Essay --

There are different types of eating disorders including anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and binge eating. Anorexia nervosa, commonly kn witness as anorexia, is an eating disorder in which a person starves himself or herself and often over exercises therefore depriving their vital organs of essential nutrients needed to survive (Berger, 2010). bulimia nervosa, commonly known as bulimia, is an eating disorder characterized by binge eating followed by purging (Berger, 2010). Binge eating is a disorder in which a person loses control of their eating habits and does not compensate for the amount of food he/she eats (NEDA, 2001). Although there are some popular beliefs that these eating disorders can be the result of low-self esteem, poor family and peer support, and media influence new research has found that only some of these reasons are completely true.Although it is commonly fictitious that social networking may lower a persons self image due to online bullying and self compariso n to other users, a late Facebook study has found that viewing oneself online can actually improve self-esteem. In 2011, Dr. Amy Gonzales and Professor Jeffery Hancock from Cornell University researched the effects on self-esteem use 63 participants including 16 males and 47 females. Gonzales and Hancock split the large group into three smaller groups in which the conditions were as follows exposure to a mirror, exposure to ones own Facebook site, and a control condition in which participants used the same room without any treatment (Gonzales & Hancock, 2011, pg 81). The participants would thence get surveyed concerning their own self-esteem and graded using the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (Rosenberg, 1965). The study concluded that those who were expo... ...edia does not have effect on eating disorders. Levine and Murnen (2009) concluded that if eating disorders are a psychiatric nausea that begin in childhood, and all environmental factors should contribute to the development of an eating disorder, then the possibility for a child to binge eat is greater than a child developing anorexia or bulimia. The idea that mass media is responsible for anorexia and bulimia is irrelevant when considering that children will notice media concerning fatty foods more than they will notice media with visuals of fragile women or bulky men. Mass media seems to be more relevant in the event of binge eating or obesity because children are more attracted to donuts then they are skinny models. A child is more likely to grow up eating the foods they see on television rather than starving themselves to serve like a model they see on television.

McTeague or Animalism Essay -- essays research papers

McTeague, or Animalism - UnpublishedThe last decade of the twentieth century in the States saw a rise in programs for humans self betterment. A popular form of betterment is that of the inner animal. Interest in indigene American animal mysticism, vision quests, and totem animals have increased dramatically in the past few years. No forms of media have been sp ared Calvin Kleins supermodels pass off on during sitcom commercials to tell viewers they need to be a beast, or to get in touch with their animal within. In the last decade of the nineteenth century, however, physicality was viewed not as a method of self-improvement but as the reprehensible side of humanity that lingered beneath the surface, waiting for an opportune time to come out and play. In Frank Norris novel McTeague, humans are no better than the beasts they claim to control. They cage and twinge defenseless puppets, but cage and torment themselves far, far, worse. McTeague, Trina, Zerkow, and Marcus are animals in thin humans clothing, walking the forests of McTeague, waiting for the opportunity to shed their skin and tear each other apart, while the legitimate animals of the world continue leading lives far superior to their human counterparts.McTeague, the title character of the work, is the king of beasts in San Francisco. A charlatan dentist who constantly mumbles and growls when speaking, he makes his living by causing great pain to his fellow human beings. The woman he falls in love with, Trina Sieppe, is a patient in his chair. McTeagues love is spawned from the agony of false orthodontics. Although etherized, Trina experiences the hurt of McTeagues drills. As he works his macabre work on the beautiful girl, McTeague begins to see her as more and more attractive. The pain is a sexual catalyst for McTeague like an animal on the hunt, he becomes aroused by the suffering he causes Trina. The brain to take advantage of the defenseless girl becomes overpowering, and he eventually give s in to his raging, bestial nature and plants a dog-like smooch on her lips. From this love forged in sex, the downfall of McTeague and Trina is cast.McTeague resembles the beast inside more and more as his marriage progresses. At first, sexually dominating Trina satiates him. Like a drug, however, a greater superman is ne... ...bspThe final stab at humans is the way the animals in the story act. The two dogs in the alley are constantly fighting each other with barks. They are confined to cages, so for a long time they never have the opportunity to come to blows. Cages can only hold a creature for a finite amount of time, however, and eventually an opportunity arises where the two animals finally meet. instead of tearing each other to shreds, they sniff each other and attend quite satisfied with the other. The fact that the dogs can succeed where the humans failed goes a long way in explaining the other characters actions.The four commandment characters of McTeague fall short w here two simple-minded canines win. According to Norris, humans are less than animals they are slow-witted beasts barely able to come to grips with their own nature. Instead of pretending they are so high and mighty, Norris forces people to realize that their humanity causes them to fall beneath the animals. The very things humans pride themselves on are their downfall, and the animals are laughing, laughing as humans hunt and kill themselves closer and closer to extinction.

Essay --

The first major battle of the civil war was fought near Bull Run River in Virginia, and was later named the kickoff Battle of Bull Run. The fight was started when General Irvin McDowell planned on marching his Union soldiers into the southern capital, putting an immediate end on the rebellion. Confederate soldiers conduct by General P. G. T. Beauregard met his forces near the Bull Run River. The Confederate forces won the battle with the Union having 2,896 casualties and losses while the Confederacy only had 1,982. This battle pronounced the beginning of the war and put the Confederacy to a good start at winning succeeding battles. After years of the Confederacy winning the volume of the battles came a turning point. The Battle of Gettysburg was fought from July 1 to July 3 in 1863. The battle was fought in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania in an attempt to slop Lees advances into Federal territory. This is one of the first major battles that the Union won. Both sides lost around the sam e amount of soldiers injured or killed. The Union had a total of 23,055 lost while the Confederacy had 23,231. This win has since been marked the turning point of the war and was a huge moral booster for the Union army. After around a year of battling the Union had an idea to split the South in two and fin eachy end this brutal war. This action was named Shermans March after the leader of the campaign, General William T. Sherman. The campaign lasted little over a month starting on November 15, 1864, and ending December 21. Sherman started his march in Atlanta, Georgia and ended on the on the coast in Fort McAllister. The idea behind this tactic was to split the South in half and burning everything in his path, therefore destroying all moral left in the Confedera... ... muskets came the first reliable and maneuverable long-range weapon of the time. The grooves or rifling in the barrel caused the projectile to spin, allowing the bullet to produce increased accuracy instead of just hoping you could hit your target. The earlier muskets were similar to a knuckleball in baseball the lack of spin in a certain direction causes the ball to move around in the air unexpectedly. Because these new rifled muskets could be accurate at a far greater range, the army started to create snipers. These snipers would look for the highest-ranking official they could find on the battlefield and keep working their way down, killing the most important people in hopes of destroying their leadership and creating panic among the other soldiers. Seeing this Gatling gun during the Civil War would have instantly struck fear into any enemy on the battlefield.

Complete Communities and Indulgent Diversities Essays -- Campus Life

Rebekah Nathans Community and Diversity focuses on the changing definition of the word community on college campuses and how that change affects the way students spend their free duration and interact with other students. trance campus directors set up and promote campus life community with good intentions of providing every student with interesting activities and helping first-time students make the reverberate from home-life to college-life, big communities usually only run into out-of-door from the little free time left in the day and make students feel more degage and alone. The demand on students to participate in every campus activity in order to form a healthy campus life community pushes students further away from organized groups and makes forming small, exclusive social networks even more desirable. At the beginning of her essay Community and Diversity, Nathan notes most students only feel a sense of togetherness in three areas age, pop culture, and a handful of (recent) historical events (Nathan 101)areas that do not exactly function as ties that bind. Even as campuses pour more resources and capability into trying to involve students and to create a functioning community, many students instead opt to reserve time for themselves and small groups of friends, forsaking the large, time-restrictive group for networks of individualism, spontaneity, freedom, and choice (Nathan 105). While these egocentric groups often overlap, they rarely have identical matches, as each student creates his or her own network on a basis of propinquity and similar interests. Many of the groups are also either entirely comprised of a single ethnicity or include only one or two persons of dissimilar races. Although the large, organized form of campus... ...s purpose and motivationto provide social structure, to educate, or to merely retain the majority of the freshman class? While a large-scale community can provide students with multiple activities with whic h to fill their days, it simply cannot offer each student much needed personal care and attention. Although Nathan conducts brilliant empirical research in her essay, Community and Diversity, she merely scratches the surface of the situation, reporting on the evidence around her, but not reaching the heart of problem. Students today fill a deeper understanding from other studentsan understanding they cannot have in a large community. Instead of waiting for small-scale university programming to come along, students have to take matters, and their best interests, into their own hands and create small, private networks that cater to their individual needs.

