time to see if we can come up with a better agreement » * The President of Cyprus Nicos Anastasiades proposed to mak e an exception for deposits with less that 20 000 Euros to calm the public, but that didn’t work out either * The failed vote intensified the relationship between Cypriot government and EU. Cypriots accused EU for pressing them to accept an unacceptable deal that heats ordinary savers and pensioners.In return, German officials and IMF stated that they didn’t force Cypriot government to impose the deposit on depositors but that one way or another the country must come up with the rest 5,8 billion Euros to secure the bailout. * The next step included testing to which extent Russia would be willing to assist Cyprus in this difficult situation. Investments of Russian depositors accounted for about 20 billion Euros in Cypriot banks, so Russia is for sure an affiliated party.Russian officials reacted furiously to the proposed tax deposit bank * March 22 – Cyprus adopted legislation that allows the government to split the Cypriot lenders into good banks and bad banks a nd creates resolution framework to wind down banks. * March 24 – a new bailout deal between Eurozone and Cyprus. Cyprus will get a 10 billion Euro bailout on condition that Laiki (Popular) Bank, the second largest bank in Cyprus will be wound down.The deposits under 100 000 Euros will be fully compensated by the government, the depositors with more than 100 000 Euros on their accounts will face extremely huge losses. In this case Cyprus successfully avoided being excluded from EU, which occurred to be highly probable. What is more, this solution pensioners and clients with small deposits (which mean with low income level) won’t be affected, so the anger of the public will be reduced. Finally, two biggest Banks will be restructured: Laiki Bank will be wind down, Bank of Cyprus will capitalize at the expense of it’s clients; insured deposits of Laiki Bank will be transferred to Bank of Cyprus, owners of uninsured deposits of Laiki Bank will lose up to 80% of their deposits; 37,5% of uninsured deposits of Bank of Cyprus are transferred into stocks of Bank of Cyprus which actually cost nothing, 22,5% will be frozen so clients have no right to use that sums of money.In this case the costs of bank mistakes lay down on clients with deposits over 100 000 Euros. By the way, most of such clients are Russian (Russian investments in Cypriot bank sector are estimated 26 bn Euro, they exceed Cypriot GDP which is around 18 bn Euro). Russians were happy to use Cyprus as an offshore – due to double taxation agreement. This was a place where nobody asked where that money came from. At the same time EU and Cyprus were happy to transfer the costs to Russian depositors by expropriating their depsits.Is it ethical? Not the easiest question to answer One more concerning fact: . ? 1 15 ( ) ? . , ? . , . ? ? . - - ? . - Reasons of crisis in Cypriot banking sector:The Greek financial crisis had put in danger the stabil ity of all Eurozone. But the greatest impact was imposed on Cyprus due to their strong economic and financial bonds. Cyprus's banking sector was affected the most. It became quite clear that banking system of Cyprus is in danger a couple of years ago. Stavrakis   -the Finance Minister of Cyprus said:  «We are a small country and most importantly, we have a banking system which has invested heavily in Greek bonds ». Nevertheless, the minister assured that Cypriot anking system was safe and sound, that it had a strong capital base and that there was a huge inflow of foreign deposits which helped to stabilize the situation. Anyway, the prime reason of crisis in Cypriot banking sector is cancellation of Greek bonds. It was not a secret that Cypriot banks invested heavily in long-term Greek bonds, so when a default in Greece was announced and it was stated that Greece is not going to fulfill its bonds obligations, and, as a result, the trust in Cypriot banks declined. As the trust in banks decline, depositors tend to take back their money.But this is a trap: something happens in the banking industry, depositors leave, at the same time a lot of bank assets are frozen in long-term obligations. Theoretically, the bank has or practically has enough assets to return everything to clients, but these assets are not liquid, so at the moment when clients start to panic and claim for their money, the bank is under threat of running out of liquid assets to pay to clients. This can happen to any bank, even the most reliable one. The moment panic begins – the bank is under great threat.This is why laws that don’t allow taking back deposits at any moment may be quite reasonable. Here is a breath summary of reason of Cypriot banking sector crisis: * Huge investments of Cypriot banking sector in Greek default economy =; sufficient losses and asset write-downs of Cypriot banks * A strong offshore orientation of Cypriot economy: total sum of deposits heavily exce ed GDP * As a result the government (does it have to? ) is not able to compensate the losses of depositors * Unfavorable macroeconomic situation in EU and world The fact that Cypriot banks haven’t revalued their assets for a long time, so the assets were overestimated * And many other reasons that we will understand 20 years after Moral Dilemmas Here is a list of moral dilemmas occur in such a complicated situation: 1) Who should bear the risk of bank bankruptcy? Government/all customers/the richest customers/other countries’ governments/†¦ 2) Can expropriation be ethical? 3) 4) ——————————————– [ 1 ]. http://online. wsj. com/article/SB10001424127887323605404578384331402208120. html [ 2 ]. http://www. nytimes. om/2013/03/20/business/global/cyprus-rejects-tax-on-bank-deposits. html? _r=0 [ 3 ]. http://www. bbc. co. uk/news/world-europe-21916102 [ 4 ]. http://lent a. ru/news/2013/03/25/threat/ [ 5 ]. http://somo. nl/dossiers-en/sectors/financial/eu-financial-reforms/newsletter-items/issue-17-march-2013/innovative-approach-in-cyprus-bailout [ 6 ]. http://www. cyprusnewsreport. com/? q=node/4239 [ 7 ]. http://www. mondaq. com/x/231362/Financial+Services/The+Latest+Developments+In+The+Cyprus+Banking+Sector [ 8 ]. http://www. reuters. com/article/2013/03/22/us-column-cyprus-investing-saft-idUSBRE92L0UV20130322

How Can We Show

In anything we do, there must be a force that drives our action and speech. Let's have a look at Romans 8:6 and examine what kind of mindset we should cultivate. Read. As the scripture points out, being a spiritual person is not Just a matter of personal preference. It is a matter of life and death. So then, let us look into a few ways we can show we that we are minding the spirit. Since the Bible itself is a product of God's spirit, what better way could there be than to read it daily.We must diligently study the Bible. By doing so, God's spirit can influence our mind and heart and we will develop a spiritual inclination and attitude. Thus our mindset will be controlled and impelled by His active force. However, it is important to note that knowledge of God's word is not enough. Remember King Solomon. He knew Jehovah standards very well. But then what happened? He came to have many foreign wives. And soon he was following after their gods. In fact, he practiced some sort of interfa ith Just so that he could please his wives.If he was minding the spirit, would he have done so? Yes from his example, we learn that we must obey Jehovah wholeheartedly. Another way is by displaying godly qualities. What are they? Let's find out at Galatians 5:22, 23. Read. How do we manifest the fruiting of the spirit in our life? If we have love, it will move us to forgive one another freely. Besides, love for neighbor moves us to share the kingdom good news with other. We will thus be motivated to have a fuller share in the kingdom preaching work.In addition, we would avoid a competitive spirit in the congregation. There shouldn't be such thing as: I put in more hours in the ministry than you so I'm better than you, or I am a pioneer and you're not. Brothers will avoid viewing privileges of service as a position of authority. Such kind of behavior is of fleshly origin. If we are to mind the spirit, we will view privileges in the congregation as a meaner to minister to others. Fina lly, it is important to set spiritual goals and work to attain them.Examples of parietal goals we can set include: improving our study habits, increasing our share in the ministry, or perhaps reaching out for a privilege of service in the congregation. Why are spiritual goals important? When we work to attain our goals, our minds will be occupied with spiritual interests and we are better able to resist temptations. To sum it up, minding the spirit is the course of wisdom, for this world and its desire is passing away. We will experience inner peace and also enjoy a peaceful relationship with Jehovah. How Can We Show By Consecrations

What characterised the Anglo-American Special Relationship during the Essay

What characterised the Anglo-American Special Relationship during the Cold War - Essay Example ps were cemented by the establishment of close ties between subsequent leaders of these countries as they sought to work together in national goals of influencing global economic and political systems. The cold war era is one of the period were the United States and Britain cooperated in a number of areas as both nations sought to secure their interests against resilient Soviet Union. The Anglo-American cooperation during cold was set had the objective of establishing close coordination in areas such economic performance, sharing of technological innovations and enhancing security through cooperation in defence and military movements in strategic areas. The strategies for achieving these goals were pegged at achievement of mutual benefit although there were instances where the two friendly nations were unable to share a common perspective on an issue as seen in the British attempt to ouster Nasser from Egypt presidency, which the United States did not support.1 However, the Anglo-American special relationship worked for the benefit of the countries especially when facing a perceived common threat. Therefore, given the mutual perception of Russia held by both Britain and the United States, it was only practical that the relationship would establish more areas that they agreed than where the countries did have a consensus on the best approach to handle a given domestic or international situation. Many nations that emerged from the Second World War as well as countries that had gained their independence in the past few decades faced considerable danger of falling under the influence of Soviet Union especially since they did not have strong institutional and political structures to assert their own identity. However, the reaction from these countries towards the Soviet Union could not be compared to the level of cooperation put in place by the United States and Britain as the two countries developed a coalition to face any potential threat from the Soviet Union in

Andrews Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Andrews - Research Paper Example It measures a firm's efficiency at generating profits from every dollar of net assets. The RoE of the company is 0.8 and 0.6 for 2006 and 2005 respectively. The numbers shows that the company is not so much good in generation revenues and is not increasing the share holders wealth. High ROE yields no immediate benefit. Since stock prices are most strongly determined by earnings per share (EPS). The benefit comes from the earnings reinvested in the company at a high ROE rate, which in turn gives the company a high growth rate. Inventory turnover ratio shows that how the company is managing its stock the numbers for the company is 31 nad 19 for 2006 and 2005 respectively. By analyzing the company's inv. Turnover ratio we have analyzed that the company is not managing its inventory in 2006 that of 2005.The asset turn over ratio gives an idea about how well the company is using its assets in generating revenues.

