UK Retail Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

UK Retail - Case Study Example Appendix A illustrates the state of the international retail industry: Tesco's international expansion programs is not limited by its consumer businesses, they are aiming to launch extensive services and related markets into new markets because of two major motivations: establishing their leadership in these developing markets and maximizing existing capacities (Corporate Watch UK, 2004). Tesco, is a global leader in retailing that is based in Britain. Recent vertical and horizontal expansion of the company have now included in its portfolio agriculture, packing, merchandising and information technology (Tesco, 2006a). Next to only to Carrefour, it Europe's supermarket industry and is ranked eight in the global industry. Aside from its supermarket operations to has recently its retail interest expanded its retail interest to the convenience store industry. Among its outlets are Tesco Extra, Tesco superstores, Tesco Metro, Tesco Express and T&S (Corporate Watch UK, 2004). ... Table 1 details existing stores and projected openings for 2006-2007. It also is aiming to strengthen its market presence in the countries it is already in by increasing the number of stores in operation as well as increasing the volume of its products in the market (Johansson, 2001). . Tesco's overseas expansion is one of the major factors that have led to present growth trends. It has maintained its strategy of buying existing grocery chains instead of starting from scratch in new markets. This has allowed them to secure key locations and ease to the new market more easily (Corporate Watch UK, 2004). From current targets of Tesco, it expects to have to increase its stores by 26%, increasing its total number of stores to around 3,700 stores. Size and Formats Size of Stores is defined by the store format. The different categories of the store is part of the effort to capture various market segments and they may be located near each other and be considered as indirect competition of other category stores. Table 2 details the different store format and their respective sizing and selling areas. Tesco Extra stores first opened to the public in 1997 and carry the full range of products found in all Tesco stores. They are classified as hypermarkets. The first floor carries food products while the second floor caries non-food items. They are comparative in size and format with Wal-Mart Supercenters. An average of twenty Tesco Extra stores are opened annually (Tesco, 2006d). Tesco stores follow the traditional size and format of supermarkets and are the oldest format used by the company. It also the usual type of store opened overseas (Tesco, 2006a). Tesco Metro stores are less than

What Is 'Trust' (After Niklas Luhmann) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

What Is 'Trust' (After Niklas Luhmann) - Essay Example In his work he views trust as s very important sociological phenomenon that makes possible the functioning of individuals within society, and at the same time the very existence of this society. Beginning from the 1990s, the sociologists began developing the concept of trust as a key element of social relationships, and the upsurge of interest to the problem of trust is conditioned, among all, by certain characteristics of the modern society, those being more active position of people towards their own future, and at the same time the uncertainty of this future, increased interdependence of individuals and communities, multiple opportunities offered by social and technological development, and the risks connected with them. All these presuppose the necessity of trust for normal and efficient life and social functioning. Earlier, trust was often characterised as a purely personal attitude, but Luhmann regards is as an aspect of interpersonal relations and a motivating factor for individuals to act. For the scholar, trust is an important element of social, political, personal, and cultural life of any human being. For N. Luhmann, trust is, above all, the absence of sureness, and the result of the impossibility to predict the future. So, there is no wonder that that the key terms for Luhmann's understanding of the concept of trust are risk and uncertainty. He, however, offers a way to solve the contradiction between trust and certainty. The main problem when analysing the contemporary society is making no division between trust and non-trust. For Luhmann, there are two structural changes of paramount importance that are happening in the modern world: the diversification and insulation of the known and the unknown, and the growing tendency to substitute risk for danger, i.e. considering and envisaging all the dangerous consequences that may occur as a result of human actions or non-actions. Differentiating between trust and certainty, Niklas Luhmann pinpoints the fact that in the modern conditions of openness and lack of integration, the nature of relations between trust and certainty are changing. Certainty, for the researcher, is something that presupposes complete absence of any disappointment; whereas trust always takes into account some possible risks, or at least an element of risk. The main difference between trust and certainty depends on the peculiarities of personal perception and attitude. If a person does not consider any alternatives to some event of action, it means he is certain - that is, in the state of certainty. If, however, a person prefers one action or event to the rest that are potentially possible, this situation is described as a situation of trust. Therefore, even if there is a high possibility of disappointment, preferring a particular line of actions is referred to by Luhmann as trust. Consequently, it is impossible to either trust or not trust to something that is completely unknown. "[T]rust is only possible in a familiar world; it needs history as a reliable background"1. Only awareness of how the things are (familiarity) makes both trust and distrust possible - it makes any expectations possible, however it does not guarantee that what we are expecting is going to happen. Awareness is not knowledge of how somebody will act, or what