My Cultural Identity Essay -- Cultural Identity Essays

My kitchen-gardening identity, as I know it as is African American. My culture can be seen in food, literature, religion, language, the community, family structure, the individual, euphony, dance, art, and could be summed up as the symbolic level. Symbolic, because faith plays a major role in our daily lives through song, prayer, praise and worship. When Im happy I rely on my faith, same as when Im sad, for I know things will get better as they wealthy person before.There are different disciplines within the humanities, but there is one that I feel that has influenced my cultural identity the mostmusic. I say music because from the start music told my cultures history informed others about deeds or events that had taken place, also, music was and continues to be important in comforting, healing, and during labor. African American music has evolved through various eras and styles the powerful melodic lines and the rhythm (the all-important rhythm) remained prominent and influenti al (Powell, 2007, p.1).One way that Ive celebrated and try to connect with what I know as my culture is to attend Juneteenth Festival of the Carolinas. According to Welcome to Juneteenth, this is an annual four day event celebrated in the month of June at Independence Park, in Charlotte, North Carolina, hosted by Pape Ndiaye, proprietor of the House of Africa located in Charlotte, NC since 1997 (Juneteenth, n.d.). This family event unifies Africans, African-American, and non-African people and is celebrated with drummers, dancers, faith communities, local talent, special guests, and vendors that sell clothing, jewelry, food, books, art, music, furniture, purses, and much more. One may say we already have a day set aside to celebrate freedom. The Junete... ...x.php?option=com_content& scan=article&id=133&Itemid=10Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina (n.d.). Who Are The Lumbee? Retrieved March 7, 2014, from http//www.lumbeetribe.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=135&Ite mid=115Powell, A. (2007). The Music of African Americans and its Impact on the American Culture in the 1960s and the 1970s. Miller African Centered Academy, 1. Retrieved from http//www.chatham.edu/pti/curriculum/units/2007/Powell.pdfMain Section Community Tool Box. (n.d.). Retrieved March 4, 2014, from http//ctb.ku.edu/en/table-of-contents/culture/cultural-competence/culture-and-diversity/mainWelcome to Juneteenth. (n.d.). Retrieved March 7, 2014, from http//www.juneteenthofthecarolinas.com/Whirty, R. (2007, March/April). The Lost Colony of Roanoke. Natives People. Retrieved from http//www.lost-colony.com/magazineNP.html

My Cultural Identity Essay -- Cultural Identity Essays

My culture identity, as I know it as is African American. My culture can be seen in food, literature, religion, language, the community, family structure, the individual, music, dance, art, and could be summed up as the symbolic level. Symbolic, because faith plays a major role in our daily lives through song, prayer, praise and worship. When Im happy I rely on my faith, same as when Im sad, for I know things will get better as they have before.There are different disciplines within the humanities, but there is one that I feel that has influenced my cultural identity the mostmusic. I say music because from the start music told my cultures history informed others about deeds or events that had taken place, also, music was and continues to be important in comforting, healing, and during labor. African American music has evolved through respective(a) eras and styles the powerful melodic lines and the rhythm (the all-important rhythm) remained prominent and influential (Powell, 2007, p.1). unmatchable way that Ive celebrated and tried to connect with what I know as my culture is to attend Juneteenth Festival of the Carolinas. According to Welcome to Juneteenth, this is an annual four day event celebrated in the month of June at Independence Park, in Charlotte, pairing Carolina, hosted by Pape Ndiaye, proprietor of the House of Africa located in Charlotte, NC since 1997 (Juneteenth, n.d.). This family event unifies Africans, African-American, and non-African people and is celebrated with drummers, dancers, faith communities, local talent, special guests, and vendors that sell clothing, jewelry, food, books, art, music, furniture, purses, and much more. One may say we already have a day set aside to celebrate freedom. The Junete... ...x.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=133&Itemid=10Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina (n.d.). Who Are The Lumbee? Retrieved bound 7, 2014, from http//www.lumbeetribe.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=135&Itemid=1 15Powell, A. (2007). The Music of African Americans and its Impact on the American Culture in the 1960s and the 1970s. Miller African Centered Academy, 1. Retrieved from http//www.chatham.edu/pti/curriculum/units/2007/Powell.pdfMain Section Community Tool Box. (n.d.). Retrieved March 4, 2014, from http//ctb.ku.edu/en/table-of-contents/culture/cultural-competence/culture-and-diversity/mainWelcome to Juneteenth. (n.d.). Retrieved March 7, 2014, from http//www.juneteenthofthecarolinas.com/Whirty, R. (2007, March/April). The Lost Colony of Roanoke. Natives People. Retrieved from http//www.lost-colony.com/magazineNP.html

Life cycle assessment of spring mattress Essay

Hendrickson, et al (2006) posits that LCA requires c atomic number 18ful energy and materials balances for all the stages of the life cycle. The life cycle of a spring mattress is made up of more processes. The life cycle or cradle to grave of a spring mattress can be said to consist of the following five stages a) extraction of barren materials (cradle), b) production of materials, c) production of spring mattress, d) use of the spring mattress, e) disposal of the spring mattress (grave).The function of the product system is to evaluate the extraction of the novel materials, the processing of the raw materials, the manufacturing and fabrication of the product, the distribution of the product, and the use of the product by the consumer and the disposal of the product when it is no longer useful. The functional whole. A spring mattress has a clear omission primary function providing a resting or sleeping surface, but there are also other types of mattresses that serve the same pur pose. Life cycle legal opinions usually serve to compare different products that have the same function.The functional whole is a quantitative description of the function of the product. The functional unit is a samara element of LCA which has to be clearly defined. It should be based on the standard use of the product and is the main reason for which the product is bought. The functional unit is the amount of the function of the studied product and it provides a reference to which the inputs and outputs can be related. This makes it possible to compare two different products that serve the same purpose.The functional unit of a spring mattress may be defined as the length of time it stays fit for use. The system boundaries. According to ISO 14041 standards, the system boundaries define the unit process to be included in the system to be modeled. The system boundaries determine which unit Life cycle assessment of spring mattress. processes to be included in the LCA study. Subjecti ve choice is partly used to define system boundaries. For system boundaries of a spring mattress, the following can be considered1) Boundaries amidst the technological system and nature. The life cycle normally begins at the point of extraction of the raw materials (used to manufacture the product) and energy carriers from nature. 2) System boundaries should cover the same candor in all scenarios. 3) Usually, the choice of geographical boundaries is not applicable because system boundaries are related to a function and not a region. 4) Only processes with relevant extractions or emissions will be considered. A screening approach is used to focus only on main contributions.Contributions from the production of capital goods (like trucks, machines) personal related processes (like factory canteens, commuting) and production of materials representing less than 5% of the product mass are not taken into consideration. Impact assessment methodology and interpretation. The aim of impact assessment is to evaluate the significance of potential environmental impacts using the results from the LCI phase. Environmental impacts are quantified as far as possible in an LCA. For this quantification, the classification and characterization methodologies are used.Classification is the assignment of individual inventory parameters to impact categories, e. g. , acidification or green house effect. Characterization is the conversion of LCI units into common units within each impact class with the aid of equivalence factors. In the LCA for a spring mattress, the following environmental impact categories should be considered abiotic recourse depletion (exhaust), greenhouse effect (global warming), human toxicity, acidification, ozone depletion, landscape depletion, pain in the ass and solid waste. In the interpretation phase, conclusions are Life cycle assessment of spring mattress.Reached and recommendations are made in accordance with the defined goal and orbital cavity of th e study. Ciambrone (1997) posits that The environmental lifecycle analysis methodology has leash basic components. These components overlap and build on each other to develop a life cycle analysis. The three components are a) Inventory analysis. b) Impact analysis. c) Improvement analysis. References. Ciambrone, D. 1997. Environmental Life Cycle Analysis. Hendrickson, C et al, 2006. Environmental Life Cycle Assessment of Goods and Services, An Input-Output Approach. ISO 14041 Standards.

