The Impact of Morrison's slow migration to online sales and promotions Essay

The Impact of Morrison's slow migration to online sales and promotions - Essay Example This research will begin with the statement that sales and marketing procedure can be considered as one of the major functions of any organisation. The marketing techniques and sales procedures of various organisations are facing rapid changes due to a continuous development of technologies. This rapid development is enabling the population to easily access the details about any organisation and its offering from different corners of the world. Digital marketing procedure is assisting organisations to custom their sales and marketing techniques as per the consumer behaviour. In today’s global environment, marketers are developing digital strategies which are assisting them to secure a competitive position in the market. This contemporary issue of marketing has provided a great impact on the global retail businesses. Most of the retail businesses are promptly shifting their traditional marketing approach to the digital marketing approach. This procedure is also allowing them to shift the consumer behaviour pattern. On the other hand, the inefficiency in digital marketing and a promotional procedure is adversely affecting a number of organisations in terms of their global reputation and market growth. Over the last few years, Morrisons had confronted huge competition from the local as well as global market competitors due to the rapid development of the digital marketing and sales procedure. Currently, the organisation has secured the fourth position within the largest supermarket chains of the United Kingdom.

PSY 475 Week 2 Learning Team Assignment Essay Example for Free

PSY 475 Week 2 Learning Team Assignment Essay Select in preparation for this assignment a psychological measure of depression, such as the Beck Depression Inventory or Children’s Depression Inventory. Obtain faculty approval of your selected measure prior to beginning this assignment. Individual portions due to the team forum by Friday. Please make sure a team member will be compiling the project and submitting it to the assignments link. Write a 1,400- to 1,750-word paper in which you analyze your selected psychological  measure. As a part of your analysis, address the following items: Using the University Library, the Internet, or other sources, select at least two scholarly journal articles that discuss the use of your selected psychological measure. Briefly summarize your selected articles, and compare and contrast their findings. Based on the analysis of your articles, discuss the use of your selected measure. Explain who is qualified to administer and interpret the  measure and the settings—such as occupational, academic, or counseling—in which it would be appropriate to use the measure. Differentiate between the populations for which your selected psychological measure is valid and invalid. To purchase this material click on below link http://www. assignmentcloud. com/PSY- 475/PSY-475-Week-2-Learning-Team- Assignment-Psychological-Measure-Paper For more classes visit http://www. assignmentcloud. com.

