...Persuade Café Memo MEMORANDUM TO: Jacqueline Marcus, Christopher O’Conner, and Mark Parsons FROM: DATE: October 4, 2013 SUBJECT: Profit Increase and Cost-Saving Initiatives In response to what has been discussed about the company’s profitability, the company is not making the profits we would like in having the coffee industry, but Persuade Café does bring a great moral to the company. It will also relieve a lot of stress for our employees because of the friendly environment and satisfied customers. The following are a few ideas and suggestions that I came up with to help increase new customers, retain repeat customers and increase the companies’ profit. We could also offer membership discount card for loyal customers, since every dollar counts in any business, the discount membership card is an incentive to bring in new customers and keep our current ones. Persuade Café’s customer are always satisfied and can count on us for their fresh brew cup of Joe in the morning or whenever they need that kick. Having a monthly fee of about 30 dollars a month will very will allow them to have one cup of regular fresh brew coffee and 15 percent discount on anything else they buy at Persuade Cafe. This will extremely increase the profit of the company dramatically. This is also going to help our company by having our name out there, more people will know of our T-shirts and online merchandise also. Also, we would be helping the community out by proving a great service...
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...Corporation. The primary business at this time was the selling of premium whole bean coffee in a single Seattle store. At the time, coffee consumption in the U.S. was on the decline and market dominance was established by the large supermarket brands. However, companies such as Starbucks, who began selling high quality specialty coffee, began to establish a following of loyal coffee enthusiasts. This niche market enabled Starbucks to expand into five stores that sold coffee beans, a roasting facility, and a wholesale business that served local restaurants. At this time, Starbucks did not serve coffee and would not be recognized as the company they are today. In 1982, Howard Schultz joined the organization as the manager of retail marketing and attempted to implement new ideas and a new business model for the organization. Schultz was inspired by the Espresso bars of Europe and saw the potential for establishing this type of European coffee culture in the U.S. market. Schultz’s idea was soundly rejected by the original owners and he left the organization and established a chain of coffee houses, themed after Italian café’s and they sold brewed Starbucks coffee. In 1987, Schultz bought Starbucks from the original owners and began to implement a strategy of growth that was built on a solid foundation of core values and solid management. Schultz recognized the potential of the specialty coffee market, a market which was still in its infancy and undefined. Starbucks and Schultz...
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...and drilling. When natural resources like oil are found, it attracts people. It does this because people are able to enter the oil industry. They make good wages and the local economy grows because of this job growth that is based on the discovery of this natural resource. The growth of the local economy leads to big investments in roads and airports. In turn, this leads to increased long-term productivity, not only in oil-related industries but also in the rest of the local economy. This kind of economic growth has a ripple effect on the rest of the local and larger economy. Not only do oil-related industries end up doing well, but the rest of the local economy picks up as well. These linkages help resource-rich areas remain productive even when local prices are higher or the economy goes up and down in other areas. Land can also be used to promote economic growth by way of conservation. Outdoor recreation such as hunting, fishing, hiking, and wildlife watching is big business. It brings day and overnight visitors to an area and communities reap the economic benefits when visitors buy meals and snacks, stay overnight in hotels, buy specialized equipment, lease land, and pay for travel costs. When a community protects its natural resources, it protects the reason outdoor tourists come to the community. Wildlife is a multibillion dollar industry in this country. Hunting, fishing and wildlife related recreation generate billions of dollars every year to state economies. People...
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...Starbucks Coffee Company – February 2007 [i] A case originally written for JUAS2006 Seminar, November 2006, Pittsburgh, PA Latest major revision – July, 2008; minor revision in January, June & Dec 2010 Written by Robert S. Atkin © 2006-2013 Robert S. Atkin General Background Starbucks is a phenomenon – in just under three decades it has become an internationally visible brand literally defining an industry not only in the US, but in selected countries in the EU, the Middle East and Asia (Please see Exhibit 1. For additional information, please see the firm’s website or its SEC financial 10-K filings). For example, in the decade ending 2005, worldwide revenue increased about 15-fold to nearly 6.9B USD, while net income increased about 19 times to 494M USD. Most of this growth can be attributed to a dramatic increase in stores (both domestic and international), various product development and product mix changes (including improved food and music production [ii]), and price increases (two in US company-owned stores in the past year averaging 5 and 9 cents/drink in October 2006 and July 2007). A Starbucks affinity card was a significant growth driver in the past few years, but is not expected to be a major driver in the next few years. [iii] Begun as a local coffee shop in 1971, the company grew modestly in the Seattle area until the mid-1980’s when Howard Schultz joined the firm. Convinced by a trip to Italy in 1983 that coffee could become the center of a social...