Generally Accepted Accounting Principles Essay

11. a. family 0 yr 1 course 2 Year 3 Year 4Before- revenue enhancement immediate payment black market $(500,000) $52,500 $47,500 $35,500 $530,500 valuate cost (7,875) (7,125) (5,325) (4,575)After-tax cash flow 44,625 40,375 30,175 525,925 bank discount constituent (7%) .935 .873 .816 .763 vex prise $(500,000) $41,724 $35,247 $24,623 $401,281NPV $2,875Investor W should make the investment because NPV is positive.b. Year 0 Year 1 Year 2 Year 3 Year 4Before-tax cash flow $(500,000) $52,500 $47,500 $35,500 $530,500 evaluate cost (10,500) (9,500) (7,100) (6,100) After-tax cash flow 42,000 38,000 28,400 524,400 Discount portion (7%) .935 .873 .816 .763Present apprise $(500,000) $39,270 $33,174 $23,174 $400,117NPV $(4,265)Investor W should not make the investment because NPV is negative.c. Year 0 Year 1 Year 2 Year 3 Year 4Before-tax cash flow $(500,000) $52,500 $47,500 $35,500 $530,500 Tax cost (5,250) (4,750) (8,875) (7,625) After-tax cash flow 47,250 42,750 26,625 522,875 Disc ount factor (7%) .935 .873 .816 .763Present value $(500,000) $44,179 $37,321 $21,726 $398,954NPV $2,180Investor W should make the investment because NPV is positive.16. a. Opportunity 1 Year 0 Year 1 Year 2Taxable income (loss) $(8,000) $5,000 $20,000Marginal tax rate .40 .40 .40Tax $(3,200) $2,000 $8,000Before-tax cash flow $(8,000) $5,000 $20,000Tax (cost) or savings 3,200(2,000) (8,000) discharge cash flow $(4,800) $3,000 $12,000Discount factor (12%) .893 .797Present value $(4,800) $2,679 $9,564NPV $7,443Opportunity 2 Year 0 Year 1 Year 2Taxable income $5,000 $5,000 $5,000Marginal tax rate .40 .40 .40Tax $2,000 $2,000 $2,000Before-tax cash flow $5,000 $5,000 $5,000Tax (cost) or savings (2,000) (2,000) (2,000)Net cash flow $3,000 $3,000 $3,000Discount factor (12%) .893 .797Present value $3,050 $2,679 $2,391NPV $8,120Firm E should distinguish opportunity 2.b. Opportunity 1 Year 0 Year 1 Year 2Taxable income (loss) $(8,000) $5,000 $20,000Marginal tax rate .15 .15 .15Tax $(1,200) $7 50 $3,000Before-tax cash flow $(8,000) $5,000 $20,000Tax (cost) or savings 1,200 (750) (3,000)Net cash flow $(6,800) $4,250 $17,000Discount factor (12%) .893 .797Present value $(6,800) $3,795 $13,549NPV $10,544Opportunity 2 Year 0 Year 1 Year 2Taxable income $5,000 $5,000 $5,000Marginal tax rate .15 .15 .15Tax $750 $750 $750Before-tax cash flow $5,000 $5,000 $5,000Tax (cost) or savings (750) (750) (750)Net cash flow $4,250 $4,250 $4,250Discount factor (12%) .893 .797Present value $4,250 $3,795 $3,387NPV $11,432Firm E should choose opportunity 2.c. Opportunity 1 Year 0 Year 1 Year 2Taxable income (loss) $(8,000) $5,000 $20,000Marginal tax rate .40 .15 .15Tax $(3,200) $750 $3,000Before-tax cash flow $(8,000) $5,000 $20,000Tax (cost) or savings 3,200 (750) (3,000)Net cash flow $(4,800) $4,250 $17,000Discount factor (12%) .893 .797Present value $(4,800) $3,795 $13,549NPV $12,544Opportunity 2 Year 0 Year 1 Year 2Taxable income $5,000 $5,000 $5,000Marginal tax rate .40 .15 .15Tax $2,000 $ 750 $750Before-tax cash flow $5,000 $5,000 $5,000Tax (cost) or savings (2,000) (750) (750)Net cash flow $3,000 $4,250 $4,250Discount factor (12%) .893 .797Present value $3,000 $3,795 $3,387NPV $10,182Firm E should choose opportunity 1.1. a. (1) Year 0 Year 1 Year 2Before-tax salary/income $80,000 $80,000 $80,000Marginal tax rate .25 .40 .40Tax on income $20,000 $32,000 $32,000After-tax cash flow $60,000 $48,000 $48,000Discount factor (8%) .926 .857Present value $60,000 $44,448 $41,136NPV of salary stock by Mrs. X $145,584(2) Before-tax payment /deduction $80,000 $80,000 $80,000Marginal tax rate .34 .34 .34Tax savings from deduction $27,200 $27,200 $27,200After-tax cost $(52,800) $(52,800) $(52,800)Discount factor (8%) .926 .857Present value $(52,800) $(48,893) $(45,250)NPV of salary cost to Firm B $(146,943)b. (1) Year 0 Year 1 Year 2Before-tax salary/income $140,000 $50,000 $50,000Marginal tax rate .25 .40 .40Tax on income $35,000 $20,000 $20,000After-tax cash flow $105,000 $30,000 $30,000Discount factor (8%) .926 .857Present value $105,000 $27,780 $25,710NPV of salary received by Mrs. X $158,490(2) Before-tax payment /deduction $140,000 $50,000 $50,000Marginal tax rate .34 .34 .34Tax savings from deduction $47,600 $17,000 $17,000After-tax cost $(92,400) $(33,000) $(33,000)Discount factor (8%) .926 .857Present value $(92,400) $(30,558) $(28,281)NPV of salary cost to Firm B $(151,239)c. Year 0 Year 1 Year 2Before-tax payment /deduction $140,000 $45,000 $45,000Marginal tax rate .34 .34 .34Tax savings from deduction $47,600 $15,300 $15,300After-tax cost $(92,400) $(29,700) $(29,700)Discount factor (8%) .926 .857Present value $(92,400) $(27,502) $(25,423)NPV of salary cost to Firm B $(145,325)This proposal is superior (has less cost) to Firm B than its original offer.d. Year 0 Year 1 Year 2Before-tax salary/income $140,000 $45,000 $45,000Marginal tax rate .25 .40 .40Tax on income $35,000 $18,000 $18,000After-tax cash flow $105,000 $27,000 $27,000Discount factor ( 8%) .926 .857Present value $105,000 $25,002 $23,139NPV of salary received by Mrs. X $153,141Mrs. X should accept this counterproposal because it hasa greater NPV than Firm Bs original offer.