Report 2 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Report 2 - Essay Example c Growth that significant developments in the trade across the Atlantic Ocean only acted as the catalyst for the strong rise of Western Europe after 1500. That is, European countries on the West side had number of ports along the Atlantic Ocean, and these ports facilitated substantial trade with the New World, Africa, and Asia. This trade aided the merchant groups and the monarchy to become strong forces, gaining not only financial resources but importantly political clout. As Acemoglu, Johnson and Robinson (551) point out the trade opportunities made the monarchy to ally with the merchant groups, and both were the â€Å"main beneficiaries of the early profits from Atlantic trade and plunder,† and no anti-establishment groups favoring changes in political institutions could become powerful enough to challenge them. In addition, due to this heightened trade in the Atlantic Ocean, ports cities underwent urbanization, thereby even changing the ‘physical outlook’ (infrastructures) of Western Europe. Although, anti-establishment groups could not do anything, the merchant groups started becoming a strong force due to the economic clout they had, and even started dictating terms to the Monarchy. â€Å"Atlantic trade strengthened merchant groups by constraining the power of the monarchy, and helped merchants obtain changes in institutions to protect property rights.† (Acemoglu, Johnson and Robinson 546). These changes mainly led to subsequent positive economic growth that was particularly witnessed in Western

Critically analyse the role of Perception in Consumer Behaviour Essay

Critically analyse the role of Perception in Consumer Behaviour - Essay Example This particular aspect can further be observed as a multidimensional concept which in itself is quite challenging to be defined and identified in the real life context being influenced by various other attributes such as cultural beliefs, social diversity and lifestyle needs (Desmond, 2003). The paper intends to discuss regarding the role of perception in consumer behaviour with particular focus on the UK based brands. Moreover, this paper also discusses regarding the exposure, attention, interpretation and sensation of consumers while making purchasing decisions towards different products and services. Perceptual Process In its simple meaning, perception can be associated with gathering of information through our senses i.e. through seeing, hearing and tasting among others. In other words, perception can be related with a process by which humans become familiar and aware of a particular event and interprets a stimulus. It can further be argued that not all the human beings are alike in all contexts. There are some dissimilarities persisting in the perceptions of humans that further distinguish an individual from another. Contextually, an individual’s perceptions regarding products and/or services can differ within a group in terms of features, prices, qualities and brand names among others. It has often been observed that among these large groups of individuals, different opinions can persist about a particular product and/or service which are offered by the marketers (Ziethaml, 1988). It has been further observed in this context that an individual frequently desires to obtain information regarding products and/or services through their five senses, i.e. smell, taste, touch or texture, sound and sight (Solomon, 2012). As these attributes are believed to be the fundamental aspects of defining customer perceptions, modern day marketers often tend to utilise these senses in order to identify the expectations of the potential customers and channelize their buying behaviour towards the determined goals (Arnould & et. al., 2005). It is in this context that contemporary organisations always attempt to ensure proper evaluation of consumers’ perceptions in order to effectively facilitate their target markets with appropriate offerings and deliver the products and/or services which are fit for the potential customers’ expectations (Creusen & Schoormans, 2005; Vigneron & Johnson, 1999). To be illustrated, Tesco PLC and British Airways are often characterised as two of the leading brands that have always considered and implemented various buying behaviour theories and concepts to recognise customers’ perceptions accurately, while introducing new products and services in its target markets. In terms of influencing consumer buying behaviour, British Airways implements unique promotional strategies which directly impacts upon attracting the potential consumers to adopt the company’s services in an efficient manner (Te sco PLC, 2013; British Airways, 2010). Sensory Stimuli According to Krishna (2011) â€Å"sensory marketing is an application of the understanding of sensation and perception to the field of marketing —

Summative Assignment (Business Plan Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Summative Assignment (Business Plan - Essay Example The vast majority of our lodgings were among the first structures to be raised in adolescent urban area. Few inns can brag that their groups actually grew up around them. Today, we have added present day downtown area properties to our gathering, with center areas that permit you to join the rushing about of the city, make part in the move of the business locale, and appreciate the society, the lights and qualities of road life. We promise consistency all through our gathering of lodgings and resorts by holding fast entirely too broad measures. Focal buying guarantees the same great pleasantries are accessible to all visitors wherever they visit. All these and more make each Oasis in an uncommon spot, and your stay, an exceptional experience (Software, 2015) â€Å"Transforming minutes into memories for our visitors† is the mission statement of Oasis hotel and resorts. On the off chance that anything positively characterizes Oasis Hotels & Resorts, it is the quality we append to enduring memories. Expanding upon a century of experience as hoteliers has blessed us with a rich convention of neighborliness. We offer encounters that are legitimately nearby, in inns and resorts of unrivaled vicinity. Furthermore real accommodation is attained to when captivating administration and meticulousness hoist each one stay into valued memory. We realize that even the best areas and offerings would be negligible without extraordinary visitor administration. Our talented and persuaded staff is furnished with the instruments and the attitude to commonly convey on this guarantee. Inside an Oasis experience, each visitor is offered a warm welcome and is made to feel uncommon, esteemed and increased in value. We transport our visitors to exceptional spots saturated with special structural engineering, expressive dà ©cor and wonderful imaginativeness. Oasis areas dont simply ooze history; a lot of people are nothing short

BP Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words

BP - Essay Example It should not concentrate solely on deep-water assets. The asset portfolio of the company should be diversified. It should have onshore assets, off-shore assets, natural gas assets, shale gas assets etc. The business level strategy of BP should combine its cost leadership with product or process leadership. The process leadership can be achieved by having the most sophisticated technological processes in place. The marketing strategy of the company should focus on improving the battered brand image of BP in the minds of the consumers and other stakeholders. The corporate and brand image of the company have become unfavorable after the Gulf of Mexico disaster. The network level strategy of BP at this juncture should be one of cooperation and not of competition. BP should also pursue inorganic growth through mergers with smaller firms in the industry. Recently it bought a stake in the reserves of Reliance industries of India. Such a cooperative network level strategy will be suitable for the company. The oil & petroleum industry includes all those firms and corporations that are involved in the exploration, drilling, movement & transportation, refinement and, marketing & distribution of oil & petroleum. The importance of the oil & petroleum industry lies in the fact that oil accounts for a large portion of the world’s energy consumption. This proportion amounts to as high as 53% for the oil rich Middle Eastern nations, 32% for the nations of Europe and Asia, 44% for south and Central America, 41% for Africa and 40% for North America (Matthew Yeomans,2004). The population of the globe consumes more than 30 billion barrels of oil per day. In terms of the dollar value of the turnover of all the companies involved in the various stages of the oil & petroleum supply chain, this industry is the largest in the world. The ongoing political unrest in the Middle East and Western Africa will have an adverse impact where a significant proportion of the

Supply and Demand Analytical Paper Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Supply and Demand Analytical Paper - Assignment Example Everybody knows that Apple compete with quality for it to remarkably set a highly competitive price for its product offerings. In the case of Apple, competitive price does not necessarily mean to be lower prices compared to its competitors’. In fact, in most of the time, it is higher than the others. However, it is clear that there is an ongoing high demand for Apple’s iPhone products despite its comparatively higher price than the competitors’ offerings’. The law of demand states that the price is highly associated with the number of quantity demanded and vice versa. This means that there will be more quantity demanded for a certain offering if the price goes down or as the price goes down, more quantity for the product will be demanded. As stated in Figure 1, the law of demand simply states that price has a linear relationship with the number of quantity demanded. However, knowing that Apple sells iPhone products at a price higher than its competitors’, considering a staggering increase of its revenue and profit, is an indication of increasing demand for its product offerings. On the other hand, there is a significant indication that the use of mobile phones has become a reality or part of life. In Europe alone, there was an ongoing perception that there will be no enough available frequency to satisfy the demand for talking, texting and surfing the Net on mobile phones (O’Brien). The broadcast spectrum is simply becoming a limited commodity for as long as more users are inclined to buy mobile phones and use them for either talking, texting or surfing the Net. As a result, there is no question as to why there is an increasing demand for Apple’s iPhone even if it was set at a higher price. Mobile phones, particularly smart phones, are not just wants but are becoming strong basic commodities. Apple has continued innovation of products that have improved functionalities that are known to use wider broadcast spectrums. In this case,