Jack the Ripper: Social Views

Jack the Ripper: Social Views Jack the Ripper- social views, victims and suspects ‘I want to get to work right away if I get the chance, good luck, Yours Truly, Jack the Ripper-from the Dear Boss Letter of www.casebook.org This essay will demonstrate a further understanding of the social views of Jack the Ripper in the late 1880s and also the conditions of the East End and how the Whitechapel murders helped the East End. It will look into questions such as why has Jack the Ripper been known as the first British serial killer in history, who the main suspects and why they are the prime suspects in this case and also the least likely suspects to be Jack the Ripper. The essay will provide evidence for and against the suspects by using historiography and facts. It will also identify the five main victims but also touch on the other suspected victims of Jack the Ripper. During the 1880s, the West End of London was full of wealth, fashion and nannies tending to the children in their care. Men walked around in top hats and smart coats and the women in bonnets and beautiful dresses. The streets were clean and the houses were magnificent. However, the East End was the complete opposite, 900,000 people approximately were crammed into cramped little houses, and many families were homeless. Whitechapel was part of the East End where unemployment rates were increasing, along with the population. The population of Whitechapel was 80,000. Martin Fido found that women going out and selling themselves was the social norm in the East End. In October 1888, the Metropolitan police estimated that there were around 1,200 prostitutes who were of very low class in Whitechapel and around 62 brothels. Prostitutes were seen as moral failures that preferred walking the streets in their tatty clothing than going to work a job which encouraged them to improve themselves. Within the social circles of the upper class, conversations about prostitutes were unknown but this changed from 1850 when prostitution became a subject of fierce debate. These debates were argued through the social classes apart from the lower classes where prostitution was a part of everyday life. The murders of the prostitutes in Whitechapel during the autumn of 1888 were used to criticise the problems that London had in terms of social matters. A letter sent into the Times from an unknown writer laid the blame for the murders on society, not the killer. The reverend Samuel Barnett who was the vicar of the church in Whitechapel believed that the ‘public conscience was awakened to the life that these horrors revealed'[1] suggesting that the murders forced opened the eyes of all them who wanted to keep them shut and ignore that the East End was part of London. One London paper protested that ‘surely JACK the ripper is not to be our modern JOHN the Baptist'[2]. During this period women tended to walk in fear of their lives and hatred began to build up towards foreigners and Jewish people. Nobody was sure of how many migrants wandered around the East End, but the East End was where the majority of Jewish people lived. There were many stories that developed within London during this period and Walkovitz and Leps state that these stories identify the anxiety of the people in London. The media also caused a lot of these stories to escalate by printing true and false stories in a bid to sell their newspapers. Jack the Ripper is one the most well known serial killers throughout the world. B.Godfrey and P.Lawrence state that ‘the murders by Jack the Ripper are the most famous set of murders in history'[3]. During the 1880s, the British Empire was at its peak; it was also the national capital and can arguably have the nickname at this period of time as the capital of the world due to its massive empire. Any crime and event that occurred in London mattered within both Britain and the world. They were regarded as a national importance. In Shropshire, at the same time that the murders were occurring, a young girl was murdered then be headed by her parents. The mother wrapped the little girls head in brown paper and threw it in the local pond whilst the father burnt her body on the families hearth. Shropshires local newspapers reported on the murder in graphic detail whilst the Times Newspaper wrote a small piece on the matter in an inside page. Again in Shropshire around this time and eld erly couple were brutally slain in their own home, also a mother and child was kicked to death so brutally that their faces were unrecognisable. Neither one of these two cases were reported in any national newspaper. However, other violent crimes did occur in and around London during this period but did not gain the same national coverage as the prostitute murderer, so why did ‘Jack gain the media and societies attention? Jack gained the media as murders like this had never occurred; these were different to the violent crimes that people had witnessed before as the women were disembowelled and the murders were arguably somewhat personal. Time had been taken and preparations had been made before the murders were put into practice as the Ripper knew exactly what he was doing and in some cases did it very quickly. Whether or not the ripper had chose his victims beforehand or whether the victims were just in the wrong place at the wrong time can never be proven. A person was also not arrested and the murders caused an uneasy environment. Jack the Ripper is still widely known due to the person who committed these murders was never identified or prosecuted. When he murdered Elizabeth Stride he was very nearly caught by a group of Jewish men, a Staffordshire Newspaper states that ‘this is the narrowest escape Jack has ever had'[4]. London had two police forces the City of London police and the Metropolitan police. On the 14th November 1888, the police were detaining several people on suspicion. These arrests resulted in a public excitement throughout London. People were accusing any man, who walked the streets as Jack the Ripper, this happened all over the country not just in London. A man writing in to the Times from the North of the country describes how he was confronted and followed by a small group of men who taunted and accused him of being ‘Jack. They left him alone when he reached his friends house. Begg claims that Jack the Ripper still gathers so much attention due to the curiosity that surrounds him as well as the mystery of his identity. Most of the information on Jack the Ripper was gained from the around the 1960s. Late 1959, Daniel Farson was presenting a documentary on Britain. Throughout his research he met Sir Melville Macnaghtens daughter, Lady Aberconway. She held some papers of her father, one being a transcript of the memorandum that he had written in 1894. Interest increased when Dr Thomas Eldon Stowell published his article ‘Jack the Ripper-a solution? in the Criminologist, November 1970. He claimed to have witnessed the royal doctor, William Gulls papers in which he apparantely claimed that Prince Albert Victor was Jack the Ripper. This story was then extended when a BBC television series called Jack the Ripper told a story by Joseph Sickert about a marriage between Prince Albert Victor and a Catholic girl by the name of Annie Cook. It was claimed that Mar y Jane Kelly witnessed the marriage and began blackmailing the government with the other prostitutes. Lord Salisbury was said to have turned to the freemasons for help in which William Gull stepped forward for the challenge. This story has been favoured by many Ripperologists but it has been claimed to have just been a story and nothing more. The documentary from the History Channel looks at the free Masonary theory. The free Masonary were a brotherhood in which Sir Charles Warren was the most influential. A pact was made within the brotherhood that if the secrecy of the brotherhood was ever at threat or they became exposed then the person in question would have their throat cut from left to right, but it was never a pact that was to be taken seriously. Jack the Ripper did take it seriously and he cut his victims throats from left to right. The Royal family theory or arguably story can also be linked with the free mason theory. Victorias grandson was rumoured to have been going insane due to contracting syphilis, however it has been argued that he fell victim to the influenza epidemic in the years 1891-1892 so how he died is still debateable. Stowell claims that the prince had suffered from syphilis and it had infected his brain which sent him insane, compelling him to murder. One version of the theory claims that the Pri nce himself committed the murders due to the syphilis and that the Royal Family was well aware of his condition and that he was the killer. It also claims that the prince was sent to a mental hospital after the double murder event and that he escaped to commit the Mary Kelly murder. He was then apparently locked back up and it was in the hospital that he died from ‘softening of the brain. Stowell has claimed to have used William Gulls private papers on the prince, but Gull died two years before the prince identifying that William Gull could have made no notes or comments on the supposedly declining prince. The court and royal records also identify that the prince was not in London when the murders were committed. Another version claims that Prince Edward Victor was having an affair with a prostitute whom he had fathered a child with and also apparently married in a catholic church. Her five prostitute friends knew of the relationship and also the legitimate child who was heir to the throne. William Gull, who was the royal physician became aware of the relationship and went to the East End in order to protect the Royal family. Author Joseph Sickert claimed that Walter Sickert, the painter, had told him the theory but it later came out after Joseph had published the book that it was nothing more than a story that he had made up. This theory though is a favourite with the box office, an example of this is shown in the film ‘From Hell which casts Johnny Depp as Inspector Abberline. The film includes the Prince being married to an Ann Crook and when the authorities learnt of the marriage he was carted back home and she was carted to the insane asylum. Dr William Gull then goes in hunt of the six prostitutes, including Martha and kills them. The film ends with the doctor in an insane asylum. The Prince was a very dull man, partially deaf, backward and was retarded but it was never confirmed. Ripperologists have poked massive holes into all versions of this theory. Also the idea that Jack was a man of upper class came from the theory that if he was of the lower class then he would be the same kind of person as the people of the East End so would have been noticed going into his lodgings with blood on him, a middle class man would have the same problems and would have needed transport so someone would have seen him, but someone of the upper class would have his own transport allowing him to get away quickly and unseen. Patricia Cornwell, an American who has only recently shown an interest in Jack the Ripper after having no interest in Jack the Ripper or history. Her book ‘portrait of a killer-Jack the Ripper-Case closed points the finger solely at Sickert and so does jean Oreton Fuller. Both books lack any kind of evidence. Cornwells theory has been severely criticised by many Ripperologists. Cornwell claims that Sickert read ten newspapers a day and that his sketch book contained horrific pictures of dead women. Two of his most famous pieces of work include jack the Rippers bedroom and Camden Murder. Cornwell also believed that Sickert wrote the letters claiming to be Jack the Ripper. Her only evidence of this was due to him being a letter writer and found enjoyment in communicating with other people in this way. He also had a matching water mark on his paper that the Jack the Rippers letters had, the letter also had very similar characteristics to William Sickerts letters, but even if he di d write the letters, that does not provide any evidence to why she believes him to have been the ‘Ripper. She also believes that Sickert murdered Martha Tabram as she was last seen with a person in a uniform, and Cornwell claims that Sickert had a fetish for uniforms. However, a friend of Marthas had been with her that night and the two men in uniforms. Martha left with one man and her friend left with the other, when Martha was murdered the two soldiers were had alibis for the time that the murder took place. Her friend Mary Ann Connelly also confirmed the identification of the soldiers when she had to pick them out of a group of men. So this theory of Sickerts fetish for uniforms is again flawed as the soldiers were identified as Private George and Private Skipper. She also does not believe that Mary Kelly was not the last murder of Jack the Ripper and that Sickert had killed around 20-40 people before he died in 1942, but from her other theories, her words are not very reliable and not to be taken literally. She also states that she cant prove he was Jack the Ripper but no one else ca n prove he wasnt, much of her evidence is personal statements rather than hard facts. Another suspect was a man by the name of Robert Donston Stephenson, the police watched him due to him claiming to people that he inside information on who Jack the Ripper was. He was also a journalist who had a chronic fatigue, a sleeping disorder, so he would have been able to get around the East End without being noticed. Ivor Edwards believes that Donston was the Ripper due to his interest in black magic, he argues that the murders were pre organised and the victims were in the wrong place at the wrong time. He connected the murders up on the map and claim that they create the Star of David, but this theory does not really work due to some of the murders being out the outline and not connecting. A man by the name of Dr Thomas Neil Cream was hung in 1892; he was put forward as a suspect even though he was already a prisoner in Illinois, America when the murders took place. The hangman claims that he heard Cream say before the trapdoor opened ‘I am Jack the but the trapdoor opening cut Creams statement short. The Jack the Ripper case was officially closed in 1892. McNaughten Memorandum was published in 1915, 7 years after he joined Scotland Yard, which included the three possible suspects who he believed to be Jack the Ripper. These suspects included Montague John Druitt, Michael Ostrog and Aaron Kosminski. M.J Druitt was found in the Thames on the 31st December after committing suicide. His body is said to have been the river for around a month and he was last seen on the 3rd December 1888. His mother had been placed in a private mental home and he had acute depression as a result of this. He had worked at a school and it was found by M.J. Druitts brother that he had been dismissed due to getting into some serious trouble. Private information shows that his own family believed him to have been Jack the Ripper. He had been labelled as sexually insane. A statement was made stating that the man the police believed to be Jack the Ripper was dead and that ‘he was fished out of the Thames two months ago and it would only cause pain to relatives'[5].If this statement is true then the police had identified Druitt as Jack the Ripper in January 1889. The police would have searched his room after his suicide and possibly found something that linked him to the Whitechapel murders. Dr McCormi ck argues this by asking how he could be the chief suspect when he was never seen in the area when the crimes were committed. Inspector Adderline also states that ‘there is absolutely nothing beyond the fact that he was found at that time to incriminate him [6]however Fido claims that Abberline tried to ‘pooh-poohed the idea that the Ripper was either a young doctor who drowned in the Thames.