Feminism Ophelia Hamlet

Aphelions struggles in the patriarchal society in which she lives and the loss of her identity as a whole, by not lone(prenominal) her father, but other authorial males in her life. Through go forth the beginning of the play, Aphelia, is used as somewhat of a pawn by either the male figures in her life, emotionally, physically, and even for sheer politics.Her lack of a mother figure and severe dependence on her father and brother, as well as other males, has literally taken away who she really is, her opportunity to make and act on her own decisions. Aphelia is treated by her father as if she is not only his daughter, but his possession. When Aphelia first speaks to her father ab come on Hamlet, he states l do not know, my lord, what I should think, (1. 2). Polonium responds in an authoritative way, basically attesting himself as the decision maker. When he states You do not understand yourself so gather inly.. (l . 3), he attacks her competence to handle herself. He goes on to sa y As it behooves my daughter and your celebrate(l . 3), making it clear that it would be in her best interest to behave according to the set standards and how she acts and presents herself, reflects onto him as her father and as a member of the kings court. It is clear he doesnt care for Hamlet and ants his daughter to have nothing to do with him, convincing her that she is nothing to him.. But, after hearing more close to Hamlet acted towards her by grabbing her and just staring into her, he takes full advantage of the situation and instructs his daughter to behave according to his best interests, to get closer to the king, Claudia.Aphelia, living in a male dominated world, has over the years, lost herself as a person, as a woman, doing things that she wouldnt normally do, such as be a part of her fathers blueprint to expose Hamlets reason for his madness. During the time when the play was written, women were marginalia, often dewed as property, even with fathers and daughters. In that society a woman would be required to be a dutiful daughter, wife, and mother, and dare not stray away from those approved roles that were placed upon them. Aphelia, growing up always universe the dutiful daughter, obeys her fathers wishes and follows through with the plan.The pitfalls to being a dutiful daughter, in her case, is that she lost the one man that made her happy, her lover, not only says horrid remarks to her, but breaks her down, and any little bit of reality she had was lost forever. The hazards of being a dutiful daughter/mother/wife, are always present. There is the immediate consequences, then there are the ones that over time, as her character screams out to the audience, being oneself becomes obsolete. Her brother, Alerter, who is qualifying back to France, also advises his sister to keep away from Hamlet.Expressing that Hamlet being a prince, would marry for the good of the state and due to the differences in class, Hamlet would not marry Aphelia. Ale rter also believes that Hamlet cares for her but loves her only for sexual need. Forward, not permanent, sweet, not lasting. (1. 3). Unfortunately, exposing another role a woman would award in a patriarchal society, sexual roles. He is also concerned with her good name and family reputation, possibly implying that she could get pregnant and he would leave her, consequently putting herself in a unacceptable role of a woman a woman with a past, forever branding her and the family name.Hamlet plays on her emotional strings. He has expressed his love for her and has given her gifts. The sudden death of his father and finding out the reasons behind his death, as well as the disgust of his mother marrying so quickly afterwards, molds Hamlet too man he has never been before untrusting, and very paranoid about others close to him, and for very good reason. He took out his anger with his mother on all who loved him. His only life line was Aphelia, the only one he thought of as true, or s eek to make himself believe that she was, by grabbing her and observing her closely, as if he could see right through her.After her ultimate betrayal, by setting him up and lying to him about where her father was, she, cut off his life line. By doing so, he insults her, tells her that he loved her once, and belittles her to no end, until she is ambushed by so many emotions, that she is left in add confusion and heartbreak. With her brother in France, Hamlet rejecting their relationship, Aphelia finds out ere father has been killed by Hamlet. She in a sense, is left alone, and cannot handle herself, without the direction of her father , brother and Hamlet.At this signify its clear, Aphelia has gone totally mad, Speaking very little, and if anything it is about her deceased father in chants and song. Now with the males in her life are gone, she has served her purpose in the story. She starts going down a downward spiral and shortly thereafter, she commits suicide, or at least it was implied that she did, by drowning. In conclusion, although a small, seemingly insignificant character, Aphelia, not only provides the reader to the philanthropic ideals and patriarchal attitudes towards women.But also serves to be somewhat like a mirror to the audience, one by one, reflecting the characters true self/intentions. Maybe being her ONLY purpose in the story to unveil her co-characters motive and who they really are in general. Polonium, her father, uses his daughter as some sort for property, for political stimulate and interest. Her brother, Alerter, again uses her for political reasons, somewhat, and to protect his name, uses her for the sake of his pride, and introduces sex, as Hamlets true goal with Aphelia.Then Hamlet himself, takes her on a reallocates of love/hate and confusion, labeling her as untrustworthy and corrupt, he destroys her emotional being, rendering her completely helpless and incompetent to handle life on her own. This view was the norm at the ti me, that many men saw as being true, that a woman will be nothing without a man but also fail to realize that without women men would hardly be anything as well, they need women, as shown in the play, to succeed in their own personal goals, whether financial, political or other. 1180

Relate the Short Story to Any of Your Personal Experiences? Essay

Im writing this article because I get a fair dispense of e-mails from people asking about winning the lottery via subtle realm methods, i. e. , astral sound projection. I person all(prenominal)y fetch used astral projection to instruct the daily lottery so I know its possible. As for if you be for or against it, thats no concern of mine. I dont judge why a person wants it for thats none of my business. I believe our universe is abundant and poverty is a man-made state. What you do with your coin is also your business.I save my judgments for myself only. This ability isnt also just reserved for astral projectors. I personally know of three other women who have seen via dreams 5 of the 6 numbers who played them and won. I think women have a slightly easier time of it due to social programming but we are all of the same make-up ultimately so its doable by any sex. Over and over I tell people that all the human shell (body) is, is a filter. All knowledge is out there and we only pi ck up bits of it because of our filter.Lessen the density of the filter and youll receive more(prenominal) data. Its as easy as that. Leave your body and youve taken a huge leap towards removing the filter but even the astral is a filter, though a much finer one than the physical. So you toilet help get through this filter either through astral projection (often these APs are disguised as dreams), hypnosis, remote viewing or really getting connected to the higher self. Its similar to the three Bs of inspiration or insight (bed, bath, bus).The ego has to be set aside, the mind is quiet and receptive, and the data is then allowed to pass through. There are other things we can do to lessen our density think very high thoughts (love resonates the highest), eat no meat, refrain from things like drinking too much, smoking and other things that clog dancing up the chakras and ultimately the aura. When I fast for awhile, I feel as light as a feather and I pick up a much broader frequency range of psychic data. If you want to win the lottery, develop a plan. Ill try and help if I can.

Open Religion Exam Review

What problem does global free trade cause? pardon common good. the 3 essential elements for common good. What is kindly justice? 7 themes of Catholic Social teaching. What each theme teaches Explain globalization How much(prenominal) of the total world income do countries like Canada receive? How much of the total world income do the poorest people in developing countries receive? How has globalization become a nightmare for poor countries? Explain how globalization could terzetto to justice.Who is Craig Eagleburger. What field of studys does he care about? Who has he helped? How has he helped them? Inside Your Threads. What are the issues raised. How are these situations unjust? What could be done to bring justice to these situations? Who is Ryan Hershel? What issue does he care about? Who has he helped? How has he helped? Why are relationships important? Define intimacy. Briefly explain the 5 levels of intimacy Describe the stages Of the family carriage cycle. What Stage is your family in?What are the types of families? Describe the moral decision making model What are values? Describe standards for judging values Define or explain sex, sexuality, sexual orientation, heterosexual orientation, nonsexual orientation, abstinence, celibacy, chastity What are SST Is list bacteria caused SST Is treatment list virus caused Stir treatment 2 reasons why the Catholic Church calls for abstinence from sexual intercourse outside marriage What is Natural Family Planning (NAP)?What does it mean to be Catholic in todays society? Movies we watched this semester authority of One Stolen Summer Dan in Real Life Junk Ryans Well It Take a Child Inside Your Threads pay it Forward Explain how each movie connects to a theme or topic discussed in class this semester.