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...the company's books for Arthur Andersen, the big accounting firm, received an extraordinary instruction from one of the company's lawyers. Congressional investigators tell Time that the Oct. 12 memo directed workers to destroy all audit material, except for the most basic "work papers." And that's what they did, over a period of several weeks. As a result, FBI investigators, congressional probers and workers suing the company for lost retirement savings will be denied thousands of e-mails and other electronic and paper files that could have helped illuminate the actions and motivations of Enron executives involved in what now is the biggest bankruptcy in U.S. history. Supervisors at Arthur Andersen repeatedly reminded their employees of the document-destruction memo in the weeks leading up to the first Security and Exchange Commission subpoenas that were issued on Nov. 8. And the firm declines to rule out the possibility that some destruction continued even after that date. Its workers had destroyed "a significant but undetermined number" of documents related to Enron, the accounting firm acknowledged in a terse public statement last Thursday. But it did not reveal that the destruction orders came in the Oct. 12 memo. Sources close to Arthur Andersen confirm the basic contents of the memo, but spokesman David Tabolt said it would be "inappropriate" to discuss it until the company completes its own review of the explosive issue. Though there are no firm rules on how long accounting...
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...Shyann Fontenot, Alex Jacobs MGT/498 July 14, 2013 Perry Martin Competitive Advantages In Today’s Global Climate Organizational sustainability and viability occur when a business strives to set itself apart from its competitors. Organizations that seek to become and maintain themselves as industries leaders typically thrive in the global marketplace. Industry dominance is dependent upon the development and implementation of corporate strategies. Organizations that continuously seek to examine their portfolios, improve operational activities, conduct research and development, and implement their strategic planning and strategies are innovated and profitable; both key characteristics in maintaining the competitive advantage within the global marketplace. Leading organizations analyze and predict the changing environment and situations in which they operate in and perform with the objective to maintain competitive advantage and sustainability. Riordan Manufacturing is poised to capitalize on establishing the organization as an industry leader in using polymer materials and providing solutions to its customer base. The global plastics manufacturing giant’s rigorous focus on R&D sets the company advantageously as a leader in identifying trends. Although the company’s initial focus was on research and development and licensing, the obtainment of venture capital in 1992 was used to purchase a...
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...Competitive Advantage 4 Strategic Plan, Part II: SWOTT Analysis 6 Introduction 6 SWOTT 6 Buday’s Sweet Temptations Café SWOTT Table 7 External Forces 8 Internal Forces 10 Economic and Legal/Regulatory Trends 11 Adapting to Change 11 Supply Chain Operation 12 Issues and/or Opportunities 12 Conclusion 12 Balanced Scorecard 14 Financial 16 Internal Business Process 16 Customer 17 Learning and Growth (Employees) 17 Communication Plan 18 Communication Plan Table 19 Conclusion 21 References 22 Strategic Plan Part 1: Business Concept Buday’s Sweet Temptations Cafe Buday’s Sweet Temptations Café will be a neighborhood café and catering business offering specialty chocolates, baked goods, sandwiches, and gourmet coffee and other assorted drinks; and it will be an online virtual café that offers products for sale through a sophisticated website. The business will be designed to be a meeting place and a focal point for the community in person and online; as well as a resource for organizing and creating special events in and around the city of Long Beach, California. Mission The mission of Buday’s Sweet Temptations Café is to provide a happy, comfortable little corner of contentment in our cozy café, and online in our friendly little website. Buday’s will accomplish this with integrity, quality and sustainability at every step,...
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...CSR: Starbucks Executive Summary Starbucks is a coffee house company that began in Seattle Washington in 1971. Their mission statement is “to inspire and nurture the human spirit – one person, one cup and one neighborhood at a time”. They ensure that their mission statement is brought to fruition in ensuring that they provide quality coffee, treat each other and employees with respect, engage with their customers, endure that the stores are lively, welcome and part of the community so that all of this ensures success for the shareholders. Other areas that Starbucks engages in are with their commitments to a greener livelihood, global impacts and charitable contributions. In their ensuring a greener livelihood, they have implemented many cost saving devices and equipment in the stores. All of this will not only reduce cost, but reduce their footprint on the environment. Their global contributions consume not only economic engagements but also political engagements. They are part of the Coffee and Farmers Equity Practice. This is a relationship where they are ensuring the ethical practices of the coffee harvester’s as well as the harvest itself. They are also involved in many charitable agencies around the world, as their stores are placed around the globe. In an effort to continue their CSR within the organization, there are few areas that the company could then begin to evolve. Recommendations would be to engage the partners of the company in town hall like events. Other areas...