[7] Druitt is the most favourite as a possible Jack the Ripper with most Ripperologists. Kosminski was a Polish Jew and had a great hatred towards women. He was placed into a lunatic asylum in March 1889. Martin Fidos research provides the most unearthed facts about Kosminski. Although he is a possible suspect he was found by the city police eating out of the gutter. They found him to be harmless and he was freed two years later, it was then that his family placed him in an insane asylum. Michael Ostrog was Russian even though he has being described as looking like a Polish Jew. He was also a previous convict and served numerous times in prison during the years 1863-1904. He was detained in a lunatic asylum after being labelled a homicidal maniac. He was transferred to the Surrey pauper lunatic asylum but he failed to report to the asylum in March 1888 and he was untraceable till April 1891 meaning that he was free during the Whitechapel murders, but new research has found that during this period he was being held in custody in France so he has recently been dismissed as a leading suspect He was also the first murderer to have apparently sent letter to the media, but these letters cannot be identified to have been from Jack the Ripper or whether they were hoaxes. At the peak of the murders the police were receiving up to 1000 letters a week which the police had to decide which letters were worth following up. A majority of the letters had red ink scrawled all over them with comments such as ‘take no notice of this and ‘The man must be a lunatic'[8]. Ripperologists believe that all the letters were not genuine due to many letters being from journalists trying to make a story. On the 27th September 1888 the Central News Agency received the Dear Boss letter from ‘Jack the Ripper. This was also the first day that the murderer had been given a nickname other than the Whitechapel murderer. The Dear Boss letter also made a mockery of the police force when it was published in the newspapers. Jack the Ripper is laughing at them for failing to catch him, he is testing the police force and some can arguably say if these letters were genuine then he was leaving them clues into his arrest. It also refers to wanting to kill again and his excitement to do so. Historian Martin Fido claims that the murders became famous after this letter and the C:UsersCharlotteDocuments3007Assignment 2Jack the ripperFrom Hell.jpgconstruction of the name Jack the Ripper. The letter was originally believed to be a hoax, but three days later the double murders occurred. The letter was published in the newspapers to see if anyone recognised the handwriting, but no one ever came forward with a name. The second letter was in fact a postcard which was received on the 1st October 1888.It has been nicknamed ‘The Saucy Jacky postcard. It contained reference to the previous letter and also great detail about the double murder. The postcard was sent before the Dear Boss letter had been sent to the newspapers. It also had the similar handwriting to the Dear Boss letter. But on the 16th October, George Lusk, received a letter and a small cardboard box. The letter was addressed ‘from hell and there was half a kidney in the small box which had been preserved in white wine. Dr Openshaw examined the kidney and found that it was very similar to the one removed from Catherine Eddowes. The letter claimed that the writer had fried and eaten the other half of the kidney stating that it ‘was very nice The newspapers labelled Jack the Ripper as a cannibal after the kidney incident. The headline of the Evening News on the 19th October 1888 called the ripper a ‘cannibal assassin. Several newspapers did however not show much interest in the kidney incident, whether this was because they believed it to be a hoax or that they didnt want to deal with the concept of cannibalism is unknown. The Times and Pall Mall Gazette only wrote short paragraphs which included Dr Openshaws verdict of the kidney being that of an alcoholic woman. There were a five main suspect categories in which the police chose people from the first was a degenerate East end criminal, the second a Jewish ritualist, the third a respectable man who had turned into a sexual deviant, the fourth a member of the royal family and the last suspect was a woman. On the 11th September 1888 the Times Newspaper identifies that ‘several persons bearing a resemblance to the description of the person in question have been arrested'[9]. These suspects were all released when there was no evidence to hold them. This shows the national panic that was dramatically increasing; the police were arresting anybody who looked a little bit familiar to the description that they were given. On the 2nd October 1888, the Times reported on a Galician Jew, by the name of Ritter, who was arrested. He was accused in 1884 of having murdered and mutilated a Christian woman. This made him a high suspect of the Whitechapel murders due to his criminal murdering past. On the 13th November 1888, a Mr Thomas Murphey was arrested and found with a 10 inch knife on him. The Times Newspaper reported on the 14th November that if Mary Jane Kellys family were unable to pay for the funeral then Mr H. Wilton has guaranteed that she will not be buried in a paupers grave. A letter written to the editor of the Times in October 1888 identifies the effects that the murders were having on the people. It quotes that he was a ‘witness of the strong interest and widespread excitement.[10] It also identifies that the working class showed a bigger interest in the gruesome affair. They both show that people during this period showed excitement due to their own lives not having anything interesting in them. Whitechapel was Londons slums and accommodated the poorest of people within it. The Reverends wife, Mrs Barnett, wrote a letter to Queen Victoria after the murder of Catherine Eddowes. The letter states ‘the women of East London feel horror at the dreadful sins that have been lately committed to our midst'[11]. This identifies that women were scared for the lives and Mrs Barnett probably felt that after the Eddowes murder it was the best time to voice her opinions and concerns to Queen Victoria as Eddowes was found in the City of London and the Queen may answer her desperate plea to help the people of the East End. Jack the Ripper is also remembered for focusing attention of the inadequacies of the police. The police were already receiving criticisms from the press, especially the liberal and the radical press. They were perceived as incompetent and insufficient. Massive amounts of pressure were placed upon the police force to arrest or name the murderer, and they also received large amounts of criticism when they did not especially from the Pall Mall Gazette. This incompetence of the police force was viewed by society as the polices lack of interest in catching a prostitute killer. They believed that the police were not interested in protecting the poor people of the East End. Mary Ann Nichols otherwise known as Polly was murdered on the 30th August 1888. She was an alcoholic and had five children. She divorced her husband in 1881 and in 1882 her husband found out that she was a prostitute so he stopped paying her support. When she died he claimed to not have seen her for three years. This murder was arguably the first recorded Jack the Ripper murder and caused complete mayhem throughout the world. The newspaper headlines included ‘A LONDON HORROR and ‘THE ENGLISH MURDER MYSTERY. These headlines were from a Texas and a Kansas newspaper. Her body was found in the early hours of the morning, by two men on their way to work and by a police officer after the two men ran to find someone of authority, on Bucks Row and her body was identified by her work friend and confirmed by her ex husband. Pc John Neil missed the two men who found Mary by a couple of minutes. Leonard Matters in 1929 described Bucks Row housing as being shabby, dirty little houses of two storeys, and only a three feet pavement separates them from the road'[12] Mary had been strangled then her throat cut twice, along with her abdomen half a dozen times, this kind of violence shocked the public. Dr Llewellyn was at the scene within fifteen minutes and announced her death no longer than half an hour, meaning that she had died around fifteen minutes before she was found, he also believed that the incisions that were made on her throat were by a left-handed man. Her murder ignited a London panic as people became scared that there was a homicidal maniac on the loose. Some believed Mary Nichols to be the second victim of Jack the Ripper due to a woman named Martha Tabram, who was stabbed 39 times, being seen as the first victim. On the night that Mary Nichols was murdered she had no money for a bed due to having spent it all on gin, so after begging and pleading unsuccessfully with the landlord for a free bed she went off to find ‘work so she could get some money. She felt confident that she would get another customer as she had a new hat, and it made her feel pretty, even though she had five front teeth missing. During this time period people who were not of the upper classes would pay for a room per night. Five to six people could live in one room, and people within the lodgings tended to be drunk and starving and privacy was none existent. Martin Fido looked at the politics side of the murders and questioned why Mary Ann Nichols gained so much more media attention whilst the other murders of the girls beforehand in the East End did not receive hardly any. There were elections taking place and the radical extreme left believed that they had a very good chance of winning the East End. Radical newspapers such as the Star and the Pall Mall Gazette thought that by writing up the murders the not only would there sales increase but they would show everyone what the East End was like and how bad the conditions were. They succeed and they sold more newspapers than anybody could have thought possible. The radical and liberal press was the issue of what the East End needed in the way of social reform. The papers blamed the condition of the slums and they called for model housing, street lights and night shelters for women who were homeless. Newspapers tended to make stories up to sell their papers, one surrounding Mary Nichols were that of a missing ring. The missing ring was not mentioned by Dr Llewellyn on the 1st September, but newspapers claimed that there was an impression on her finger and that it was unsure whether the Jack the Ripper had stole it or whether she had not worn it on that specific day. Newspapers also sparked the theory that Mary Ann was not murdered in Bucks Row but was moved there from another scene. The Times newspaper reported that ‘viewing the spot where the body was found, it seems difficult to believe that the woman received her death wounds there'[13] however Inspector Helson argues this and reported that there was no doubt about where she was murdered and it was where her body was found. Annie Chapman was murdered on the 8th September 1888. She has been identified as being the second Jack the Ripper murder. She led a sad and unlucky life, her son was a cripple and her daughter died of meningitis at the age of twelve. Her and her husband were both alcoholics and separated circa 1880. She had been receiving 10 shillings a week from her ex husband until he died in 1886. She did not find out about his death till 18 months after. She turned to prostitution to try and raise some money so she had a bed to sleep in at night and due to her cleverness, social able and well educated personality she was a well known prostitute. She had been kicked out of her lodgings at midnight due to having no money, and then she was last seen negotiating with a man at around 5.30am outside 29, Hanbury Street which was less than half a mile from where Mary Nichols was found. This man could have possibly been Jack the Ripper as Annie was found dead at 6am. Her throat was cut and her small intes tines and other tissues had been removed but were still attached to the body Fido claims that when Dr Phillips examined Annie Chapmans body he stated that ‘this was the work of an expert'[14]. This gruesome procedure was argued by officials as many of them believed that it was a procedure that only someone with medical knowledge would know how to do. When the police officer on duty attended the scene he found that a large crowd had already gathered. The crowd began threatening the Jewish people and abused the ones that were in the street. The East London observer states that ‘no Englishman could have perpetrated such a horrible crime, and that it must have been done by a Jew'[15]. This could have been the only chance that Jack the Ripper could have been caught. D. Rumbelow points out that a man was urinating in his back garden and heard a woman say no and then heard her slump against the fence. The fence was only 5ft high so would have been easy for a full grown man to look over and to have caught him. After the murder of Annie Chapman the people of London demanded an arrest. Jewish people, foreigners and neighbourhood bullies became the police favourites. People began criticizing the police force for being incompetent. Extra man power was put in place and door to door enquiries began to find more information. Notices were given out for prostitutes to stay off the streets for their own protection, but without money they were unable to go anywhere safe as landlords required money. They had no other option but to have to work the streets for money. Prostitutes of Whitechapel described a man who was violent towards prostitutes. The man was named John Pizer, and he became a suspect due to the statements made by the prostitutes. Pizer was soon known as the ‘leather apron due to him wearing a leather apron as part of his profession. He was also Jewish, and being a main suspect resulted in ethnic tensions in the East End. The Jewish had from that point on become the scapegoat. Suspicion of him being Jack the Ripper changed swiftly into certainty when a piece of leather apron which was saturated in water was found near Annie Chapmans body. When John Pizer was traced and arrested he was found to own five sharp long bladed knives but he defended himself claiming that he needed the knives for his profession and that he had not left the house so knew nothing of the murder of Annie Chapman. The third victim was a Swedish woman named Elizabeth Stride otherwise known as Long Liz met her fate on the 31st September 1888 at around 1am. Elizabeth Stride was an exception to the other murders though as she had not been mutilated like the others. She had marks on her shoulders indicating that she had been pulled down from behind; it is possible that she may already have been dead from strangulation before her throat was cut. Some believe that Elizabeth was not a Jack the Ripper victim but just a woman who had had her throat slit but it is argued that Jack was frightened off by Louis Diemschutz, who was the steward of the Working Mens Educational Club. He left the club at 1 am and found that his horse wouldnt steer straight and kept shying to the left. He found Elizabeth bundled on the ground; he poked her with his whip and then ran to get some of the club members. The courtyard was very quickly sealed off and policemen were at the scene very quickly. The police officers went on immediate search for the man but called it off at 5am when they were unsuccessful. On the same night, Catherine Eddowes also became a victim to the Ripper; she was the only murder to have occurred in the City of London. The Ripper had severed the top of her nose, a possible explanation for this is due to syphilis eating away at your nose bone or this was the Rippers way of saying, cutting off ones nose to spite ones face. PC Watkins found Eddowes and states that she was ripped up like a ‘pig in the market.[16]If the times were calculated correct