Problems in Setting Up and Running a Business Unit Essay

A business unit, sometimes called a strategic business unit or SBU, is a segmented group or department in spite of appearance a ships company that focuses on reaching a specific market or client. It may also focus on achieving a specific intent for the organization. While some businesses find success with this strategy, there are concerns and potential problems to consider before trying it at your company.FinancesIn business, notes is unremarkably a problem. It can be good to make money, but when you are only when getting started with a business, it can be easy to lose money quickly. Before you start your business, develop a comprehensive list of the things you will need to finance and how much money you will need to make it happen. plow your business with otherwises who have experience to try to cover as many costs as you can. When you have developed your startup budget, add 20 share to it to cover the costs that you have not yet accounted for. When it comes to financing a startup, it is better to plan for more than than you will need than to find yourself deep in debt right away.EmployeesYour employees can be your greatest asset and your greatest expense. It costs money to hire, train and retain employees. Your company needs to provide some miscellanea of benefits package that includes health insurance, paid vacation days and paid sick days to attract and retain employees, and even wherefore, you will have competition from other companies that may be able to offer better. As you delegate responsibilities to your employees, you begin to rely on them for your companys success. A key employee leaving your company can have an effect similar to losing a major account.SpaceIt is common for a new business owner to try to keep his military position and warehousing costs down. When your company first starts out, a microscopicer and affordable space may be adequate. As your company grows, you will need more space, and you may realize that the facility y ou signed the one-year lease for is no longer sufficient. Have a backup plan available for warehousing just in case you outgrow your current warehouse. Offer sales employees the option of telecommuting to reduce the amount of office space you need. Become creative with your space, or you may find yourself spending money to remedy a space problem to which you are contractually bound for years.Problems Meshing IdeasWhen you segment your company in this way, you may find it becomes more difficult to get units to combine and work together. Though the separate units have different purposes, there may come a time when they need to convene in order to accomplish a goal for the organization. If your employees become too familiar with working in segmented groups, they may have problems working on joint projects with other units.ExpensiveEstablishing business units can also be expensive. For one, you may have to seduce separate corporeal departments within the company. You may also need to create separate websites, mailing addresses and, in some cases, entirely new sub-organizations to properly establish these units. Finding a balance between efficiency and cost when primary(prenominal)taining these units can be challenging.Time-ConsumingSetting up and running business units is also time-consuming. When you establish one, you must create a separate mission statement, budget, marketing plan and general business proposal. You must also set up technology and tools to support the department. You must then evaluate the functionality of the department before repeating the process with another business unit. If you decide to start all of your units at the same time and then pick up that the engineerula isnt working, youll also spend a significant amount of time dismantling or updating all of them.Social Responsibility dispirited businesses can encounter several problems related to Corporate social responsibility due to characteristics inherent in their construction. Owne rs of small businesses often participate heavily in the day-to-day operations of their companies. This results in a lack of time for the owner to coordinate socially responsible efforts.9 Additionally, a small business owners expertise often falls outside the realm of socially responsible practices contributing to a lack of participation. Small businesses also face a form of peer pressure from larger forces in their respective industries making it difficult to oppose and work against industry expectations.9 Furthermore, small businesses undergo stress from shareholder expectations. Because small businesses have more personal relationships with their patrons and local shareholders they must also be prepared to withstand closer scrutiny if they want to share in the benefits of committing to socially responsible practices or not.9Job QualityWhile small businesses employ over half the workforce 10 and have been established as a main driving force behind job creation 11 the quality of th e jobs these businesses create has been called into question. Small businesses generally employ individuals from the Secondary labor market. As a result, in the U.S. wages are 49% higher for employees of large firms.11 Additionally, many small businesses struggle or are unable to provide employees with benefits they would be given at larger firms. Research from the U.S. Small Business Administration indicates that employees of large firms are 17% more likely to receive benefits including salary, paid leave, paid holidays, bonuses, insurance, and retirement plans.12 some(prenominal) lower wages and fewer benefits combine to create a job turnover rate among U.S. small businesses that is 3 times higher than large firms.11 Employees of small businesses also must adapt to the higher failure rate of small firms. In the U.S. 69% last at least 2 years, but this dowry drops to 51% for firms reaching 5 years in operation.10 he U.S. Small Business Administration counts companies with as much as $35.5 million in sales and 1,500 employees, depending on the industry. Outside government, companies with less than $7 million in sales and fewer than 500 employees are widely considered small businesses.

Human †Religion Essay

I really have to give credit for my religion & beliefs for my search on the substance of life. Im a fully baptized Catholic, and a part of entireions Church. 17 years of being a Catholic and in search of the meaning of life, I have always thought it is or so the Call to Holiness.My religion taught me that being a part of Gods Church is no accident, but because God wanted to share in His own blessed life, and in doing so He wanted me to desire & serve Him freely by following His will. And by following his will, God will grant me eternal happiness which will lead to my salvation.All Catholics knew that God sent His son, Jesus, to set an example for us. Jesus showed the perfect example & answered the call to Holiness. He showed us that we should love our neighbors as God showed His love for us and that is what the Call to Holiness is. In search for the true meaning of life, it will hire plenty of years, but for now I plan to stick with what my religion has taught me.Carl RogersCarl Rogers emphasized & focused on self-actualization. He believed that a person should develop his/her potential to the fullest, and in good condition. In doing so, the environment of a person should be inherently good. A person will only cut off developing if constraints block the development. A fully developed person shows that he/she achieved the highest level of being a right & fully-functioning human being. Mahatma Gandhi.Mahatma Gandhi, which means great soul, was an ideologist during the Independent movement of India from the British. As an ideological leader he believed violence should never be an answer to fight for his peoples rights, and should never take discrimination. He also believed that harmony, truth & equality exists between all religions.With these 2 influential personas, I have noticed similarities between them. They both talk about human beings having a common good inside of them. They emphasized that all humans were born good, but because of destructiveenviron ment, they tend to turn their backs on what is right. Sources http//www.simplypsychology.org/carl-rogers.html.http//www.ask.com/ header/what-were-gandhi-s-beliefs.