Do you think our desire to create and solve puzzles is physiologically Essay

Do you think our desire to create and solve puzzles is physiologically determined, i.e., instinctual Culturally determined P - Essay Example To quote Danesi, solving puzzles is â€Å"An instinctual need to search out definite, reassuring, small-scale answers. ... Filling in the little squares with clear-cut answers seems, in its own minuscule way, to negate the existential emptiness that human beings unconsciously feel" (Romano). It is an innate knowledge that is within all of us that it only needs to be teased for our puzzle solving capability to come out (Infantry). In other words, puzzles are our attempt to find answers to our universe and the phenomena that surrounds us. We find it engaging because it is fun and amuses us that we usually respond when we are challenged by a puzzle. Since puzzles are within us and our ability to respond to the challenge of puzzles is instinctive, culture is not a factor to it because we have it regardless where we came from. It can be psychological in a way because our curiosity to solve puzzles is embedded in our psyche and all it takes for that capability to come is to be challenged or teased by a problem, be it a word riddle, an abstract problem or a mathematical problem. This natural ability of man to solve puzzle has served us well because through our natural inclination to solve puzzles led us to the discovery of many disciplines in arts and sciences that ranged from mathematics, economics, cognitive science, philosophy among others. From the problems posed by building the great pyramids of Egypt came the invention of the Pythagorean Theorem which in itself a riddle because it will allow us to solve the length of one of the lines once we know the other two lines. In modern times, our curiosity with how the market work is best explained by solving the various variables of how supply affects demand and vice versa. This inherent penchant for engaging in puzzles has also helped expand our horizon seeing worlds beyond us that extend to the realm of imagination as narrated by fictions and novels that keeps us hooked on what will happen next. We inadvertently lear n because we became so engrossed in the narration not noticing that we have been drawn to an entirely different universe. Indeed, our natural fascination with solving puzzles has benefited us in countless ways. Civilization and its accompanying technology may not be as what it is as we know today without the discoveries that was initiated by our curiosity to solve puzzles. My personal experience with puzzles My personal experience with puzzles used to be equally puzzling until I stumbled on Danesi in class who explained the reasons of our natural curiosity to solve things. I never thought of myself as a puzzle solver or really into it. But strangely, I noticed that I have not reneged any invitation to solve a puzzle. Once I started, I cannot even help but to be engaged with the challenge and do my best to solve it to the point that I lose track of time. The best example I can give is the Sudoko game which involves heavy mathematics. I thought I would never be interested with it know ing that math is not my forte but when a friend taught me the mechanics of the game, I cannot help but dabble myself into it, taking challenge after another until I got it. I progressed without even noticing it. I can remember that I got addicted to it that I used to spend the whole day solving Sudoku puzzles without even realizing how much time has lapsed. I also now understand why I am addicted to

Marketing Paper Final Exam Essay Example for Free

Marketing Paper Final Exam Essay Final Paper Marketing encompasses the complex cycle of every stage of a product, from conception to the final sale and everything in between. Marketers are challenged with identifying the consumers needs/wants and managing the process to meet those needs. Every product a marketer develops goes through four stages in its life, The Product Life Cycle. Each stage of the product life cycle (Introduction, Growth, Maturity, and Decline) have unique characteristics that a marketer faces as they create utility and try to maintain or grow their market share. Through each stage advertising is critical and marketers try to inform, persuade and remind consumers about their product. The difference is the approach and focus of the advertising. Every product that comes to market enters into the Introduction Stage. This is the stage where consumers are first introduced to the product. â€Å"During the introductory stage of the product life cycle, a firm works to stimulate demand for the new market entry. † (Boone Kurtz, 2006, p. 371) A marketer must connect with consumers to create a market for the new product. Every year hundreds of new products enter the introductory stage. Currently a product that is just beginning to take hold is high-definition televisions (HDTVs). HDTVs broadcast pictures with increased clarity and give the viewer (consumer) options on camera angles and additional information. Currently, â€Å"Yankee Group estimates that 15 percent of American households now own (a HDTV), with Forrester estimating 10 percent at most. † (Crawford, 2005) During the introductory stage, marketers are trying to introduce the product to consumers. One of the ways marketers succeed is in offering promotions or discounts to distributors to get the product in the marketplace. Most of the advertising focuses on informing the public about the new product. While information is key, advertisers also try to persuade consumers to purchase the product and often times remind consumers where they can find the product. The Introductory stage is where all products start. It is in this early stage that products are refined based on consumer and distribution feedback. Often times the numbers of marketers are minimal in the introductory stage as the market is being developed. As a product finds its market and begins to gain acceptance, it moves into the Growth Stage of the product life cycle. The growth stage is where a product sees its sales volumes increase dramatically. At this stage in the product’s life, â€Å"new customers make initial purchases and early buyers repurchase. † (Boone Kurtz, 2006, p. 372) Early marketers find increased competition as their competitors enter the product space to share in the profits. Satellite television has entered into the growth market with the advent of the small dish. Early satellite television was mainly limited to rural areas that were inaccessible to cable television. The dishes were large and unattractive. As the technology has advances and the satellite dish has shrunk to less then twenty-four inches, consumers have rushed to the alternative to cable television. Satellite television marketers are continuing to refine their product in this growth stage. Recently, the top two providers of satellite television signed deals to provide affordable high-speed internet service. â€Å"For satellite-TV providers, the service is another way to offer a full line of products. † (AP, 2006) The growth stage is where marketers move from a heavy focus on information in advertising to a more persuasive approach. The persuasive approach allows the marketers to differentiate from competitors and encourage individuals to not be left behind. If the product space attracts multiple marketers, pricing, features and other differentiators are used in the advertising to help marketers gain or maintain market share. The Growth Stage of the product life cycle is complex and changing. Marketers rely on word-of-mouth, mass advertising and falling prices to sustain the momentum and interest in the product. The goal of the growth stage is to get reluctant buyers to buy and current customers to repurchase. As a product matures and growth stabilizes, the product moves in the Maturity Stage. Sales start to plateau and supply exceeds demand for the first time in the products life cycle. Competing marketers have flooded the field and profits begin to become depressed. All of these factors create pressure on marketers to continue their brands sustainability. Carbonated soft drinks are a very mature product. According to the American Beverage Association (ABA) the beginnings of the modern soda started in the 1830’s. (ABA, 2006) The ABA estimates that there are over 450 brands in the product space. The number of brands creates fierce competition for American’s 65 billion in annual purchases. Adverting in the mature stage of a product’s life is all about increasing purchases, differentiating your brand and finding new uses or markets for the product. In the soft drink space marketers try celebrity endorsements and product differentiation. 7-UP is â€Å"the un-cola†, trying to draw its distinction among more popular cola brands. Whatever approach the marketer takes in advertising, the goal is to extend the maturity stage and maintain profits for as long as possible. A product in the mature stage of the product life cycle does not indicate imminent demise. As illustrated above, soft drinks continue to command consumer’s dollars. Marketers will often look to new markets and changes in the product to extend the life of the product. One of the largest struggles for mature products is maintaining profits as competition drives down prices. As the product leaves maturity it enters the Decline Stage in the Product life cycle. A products decline is most often linked to new technologies. Marketers focus on reminding the remaining customers in the market that they are there for the consumer’s needs. Sales decline, profits decline and the product space eventually looses money. VCRs are a product on the decline in the United States. With the advance of DVDs and the reduction in price of DVRs, VCRs are loosing shelf space and market share. Marketers often times search for new markets as products decline in their existing markets. So while the United States and Europe may transition to a new technology, emerging economies may embrace the â€Å"older† and cheaper technology, thus extending the products life. Advertising a product in the stage of decline focuses on reminding the remaining consumer base the product still exists.