My Favorite Place Essay -- Place Essay

My favorite place as a child was County Park Lake. When we had family picnics because we all got together and there was great food and kids playing and the adults playing horse-shoes and could tell there was love for one another. There was no other place like this when I was a child. Some of my fondest memories was at that picnic site we should all have memories likes those. The entire family got together and it was always a last minute thing but no matter what was going on we all decide we would go up to County Park Lake to have family time. There would be my grandma and my Aunts and Uncles and their kids when we pulled up to the parking lot. Under the shade trees the women would be sitting trying to stay cool and the older men of the family stand around a grill they would be sitting up the charcoal pyramid to lite to start grilling the food while the kids where at the tot lot playing the equipment you could hear the laughter of the kids playing . Also the mean talking about which is the best way to grill. The women would be laughing at the guys arguing over which way was bett...

Zara Fast Fashion

1. Features of Zara’s business model that affect its operating economics: †¢Zara owns much of its production and most of its stores, while competitors Gap and H&M own all of their stores but outsource all of their production. Benetton, on the other hand, owns all of its production but goes to market through licensing agreements. †¢Zara places more emphasis on backward vertical integration. Production runs are short and inventory is strictly controlled. This is in contrast to industry trends of high volume production. Zara's product cycle time from the design phase to the manufacturing phase is 4 to 5 weeks while the industry average is 6 to 9 months. The short cycle time enables Zara to commit to a bulk of its product much later than its competitors. 85% of Zara's in-house production occurs after the season has started in contrast to 20% in-house production of traditional retailers. †¢Zara's pricing is lower than its competitors, but profit margins are higher du e to direct efficiencies gained from a shortened, vertically integrated, supply chain. At Zara, a high inventory turnover rate results in minimal obsolescence costs, clearance sales or mark downs. Zara estimated 15%-20% of total sales as markdowns/close-outs vs. 30% to 40% for its competitors. This helps to preserve a strong profit margin and bolster market image as a â€Å"must buy now† destination. †¢Zara's advertising expenses are minimal (avg. 0. 3% of revenue) compared with 3% to 4% for other specialty retailers. These helps lower expenses and preserve strong profit margins. Zara, in turn, invests more money in renovating its storefronts and buying prime real estate for store locations. At Zara, 75% of display merchandise is turned every 3 to 4 weeks which corresponds to the average time between customer visits. The average Zara shopper visits the chain 17 times a year. In contrast, the competition records an average of 3 to 4 customer visits per year. Zara's image creates a â€Å"sense of urgency† and forces loyal customers to check in frequent ly for the latest fashions. 2. Zara’s Quick Response Capabilities – Upstream and Downstream activities: †¢Zara's quick-response capability is based on improving coordination between retail stores and product manufacturers. This coordination allows Zara to respond faster to fashion trends, thus creating a competitive advantage for Zara. Effectively utilizing information technology and vertically-integrated manufacturing facilitates Zara's quick response capability. Upstream Activities: †¢Design Teams continuously track customer preferences via data sent electronically from individual storefronts. Additionally, sales data is sent upstream from the stores to give instant feedback on Zara's new product lines generating replenishment orders for sold product. This instant upstream feedback, coupled with Zara's rapid product development gives Zara a compelling market advantage. †¢Zara sources fabric and finished products from external suppliers using purchasing offices in Europe and Hong Kong. 50% of the fabric remains undyed to facilitate in-season updating via Comditel, a subsidiary of Inditex that manages the dyeing and patterning of unfinished fabric. Delaying production of unfinished fabric allows information flowing upstream to influence Zara's production. 40% of all garments are manufactured internally or by subcontractors located near Zara's headquarters. This 40% represents the most fashionable, time-sensitive garments that Zara considers risky. Zara's local production network facilitates flexibility and risk-taking on fashion trends. Downstream Activities: †¢Zara owns its own distribution center in Arteixo. All merchandise from both internal and external suppliers passes through this distribution center. Shipments occur twice a week to each store. Items move through the center very quickly. For example, a vast majority of items are at the center only a few hours and no item stays at the center for more than three days. †¢On average, Zara spends 0. 3% of its revenue on media advertising, which is focused on opening season and end of season sales. †¢Product cycles through the stores rapidly, with new designs arriving every three weeks. This fast turnover results in a significant reduction of discounted merchandise. †¢Display shelves are sparsely stocked creating a sense of urgency (â€Å"buy now†) in the minds of shoppers, resulting in immediate sales. Location is critical for Zara to attract repeat customers. Stores are occasionally relocated in response to ever-shifting popularity of shopping districts and traffic patterns. 3. Why might Zara fail? Zara could fail due to falling into what is known as the â€Å"growth trap. † In the beginning, Zara established itself as selling medium-quality fashion clothing at affordable prices. Zara went on to gain a competitive advantage in the industry by developing a quick response capability while at the same time maintaining low customer pricing. As Zara begins to expand internationally, the potential to lose their competitive advantage increases. For example, in South America, Zara had to present a high-end rather than a mid-market image. This goes against the image of medium quality fashion at affordable prices that Zara had built and maintained since their inception. As Zara continues to grow, their stores may eventually be found on every street corner around the world. As a result, Zara runs the risk that their products may become less unique in the eyes of the consumer. According to the â€Å"growth trap,† efforts to grow can blur uniqueness, create compromises, reduce fit, and ultimately undermine competitive advantage. In the end, Zara runs the risk of becoming an ordinary retail chain as they lose sight of their competitive advantage and become more like every other retail player. In order to maintain their market share, Zara should remember their roots and focus on the excellence of their existing chain with very minimal increases in selling space. Zara Fast Fashion Inditex – Zara: Fast fashion Case analysis Company Structure and Goals Overview Zara’s vision on growth and global strategy -Building up fixed assets -Vertical integration -No advertising, creating premium stores -Fashion follower – QR to fashion trends -Strongly customer oriented -Stable growth -Markdowns half the average (15% as supposed to 30% ) -Pricing market based Business model: -Vertical operations and downstream activities -Multi-chain concept -Creative design team -Competitive advantage – Sustainable growth As attachment: Porter’s Five forces; Company structure; Financials) Problem Statement Growth challenge – 20% per annum expected, 76% of equity value implicit on Inditex’s stock price was based on expectations on future growth. Failure to deliver expected growth results might cause a serious offset in company’s market capitalization. Room for non-local growth – in average a retailer was present in 10 countries while e. g. a pharmaceutical company averaged operations in 125 countries. Problem statement is: In what geographical area(s) should further Zara expansion follow? Should there be another logistics-distribution centre created as increase of operations might cause dis-economies of scale? Should it acquire additional chains given the complexity of managing those and the risk of own-product-replacements? Preserve the margins; (visible threat to the sustainability of Index’s competitive advantage) Evaluation of the alternative solutions 1. Growth challenge: Notes: not much potential on the local market; -different markets require different positioning -though costs grow as distance grows, prices also change (margins are kept) -50% of all export is to developing countries -Zara shopper visits the store 17 times a year, average is 2-4 times -Creating a climate of scarcity and opportunity in stores Evaluate growth options in different markets: Spain Europe str4 – production in North Africa, turkey and East Europe. US – production in Mexico and the Caribbean subjected to retailing oercapacity, less fashion-forward than Europe, demands larger sizes and exhibits considerable internal variations Japan – no quotas to restrict imports, produced in China. – teenage market segment considered as the trendiest in the world Italy – fashionable, visit stores frequently and spend more on clothing 2. Change in marketing strategy Current: Three types of entering a market: company owned stores, joint ventures, franchising Strategy is standard across the countries -No adv -One big shop central city (capital) Followed by smaller ones (spreading around the country) -Shop windows used excessively -Products do not differ much from country to country -Model is downstream -No knowledge is shared -From design to stores within 4-5 weeks , industry average 9 months -Due to product testing, failure rate only 1% compared to industry average of 10% 3. Change in pricing strategy Current: Prices vary on the different markets, due to transport costs (all supplied from the base in Galicia) – this changes positioning Lower mark-down than industry average Zara: Fast Fashion The Spanish retail chain Zara has unique supply chain management practices that enable it to gain a competitive advantage over other fashion retailers in the industry. Zara’s rapid response time enables the firm to quickly respond to changing fashions while deliberately under producing products. This strategy, which is supported by competencies in logistic management, design and information systems, allows the company to maintain less inventory and higher profit margins and is a key factor to Zara’s success. The firm should continue to add value by seeking new opportunities to expand in the retail market and maintain their sustainable growth. Financial Analysis Being aware of a company’s financial health and profitability of its competitors is highly essential for everyone interested in engaging in business with Inditex. In this part of the paper, through analysis of 4 key ratios and return on invested capital, we are going to discover some of the company’s drivers of sustained competitive advantage. The 4 key ratios will focus mainly on company’s liquidity, activity, solvency and profitability, while ROIC will show how well the company manages the capital invested in operations of the business. In order to measure ability of Inditex to meet its short term obligations and to assess liquidity, it is important to calculate current ratio. As shown in exhibits section below, in 2001, Inditedx had 1. 