Marks & Spencer Group Anaylsis

conjunction PROFILE attach and Spencer radical plc REFERENCE CODE DFE67A38-E021-448F-BC58-3944E618713F PUBLICATION DATE 12 May 2012 www. marketplaceplaceline. com right of premier publication MARKETLINE. THIS CONTENT IS A LICENSED PRODUCT AND IS NOT TO BE PHOTOCOPIED OR DISTRIBUTED. mark and Spencer theme plc table OF CONTENTS TABLE OF CONTENTS Company Overview. 3 secernate Facts Business Description. 4 Histor y. 5 Key Employees.. 9 Key Employee Biographies.. 10 Major harvest-festivals and utility(prenominal)s. 6 Revenue comp repealium.. 17 bone up abridgment 18 Top Competitors . 25 Company View.. 26 Locations and Subsidiaries. 29tag and Spencer sort out plc MarketLine varlet 2 tag and Spencer al-Qaida plc Company Overview COMPANY OVER spatial relation tag and Spencer chemical group (M&S or the order) is sensationness of the leading retailers of array, foods and familyw argon in the UK. The companion operates in to a greater extent than 40 countries across E urope, the shopping centre East, and Asia. It is headquar tered in London, the UK and employs 78,169 people. The play along recorded revenues of ? 9,740. 3 billion ( more or less $15,158. 8 one thousand thousand) in the financial year end April 2011 (FY2011)*, an adjoin of 2. 1% of all(a) metreyplace FY2010. The operating profit of M&S was ? 836. cardinal (approximately $1,302. 5 one one million million million million million) in FY2011, a decrease of 1. 8% comp atomic number 18d to FY2010. The net profit was ? 612 million (approximately $952. 5 million) in FY2011, an enlarge of 16. 3% oer FY2010. *The financial year ended April 2, 2011 was a 52-week stoppage whereas the financial year ended April 3, 2010 was a 53-week period. KEY FACTS liberty chit Office mark and Spencer pigeonholing plc Waterside House 35 Nor th Wharf highschoolway London W2 1NW GBR Phone 44 20 7935 4422 Fax Web Address http//www. marksandspencer. com Revenue / turnover 9,740. 3 (GBP Mn) Finan cial Year End April Employees 78,169 London TickerMKS tag and Spencer base plc MarketLine foliate 3 attach and Spencer Group plc Business Description BUSINESS DESCRIPTION M&S is the holding conjunction of the tag & Spencer Group of companies. The fraternity is one of the UKs leading retailers, with to a greater extent than than(prenominal) than 21 million people visiting its bloodlines to each one(prenominal) week. M&S offers clo function and home intersection points, as tumesce as foods, sourced from about 2,000 suppliers globally. It operates by both(prenominal) wholly owned depots and franchise stores. As of FY2011, the familiarity operated 703 stores in the UK. M&S operates over 361 owned and franchised stores in over 42 territories.Though the order primarily repor ts its revenues in terms of geographic shares (UK and supranational), its operations sewer be categorized set ashorestairs both divisions food and ecumenical intersection. The food division concentrates on quartet main areas fresh, natural, healthy food modified celebration products authentic ready meal ranges and debarional ever so yday food such as Oakham chicken. It operates a filament of 163 tho when provender owned stores and 202 evidently nutrition franchise stores in high streets, motorway utility stations, railway stations and air por ts in the UK.The general merchandise division of the attach to is categorized into two segments clothing and home. The clothing segment offers womens wear, mens wear, lingerie, childrens wear, and accessories and footwear. any(prenominal) of the prominent betrays offered by this segment include Autograph, especial(a) Collection, Collezione, Blue think of, Girls Boutique, Per Una, Ceriso, love, and Truly you. The home segment offers homeware and home accessories, kitchen and tableware, lighting, and furniture products. In addition to selling products through regular stores, the segment in addition offers catalog ue run.M offers its products and services online as well as through flagship stores, high street stores, retail park stores, M outlets, hardly Food stores, and plain Food franchised stores. label and Spencer Group plc MarketLine rogue 4 tag and Spencer Group plc account HISTORY M was founded in 1884 as a stall in an open market in Leeds, the UK. Then known as tag Penny Bazaar, it was the household goods, haberdasher y, toy, and sheet-music backup of Michael mark, a Jewish refugee from Poland. In 1894, he took Thomas Spencer as a tune par tner.In 1903, M&S was registered as a private limited friendship. Although a clothing determination depar tment had first been set up in 1938, it was non until by and by the Second World War that it became fully developed under a leading designer. In 1973, the beau monde entered Canada, and bought Peoples Depar tment retentivenesss and DAllairds, a national womens wear retailer, both of which it later sold. The company excessively had direct sell investings in Canada. It tried to blend south of the border in 1988 with the purchase of let Brothers, just now the US operation never took off as the company had hoped.Five franchised stores were closed down in Turkey in 1999 when the franchise par tner Turk Petrol Holding couldnt meet its bank obligations and collapsed. Later in the year, attach and Spencer Canada, after 25 historic period of course, closed its 38 stores. The company sold its US clothing bowed stringed instrument Brooks Brothers for $225 million in 2001. In 2003, M&S de none the launch of its &more credit card. alongside this, attach & Spencer Financial Services was re- mark Marks & Spencer Money. In 2004, M&S completed the sale of Marks & Spencer Retail Financial Services Holdings (M&S Money) to HSBC.During the course of 2005, the company opened 31 Simply Food stores as well as closed the Lifestore project in the UK. M&S expand the Simply Food format with the acquisition of 28 stores on a leasehold basis from Iceland Foods for a consideration of ? 38 million (approximately $76. 3 million) in 2006. In the self said(prenominal)(prenominal) year, M&S sold Kings Super Markets, its yet non-M&S brand business to a US investor group consisting of Angelo, Gordon & Co, MTN Capital Par tners and Mr. Bruce Weitz for $61. 5 million in cash.In 2007, M&S and two of its long-term suppliers decided to champ t the development of M&S first eco-factories, pioneering innovative methods of sustainable manufacturing. One factor y in Sri Lanka would make lingerie and two factories in Nor th Wales would manufacture furniture upholster y. In the same year, the company launched its own branded LCD widescreen TVs. This range was in addition to the existing collection of Sony TVs currently available at M. hide ther in the year, M launched school wear do from recycled p refinementic bottles.The companys first standalone home store in Lisburn, Nor thern Ireland was launched in 2007. In the same year, M&S launched Big & Tall, an exclusive online mens wear oblation more than 450 items online ranging from tailoring to knitwear to casual shir ts and trousers. Also in 2007, M reduced arrant(a) fat halt aim as much as 82% in more than 500 companys products. The company reduced saturated fat levels in products including sandwiches, ready meals, crisps and savor y snacks. Marks and Spencer Group plc MarketLine Page 5 Marks and Spencer Group plc HistoryTowards the end of 2007, a sweet do to Measure shir ts ser vice was launched by M&S, which allowed customers to design a tailor-made shir t within 21 days. The company added impertinently products to its mens wear por tfolio in FY2008. M as well as launched climate control underwear featuring temperature regulating technology developed by NASA, grow Collezione brand collection by introducing new shoes, wool and cashmere mix trousers. M reinvigorated its Blue Harbour brand to soak up 35 to 44 year old men. Also in FY2008, the company star ted to detachedze its ready meals for international sale and launched a range of 70 lines in eight countries.Later, the company also launched a 25-piece capsule collection called GD25 from Per Una. In 2008, M removed ar tificial colors and flavorings from its completed food and soft drinks range. In the same year, the company improved the quantity of s gradation in a number of major out of towns and city centre stores through store extensions and also added 35 stores to its Simply Food por tfolio, including 25 BP franchised stores. A new flagship store in new Westfield Centre at fair City, West London was opened at the end of 2008.To fur ther progress in Asian markets, the company opened its first 38,000 jog feet store in Shanghai. M then entered into a par tnership with sparing and Southern Energy, as per which M Energy would supply electricity and gas to domestic customers and reward them with M store vouchers for helping the environment by reducing their energy usage. M announced projects to close 10 of its Simply Food stores in 2009. The company opened Food to Go outlets in Hong Kong in the same year. Also in 2009, M announced plans to enter new categories in the Indian market, with the launch of baggage and footwear for men.The company introduced a Ramadan and Eid fashion collection in all the 13 stores throughout the pump East in the UAE, Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait and Oman in 2009. fur ther in the year, M launched ainized greetings card business online. The company also announced to open its second mainland store in Guangzhou, the capital of Guangdong province in southern China. M also launched a beer and cider range to complement its wine selection. M launched a revamped version of its website in 2009, the first major update since 2007.Fur thermore, in 2009, the company began to offer its online international lay off y service to 73 more countries as par t of a drive to break annual gross revenue of M Direct. The compan y began its offering within the homeware sector in 2009. M announced plans to open a store in Marbella, Spain by the end of 2009. In the same year, M and India-based belief Retail planned to open approximately 50 stores in India in the next five historic period under the banner of their joint venture company Marks & Spencer faith India. Later in the year, the company outlined plans to cut be by ? 