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...An executive summary summarizes, or reviews the main points of, a longer document or report for a reader that does not have time to read the entire report. An effective executive summary analyzes and summarizes the most important points in the paper or report, and will often make a recommendation based on the analysis. Executive summaries are “stand alone” documents that are almost always read independently of the reports they summarize. When preparing to write an executive summary, ask yourself the following questions: * Who will read your executive summary? Sometimes your executive summary may have an “intended” audience: your professor might require you to write it for a CEO, department head, or supervisor, for example. On other assignments, your audience won’t have a specific identity, but always keep in mind that the reader of an executive summary needs to know all of the important information in the main document without reading the actual document. Even if you know that your instructor will be reading everything that you submit, write the executive summary as a “stand alone” document. * What is the main document’s main topic, theme, or idea? Most reports have a “thesis” or central point that they are seeking to communicate. Try to sum this up in two or three sentences. If you are having trouble with this, imagine that someone has asked you, “what’s this report about?” and that you have to explain it in only a few sentences. Once you’re able to say what the main...
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...Re: Dr Pepper Snapple Group, Inc. – Memo of Recommendation Strategic Issue Energy beverages in 2006 were the fourth largest nonalcoholic beverage category in the United Sates after carbonated soft drinks (CSD), bottled water, and sport drinks. Currently the company sells ready-to-drink tea, juice, juice drink, and mixer categories. The main issue is Dr Pepper Snapple sells four categories which are not among the top four. Therefore, they are missing out on a huge opportunity in the market. It would be in their best interest to penetrate the energy beverage market based on their current standing. Dr Pepper Snapple should enter into the energy beverage market with an all-natural, non-carbonated energy beverage. The Market and Competitors The energy beverage market is expected to grow at an average annual rate of 10.2% until 2011. It has slowed down recently due to the maturing of the market as well as new competitors to the market of hybrid energy beverages. Dr Pepper Snapple major competitors in the energy drink market are Red Bull North America, Hansen Natural Corporation, Pepsi-Cola, Rockstar Inc., and Coca-Cola. Each competitor is very power and influential in the drink, but each also have their own strengths and weaknesses. Every competitor struggles in this market due to brand loyalty, Dr Pepper Snapples most challenging obstacle to overcome. Competitors offer very similar product which provide consumers with an energy boost, mental alertness, refreshment, and...
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...Starbucks Coffee Company Teaching Note Overview The Starbucks Coffee Company case offers students an opportunity to explore the tradeoffs between a successful business strategy (in this case, its focus on the purchase of the highest quality coffee, which is at the heart of this business) and the company’s interest in maintaining and enhancing its reputation as a socially responsible company. The case focuses on the CEO, Orin Smith and his decision whether to purchase and offer fair trade coffee after being pressured by the Global Exchange, an NGO responsible in the 1990s for Nike’s difficulties in relation to unfair labor practices in developing nations. Questions to Begin the Case Discussion Students can approach this complicated case from many different angles, so questions should be tailored to the individual needs of the course you are teaching. Possible successful approaches include the following: 1. Focus on the factors in the environment affecting Starbuck’s decision. This allows you to explore comparison between Nike in the 1990s and Starbucks today. The company faces the risk of overexposure because of its incredible rate of growth. And, like WalMart, the company has been seen as a destroyer of smaller main street type businesses. It also represents American culture in distant lands in the same way that McDonalds did in the 1970s and 1980s. Its interest in presenting itself as a socially responsible company also makes it an easy target for antagonists like the Global...