02 million in current assets, while Gap and H&M had 1. 48 and 3. 4 million Euros in current assets for every Euro in short-term debt. This indicates that Inditex’s main competitors demonstrate greater ability to meet current payments of debt; therefore liquidity is not one of the company’s success drivers. When it comes to comparing company’s sales to various assets categories it is significant to take a look at the total assets turnover. This ratio indicates how efficiently assets are being used to support sale. From 1999-2001, this ratio increased by 1. 2%; however it was still below industry performance. Currently Inditex is industry leader with total assets turnover of 1. 8. This shows that company’s recourses are being well managed and that company is able to realize high level of sales from its investments in property, plant and equipment such as manufacturing facilities. Debt to equity ratio is used for solvency evaluation. The main purpose of this ratio is to show company’s ability to repay long-term creditors. As shown in exhibits section, this ratio decreased from 1999-2001, however, when compared to its rivals, Inditex confirmed to have the best leverage among them. When it comes to company’s financial flexibility and profitability it is highly essential to calculate Net Profit Margin ratio. This ratio measures how successful a company has been at the business of making profit for each euro earned. As presented in the exhibits section, Inditex was and still is an industry leader with Net Profit Margin ratio of 10. 6% in 2001 and 13. 10% in 2010 which means that company has currently â‚ ¬. 3 of net income for every dollar sale. In addition, according to Inditex’s income statement, we could see that company is delivering higher net income due to its ability to keep operating expenses and COGS much lower than competitors. Furthermore, the company is able to gain sustained competitive advantage by making its own products, efficiently covering lower advertising expenses and maintaining cost-effective number of employees per store. In order for Inditex to maintain continuous growth it is important to keep its profit margins at the high level. Last but not least ROIC (Return on Invested Capital) gives a good judgment on how well a company is using its money to generate returns. Inditex ROIC varied through past couple of years but is currently able to earn around 7% on each euro invested. From the exhibit table below, we could conclude that the company is making wiser investment decisions than its competitors. SCP Analysis Zara competes in a monopolistically competitive industry due to the number of players. No business in this type of industry has total control over the market price and there are no barriers to entry and exit. Because of its monopolistically competitive playing grounds, Zara’s conduct is to increase its market power by producing demand for its heterogeneous products. Through differentiation and cost leadership, Zara attempts to increase market demand by offering new items weekly while keeping a low inventory, thus making its products unique and attractive to consumers. Because of its backward vertical integration model, Zara creates a strong synergy throughout its production process. Zara has sustained a competitive advantage globally by expanding into new markets and becoming more efficient. In a onopolistically competitive industry, Zara is expected to make profits in the short run but will break even in the long run because demand will decrease as average total costs increase. This means in the long run, a monopolistically competitive firm, such as Zara, will make zero economic profit (AmosWEB, 2001). Porters Five Forces Barriers to Entry: Due to the recent recession and weak economic market, many new players have avoided entering the retail industry. Zara has taken advantage of this opportunity to be the first to enter into many markets across the world before its competitors. With the economic future improving, Zara will be facing more and more competition especially in the United States. Rather than implementing new strategies on how to differentiate itself even more, Zara will need to focus more on creating brand awareness and staying on top in the game. Zara has been the odd ball in the industry with its creative business model but with more and more retailers quickly catching on and critiquing their business model to match the economy changes, Zara faces intense competition. Unlike other retailers, for example Gap and H&M, Zara needs to fight threats around the globe. In the states, Zara competition is intensified with American retailers because many customers still do not know who Zara is or what it offers. In Europe, Zara is like a Macys for us in the states so the brand awareness is there but competition is still also high. Many retailers in Europe offer the same products as Zara, at the same or similar prices; therefore Zara needs to find ways to keep ahead of competition. Bargaining Power of Buyers: Zara is famous for its business model of just in time inventory. No other retailer can produce a garment from scratch and have it hanging in the stores within weeks than Zara. Zara also distributes large number of shipments to its stores around the world twice a week. All merchandise is shipped from Spain and all stores receive shipment on the same days, Monday and Thursday. Zara produces nearly 16,000 new designs a year which is much more than leading competitors. With the constant changing apparel Zara keeps its inventory levels extremely low. Zara customers know that if they see something in the store to buy it right then and there because tomorrow that garment will not be there. US customers are still adapting to this quick turnaround time. With their advanced technology, Zara knows what its customers want and will deliver that to them within 2 weeks’ time. Bargaining Power of Suppliers: Zara manufactures all its clothing in house. This way it has control of the entire process and can make changes more quickly and efficiently when needed. After the garments are cut and ready for assembly, Zara sends out the fabric to different sewing companies to assemble the pieces. There are many competitors that Zara can choose from when deciding where they want its clothes put together which makes the bargaining power weak. Zara also took control of this process by taking over Comditel. Comditel is in charge of nearly the entire garment process. Once the garments are ready and fully assembled they are then stored in Zara's own distribution centers. From the distribution centers they are then shipped around the globe to the thousands of Zara stores. Like many other aspects of Zara's business model, the distribution center moves even more quickly. Once the garments are in the distribution centers, they only stay there for a maximum of 3 days before be sent out to the appropriate destination. Substitutes: Some may describe Zara as a higher end replica of fashion forward items. The items featured on Prada, Chanel, and St. John runways will be replicated in 2 weeks in Zara stores at a much more affordable price but poorer quality. Therefore, there are not many substitutes that customers can use because a majority of the products are out of the price range of many customers. This is a huge benefit for Zara because its customers are willing to pay a much less price for a lesser quality replica. Competition: Zara's direct competitors include H&M, Gap, and Benetton. H&M offers nearly the same products as Zara to its customers, but a much lower quality and price. For those customers who are price sensitive, H&M would be their choice of retailer. The Gap possesses more competition in the states because it has been around longer and has its loyal customer base which is hesitant to shop elsewhere. Even though these retailers give Zara a run for its money, none of them can keep up with Zara’s business model. Other retailers do not have in house production like Zara and ship their production to other countries for the cheap labor costs. This does save money but it increases time. Time is money so while others are still in production stage, Zara is already selling out of the garment. VRIO Analysis We can use the VRIO framework to determine the competitive potential of Zara’s resources and capabilities. As we analyze Zara’s resources and capabilities, it is evident that Zara has built a highly effective, self-reinforcing business system. Three elements in particular – (1) extensive vertical integration, (2) the company’s flat management structure, and (3) exceptional communication and coordination throughout the business system – allow Zara to successfully execute its â€Å"Very Quick Fashion Follower† business model. Each of the three make the grade of being Valuable, Rare, costly for competitors to Imitate, and for which the company has Organized to take advantage. Extensive Vertical Integration: Zara prides itself in its vertical integration, with near full control over its value chain through to the end-user. The company owns or closely controls its manufacturing and distribution facilities, manages its own logistics and transportation, and wherever possible owns its own stores (except for in markets with high risk or barriers to entry). This integration brings value primarily through speed-to-market, as Zara has achieved significantly shorter cycle times than its peers. Full vertical integration is rare in the apparel industry, which typically sees companies foregoing direct involvement in elements of the value chain (e. g. , H&M outsourced all of its production, and Benetton sold the bulk of its production through licensees). It would be extremely costly for a competitor to imitate Zara’s vertical integration, and even if they were able to do so it is unclear how much or how soon they would profit from it, as much of Zara’s advantage comes from the degree to which it has developed its integrated organization over many years. Flat Management Structure: While the drive, insight, and guidance provided by founder Amancio Ortega and other top executives have obviously been crucial to the success of Inditex, it is the structure and incentives they have put in place that truly drive Zara’s exceptionality. Zara’s management structure is very flat, with autonomy and significant incentive-based compensation for store managers, thus closely aligning their interest with that of the company. This structure adds value to the company through diligent hands-on management at the local level, something so rare that Zara’s CEO noted that the availability of store managers capable of handling these responsibilities was â€Å"the single most important constraint on the rate of store additions. † The structure would be highly difficult for ompetitors to imitate, as it has been built into the culture and processes of the company over several decades. Zara has certainly proven that it is able to organize around the flat structure model – in fact many of the company’s business processes depend on the communication and input of enabled employees at the edges of the business system. Exceptional Communication and Coordination: From early on, Zara developed a focus on com municating and