The Carbonated Soft Drinks Industry And Pepsico Strategy Marketing Essay

The Carbonated Soft Drinks Industry And Pepsico Strategy Marketing Essay The chart below shows the dominant players in the carbonated soft drinks (CSD) industry according to Beverage Digest report issued on March 30, 2009. The results of this report are for the year 2008 (Sicher, 2009, p.2). Coca Cola has the largest market share accounting for 43%, followed by PepsiCo with 31% and Dr.Pepper Snapple Group Inc. (formerly Cadbury Schweppes) with 15% of the market. The remaining 11% is distributed amongst other CSD companies such as Cott Corp, National Beverage, Red Bull, Big Red, Rockstar, Private label and others. Moreover, the top 10 CSD brands in the U.S for the year 2008 were ranked by market share as follows (Sicher, 2009, p.2). Brands Company Market Share Coke Coca-Cola 17.3% Pepsi-Cola PepsiCo 10.3% Diet Coke Coca-Cola 10% Mountain Dew PepsiCo 6.8% Dr.Pepper Dr.Pepper Snapple Group(DPS) 6.1% Diet Pepsi PepsiCo 5.7% Sprite Coca-Cola 5.6% Fanta Coca-Cola 1.8% Diet Mountain Dew PepsiCo 1.8% Diet Dr.Pepper Dr.Pepper Snapple Group(DPS) 1.6% With regard to individual brands, Coke was ranked first with 17.3% market share and Pepsi-cola was in second place with a lower market share of 10.3%. Additionally, the total market share of all Coca-cola brands adds up to (34.7%) which still surpasses those of PepsiCo (24.6%). To be able to give an in-depth analysis and evaluation of the Soft Drink industry, the following factors should be considered: The relevant industry trends and the most noticeable changes in the industry. The strategic group map. The industry attractiveness using Michael Porter five forces model. A. Relevant industry trends Industry Growth The graph below shows the performance of the CSD market from 1990 up to 2008. It is observed that the industry faced a sharp decline in growth starting from 2005, where the percent volume change fell below zero. This was followed by a further decline in growth rates: -0.6% in 2006, then -2.3% in 2007 and -3% in 2008 (Sicher, 2009, p.1). Conversely, the energy drink companies were experiencing a positive growth. Hansen Natural, which has both soft drinks and energy drinks in its portfolio of products, witnessed a +3.3% CSD growth. Additionally, Red Bulls volume also increased +5.2%. Although Hansen Natural and Red Bull make up a small portion of the total market share pie, the increase in their growth rates indicates that PepsiCo has to pay attention to them. Political Factors: There are several political factors that influence the soft drinks industry: Obey food, Drug and cosmetic acts: the process of producing and distributing the soft drinks in the market is subjects to many federal laws such as the food, drug and cosmetics acts. It is also subject to American with disabilities acts. The presence of these laws helps create a healthy environment for the consumers. This will limit the potentials of new entrants in this industry. Environmental laws regulations: these laws enforce packaging, recycling, water and energy policies to make sure the CSD industry operates in a healthy environment. This leads to making the soft drink industry more attractive for consumers. Double Taxation: Another political factor is that companies operating in the industry are obligated to tax payments for the products they offer and distribute in each country they operate within. Hence, this leads to making the industry less attractive because operating firms are subject to double taxation policies. Economical Factors: Inflation in diesel prices: it is an important factor affecting the CSD industry. Since, the CSD relies on trucks to distribute its diverse end line products; trucks are subject to inflation in fuel prices. Since the consumption of fuel is the core activity, diesel prices are subject to inflation depending on the market conditions. Yet, the possibility of a market crisis rises. Foreign exchange rates fluctuations: Carbonated soft drinks firms revenues are affected by exchange rates fluctuations as well as profits and the cost of raw materials. Due to the weak economic growth the industry will suffer heavily by changes in exchange rates. Thus, profits and cost are going to be lower and higher respectively. Socio cultural Factors: Obesity: Dr. Gabe Mirkin says: A study from Harvard shows that of soft drinks may be responsible for the doubling of obesity in children over the last 15 years. (Gabe Mirkin, 2004) Recently, as the people are becoming more and more educated, the level of their health awareness is increasing. Obesity is becoming more and more apparent, leading to people taking good care of their health. Soft drinks are full with empty calories which cause obesity. The trend of obesity in children is rising since the soft drinks consumers are young and between the range of 14 and 30. In fact, studies done by the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research shows that Adults who do drink one or more sodas or other sugar-sweetened beverages each day are 27% more likely to be overweight or obese. (16 Facts About Soft Drinks and Obesity, 2009) Change in life style consumer tastes: Nowadays the consumer of the carbonated soft drink industry are shifting their tastes toward drinking more healthier drinks such as water and fresh juices instead of carbonated soft drink full with sugar that will have a negative effect on the consumer health in the long run. People have become more health conscious for instance they are moving toward the consumption of healthier beverages such as water and fresh juices. Its estimated that the consumption of juices will increase up to 20 % within the coming three years. (Health Conscious Chileans Switching to Non-carbonated Drinks, 2009) Technological Factors: Introducing new technologies in the soft drink industry has helped in developing the process of manufacturing. For example: PDX technology: It is a shockwave technology that helps in mixing the ingredients in an efficient way. Pursuit Dynamics, the supplier, said that this technology is most useful for the soft drinks industry. This technology is believed to help in cutting the cleaning time up to 80%. Also, it will also increase the processing speed and save power. (New technology targets diet soft drinks makers, 2009) Other Noticeable trends: Merger and acquisition: It is very common in the soft drinks industry, it causes many firm to exit and then re-enter the industry. Many leaders in the soft drinks industry use acquisition in order to grow and increase their market share. For example, what PepsiCo did to expand into the energy drink sector, it acquired Quaker Oat, who already bought Gatorade. Hence, the competition on the products diversifications for a firm will increase. Using glass bottles instead of plastic bottles: Many soft drinks companies are moving toward using glass bottles because these bottles are more environmental friendly. According to G Karthikeyan, the manger of sales in Jabal Ali Container Glass, the demand for glass bottles has increased recently because some of the chemicals in the soft drinks can react with the plastic and caused serious diseases. Using glass bottles help that the soft drink bottle taste better and last for long time. (Sathish, 2010) Banning soft drinks in schools: The American beverage association has announced the removal of soft drinks from schools. It asked for the removal of full calorie drinks and the replacement will be the healthy, low calorie beverages. That decision has been made because the child obesity is increasing rapidly. The announcement said that in elementary schools, children can only have 100% fresh juices, low fat milk and water, while in high schools the students can have all types of diet beverages and sport drinks as well as the drinks available for the elementary schools.(FBD,2010) B. Strategic Group Map The strategic group map above shows the competitive positions of different competitors in the CSD industry. It consists of the five largest competitors in the industry. The axes represent two competitive characteristics: the product categories offered by each competitor and geographic coverage in terms of the number of countries. The size of the circles is proportional to the relative market share of the company. PepsiCo has offers the largest variety of product categories amounting to 10 categories, followed by Coca-cola which offers 7 categories. Dr.Pepper Snapple Group, Cott Corp and National beverage all offer 5 product categories, however these categories are differ slightly. Also, their geographic locations vary which explains why they are located on different points on the strategic group map. The strategic group map was constructed using the information in the table below: Geographic coverage Product Categories offered Coca cola 200 + (The coca-cola system, n.d.) 1.Soft drinks 2.Energy drinks 3.Juices / Juice Drinks 4.Sports drinks 5.Tea and coffee 6.water 7.other  [1]   Pepsi 150 (Our history, n.d.) 1.Soft drinks 2.Energy drinks 3.Juices / Juice Drinks 4.Sports drinks 5.Ready to drink tea 6.Ready to drink coffee 7.water 8.Dairy based drinks 9.Fruit flavored beverages 10.Frozen beverages  [2]   Dr.Pepper Snapple Group 81 (The best history on earth, n.d) 1.CSD 2.Juices 3.Ready to drink tea 4.Mixers 5.Other Premium beverages  [3]   Cott Corp 60 (About us, n.d.) 1.CSD 2.Energy Drinks 3.Juice Drinks 4.Tea 5.Water  [4]   National Beverage 13 (Overview, n.d.) 1.CSD 2.Energy Drinks 3.Water 4.Fortified powders and supplements 5.Functionally enhanced juices and waters  [5]   C. Michael Porter five forces model Industry is classified as the Carbonated Soft Drinks Industry Rivalry HIGH Rivalry in this market