50 million (about $150 million) by optimizing its supply chain and IT systems. M also announced plans to open a new store at the Swords Pavilions shopping place in the Dublin Airpor t, Ireland, in 2009. The company opened its new 22,000 square feet store at Morpeths Sanderson colonnade in the same year. M&S decided to launch Simply Food in horse opera Europe. Fur ther in 2009, the company announced plans to sell a selected range of around 400 branded grocery and household products in all of its UK stores, following a 16-month trial in its stores in the Nor th East and South East of E ngland.In 2010, M&S launched a new kin Energy Service division that would offer customers a suite of energy efficiency products and services. Building on the success of M&S Energy, which was servicing Marks and Spencer Group plc MarketLine Page 6 Marks and Spencer Group plc History over 125,000 homes, the company would roll-out a number of new products including bespoke energy advice, renewable energy solutions such as solar panels and heat pumps, and energy efficient heating solutions.In the same year, M&S announced a program to be the worlds al near sustainable retailer by 2015, launching 80 major new truenesss under M eco and ethical plan, think A. The new commitments allow mean that the company ensures all M&S products become Plan A products with at least one sustainable prime(prenominal). This program will also enable the companys 2,000 suppliers to adopt Plan A best practice and encourage M customers and employees to live greener lifestyles. Fur ther in 2010, M launched a new version of www. marksandspencer. om knowing specifically for use on unsettled phones and mobile devicesthe first mobile site from a major UK high street retailer. Through this, the company aims to expand its multi-channel offering. During the same year, M launched England Football team up suit exclusively in M stores, to take advantage of the football World cup expense. The company opened its new 1. 1 million square feet distri notwithstandingion centre at ProLogis Park Bradford in the UK in 2010. This warehouse in the UK will make heed all the companys stores with furniture products and store equipment.Later in 2010, M&S launched a range of solar PV and Solar Thermal water heating solutions. Fur thering the sustainability initiatives, the company also announced that it will use polyester made from recycled PET drinks bottles instead of virgin polymer to make more than 300 million clothing care labels a year. Towards the end of 2010, M&S announced plans to move into rail distribution to reduce its vitamin C footprint. more(prenominal) than 300,000 general merchandise products per week would move from road to rail distribution. The company also opened a new shopping center in Vilnius, Lithuania at the end of year.In April 2011, M&S opened its greenest ever store at Ecclesall Road in Sheffield. This is the first store of a number of new sustainable Learning stores planned by the company as par t of its drive to become the worlds most sustainable major retailer by 2015. The company opened 20 stores in the UK during FY2011, including 17 Simply Foods. In international, M opened 49 new stores and closed 15 stores. During the same period, the company entered the Egyptian market with a 28,000 square feet store in the Dandy Mega Mall in Cairo.The company, in July 2011, launched a new iPad application for its investors. This application will provide investors with latest M financial news. In the following month, M signed a traceability deal with Historic F utures. As per the deal, Historic Futures will provide the company full traceability on ever y single clothing and home product it sells. M is the first major retailer to commit to full traceability for non-food products. In September 2011, M opened a new store at Westfield, Stratford City with the latest Only at Your M innovations and customer experiences.In the following month, M&S launched its new French website, http//www. marksandspencer. fr/, marking its first international transactional website. Marks and Spencer Group plc MarketLine Page 7 Marks and Spencer Group plc History The company, in November 2011, opened its new flagship store at 100 passageway des Champs-elysees in Paris. M&S, in February 2012, launched its outlet format on its website at www. marksandspencer. com/outlet. M&S Outlet will permanently offer a selection of more than 1,300 quality M&S clothing products with up to 40% off the regular high street and online prices.In the same month, the company recalled intravenous feeding products (Crispy Prawn Wonton, Crispy Vegetable Balls, Prawn Baguette Toast, and Prawn Siu Mai Selection) from its Chinese range imputable to drift in use by date. In March 2012, the company, announced plans to launch a new website for its Irish customers, http//www. marksandspencer. ie/. In April 2012, M&S announced that it will accept secondhand clothes at UK outlets in order to recycle into other fabrics or reuse overseas by the Oxfam charity in an aim to cut waste. Marks and Spencer Group plc MarketLine Page 8 Marks and Spencer Group plcKey Employees KEY EMPLOYEES resolve out byplay form of address advance Marc Bolland question executive director director director Officer administrator mesa 975000 GBP Alan Stewar t header finance Officer executive gameboard 550000 GBP Kate Bo memory administrator film director, General trade executive Board 590000 GBP tin Dixon executive theatre director, Food executive director Board 540000 GBP Steven S harp executive director theater director, Marketing decision maker Board 655000 GBP Laura Wade-Gery Executive coach, Multi-channel E-commerce Executive Board Amanda Mellor Group Secretar y and Head of Corporate Governance Executive Board Rober t Swannell moderate of the BoardNon Executive Board Vindi Banga conductor Non Executive Board Miranda Cur tis conductor Non Executive Board Jeremy Darroch managing director Non Executive Board 85000 GBP Steven Holliday Director Non Executive Board 85000 GBP Mar tha Lane Fox Director Non Executive Board 70000 GBP Jan du Plessis Director Non Executive Board 70000 GBP Clem Constantine Director, Proper ty superior Management Tanith manipulate Director, piece Resources cured Management Dominic Fr y Director, communication theory and Investor Relations major(postnominal) Management Jan Heere Director, International sr. Management Nayna McIntoshDirector, Store Marketing and objective Senior Management Steve Rowe Director, Retail Senior Management Darrell stein Director, Information applied science and Logistics Senior Management Marks and Spencer Group plc MarketLine Compensation 450000 GBP Page 9 Marks and Spencer Group plc Key Employee Biographies KEY EMPLOYEE BIOGRAPHIES Marc Bolland Board Executive Board Job Title Chief Executive Officer Since 2010 Mr. Bolland has been the Chief Executive Officer at Marks and Spencer Group since 2010. Previously, he was the Chief Executive Officer at Morrisons Supermarkets from 2006 to 2010.Prior to this, Mr. Bolland worked at Heineken for 20 years in various management roles, including Executive Board member and Chief Operating Officer, and responsibility for operations and business development in the US, France, Italy, Spain, the Caribbean and Latin America. He also ser ves as a Director at Manpower. Alan Stewart Board Executive Board Job Title Chief Finance Officer Since 2010 Mr. Stewar t has been the Chief Finance Officer at Marks and Spencer Group since 2010. Before jo ining the company, he was the Chief Financial Officer at AWAS, an aircraft leasing company. Mr.Stewar t spent 10 years at HSBC Investment Bank before joining Thomas Cook in 1996, where he held various aged(a) roles, including Chief Executive at Thomas Cook UK. Mr. Stewar t conjugated WH smith in 2005 as Group Finance Director. He also ser ved as a Non Executive Director at Games Workshop Group. Kate Bostock Board Executive Board Job Title Executive Director, General Merchandise Ms. Bostock is the Executive Director of General Merchandise at Marks and Spencer Group. She joined the company in 2004. Previously, Ms. Bostock was the Product Director for Childrenswear at Next from 1994.She also ser ved as the Product Director for the George brand covering all areas of clothing and footwear at Asda. John Dixon Board Executive Board Job Title Executive Director, Food Marks and Spencer Group plc MarketLine Page 10 Marks and Spencer Group plc Key Employee Biographies Since 2009 Mr. Dixon has been the Executive Director of Food at Marks and Spencer Group since 2009. He joined the company as a Store Management Trainee. Mr. Dixon held various senior roles at the company for over 20 years, including Executive Assistant, Chief Executive, and Director of Home and M&S Direct.Steven Sharp Board Executive Board Job Title Executive Director, Marketing Mr. Sharp is the Executive Director of Marketing at Marks and Spencer Group. He joined the company in 2004. Previously, Mr. Shar p served as the Marketing Director at Asda, the Bur ton Group, Booker, and Arcadia Group. Currently, he is a Non Executive Director at Adnams. Laura Wade-Gery Board Executive Board Job Title Executive Director, Multi-channel E-commerce Since 2011 Ms. Wade-Gery has been the Executive Director of Multi-channel E-commerce at Marks and Spencer Group since 2011.Prior to this, she worked at Tesco and held a variety of senior roles, including Chief Executive Officer of Tesco. com and Tesco Direct. Ms. Wade-Ge r y also held various roles at Gemini Consulting and Kleinwor t Benson. She has also been a Non Executive Director at Trinity Mirror since 2006. Amanda Mellor Board Executive Board Job Title Group Secretary and Head of Corporate Governance Ms. Mellor is the Group Secretary and Head of Cor porate Governance at Marks and Spencer Group. She joined the company in 2004 as the Head of Investor Relations. Ms.Mellor spent her early locomote in investment management at James Capel before becoming a Director within its Corporate Finance team. She then served at Rober t Fleming, Investment Banking prior to joining The Bur ton Group as the Director of Cor porate Relations and Investor Relations. Robert Swannell Board Non Executive Board Job Title Chairman of the Board Marks and Spencer Group plc MarketLine Page 11 Marks and Spencer Group plc Key Employee Biographies Since 2011 Mr. Swannell has been the Chairman of the Board at Marks and Spencer Group since 2011.He joined the company in 2010 as a Non Executive Director. Prior to this, Mr. Swannell was a Senior Independent Director at The British Land Company, and 3i Group. He spent over 30 years in investment banking at Schroders/Citigroup. Mr. Swannell was previously the Vice Chairman at Citi Europe and Co-Chairman at Citis European Investment Bank. Vindi Banga Board Non Executive Board Job Title Director Since 2011 Mr. Banga has been a Director at Marks and Spencer Group since 2011. He is currently a Par tner at Clayton Dubilier & Rice, a private candor investment firm. Prior to this, Mr.Banga spent 33 years at Unilever, where he held several senior positions, including president of the Global Foods, Home and Personal Care businesses, and was a member of the Unilever Executive Board. He also serves as a Non Executive Director at Thomson Reuters and Maruti Suzuki India. Miranda Curtis Board Non Executive Board Job Title Director Since 2012 Ms. Cur tis has been a Director at Marks and Spencer Group since February 201 2. She is currently the Chairman at Waterstones, and a Non Executive Director at Liber ty Global. Ms. Cur tis has also been a Non Executive