coordinating activities up and down the value chain and across functions. This capability focused on speeding important information on customer preferences and trends to the store network, and feedback on successful and unsuccessful products back up the line to headquarters. Exceptional communication and coordination are crucial to maximizing the value derived from Zara’s vertical integration and flat management structure. A look at the more disjointed businesses systems of peers such as The Gap and Benetton demonstrates how rare it is for all of a company’s capabilities to simultaneously reinforce each other, and how difficult it would be for them to imitate Zara. Zara has successfully organized to coordinate its activities around the fast communication of accurate information – about designs, customers, competitors, and micro- and macroeconomic factors – both up the line to top management and to the edges of the network where store managers and employees interact with its customers. Each of these three capabilities passes the VRIO test, indicating that they are indeed key competencies for Zara. Four Actions Framework In order to understand how Zara created a new value for both the buyer and the company, we utilize the Blue Ocean 4 Forces Analysis. Starting with what factors Zara raised above standard, we see what is also Zara’s key resource, the company’s application of vertical integration. While Zara is involved in both backward and forward integration, what sets it apart is precisely its backward integration into manufacturing. For instance, its competitors Gap and H&M are both practicing forward integration and unlike Zara, outsourcing their production. Zara is also constantly in communication with employees at the edges of its business system such as store managers in order to better identify and track customer preferences and trends. The company encourages increased frequency of customer visits with its short cycle times; customers flock to the stores in order to catch the current fashion trends and product lines. In addition, the company also raised responsibility and accountability for store managers by hiring experienced employees promoted within which the CEO believed was a necessary judgment especially for store additions. Zara increased market saturation leading to better economies of scale thus significantly cutting costs and raising higher awareness and increasing sales. On the other hand, Zara reduced several factors well below the industry standard in order to cut costs and increase customers’ willingness to pay. For instance, the company decreased the failure rate for new products with its intensified product testing program which included store-level personnel in the process. Zara also reduced its cycle time for design which enabled the company to offer the customer new designs in four to five weeks and existing products in two weeks; the industry standard for this process was six months for design and three months for manufacturing. A pioneer in its industry, Zara proudly enjoyed engendering revenues at full price with only 10%-15% of its sales generated at discount prices compared to its European industry at 30%-40%. Lastly, Zara reduced its ad spending below industry standard at 0. 3% of its revenue while its competitors advertised 3%-4%. Although it is relatively unlikely for an apparel company to create factors that its industry has never offered, Zara formed a distinct vision among its competitors. The company was the first within its main rivals to saturate international markets as fast as it did. Zara is a global apparel retailer with a truly international scope. While from 1980’s to 2011 H&M added eight countries to its international expansion, and Gap five, while Zara was at thirty two countries. In the competitive apparel industry, Zara managed to eliminate what its competitors continuously took for granted. The company focused on a flat management system which allowed capturing trend preferences directly from the customer and applying to mass markets. Eliminating the separation between merchandising and manufacturing was especially beneficial to a fast and productive design team. Strategic Vision Based on our analysis, Inditex has proven to be financially stable and can successfully manage its capital invested in its operations. Therefore, to maintain their sustainable growth and continue to add value, Inditex should use their commercial team’s micro/macro evaluations to seek new country market opportunities. They should to continue to use one of the three modes of entry; company-owned stores, joint ventures, and franchises, to open additional stores in European countries that have high apparel markets. Italy, Germany and United Kingdom are markets that show promise, especially Italy because of its high per capita spending on apparel. As discussed in our analysis, one of Zara’s core competencies is its extensive vertical integration, and because the case mentioned a second distribution hub already being built in Zaragoza, Spain, it can support additional European stores without being subject to diseconomies of scale. Increasing the density of Zara’s store locations in Europe will achieve logistic efficiencies. Zara keeps transportation costs low on the supply side, since most of the production takes place in Spain. Efficient distribution and inventory systems help Zara minimize costs. Demand based production means there is very little inventory in Zara’s supply chain, which results in lower working capital requirements and lower supplier opportunity costs. Another market that has potential is the United States. With changing consumer behaviors as a result of globalization, there are growth options available for specialty retailers like Zara. For example, Gap’s current ratio of 2. 18 is higher than Zara’s 1. 71; however Zara’s 13. 10% net profit margin is preferred over Gap’s 8. 21% (as illustrated in Exhibit A-1). Therefore, as long as Zara can maintain its low production and overhead costs, which are high for its competitors, they should be able to compete in the US market. Inditex should invest in prime locations in major cities such as New York, Chicago and Los Angeles to maintain its positioning strategy. Zara should most likely develop a second central distribution center in America. Zara can strategically locate its central distribution center in or near countries where manufacturing can be done with cheap labor cost, such as Mexico. The close proximity of the distribution center to the American market will decrease logistics and help maintain Zara’s model of fast fashion and economies of scale. Internet retailing is another market opportunity that Inditex should consider. Zara can reach consumers faster and easier in the countries they are trying to expand into. This method can also help gauge consumer preferences from country to country. The internet retailing market will increase sales revenues and has a very low business risk considering the products are already being produced for the retail stores. Zara’s online shop would complement its stores, adding an extra level of service for its customers. It would also expand its customer base to reach areas where stores are not located. Patrons can shop from anywhere in the world and at any time of day or night. This essentially means more shoppers and more sales for the business. Based on our analysis, the monopolistically competitive industry structure is not the key factor driving Zara’s significant performance. Zara has leveraged its key resources to combine low price with product differentiation to create value and succeed in this industry structure. Zara has been able to increase the customer’s willingness to pay by constantly rotating its merchandise and creating a climate of scarcity and opportunity for customers. In conclusion, Zara has the potential for sustainable growth due to its competitive advantage and its ability to increase customer’s willingness to pay while decreasing its opportunity cost. The company keeps its operating income high, has a solid business model with unrivaled synergy and has various opportunities for expansion in the retail industry. Zara must continue to re-invent their image in order to stay fresh in the apparel industry and as long as they maintain their core competencies, they will continue to succeed. Zara Fast Fashion Inditex – Zara: Fast fashion Case analysis Company Structure and Goals Overview Zara’s vision on growth and global strategy -Building up fixed assets -Vertical integration -No advertising, creating premium stores -Fashion follower – QR to fashion trends -Strongly customer oriented -Stable growth -Markdowns half the average (15% as supposed to 30% ) -Pricing market based Business model: -Vertical operations and downstream activities -Multi-chain concept -Creative design team -Competitive advantage – Sustainable growth As attachment: Porter’s Five forces; Company structure; Financials) Problem Statement Growth challenge – 20% per annum expected, 76% of equity value implicit on Inditex’s stock price was based on expectations on future growth. Failure to deliver expected growth results might cause a serious offset in company’s market capitalization. Room for non-local growth – in average a retailer was present in 10 countries while e. g. a pharmaceutical company averaged operations in 125 countries. Problem statement is: In what geographical area(s) should further Zara expansion follow? Should there be another logistics-distribution centre created as increase of operations might cause dis-economies of scale? Should it acquire additional chains given the complexity of managing those and the risk of own-product-replacements? Preserve the margins; (visible threat to the sustainability of Index’s competitive advantage) Evaluation of the alternative solutions 1. Growth challenge: Notes: not much potential on the local market; -different markets require different positioning -though costs grow as distance grows, prices also change (margins are kept) -50% of all export is to developing countries -Zara shopper visits the store 17 times a year, average is 2-4 times -Creating a climate of scarcity and opportunity in stores Evaluate growth options in different markets: Spain Europe str4 – production in North Africa, turkey and East Europe. US – production in Mexico and the Caribbean subjected to retailing oercapacity, less fashion-forward than Europe, demands larger sizes and exhibits considerable internal variations Japan – no quotas to restrict imports, produced in China. – teenage market segment considered as the trendiest in the world Italy – fashionable, visit stores frequently and spend more on clothing 2. Change in marketing strategy Current: Three types of entering a market: company owned stores, joint ventures, franchising Strategy is standard across the countries -No adv -One big shop central city (capital) Followed by smaller ones (spreading around the country) -Shop windows used excessively -Products do not differ much from country to country -Model is downstream -No knowledge is shared -From design to stores within 4-5 weeks , industry average 9 months -Due to product testing, failure rate only 1% compared to industry average of 10% 3. Change in pricing strategy Current: Prices vary on the different markets, due to transport costs (all supplied from the base in Galicia) – this changes positioning Lower mark-down than industry average