is very intense due to a number of factors such as the number of competitors, growth of the industry, product differentiation, switching costs and change in consumer tastes. There are a few large competitors that are roughly equal in size. These competitors are Coca-cola with a market share of 43% and Pepsi with 31%. The market shares of Coca-cola and PepsiCo combined makes up more than 70% of the whole market. Thus, it allows these major competitors to watch each other closely. However, there are many other competitors that compete with these two giants and intensify rivalry. These include other soft drink companies (e.g. Dr.Pepper Snapple Group and National Beverage) and energy drink companies (e.g. Red bull and Rockstar). As mentioned earlier, the CSD industry faced a 3% decline in growth in 2008. A declining growth rate indicated that the many competitors in the market will have to share the shrinking pie. Also, in an industry such as CSD, there is little opportunity for differentiation relative to other products (e.g. cars) which lowers switching costs for consumers. The change in lifestyles which caused consumers to shift away from carbonated to non-carbonated soft drinks increased the level of competition. As a result, companies such as PepsiCo and Coco-cola had to adapt to these changes in demand by focusing on marketing and innovation (Human sustainability, n.d.). Bargaining power of Buyers MODERATE to HIGH The buyers in this industry can be classified into two categories: Those that buy in large quantities (Matthews Knaus, 2006, p.2): Supermarkets (31%) Fountain outlets: e.g. restaurants (23%) Vending machines (14%) Mass merchandisers (6%) Convenience stores/ Gas stations (5%) Small grocers (4%) Other: gas stations, drug chains, gas stations/minimarts, airlines and other channels of distribution (17%) Those that buy in small quantities: Final consumer The first category of buyers has high bargaining power. Generally, in industries characterized with many suppliers and a few large buyers, the buyers capture a greater share of the profits. This is because they buy in bulk and they can easily switch between suppliers since the product is standard, lacks differentiation and is easily available in the market. Additionally, these buyers have the power to demand higher quality or more service because they buy in large quantities. An example of a buyer that buys in bulk is the large retail store, Walmart. The second category of buyers is the end consumers. The fragmented nature of the buyer group and the low quantities purchased by them lowers their bargaining power. However, the bargaining power is increased due to the presence of substitutes, low switching costs. Thus, the bargaining power of end consumers is considered to be moderate overall. Bargaining power of Suppliers- MODEATE to LOW Before looking at the supplier group, it is important to first consider the types of input or raw materials that are used in this industry. These are: sugar, bottles, cans, water, ink and plastic. The inputs used are homogeneous and not differentiated which makes them readily available in the market. The supplier group in this industry is not powerful and does not possess a high bargaining power. There are many suppliers which make the supplier group more fragmented than the industry it sells to. Also, the product or input is neither unique nor differentiated and the suppliers do not represent a high percentage of total costs in the industry. One factor that may increase the bargaining power of suppliers is that consumers are more becoming more health conscious. This gives suppliers that offer healthier ingredients more bargaining power since they are smaller in number. Nevertheless, this bargaining power can be mitigated by having a long term agreement with the suppliers. Threat of Substitutes: HIGH Again, substitutes are classified into two categories: (1) Substitutes that come from distant industries, and (2) substitutes that come from within the industry- internal substitution. Since we classified the industry as that of carbonated soft drinks, then the substitutes from distant industries will be non-carbonated soft drinks. These include juice, water, milk, tea, coffee and the like. On the other hand, substitutes from within the industry include CSD such as sodas and energy drinks. Both types of substitutes pose a high threat because consumers switching costs between substitutes are low. Additionally, since people are more health conscious, they are more willing to substitute CSD with healthier alternatives. Threat of New Entrants: Moderate to LOW The entry barriers in the CSD industry are of different types, each having a significant effect on the threat of potential new entrants, these include: Technical barriers: For instance, PepsiCo has an absolute cost advantage enabling it to achieve lower average costs. That is, even if an individual or company was able to discover Pepsis recipe, they will not be able to achieve the low costs of PepsiCo. This is because PepsiCo is a large company that has economies of scale. Commercial Barriers: these barriers include brand name, reputation, access to distribution etc. In an industry like CSD, it is very difficult for a new entrant to compete effectively with the existing competitors that already have a large and loyal customer base. New entrants will have to put in a lot of marketing efforts and resources in order to convince customers to switch to their products. This will be time consuming and will also require a large amount of capital. Additionally, it is very difficult for new entrant to gain access to extensive distribution channels like those of Coca cola and PepsiCo. Financial Barriers: these barriers include capital requirement, access to financing etc. The bottling process requires a higher amount of capital than concentrate manufacturing since it is associated with higher fixed assets. For concentrate manufacturing, one plant which has the potential to serve a country as large as the United States costs $25 million. On the other hand, the bottling process needs 80 to 85 plants, each costing $30-50 million, to provide efficient distribution for a country the size of the US. Moreover, the bottling process is highly specific to both the type packaging and the bottling process. This, in return, makes it difficult to exit the market. (Cola wars, n.d., p.3) Retaliation: the more retaliation new entrants expect from existing competitors, the higher the entry barrier. In this industry, new entrants should expect sharp retaliation. The aforementioned barriers to entry lower the threat of new entrants. However, there is another factor that should be taken into consideration: private label brands. Cott Corp. holds the majority of private label brands in addition to few other smaller companies. Since private label brands are cheaper, retailers would find it more attractive to sell them, instead of Coca-cola or Pepsi, taking into consideration the higher profit associated with them. Thus, the threat of these private brands slightly increase the threat posed by new entrants. This makes the overall threat of new entrants moderate to low. (Pepsi, n.d., p.6) Conclusion The spider web below summarized the five forces (the 6th force is excluded). The more intense the forces are, the less attractive the market is. Most of the forces in the CSD industry are moderate to high which indicates that this industry is not attractive for new entrants. However, for those companies that are already in the industry, it is attractive. 2. Key Success Factors of Carbonated Soft Drinks industry 1. Size of Company (distribution and market share) The companies size is an important factor in such an industry. E.g. PepsiCo is the second leader in the industry as well as one with the largest market share. 2. Location (Convenience and Availability) Convenience for customers is also essential in a soft drink industry. Such that a company must make sure the soft drink is readily available everywhere in supermarket, grocery stores, vending machines, and restaurants. Brand Loyalty Due to the diverse soft drinks and the intense competition in the industry, brand loyalty plays an important success factor for a company. E.g. PepsiCos regular customers are devoted to Pepsi and they rarely switch to other brands. Loyalty creates inelastic price change. PepsiCo successfully adapts to customer taste. International market International presence is essential for the success of Soft Drinks industry. Going global is important for it helps the company enhance growth. E.g. the majority of PepsiCos profits come from US yet population growth in markets like India and china could lead to potential market growth. SWOT Analysis Strengths: Strong Brand Reputation Strong market Position PepsiCo is an early entrant which helped build market share. Its market share accounts for 31% of the market share of the carbonated soft drinks industry. Availability of large Free Cash Flow ( and Strong Revenue Growth) Solid revenue results in the second quarter of 2009 reflecting PepsiCos Product innovation, strong effective net pricing, and cost discipline showing a 5.5 percent increase in net revenue and an 8 percent increase in core EPS. PepsiCo Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Indra Nooyi said Our results this quarter reinforce the advantages of our balanced portfolio, as our food and international businesses delivered solid performance while we continued the transformation of our North American beverage business.