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...WENGART AIRCRAFT: BRIEFING NOTES Source: Harvey, D. & Brown, D. (2001). An experiential approach to Organisation Development (6th. Ed.). Upper Saddle River: Prentice-Hall. President Ralph Larsen of Wengart Aircraft has become increasingly concerned about profits. Though he is not fearful of a company takeover, he does feel an obligation to maximize shareholders' return on their investment. He and about a dozen top executives receive sizable stock bonuses, so it is to their advantage to obtain a high share price. Wengart manufactures commercial and military aircraft. It is number two in its industry, which is composed of nine companies. Its profits, however, are ranked seventh. It is disturbing to Larsen and his top management team that they are not able to maximize profits. QUALITY PROBLEMS Quality has been identified by the top management team as one of the major problems at Wengart. Aircraft have to be reworked even after they are sent to the customer. The federal government, one of Wengart's largest customers, shares the concern for quality to the extent that several letters have been sent to Larsen from the Secretary of Defence warning him that unless quality is improved by 20 percent within 6 months, the government will exercise its contract provision to withhold partial payment as a penalty. This will place even more pressure on profits. Nongovernmental customers have also expressed serious concerns about quality. There have been major stories in The Wall...
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...Starbucks: Just Who is the Starbucks Customer? By now, you should be familiar with the Starbucks story. After a trip to Italy in the early 1980s, Howard Schultz was inspired to transform Starbucks—then just a handful of coffee shops in Seattle—into a chain of European-style coffeehouses. His vision wasn’t based on selling only gourmet coffees, espressos, and lattes, however. He wanted to provide customers with what he called a “third place”— a place away from home and work. As CEO of Starbucks, Schultz developed what became known as the Starbucks Experience, built around great coffee, personal service, and an inviting ambiance. WHAT GOES UP . . . It wasn’t long before Starbucks became a household word—a powerhouse premium brand in a category that previously consisted of only cheaper commodity products. In 20 years time, Schultz grew the company to almost 17,000 stores in dozens of countries. From 1995 to 2005, Starbucks added U.S. stores at an annual rate of 27 percent, far faster than the 17 percent annual growth of McDonald’s in its heyday. At one point, Starbucks opened over 3,300 locations in a single year—an average of 9 per day. In one stretch of crowded Manhattan, a person could get their caffeine fix at any of five Starbucks outlets in less than a block and a half. In fact, cramming so many stores so close together caused one satirical publication to run this headline: “A New Starbucks Opens in the Restroom of Existing Starbucks.” For many years, new store growth...
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...and will create a more thorough and effective measurement for performance for each department and the firm as a whole. The following subsections of this memo will consider the current situation, the evaluation of current controls and the performance measurements in place, and then provide our alternatives that we believe are more aligned with the organization. Current Situation The coffee industry has proven to be volatile and prone to a variety of price drivers and threats. While green coffee is produced year round at least somewhere in the world, harvests are constantly at risk. Weather and insects are constant pests to crops and impact growers all over the world. Inventories have also been negatively affected in the past due to dock strikes restricting the flow of goods from ports. While gourmet and specialty coffees have sold well over the last 30 years, the general liquid consumption trend has shifted away from coffee. This might be attributed to the growing health concerns at the consumer level and the trend to move towards liquids that may better reflect a healthy lifestyle. Given all this downward pressure on the marketplace, it is increasingly difficult for smaller processing companies to compete. This becomes even more difficult when we consider the pricing of inputs and the complex futures market where green coffee is traded. For larger corporations (Maxwell House...
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...Subject: External Analysis of U.S. Cola Industry Date: August 31, 2014 Purpose of the Report Per your request, our team has spent the last month analyzing the competitive environment of the cola industry in the United States. Utilizing tools such as the Porter’s Five Forces Framework and PESTEL (political, economic, social, technological, ecological, legal factors) we were able to better create an external analysis of the industry. These tools are necessary in performing a successful external analysis. Throughout this memo we will apply these tools to the cola industry and we will highlight how these tools helped us to form a decision. Based off of our findings in the analysis, it is our recommendation that we should not launch a new product within the cola industry. Threat of Entry Remains Low The Cola industry in the United States is dominated by two competitors, Coke and Pepsi. These two firms accounted for 72% of the U.S.’s CSD market sales volumes in 2009 (“Cola Wars Continue”, pg.2). There are many social factors that account for this advantage. Both Coke and Pepsi began operations in the late 1800’s and they have used their history to build strong customer loyalty. Coke has even focused their advertising around the use of their product being a typical part of the American lifestyle (“Cola” pg.6). With such strong customer loyalty it would be extremely challenging for any new product to enter the cola industry and gain significant market share. In addition...
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