Effective Teaching and Learning Essay

Teaching is not just one way, giving information to students and expecting them to draw from the information! A teacher (to be professional and effective) also needs to know all the different theories, models and learning styles. Embedding models to enable best practice in each session and allow students to absorb valuable information. The tutor is to reflect on each session, for example look at what went well and what didn’t go so well. Differentiating between different students abilities and learning styles. Teachers are constantly reflecting, not only if the students are learning from the tutor but the tutor should be constantly learning best practice and not become stagnant! Petty, G states â€Å"It is not an admission of weakness to seek advice and support; it is a measure of your active professionalism† The author explores the different theories associated with teaching of learning and assessment, demonstrating how she uses them in her confidence and self esteem course. The main ones that will be looked at in detail are behaviourist, cognitivists and humanist, Transactional analysis and types of assessment. Androgogy and Pedagogy, Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, the three main ego states and Temporal and Boydell’s (1977) Barriers to learning. There are three main theorists; behaviourist, cognitivists and humanist. Behaviourist theory was based on stimulus response from a dog. To see and measure how it learns. Pavlov (1927) states that what can be measured is classed as learning. Pavlov did an experiment with a dog. This to me is more like conditioning rather than learning. Pavlov was primarily a physiologist and very interested in how the mind works. If a person was hungry they could be conditioned to salivate by the ring of a bell if they were conditioned to have food straight after. Starving a person and getting it to do something (ring a bell) to enable it to eat is a strange way to analyse a human is learning! To treat humans in this way and relate it to humans is barbaric, just look at the year it was printed. This was also the time when electric shock treatment and locking people in straight jackets was acceptable! Skinner (1938) also did some work with animals and called it operant conditioning. His findings were the reward that the animals were working towards not the stimulus e. g. not the bell but the food! Reward is good and has been proven by theorists that this keeps the students interested (although these findings were tested on animals and humans). The reward could be learning new skills to change and overcome a barrier, gain the qualification in confidence building. Getting a pat on the back for good work handed in! The students will repeat behaviour if they are gaining a reward. The reward can also be the achievement of learning new skills for life, as in the confidence course. Skinner also believed that negative feedback was demoralising and stopped learners learning which the author fully backs up. One has to be very sensitive with feedback, especially when dealing with students with low self esteem. Most of the learning is self reflective and many self awareness exercises are done, rather than criticising or not passing a certain grade. Most learning is done through discussion and self reflection Piaget (1926) had a different view from Pavlov, he believed that the persons thought process was more important and learning was developmental. Meaning they learn and add to what they already know or have learnt. It is about linking information Knowledge is constructed though interaction with the environment. A cognitive process which requires new information, allowing the learner to evolve and transform their existing knowledge and apply this to new situations. (Armatage, 1999 Pg62) On the confidence course a cognitive approach could be to ask the learners to describe how you have used the goal setting to achieve a happier life? I am asking the students to work on a deeper level, not just retaining the information but also demonstrating how to develop it into their own life and past experiences. The cognitivists and the behaviourist are more to do with controls and being tutor led, the Humanist theory looks more into the nature of the learner and the learners’ actions that create the learning situation. The direction is for autonomy, development and growth, the search for meaning and setting goals for themselves. This is very relevant in the goal setting stage of the confidence building course. When the students goal set for a happier, healthier and more positive future. This is looking at and building on the skills that learners already have through life experiences. The role of the tutor is to encourage the students to reflect and to increase the range of experiences for the students to move on with their individual goals that are not dictated by the tutor (myself) The two major writers in this field are Rogers (1974) and Maslow (1968) Rogers viewed this as a series of drives towards adulthood, autonomy, responsibility and self direction. This is all about empowering oneself rather than being told what to do. Maslow looks at a whole hierarchy of needs (please see graph below) Maslow believes that one has to move up the pyramid of needs before they can self actualise. For example one wants their basic needs to be met Biological and Physiological needs – air, food, drink, shelter, warmth, sleep. This then moves on to look at safety and security. Safety needs – protection from elements, security, order, law, limits, and stability. Belongingness and Love needs – work group, family, affection, relationships. The learners on the confidence course are encouraged to continue as a group to support each other with future goals once the ten weeks are up. This continues to have a positive effect on the learners’ future goals and encourages positive relationships. Esteem needs – self-esteem, achievement, mastery, independence, status, dominance, prestige, managerial responsibility. This comes from the achievement of attending and finishing the course. Cognitive needs – knowledge, meaning, making sense of things. Understanding why they come to have low self esteem and understanding there are many ways to change this. Self-Actualization needs – realising personal potential, self-fulfillment, seeking personal growth and peak experiences. This definitely comes on the last session when the learners feel so empowered to move on with goals that have been set. Making a vision board that is related to a persons self actualisation. Up until 1970 teaching strategies were known as pedagogy which is Greek and means â€Å"to lead a child† Knowles who is a huge figure in the humanist school challenged this as he didn’t think it appropriate for adults. Knowles (1970 Pg 57) believes â€Å"Once an adult makes the discovery that he can take responsibility for his own learning, as he does for other facets of his life, he experiences a sense of release and exhilaration. He then enters into learning with a deep ego involvement, with results that are frequently startling to both himself and the tutor† Hanson (1996 pg 99) argued against a clear dichotomy between adult and compulsory education. He believed that adults are not necessarily more experienced because they have lived longer! This can be true as some of the students I come across have no literacy skills which will be classed as a major intellectual barrier (see the five barriers below) and come on the course with a support worker. This does not mean they don’t have articulate skills in other areas, such as time management and people skills. There is no point taking only an androgogical approach until students acquire the ability to learn the basic study skills. This leads onto the barriers that adult learners may face. Temporal and Boydell (1977) highlighted five barriers to learning which were: perceptual, cultural, emotional, intellectual and expressive. Perception could be a huge barrier that students face. Most that come on the course have had a bad school experience and this maybe the last time they studied. Students are worried if they will feel comfortable in the class, worried if they don’t understand what the tutor is talking about, concerned if they know someone in the class from their local area, or have concerns about feeling stupid. Perception is a huge barrier to overcome and nothing the tutor can do if the learner does not start the course. Cultural pressure could be family and friends not wanting the learner to do courses to progress, especially when they see time is being taken from the family. Temporell and Bordell (1977) have identified low self esteem as a barrier to learning. This is very difficult as there are many potential learners that phone up to do the course but then don’t have the self esteem to walk through the door. When the learner finds it difficult to express themselves, they can still learn from the course by listening to group activity. It has been noted on many courses when introducing another person to the group the learner finds it easier to talk, rather than introducing themselves they can talk for a longer period of time about their colleague. This is useful on this type of course (self esteem building) if this is not the first course the student does as a mature learner I am not sure how they will cope if they are moving onto more academic courses. Overcoming personalities and ego states can also be classed as a huge barrier, getting the student to the adult- adult ego state. They may only have had the experience of critical child ego state. One of the students commented on their childhood school memories, of standing in the corner and made to feel stupid because dyslexia wasn’t recognised then! The critical teacher (ego state critical parent). Transactional analysis (D Childs, 2004) describes three ego states Parent, Adult and child. The parent ego state falls into two categories, critical parent and nurturing parent. The nurturing parents function is to nurture themselves and others. Critical parent function is to control the behaviour of themselves and others. This can show as a critical teacher putting their students down and being condescending. The first class is entered by most students in the adapted child ego state, helpless and hurtful. Facial expressions looking scared and tearful. All students are treated as adults with a lot of nurturing parent in the first session. This is to put the students at ease and in a relaxed state with myself the tutor and their peers. The scene is set together writing boundaries as a group for the group to bond, be comfortable, respected and respectful. Once this is done the students are aware that they are being respected. This is overcoming the first barrier to allow learning to take place. The author strongly believes that if a student is not at ease they will not absorb valuable information. Also putting the students in the adult ego state. This agreement is done in unison, with the students taking ownership of their actions and behaviour with others. This can be done through setting their own boundaries. The last group agreed to switch off mobiles, only allow good gossip, no dumping (talking about personal problems), have fun, respect on another, what’s said in the room stays in the room, listen if someone is talking, not hog the conversation (give everyone time to talk), not to give opinions unless they are asked for, support one another, no swearing. This could be a Eureka moment as some students may have never been aware of how they come across nd wonder if they have been respectful to people in the past. Learnt behaviour is very hard to change in just one session. This is a huge self awareness exercise. A student may write â€Å"no swearing† (as a boundary) as it is offensive; another student may challenge this as this is challenging how that student has been reared. Where swearing is part of everyday language. They are bewildered to find that this would offend another person. Due to another student being brought up in a house full of arguments and fighting he feels threatened whenever he hears swearing. This could be the first course students have done out of their comfort zones. Other students can be from other classes, cultures and backgrounds. Being made aware what is acceptable and what is not acceptable can sometimes come as a shock. Some students complain to me of other students not washing and smelling unclean. This is a very sensitive issue and has to be dealt with very carefully, especially when working with people with mental health or very low self esteem. Some students wonder why they should bother washing as they have come from a family with no hygiene. How would a person know this if it wasn’t taught at home? We don’t learn from people sniggering behind our backs! When looking at why the students have chosen the victim path, their eyes widen as discussion unfolds. Especially when looking at critical parent. Most of the students have got or had a parent, partner, friend (so called), sibling or even a child that tries to control their behaviour. For the student looking at this in black and white is a real Eureka moment. What they find hardest is when they change ego state to adult. They find that the person that plays critical parent in their life becomes angry and resentful. Critical parent usually trying to make the student feel guilty for their â€Å"adult† state. The student then becoming the victor not the victim. When reflected upon the student can see how this relationship no longer serves a purpose. Unless the critical parent changes their behaviour the student sees the relationship as negative and will no longer want to pursue it. Learners generally come onto the course with some negative attitudes about the world or people around them. Empowering learning and research and overcoming barriers they may have encourages the students to challenge their own behaviour. When the tutor contradicts learner’s attitudes and values, class discussion can become heated. Students can become angry. This is very much a part of the learning journey in confidence building. Self assessment and self awareness exercises come in very useful, enabling the student much self reflection allowing students to overcome their own barriers through their own assessment. Initial assessment is used to see what level the student is at if the learner can cope with the work load. Do they need an individual learning plan or see if extra support is needed with numeracy, literacy or ICT. Petty, G does agree â€Å"If the needs of the learners are met, the chances of success are greatly increased† backing up how important an initial assessment can be (2009, pg 530) Curzon, L argues that examinations on many courses can be different, so can sometimes not have legitimate weighting (2006 Pg385) meaning they can have repressive or restrictive influences on teachers and students. It is thought that an initial assessment (numeracy or literacy) could startle a student at the beginning and make them feel inadequate. This could be because they were academically inadequate at school, the same fear could return, with no return of the student on the next session. Petty, G also states that just because a student has their math’s GCSE doesn’t mean they can do algebra or percentages. This won’t help in the science lab. (2009, Pg 542) One argument would be that this has separated the wheat from the chaff. Teachers now have to teach to individual learning styles, instead of blaming the learners for not learning or gaining the qualification, the tutors are looked upon! Petty believes all students can learn, given the help and support that is needed, the author being agreeable. Assessment is very important to know where the learners are at the beginning, middle and the end of the course. This is to reflect and measure where they are at the beginning of the course in terms of self esteem. This is done by a scaling questionnaire, which also measures where the learner is in terms of happiness, self esteem, confidence, relationships, communications skills, health, social skills and social activities. The author would prefer to empower her students, instead of giving the students fish, she would prefer to give them a fishing rod to eat for life. It is about empowering students to move on with their life positively. The students don’t need to be spoon fed or hand held. They just need to learn the tools and skills for a happier and productive healthier lifestyle. This is why the tutor is in favour of the Humanist theory. Skinner believes that positive feedback gets students motivated whilst negative feedback stops students in their tracks, demotivating. The behaviourist teacher is in charge and is a good role model to her students giving the students rewards which are positively reinforced with praise, smiles and positive comments on work done. This is very useful as it also activates growth in self esteem. This theory is very successful with students who lack self esteem, therfor very apt in the confidence course. The learners work more effectively as they are encouraged to reflect and self evaluate where they are in terms of self esteem and confidence. Students work well interacting and challenging negative self fulfilling ideas as a group and overcoming barriers together. The students finish the course still on a learning journey of positive self discovery through meetings and recommended reading. The role of the tutor is to encourage the students to reflect and to increase the range of experiences for the students to move on with their individual goals that are not dictated by the tutor (myself) The two major writers in this field are Rogers (1974) and Maslow (1968) Rogers viewed this as a series of drives towards adulthood, autonomy, responsibility and self direction. In conclusion the author believes teaching is not directive and one way, It has to be two way for it to be effective. Tutors need to be reflective and differentiate between all students learning styles and abilities. The author strongly feels that Pavlov’s theory is inhumane and out with the ark. Taking responses from animals is very old hat and I’m sure if you starved any animal or human they would ring a bell to get food, as this is our primary need to live. Humans are much more intelligent than rats and dogs. Pavlov was firstly a psychologist and would be looking at animal responses rather than learning. The author backs up Skinners theory and has seen it work in the confidence course. Once the student is told they are actually good at something (not just a mother, father or sibling) it encourages them to want to do better and have a happier, healthier life style for all their family. This has a huge knock on effect on their friends and people around them. They usually signpost their friends and partners on to the course. Negative feedback is demoralising, what the tutor finds useful is asking the student how they would do it next time if they wanted a positive outcome. This allows the student to self reflect and learn by experience, which is a far great learning curve. This theory links in with what Paignent, 1926 believes, that a persons thought process was more important and learning is developmental, linking information and learning what they already know. The cognitivists and behaviourist are more to do with being tutor led. The author prefers the humanist theory which looks more into the nature of the learner and their actions that create the learning situation. Maslow looks at the whole hierarchy of needs and backs up the belief of the author. Maslow believes that one must move up the pyramid before they can self actualise. Maslow’s theory is used and demonstrated on the confidence course. The tutor wants the students to see what is needed to move up the pyramid. One student came in the following week and told me she had moved house because her safety needs were not being met due to having ASBO neighbours. The student had been complaining to the council for many years. After seeing Maslow’s hierarchy the student decided to take herself out of the situation! Using the Maslow model in class, students can see in black and white why they have no self esteem and cannot self actualise and why their social or safety needs are not being met. For example fuel your body with healthy food like a car would use the best oil. Safety needs, live with people that you feel happy and safe with. Look at the positive people and negative people in ones life. Associate with positive people more rather than the negative ones. Belonging and love. Students start measuring who is respectful and positive in their life. Teporal and Bordell (1977) have identified low self esteem as a barrier to learning. One believes that overcoming barriers and having self esteem is much wider spread than one thought. It would be beneficial for students to have a self esteem test as part of their initial assessment. This would be invaluable efore the students go on to do literacy and numeracy. Looking into how ego states come into learning is very interesting; the humanist would welcome the adult to adult state. Whereas the cognitivists would play a more critical parent role when teaching. Whilst doing this essay the author has really looked into all the theories and models and it is apparent that these ideas were put forward many year s ago. We have moved on so much in seventy years, it would be interesting to see new theories or updated old theories that are based on more realistic activities and research.