(Nooyi, 2009) PepsiCo has large amount of free cash flow and lack of capital constraint creating strength for the company to improve its innovative capabilities, and create a strong distribution thus further strengthening its brand. Strong and creative advertisement Besides PepsiCos strong advertisement, it uses creative techniques. Such that PepsiCo created an add through a football field with most well known players (Kaka-Brazilian, Henry-France, Drogba-Godivoi, Messi-Argentine, Lumoard-England) . Extensive product list Pepsi offers various products besides the Pepsi cola. It offers beverages and snacks. Its also the number one maker of snacks (potato chips and corn chips). Weaknesses: Many Large existing Competitors Large existing competitors in the market create significant weakness for PepsiCo and thus create a need for stronger advertising, consequently requiring higher capital. Following are the strong competitors sharing a high market share in comparison to PepsiCo with 31% market share: Coca Cola has a market share of Æ’Â   43% Dr.Pepper Snapple Group Inc. Æ’Â  15% of the market Concentration PepsiCo is concentrated in North America (US, Canada, Mexico), where almost 70% of its revenues comes from. Opportunities: Acquisitions and Alliances: Due to the increased threat of rivalry and competition in the carbonated soft drink industry, acquisitions and alliances create an opportunity that reduces such threats. Through acquisition the market share rises and the revenue rises, though the high cost of doing it is a drawback to such a strategy. Acquisitions of rivals (e.g. RedBull) Increase Market Share Increase Advertisements Advertisements play a major role in Carbonated Industries. For example, for one to see Pepsis add on road while very thirsty would likely to stop by a petrol station or any convenient store who offers Pepsi to purchase it. Strengthen Brand names of N.A portfolio: Since coke dominates Western Europe and Latin America, PEPSI dominates Middle East and Southeast Asia. Threats: Change in customers taste: weakening demand in USA Æ’Â  new federal nutrition guidelines identified regular CSD as largest source of obesity-causing sugars in American diet (Pinto, 2006) Health care awareness Increased awareness of health campaigns cut down revenues of soft drink industries. Customers move to substitutes such as water, non-carbonated drinks and juices. These challenges are PepsiCos target to overcome, such as the figure below shows the peoples negative perception of PepsiCo. High Rivalry As Explained earlier, threat of rivalry is very intense due to the following factors: Large number of competitors, Decline in growth of the industry, Lack of differentiation in products, and low switching costs. Therefore there exists an intense competition for shelf space due to expanding array of products and packaging options Large company size, will demand a varied marketing program; Social, cultural, economic, political and governmental constrains. As a result, the company will incur more expenses and resources. Threat of substitutes is very high. People can easily substitute Pepsi with other drinks. Strategic recommendations to the firm based on your SWOT analysis Since PepsiCo has availability of high free cash flow (strength), I would recommend that PepsiCo opts for Acquisition and Alliance (Opportunity) to increase its market share thus to take over its rivalry (threat) Due to the threat of health campaigns (threat), PepsiCo should increase its product line (opportunity) I would recommend that PepsiCo increases its EPS and increase PepsiCos stock price, by: Increasing Income Decrease amount of outstanding stock B. Company strategy analysis 1. Mission Statement/Strategic intent/Vision Mission statement: Our mission is to be the worlds premier consumer products company focused on convenient foods and beverages. We seek to produce financial rewards to investors as we provide opportunities for growth and enrichment to our employees, our business partners and the communities in which we operate. And in everything we do, we strive for honesty, fairness and integrity (PepsiCo Inc., 2009) Reproduced Mission statement: PepsiCo aims to be the worlds number one foods and beverages producer. It mainly focuses on providing money for its investors as well as enhancing the market with jobs and opportunities for growth. PepsiCo try their best to be honest, fair and truthful in all of their operations. Critique: The mission statement relatively reflects the core values of PepsiCo. It specifically describes its goals and objectives. It also sets guidelines for the activities and operations that need to be accomplished in order to meet the company prospects aims. Vision: PepsiCos responsibility is to continually improve all aspects of the world in which we operate environment, social, economic creating a better tomorrow than today. Our vision is put into action through programs and a focus on environmental stewardship, activities to benefit society, and a commitment to build shareholder value by making PepsiCo a truly sustainable company. (PepsiCo Inc., 2009) Reproduced Vision: Operate by creating a better future sustainable environment. Critique: A vision is a statement that states what the firm will be in the future. Pepsis vision aims toward creating a future healthier, sustainable friendly environment. PepsiCo vision should be more specific to its goals and objectives in order for PepsiCo to be more productive in the future. It should be more creative and easy to adapt to new trends. The vision can help PepsiCo in controlling the future market. PepsiCo Generic Strategy: According to Michael Porter, there are two types of competitive advantages a firm an posses: A firm can either make the same products that its competitors do, but with a lower cost. Æ’Â   Cost Strategy OR A firm can differentiate its products from those offered by its competitors, either by offering better and more expensive products or by offering lower quality cheaper products Æ’Â   Differentiation Strategy. To gain a competitive advantage in the market, PepsiCo looked in its position in the industry. It engaged in cost leadership competitive strategy: Since PepsiCo is a large corporation, it can keep the prices of its products low through the massive production and economies of scale. They also can buy from suppliers in bulk at a discount and make use of the technology to lower the prices of the final products. Not to forget that the extensive distribution channels and the global existence of the firm are considered as important factors to reduce the price. Allocating the cost among the brands carried by PepsiCo, the proficiency in the development and production help PepsiCo achieving its cost leadership strategy. PepsiCo also vertically integrated. It has merged with Pepsi bottling group in order to reduce the cost of distribution. Additionally, the types of input or raw materials that are used in this industry are: sugar, bottles, cans, water, ink and plastic. Since these raw materials are not differentiated and are easily available in the market, PepsiCo can achieve economies of scale. By looking at the graph above we can learn that by achieving economies of scale the firm will reduce its costs which will lead to lower prices of the final products. Although lower prices will result in having price war, which had already existed between PepsiCo and Coca-Cola and other firms in the CSD industry, it will still help the company in increasing its market share and to compete in the industry. Adapting the Cost leadership strategy had raised strong barriers for any new entrants to enter the market since it will be very hard to compete with a well-known brand that offers low prices. PepsiCos key resources that could lead to long term competitive: In order to stay ahead of the future and present competition, Pepsi has developed many attributes. It has constructed a business strategy that will allow it to outperform its competitors. Therefore PepsiCo has concentrated on few main resources that it believes will turn out as competitive advantages for the firm which will help it to goal superior performance in its industry. These competitive advantages are believed to be: Strong Brand Name Advertising: PepsiCo has the luxury to spend around 200 million dollars in this field, which allows it to reinforce the products. The strong advertising helps PepsiCo to introduce new products very quickly because it helps in improving the awareness level on the consumers about launching new products. PepsiCo logo/ being the 2nd leader of the market: PepsiCo is a very well-known brand not only because of products taste but also because of its logo and unique way of packaging. These all created what is called brand recognition. The unique blue and red symbol made PepsiCo very recognizable among people. Pepsi has spent 637 million dollar over the five past years on its marketing plan just to introduce the new rich deep blue packaging. This color represents the eternity of youthfulness and openness. Celebrity endorsement: Pepsi had used famous faces such as Britney Spears and Beyoncà © in advertising its products, which lead to attract more customers and increase the level of costumers preference. Although celebrity endorsement was a success but PepsiCo wont be using celebrities anymore as a step forward reducing its future cost. Extensive Distribution Channels / Location In Feb. 26, 2010 PepsiCo had merged with Pepsi Bottling group and PepsiAmerican which strengthening its distribution. It has local and global locations. PepsiCo has locations in 150 countries all around the world. Physical locations: PepsiCo soft drinks can be found in vending machines which are located in high traffic locations, schools, universities. PepsiCo reaches more consumers by also distributing its products to restaurants, department stores and grocery markets.

