Учреждения высшего образования
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WHAT IS BUSINESS?Business is a word which is commonly used in many different languages. But exactly what does it mean? The concepts and activities of business have increased in modern times. Traditionally, business simply meant exchange or trade for things people wanted or needed. Today it has a more technical definition. One definition of business is production, distribution and sale of goods and services for a profit. To examine this definition we will look at its various parts. First, production is the creation of services or the changing of materials into products. One example is the conversion of iron ore into metal car parts. Next these products need to be moved from the factory to the marketplace. This is known as distribution. A car might be moved from a factory in Detroit to a car dealership in Miami. Third is the sale of goods and services. Sale is the exchange of a product or service for money. A car is sold to someone in exchange for money. Goods are products which people cither need or want; for example, cars can be classified as goods. Services, on the other hand, are activities which a person or group performs for another person or organization. For instance, an auto mechanic performs a service when he repairs a car. However, there is one other important factor. This factor is the creation of profit or economic surplus. A major goal in the functioning of an American business company is making a profit. Profit is the money that remains after all the expenses are paid. Creating an economic surplus or profit is, therefore, a primary goal of business activity. Questions: 1. What did business mean traditionally? 2. What aspects does the meaning of the word "business' include today? 3. What is the first stage of business called? 4. What is done on the first stage of business? 5. What are the other stages of business? 6. What is business set up for? MARKS & SPENCERMarks & Spencer, the British food and clothes company, is the most famous British shop in the world. At the moment, there are 283 M&S shops in Britain, and other shops in France, Belgium, Holland, Spain and Portugal. Currently, they are building a large new store in Paris on the rue de Rivoli. In North America the company owns Brooks Brothers, and there are about fifty stores in Canada. More and more people, from Hong Kong to Lisbon, are buying their clothes and food from M&S. The company employs about 50,000 people worldwide. Sales have increased by 80% over the last ten years, mainly due to expansion overseas. Many of the shops abroad are franchises. Owners of franchises buy all their stocks from Marks & Spencer and pay the company a percentage of their turnover. The clothes vary from country to country. In Thailand, for example, M&S sell more short sleeved shirts because of the climate. In Japan, they set smaller sizes because of the average size of the population. In Austria, they stock very large clothes. Food departments sell typically British food: tea, cake, biscuits, etc., and the shops in Pans are very popular at lunchtime for the sale of sandwiches. Why is Marks & Spencer so successful? The standards of quality are very high. All suppliers have regular inspections. All customers can return any item which they think, is unsatisfactory. Stocks are limited. Shelf lives are short. This means that items only stay in the shop for six to seven weeks. Eighty percent of the suppliers are British, in fact. M&S buy twenty per cent of the total clothes produced in Britain. What about the future? At the moment, the company is studying plans for development in Eastern Europe, Japan, and even China. Next century, it is possible that one Chinese in five will wear Marks & Spencer's suits. That's a lot of suits! Questions: 1.How many people worldwide does the company employ? 2. What do owners of franchise buy from Marks & Spencer? 3. Is M&S successful? Prove it. 4. What are the company's plans for the future? |
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