What is Modernity essays

What is Modernity essays The 17th century was a horrible age of wars and it was during this time period that the 30 Years War took place. Religion also played a large part in modernity. It was starting to separate from the government at this time, and at the same time, the rise of scientific knowledge began. The 18th century is where things really started to take off and is really the beginning of modernity as we know it. Civilization went from horses and carriages in the early 1700s to steam engines by the 1780s. Also, in the early 1700s, art was more neoclassical and governed by the aristocracy, whereas by the late 18th century, art had turned more towards the middle class and romanticism. The 18th century is where modern culture begins with a movement aptly named the Enlightenment. With the Enlightenment came a new use of thought, a more humanistic way of thought. Also with the Enlightenment came the rise of science. Throughout the lifetime of man, we as humans have always been searching for the solid foundation of what our existence is built on. This search became even more important with the new, enlightened form of thinking. Overall there are five parts of the Enlightenment: empiricism, utilitarianism, self-interest, reason, and universalism. Empiricism is knowledge based on the scientific approach. It is always looking for answers through a series of laid out questions. It is very inductive, and after this knowledge of thought has been used, it generally decreases ones spirituality. All the person is seeking out is the proven facts. Utilitarianism is reality based on the greatest good for the greatest number. When searching for the truth, we should find the truth with the most good. John Locke is seen as being a person of utilitarian thought. Self-Interest is a large part of the Enlightenment, mainly due to the book published by Adam Smith in 1776 entitled The Wealth of Nations. This book p...

Ancestry of Barack Obama - Fourth Generation

Ancestry of Barack Obama - Fourth Generation Barack Obama Family Tree, Generations 1-3 Fourth Generation (Great Grandparents): 8. Obama was born in Kendu Bay, Kenya 9. Nyaoke Obama had four wives, one of whom was Nyaoke. She fathered many children, of whom Onyango was the fifth son. 12. Ralph Waldo Emerson DUNHAM was born 24 December 1894 in Argonia, Sumner County, Kansas and died 4 October 1970 in Wichita, Sedgwick, Kansas. 13. Ruth Lucille ARMOUR was born in 1900 in Illinois and died (by suicide) on 25 November 1926 in Wichita, Sedgwick County, Kansas. Ralph DUNHAM and Ruth ARMOUR were married on 3 October 1915 in Wichita, Sedgwick County, Kansas and had the following children: i. Ralph Emerson DUNHAM, Jr., born 29 August 1916 (spouse Elizabeth Smith)6. ii. Stanley Armour DUNHAM The family is found living with Ruths parents in the 1920 federal census of Sedgwick County, Kansas. In 1930, Ralph Jr. and Stanley are with their maternal grandparents in Butler County, Kansas, while their father, Ralph Sr. was enumerated with his parents in Sedgwick County, Kansas. 14. Rolla Charles PAYNE was born 23 August 1892 in Olathe, Johnson County, Kansas and died in Kansas in October 1968. 15. Leona MCCURRY was born about May 1897 in Kansas. Rolla Charles PAYNE and Leona MCCURRY married in Kansas about 1922 and had the following children: 1. i. Madelyn PAYNEii. Charles Thomas PAYNE born in 1925.iii. Arlene PAYNE born about 1926.

A Detailed Review Of Pink Floyds Album The Dark Side Of The Moon

A Detailed Review Of Pink Floyd's Album The Dark Side Of The Moon Pink Floyd The classic album that I chose is Pink Floyd’s The Dark Side of the Moon. Pink Floyd is a progressive rock band that was formed in 1965. This classic album was released on March 1, 1973. The album contains ten tracks such as: â€Å"Set the Controls for the Heart of the Sun,† â€Å"Echoes,† â€Å"Breathe,† â€Å"On the Run,† â€Å"Time,† â€Å"The Great Gig in the Sky,† â€Å"Money,† â€Å"Us and Them,† â€Å"Brain Damage,† and lastly, â€Å"Eclipse.† The band consists of four members. These members are: David Gilmour (vocals and guitar), Nick Mason (percussion and drums), Richard Write (keyboards and organ), and Roger Waters (bass guitar). What I will discuss in this paper is about the many unique aspects it had that made it become such a highly recognized classic album to this day. To give some small background info, originally, Syd Barrett was the native singer before Gilmour. What happened was Barrett became deranged in 1968. After this tragic event occurred. The former members were puzzled on what their next move was going to be. The band then decided to continue their music making, replacing Barrett with Gilmour. Then, The Dark Side of the Moon soon came about. Pink Floyd’s â€Å"groove† was then described as â€Å"glacial† and â€Å"space-rock† by David Fricke, a senior editor for the Rolling Stones Magazine (Degrunwald, Smith, Longfellow, 2003). According to The Rolling Stone’s website, at the beginning of Pink Floyds career, they refined a â€Å"psychedelic sound, performing long, loud suite like compositions that touched on hard rock†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Rollingstone.com, â€Å"Pink Floyd Biography†). they then began to progress to using a â€Å"azimuth coordinated sound system†¦themes were unremittingly bleaka lienation, paranoia†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Rolling stone.com, â€Å"Pink Floyd Biography†). After more albums were released, tension between Wright and Waters increased, therefore, Wright left the band. Soon after, Waters too, left leaving Gilmour and Mason. The members then started releasing solo albums. Years after, Pink Floyd was then again reunited (excluding Waters) on July 2, 2005 for a global Live 8 performance (Rollingstone.com, â€Å"Pink Floyd Biography†). As The Dark Side of the Moon is a highly successful album, it is not their first album. Rather, this album appears on Pink Floyd’s discography as the 9th album. The previous albums recorded are: 1. The Piper at the Gates of Dawn (1967), 2. A Saucerful of Secrets (1968), 3. More (1969), 4. Ummagumma (1969), 5. Atom Heart Mother (1970), 6. Relics (1971), 7. Meddle (1971), 8. Obscured by Clouds (1972), 9. The Dark side of the Moon and then the album preceding DSOTM would be 10. Wish You Were Here (1975). To make such an incredible album, Pink Floyd’s members experimented with many auditory techniques. Two techniques that were constantly used were echoes and double tracking vocals. This was to give off a psychedelic vibe towards the listener. They also used several sound effects such as futuristic vehicle noises, footsteps, and heartbeats. Pink Floyds exploration of sounds made the albums songs’ have various tricks within each song, giving them all distinctive traits. Another interesting thing about this album is the background about it itself. According to Roger Waters in the documentary, â€Å"The Making of The Dark Side of the Moon†, â€Å"The Dark Side of the Moon was an expression of political, philosophical, humanitarian empathy that was desperate to get out† (Degrunwald, Smith, Longfellow, 2003). Waters also expressed how the themes that can be applied to the album are â€Å"insanity, death, empathy, and greed†. This shows how it also gave off a message. The sleeve album sleeve designer, Storm Thorgerson, described his inspiration for the design was based off on three assets. First, the lightshow the band created during their concerts. Second, the themes of the lyrics, which he perceived as greed and ambition. And, third, it was an answer to Richard Wright’s request of wanting a â€Å"simple, bold and dramatic† design. When the design was shown to the members, they all immediately chose the one they used for the album. This record had such an enormous influence on both the band and the people around the world.