Statements from the novel soucouyant

Statements from the novel soucouyant These are statements from the novel Soucouyant by David Chariandy (2007) that condenses the message of the novel. In general, the novel illustrates forgetting not just as a illness in the form of dementia but it also shows the cultural meaning of forgetting in the lives of the narrator, his mother and the other characters in the story. In a cultural context, forgetting in the novel means leaving behind ones history and tradition; erasing from memory ones dark past experiences; not remembering the hurts and sufferings one has experienced; and turning back on ones mistakes and sins in the past as depicted by the characters in the novel. At the outset, the story focuses on the life of the narrators mother named Adele who is suffering from early onset or pre-senile dementia. The narrator here is considered a prodigal son who has run away from his home but who longed for her as any son would for his mother, even so a frightening a mother as she had become (33). However, after two years, he went back to stay with Mother though I havent been invited to stay (9). It seemed, as the story progresses, that the narrator wants to understand her mothers past so he can also understand his own origins. So, he tried to ask questions from his mother who never deliberately explained to me her past, but I learned anyway (23). She told him over and over again of her encounter with the creature [a soucouyant] (136). A soucouyant according to what is written in the back cover of the book is an evil spirit in Caribbean folklore. The narrator wishes to confirm this encounter but Mother never explained any of this to me (136). The narratio n is interspersed with bits and pieces of the mothers past as fragments of her memory come and go. Some of the stories about Adele are also narrated by Meera, the nurse. The characters who are Adele, the narrators mother and the narrator who has remained nameless throughout the story have engaged in episodes of forgetting and remembering which has something to do with their cultural heritage. The cultural meaning of forgetting in Soucouyant is first of all, significant to Adele who is a Trinidadian immigrant who experienced the worst things in her past. On her part, forgetting includes leaving behind her history and her traditions as she leaves behind her birthplace, Trinidad. It also means erasing from her memory her dark past. The narrator tells of her, she saw sadness and anxiety. She saw violence. She saw war. (161). There was also a time when she experienced being dragged like a doll toward the gates of the base, back toward the village and the life that awaits (192). She has suffered a lot, not to mention the discrimination during those times because she is dark or a colored woman. In these instances, forgetting seems to be the most creative and life-sustaining thing (32) she could do with her dark past. The phrase a path so old that none could remember its origins (45, 136, 173 190) has been repeatedly mentioned in the novel. This path may very well symbolize what Adele has gone through. She tried to forget the heaviness of a history that couldnt leave. She resolved within herself not to remember those dark events in her life again. She has become so good at forgetting that this could have probably affected her own memory which turned out to develop into dementia. The narrator is not sure what really caused her early onset dementia but what the narrator remembers is that: Long ago, she began to forget. It started with ordinary things. Shopping lists and recipes, bus change and savings cards, pens for jotting down those household tasks that always manage to slip away. But then Mother began to forget in more creative ways. She began to forget names and places, goals and meanings. She began to forget the laws of language and the routes to salvation and the proper things to do with ones body. She began to excuse herself from the world we knew (12). Similarly, the narrator asks these questions about her mother: Was this a turning point in her life? The moment when she first realized that something was wrong with her? That something more serious than cutlery or bangles had gone missing? That so many other things were getting lost? This man beside her, for instance. Her husband. She knows his name, of course. Its Roger. But what else does she know? (78). Likewise, forgetting, for Adele means no longer remembering the hurts and painful experiences she had in the past. With her dementia, she would surely not remember those pains and hurts in her secret past again. She has erased memories in her mind and the narrator says: She tells me now that she doesnt understand that thing called memory. She doesnt understand its essence or dynamic (166). It is just ironical that in the past and even in the present, there are things that Adele can still remember. This is evident in what the narrator has said that: She never forget. But I dont remember it. Not even a little bit. I remember something else from that trip, though (196). This shows that Adeles memory is even better than the authors. This also goes to show that Adele somehow uses selective remembering and forgetting. Pleasant and good things are remembered while unpleasant, traumatic experiences are better left forgotten in obscurity. Aside from Adele, the narrator himself has tried forgetting his past. He tries to forget what happened to his mother and his father by running away from his home to another place. His mother staggered into forgetfulness. She wandered the streets of our neighbourhood and upturned peoples garbage bins (18). While his father became increasingly quiet and withdrawn, [à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦] He stopped communicating to anyone, including Mother and me (28). The narrator describes the place where he stayed: The city was for me a good place of forgetting. I found my anonymity in a series of rent-by-the-week rooms, in under-the-counter jobs as a dishwasher and holiday flower-seller (30). Yes, he was able to forget those things that happened to his family but only for a little while. This is because, he later forgot to forget and he remembered everything again which leads him back to his mother and to his hometown. For the narrator, forgetting means repenting of his mistakes and making amends by livi ng his life anew and by taking care of his mother. When he goes back to his home he tried to understand his roots, his history. He tries to prove that: Your history is your blood and flesh (137). Though his mother is someone so entirely unwilling to admit that she has forgotten me (8). He tries to imagine his mothers life before it all slips away into darkness. Thus, he attempts to draw his mother to a conversation to help him know the truth about his mothers childhood and what could have caused her dementia. He asks her questions such as: You mean you dont remember, Mother? (12); Dont you remember, Mother? (15); Do you remember, Mother? (92); Can you remember it now, Mother? Can you tell me this last thing? Today, before I go? (194). However, with his series of questions, his Mother doesnt explain anything to him. This is because She told, but she never explained or deciphered. She never put the stories together. She never could or wanted to do so. It is only through the help of Miss that he is able to understand the details of his mothers life. And he is able to confirm of his mothers life when he said that it is possible to live with almost no memories (54). In addition to Adele and the narrator, Meera, the nurse is also trying to hide something and to forget her past. Although, it is not quite obvious in the story, her feelings became transparent upon seeing her mother. Meera unbelievably asks the narrator You fetched my mother? (124) while her mother keeps on calling her name. She was neither enthusiastic nor happy to see her own mother. The narrator also tells her: I dont care, Meera. It doesnt matter to me. I just wanted to know more about you. I thought we could talk about things (125). This leads to the conclusion that Meera is not sharing about her life. She is probably hiding something and is trying to forget the memories altogether. It was later found out that Meera used to crank call the wandering lady (159). Many times, Meeras calls were stupidly banal. Giggling requests to speak to Oliver Clothesoff [à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦] (160). For Meera, forgetting means turning back on past mistakes and sins and correcting her mistakes. Eventua lly, she becomes the nurse of the wandering lady who used to be the subject of her crank calls. For Adele, the narrator and Meera, forgetting gives them a way of escaping from their repulsive past. It has its advantages but it also has its disadvantages. The narrator confirms this through a quote: During our lives, we struggle to forget. And its foolish to assume that forgetting is altogether a bad thing. Memory is a bruise still tender (32). Human beings sometimes need to forget especially those unpleasant, traumatic experiences that happened in ones life. But it should not keep one from moving on to the future like what happened to the narrator and to Meera. The novels title which is Soucouyant refers to an evil spirit in the form of a vampire-like old woman who sucks blood from her victims. A soucouyant is a monster worth forgetting because it symbolizes something disagreeable or horrible. In addition, Adeles encounter of a soucouyant symbolizes everything in her life that is horrid, distasteful, horrible, hostile and unkind which are worth forgetting. Indeed, Soucouyant is aptly described as a novel of forgetting. However, contrary to the title, the novel Soucouyant is worth reading and remembering.

The Impact and the Outcome of Pain :: Essays Papers

The Impact and the Outcome of Pain The impact of sexual abuse reaches all levels of Childs emotions. Confusion: This is usually the first reaction of the child. They will usually question, â€Å"What is going on?† and â€Å" Is this right or wrong?† For a young child these questions can be a huge load on their psychological development. Once the abuse begins the victim experience a tremendous conflict with their emotions. They experience pain, guilt, and anger for what is being done. The question, â€Å"Is this right or wrong?† posses the greatest conflict within the Childs minds. The abuse feels so wrong yet the abuser insist it is okay, taking advantage of the Childs mistrust and naivety. This kind of conflict can stay within the victim’s minds for years. This pain and conflict is what Dorothy Allison writes about in her book ‘two or three things I know for sure† Coming from a dysfunctional low-class family with mostly women around was her environment for years and the only man around, sexually abused her. Imagine yourself in a similar position and ask yourself â€Å"what would the effect be on me?† The effect on Dorothy Allison is portrayed in the book. She writes about having mixed emotions that for people who have not had such an experience seems quit strange. For example on page 48 (I knew; with fury) she describes the first time making love to a woman. When she makes love to her the smell reminds her of her stepfather. She feels both desire and hatred. The desire was what scared her, but by making love to this woman it made her feel more comfortable with that emotion. The desire resulted in a process of healing, not thinking of her stepfather while having sex. It takes her a long time tough not to feel rage when she feels desire. Comparing a book like this with Ursula Duba’s in essence is not hard. Both have the clear topic of multiple sources of social identity. In both books you can read about things that make peoples identities change, be it atrocities of war or a horrible experience like rape. The difference however and also the main topic of this paper lies in emotional wounds and their possible healing. In â€Å"The bakers story† a poem is written about a baker and his wife, both holocaust survivors, and the regularly visits Duba and her husband made to the bakery shop.

Culture of the Near East :: Ancient World Culture

From the Near East comes the Old Babylonian account of the life and death of GILGAMESH. There was a real Gilgamesh, a king who ruled some 2700 years before Christ lived and the Romans consolidated their vast empire. The character and the exploits of this king were preserved in the form of stories that circulated for many years after the king's death. Some of these tales -- more than 600 years after Gilgamesh's rule -- were collected by a story teller and were put down in the form of an epic poem. This poem is what we know today as The Epic of Gilgamesh. Who knows how many versions The Epic of Gilgamesh went through before consolidation in its written form? Who knows how many translations the stories underwent before their reworking in the Babylonian language? Who knows how many parts of the story might have offended or misrepresented the eponymous king? Who knows how many story-tellers made more (or less) of Mashu, the mountainous gateway to the other world, as they kept their audiences spellbound with fantastical details of this greatest of human adventures -- the struggle to find (and retain) eternal life? What is known is no less intriguing. How curious is the parallel between the story of Utnapishtim and the Hebrew account of Noah. How symbolic is the description of Enkidu, the prototypical natural man, as he sheds his animalistic behaviors in preference for the pleasures of human society. How extraordinary is the description of the snake, whose stealing of the essence of immortality from Gilgamesh results in the snake's rebirth each time it sheds its skin. Of course the Hebrew iteration of the Flood story is not coincidence. For a time, the HEBREWS lived in SUMER, home to Abraham's people. Nomadic people, they left the fertile river valleys and headed for CANAAN and later EGYPT, taking with them ancient accounts of floods and righteous people whose obedience and wisdom helped them to survive the consuming waters.

Abstinence is the Only Effective Method Essay -- Birth Control Pregnan

Abstinence is the Only Thing that can Work   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Sex outside marriage is at best, wrong; at worst deadly. Today's children are basing their decisions about sex on moral and social values. The accepted moral code is pretty black and white - don't. Our society, however, has always been able to bend the rules to suit the current trend. Right now that trend is, "young people shouldn't have sex outside of marriage, but if they do, they should do it safely." Herein lies the problem: Because most adults grew up in the "sexual freedom" era of the 1960's they don't feel that they should have to give up that freedom. Therefore they would be hypocrites if they taught abstinence as the only effective way to stay safe. This attitude is reflected in the current sex education courses.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The falacy of having 'safe sex' outside of marriage is just that: a fallacy. There is no such thing as 'safe sex.' Children have to realize the risk they are taking by engaging in sexual activity. They aren't just sleeping with one person, but with everyone that person has slept with. There is more at stake then pregnancy and AIDS, such as 100 other sexually transmitted diseases. Children feel that they are immune to the big issues and aren?t even being told about the diseases that can cause perminant damage.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Teaching abstinance in schools is telling the children that the only 100% way to keep from getting pregnant and contracting sexual diseases is by not having sex, which is true. Why are e...

Internet and relationship

The word â€Å"dating† and â€Å"relationship† differs a lot from old times and now. Technology made a huge difference of the comprehension of â€Å"hookups†, â€Å"friends†, and â€Å"friends with benefits†. Internet, cell phones, blobs, and many other resources changed the way teenagers think about the opposite sex or the same sex as well. Relationships turned out to be â€Å"the old fashion† and hookups are the best. First, relationships aren't that serious anymore. Teens are looking for something new, meeting sexual, something to turn them on.Backbone is one of the most used sites in these days; it connects you to the world and let you meet a new different type of people worldwide. â€Å"Backbone is the most useful tool for dating since the invention of the box of chocolates. It may also be the most dangerous threat to dating since bad breath† (Fox, Stuart). This generation mostly thinks about hooking up with hot guys, pretty girls , kissing, having sex, hugging, and flirting. Through internet, two people can do a lot, they can chat, video cam, talk privately; meet new people and a lot more.Internet is not proper sometimes. A lot of websites and blobs are influencing teenagers to do bad stuff or to rush into things before its time. Backbone, Namespace, twitter, and many other social network websites aren't private anymore. Anyone knows about you, what you like and don't, your relationship status, and what you are looking for. â€Å"With social networking sites, with Backbone, if you click that you're in a relationship, it [notifies] everyone that you're in a relationship. Its public broadcasting, this isn't part of a good relationship† (Fox, Stuart).Dating isn't about love at first site, or waiting by her house. It is not about emotions anymore, it's only about what a girl or a guy wants. They want something new, something to talk about or feel proud. â€Å"Social networking has created an array of new dating rules, making the old style â€Å"wait three days before calling† seem quaint by comparison† (Fox, Stuart). As for me, I see that this kind of relationships and the affection of the internet use is a problematic situation. Teenagers Just want to do what other people are doing whether it is right or wrong.They Just don't want to be losers, so they adapt and do what their peers do. They hookup, do random sex, flirt, and that's it. Nobody cares about each other feeling as long as you are getting what you want, everyone benefits from everyone. Finally, internet has played a big role not only in the teenager's world but in everyone's world. Time has changed; technology is getting better year after year. â€Å"Relationships† are now an old fashion way to go out with a guy/girl and in the end someone's heart is going to be broken.Hooking up won't get anyone's heart tear apart, it is Just you do what you want to with no limits or rules as long as in the end they are Just called â€Å"friends†. Work cited Fox, Stuart. â€Å"Backbone adds new perils to ritual of dating†. Manic Cot 2. Web Cot 4. Definitions: Most of teenagers who engage in hookups still worry about being discreet. Discreet: having or showing discernment or good Judgment in conduct and especially in speech: prudent; especially: capable of preserving prudent silence. Tall and lanky Lanky: tall and lean, or long and slender: often used to suggest awkwardness in appearance or gait.

The Microenvironment Essay

The beau mondeNike is the trumpeter of lamentable Ribbon Sports company, founded by Phil dub in 1964, for the purpose of importing sports seat cheap Japanese brand in the U.S. merchandise Onizuka. gentle is teamed with Bill Bowerman, a running coach of the University of Oregon, later to establish experts designing the virtually innovative sports billet of Nike, the Nike contributed to a global brand pay offoff in the market of sports skids.1950sPhil horse and Bill Bowerman meet1960s game Ribbon Sports (BRS) was trace and founded by Phil Knight The popular Cortez aka Dope Mans be made in Japan1970sThe whoosh logo is created by Carolyn Davidson for $35.00The maiden Nike object lesson skid to hit the retail market is a soccer/football skid A Promo Nike Tee begins the matter one line up itemThe celebrated Waffle trainer is displayduced, which becomes the best selling slip in the US Nikes racing and rearing spiked shoe is made called the elite Factories for m anufacturing ar set up in Korea and TaiwanFor the first time Nike tog argon sold in AsiaBlue Ribbon Sports changes their company name to Nike Inc.The first Nike running shoe with a distribute sole system to come turn up is the Tailwind World Headquarters are undecided in Beaverton, Oregon1980sNike duologue with the P.R. of chinaware so they plunder capture plaza there Nike lieu become Canadas top sellerNike property are now produced in 11 countriesThe storied NIKE AIR channel press 1 and Air Ace make their introduction Over 200 shoes are now in Nikes footwear lineThe first racy performance kids running shoe is called the Destiny The Air Jordan makes its sort to Nike footwear line upThe Sock Racer comes out and is offend of the Dynamic-Fit technology The first Air slimeThe first Cross TrainerThe famous Just Do It motto comes to livelinessThe first model to combine the overcrossing device and Air Sole is the Air Stab Spike Lees Mars Blackmon character assistants promote the ternion style of Air Jordan Bo Jacksons Bo Knows commercials include the Just Do It slogan Nike moves to a new World Campus in Beaverton1990sThe new World Campus sits on 74 acres with 570,000 square feet. In Portland, Oregon the first Nike Town opensThe intro of the Air Huarache running shoeThe intro of the Air MowabbNike Town opens in ChicagoCharles Barkley first signature shoe is introducedThe intro of the Run Walk shoeNike Town opens in Atlanta and orange tree CountyThe intro of dual pressure cushioning in the Air MaxNike gets dissemination rights in Korea and JapanThe intro of zoom Air technologyNike Town parvenue York opensThe Air Penny comes to life2000s2000 The National Football League declines to revitalize its exclusive apparel licensing arrangement with Nike.2001 Nike opens its first Nike Goddess store, a unit targeting women, in Newport Beach, CA. 2003 Nike purchases transposed Inc. for $ 305 million.2008 Nike acquired sports apparel supplier Umbro,2009 Air Jordan horseshoe2010 Nike Future Sole Design challengerSuppliersThe major supplier of Nike put on 10 countries china, Indonesia, VN, Thailand, India, Turkey, Morocco, Mexico, Honduras, and Brazil Nike signed adopt with factories producing over 40 national, the majority of Nike shoes are manufactured in China (35%) Vietnam (29%), Indonesia (21%) and Thailand (13%) Nike soundly(p) put a argumentation relationship with the factory when they reach the standards of crossroad quality, price, delivery time and the CSR standards. Deals with plants through Coc Nike willing refuse orders if the manufacturer does non test cooperative attitude in the weft process LOGO Company . collaborationism with established carriers Clean Cargo sort Nike has set a policy not enter the skin of cattle embossed in the Amazon rainforest. Nike contract factories manufacturing afield to outsourcing shoe end crossway to reduce production costs Nike launched this Code of Conduct, the monitorin g whoreson developed comprehensive LOGO Company Manufacturers independent of contract manufacturing in 49 countries Most of the garment factories located in China, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Turkey.Marketing IntermediariesFlyknit were promised will bring some(prenominal) another(prenominal) benefits to the company than just 1 vast success single products with statistical distribution of trustys are diverse Reseller at the present in the Vietnam, Nike products are distributed to galore(postnominal) stores in the shop mall as Parkson, Vincom, Cresent mall or open own shop and rent more branches across the country that are convenient for customers. The consumers can consult Nike Flyknit at home by online and past just one click they can claim whatever they want or they can go any store in the nearest for trying, which helps them to save a round most of money and time . Physical distribution firms Nike use all three forms of shipping, including communicate like a plane, road and watercourse as the container and ships.However the main vehicles transportation uses to distribute the Nike Flyknit stores everywhere is the container Marketing service agencies advertising contributes in no dwarfish part to the success of a product and the Nike Flyknit too. customers want to know the new products, the Nike has stepped up advertising in contrasting slipway with the aim to know customers as pronto as possible. at the Nike store in Hong Kong, they established sports club for people who cognise jogging and is recommended by the Nike sports shoes thenthey talk to each other about the quality of the Nike products, which is also one of the way are the most successful help Nike to be easy to penetrate into market. Beside that, Nike understands the regularize of athletes with customers so they cooperate with athletes in many different sports that attracted more attention of customers. non only that, Nike interested in popularity of the lucre should do use a number of social networking sites to promote their products because this is one of the most convenient and fastest. CustomersConsumer markets Nike customer is the directed to athletes with different genres, students or individuals who have favorite sports as jogging or hiking. With prices around $ 80 accordance with those with high income or plastered Business markets this is also a dominance market for Nike. Centers and sports learning professional athletes and famous football clubs have the ability to spoil Nike products for use in the process of training for their athletes. CompetitorsIn recent years, as the need of advanced consumer products cater to sports as they used many brands of sports was born. besides, there are many other products similar to Nike Flyknit, so they are facing many challenges with other brands. in fact, Nike does not compete with the well-known strange brands such as Adidas or panther but also face to domestic help goods or counterfeit Nike prod ucts imported from China PublicsThis part plays a significant function in the development and maintenance of the brand. A few years ago, the media reported the crap about business ethic, which was not good for Nikes images in the public heart. correspond to Braddock (2011), the factories that Nike has signed a contract with have the poor working conditions for workers, exploit and pay them a pittance wages. Nikes leaders treat this fact and claimed that it is beyond their competence, because the factories they contract with are not formally part of the company. Nike started launching Vietnam market since 1995 and retains its position in the confederacy until now. However, the unfortunate scandal has damaged the temperament of Nike in the world as well as in Vietnam.