Director at subject field Express Group since 2008.She also serves on the Boards of the Institute for Government, the Royal Shakespeare Company, and Camfed (the leading African girls education charity). Jeremy Darroch Board Non Executive Board Job Title Director Since 2006 Mr. Darroch has been a Director at Marks and Spencer Group since 2006. He also ser ves as the Chief Executive at British Sky Broadcasting. Previously, Mr. Darroch ser ved as the Chief Financial Officer at British Sky Broadcasting. Prior to this, he was the Group Finance Director and Retail Finance Director at Dixons Retail (formerly DSG International). Marks and Spencer Group plc MarketLine Page 12 Marks and Spencer Group plc Key Employee Biographies Steven Holliday Board Non Executive Board Job Title Director Since 2004 Mr. Holliday has been a Director at Marks and Spencer G roup since 2004. He is the Group Chief Executive Officer at issue Grid. Prior to that, Mr. Holliday served as the Director of UK and Europe and was responsible for the UK Electricity and Gas businesses. He is also the Chairman of the UK Business Council for Sustainable Energy. Prior to joining National Grid, Mr. Holliday was an Executive Director at British Borneo oil and Gas.Previously, he held several senior positions at Exxon Group. Martha Lane Fox Board Non Executive Board Job Title Director Since 2007 Ms. Fox has been a Director at Marks and Spencer Group since 2007. She is the UKs digital Champion, the Chairman of Race Online 2012, and a Non Executive Director at Channel 4 Television. Ms. Fox is male parent and Chairman of Lucky Voice, and of her own grant-giving foundation, Antigone. She was co-founder of lastminute. com. Jan du Plessis Board Non Executive Board Job Title Director Since 2008 Mr. du Plessis has been a Director at Marks and Spencer Group since 2008.He is the Chairman at Rio Tinto. Previously, Mr. du Plessis was the Chairman at British American Tobacco and a Non Executive Director at Lloyds Banking Group. He also ser ved as the Chairman at RHM from 2005 to 2007. Mr. du Plessis was previously the Group Finance Director at Richemont, a position he held until 2004. Clem Constantine Board Senior Management Job Title Director, Proper ty Mr. Constantine is the Director, Proper ty at Marks and Spencer Group. He joined the company in 2006. Mr. Constantine was appointed the Group Proper ty and Retail Planning Director at Arcadia Group in 1999.He was appointed to his first finance directorship in 1993, for the IS brand at the Marks and Spencer Group plc MarketLine Page 13 Marks and Spencer Group plc Key Employee Biographies Bur ton Group, and moved through several other finance directorships with variable responsibilities including systems and retail. Mr. Constantine was trained as a Char tered Accountant at Stoy Hayward, and joined Debenhams in 1989 as a Financial Analyst. Tanith Dodge Board Senior Management Job Title Director, Human Resources Since 2008 Ms. Dodge has been the Director, Human Resources at Marks and Spencer Group since 2008.She was formerly the Group Human Resources Director at WH smith since 2003. At WH Smith, Ms. Dodge was also responsible for Public Relations, Communications and Post Office Operations. Prior to this, she was the Senior Vice President Human Resources for Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) at InterContinental Hotels Group. Ms. Dodge also served as the Human Resources Director at Diageos two business divisions. She was also the International Human Resources Manager at Prudential Corporation. Dominic Fry Board Senior Management Job Title Director, Communications and Investor RelationsMr. Fry is the Director, Communications and Investor Relations at Marks and Spencer Group. He joined the company in 2009. Prior to this, Mr. Fr y ser ved at Tulchan Communications. In 1996, he was appointe d the Communications Director at J Sainsbury and ser ved in the same role at ScottishPower from 2000 to 2005. In 1989, Mr. Fr y became the Communications Director at AT&T in the UK before moving from there to head up communications at the Channel tunnel in the mid 90s. He star ted his career in 1982 working in PR consultancy at Traverse-Healy & Regester and then Charles Barker.Jan Heere Board Senior Management Job Title Director, International Since 2011 Mr. Heere has been the Director, International at Marks and Spencer Group since 2011. He joined Inditex in 2002 where he held a several international roles, most tardily as General Manager for Inditex Russia. During 200002, Mr. Heere held various senior management roles at Zara, Groupo Inmobiliario Lupaco, and Charanga. He began his career at Manpower in Spain in 1997. Nayna McIntosh Marks and Spencer Group plc MarketLine Page 14 Marks and Spencer Group plc Key Employee BiographiesBoard Senior Management Job Title Director, Store Marketing and Design Ms. McIntosh is the Director, Store Marketing and Design at Marks and Spencer Group. She joined the company in 2005. Prior to this, Ms. McIntosh was par t of the Management police squad that set up the per una brand in 2001. Previously, she served as the Sales and Marketing Director for the George brand at Asda stores. Before joining George, Ms. McIntosh was at Next for four years as a Divisional Executive for the South of England. Steve Rowe Board Senior Management Job Title Director, Retail Since 2008 Mr.Rowe has been the Director, Retail at Marks and Spencer Group since 2008. He joined the company in 1989 and held a variety of positions in store management, having previously worked at Topshop as a Store Manager. Mr. Rowe joined Head Office in 1992 as a Merchandiser for Menswear. In 1998, he was promoted to Category Manager in the Furniture Depar tment. In 2001, Mr. Rowe led the team developing the Home Growth Strategy, working with McKinsey Consultants, and became Head of Home categories in 2003. He was promoted to the Director of Home a year later in 2004. From 2004 to 2008, Mr.Rowe was also responsible for Beauty and New Business Development. Darrell stein Board Senior Management Job Title Director, Information Technology and Logistics Mr. Stein is the Director, Information Technology and Logistics at Marks and Spencer Group. He has been working in IT for 17 years star ting his career at the company in 1990. Mr. Stein re-joined M in 2006 as the IT Director. From 2001 to 2006, he ser ved at Vodafone, becoming IT Director for Vodafone UK in 2004. Prior to this, Mr. Stein was Vodafones UK Network Director and Global IT Strategy and Architecture Director.From 1996 to 2001, he ser ved at Ernst & Young, leading a number of major IT and Change Programmes in the financial services, retail and utility sectors. In 1994, Mr. Stein joined Mars as a Project Manager. Marks and Spencer Group plc MarketLine Page 15 Marks and Spencer Group plc Maj or Products and Services MAJOR PRODUCTS AND SERVICES M&S is one of the leading retailers of clothing, foods and homeware in the UK. The companys key products and services include the following Products Womens wear Mens wear lingerie Childrens wear Footwear Food and grocery items Homeware and home accessoriesKitchen and tableware Lighting Furniture products Services Credit cards Car, home, travel, and pet insurance Personal loans Brands Autograph Limited Collection Collezione Blue Harbour Girls Boutique Per Una Ceriso Adored Truly you Marks and Spencer Group plc MarketLine Page 16 Marks and Spencer Group plc Revenue Analysis revenue ANALYSIS Overview The company recorded revenues of ? 9,740. 3 million (approximately $15,158. 8 million) in FY2011, an increase of 2. 1% over FY2010. For FY2011, the UK, the companys largest geographic market, accounted for 89. 7% of the bestow revenues.M generates revenues through two business divisions food (51. 5%% of the summate revenues in FY2011 ), and general merchandise (48. 5%). Revenues by division* During FY2011, the food division recorded revenues of ? 4,499. 4 million (approximately $7,002. 4 million), an increase of 1. 9% over FY2010. The general merchandise division recorded revenues of ? 4,233. 6 million (approximately $6,588. 8 million) in FY2011, an increase of 2% over FY2010. *The revenue breakdown by division is only for the revenues from the UK market. Revenues by geography The UK, M largest geographical market, accounted for 89. % of the total revenues in FY2011. Revenues from the UK reached ? 8,733 million (approximately $13,591. 2 million) in FY2011, an increase of 1. 9% over FY2010. International operations accounted for 10. 3% of the total revenues in FY2011. Revenues from international operations reached ? 1,007. 3 million (approximately $1,567. 7 million) in FY2011, an increase of 4% over FY2010. Marks and Spencer Group plc MarketLine Page 17 Marks and Spencer Group plc SWOT Analysis SWOT ANALYSIS M&S is one of the leading retailers of clothing, foods and homeware in the UK.The company has expanded its food product offering significantly in the recent years. New products launches, cerebrate on expanding healthy products, promotions, and hawkish prices are all helping the company attract customers in a highly war-ridden market. However, good deal in shoplifting could negatively impact the bell structure for M&S. Strengths flea-bittennesses Expanding food offering Strong market position in the clothing segment Geographical working out to increase the addressable market and reduce vulnerability to mature UK market M&S print a highly effective CSR outline M&S legacy stores and systems are a ompetitive injury Declining general merchandise division gross revenue due to inadequate stocking Opportunities Threats Online channel continues to boom and will enable M&S to boost revenues Focus on China and India can lead to magnification in two of the prompt growing markets Surge in shoplifting losses cost the retailers and customers Weak consumer expending in the UK Rising labor cost in the UK Strengths Expanded food offering The company has expanded its food product offering significantly in the recent years. In 2009, M&S consistently highlighted it is cheaper than Waitrose on a basket of 1,200 items by about 2%.The company, in 2009, decided to invest in its margins in order to provide its customers fracture value. As a result of this, M&S cut improved perceptions of value by its customers. The company, in FY2011, launched around 1,800 new products in food and positioned itself as the UKs leading high quality food retailer. The key product launches of the company include Taste Italia, and Made Without Wheat range of gluten-free bread and cakes, With the success of Made Without Wheat product range, the company launched gluten-free sandwiches, sausages, stuffing, and crisp bakes.As of FY2011, the company offered 125 gluten-free products. M&S also became t he UKs second largest favorite health food brand with the launch of its Simply Fuller Longer range which encourages customers to manage their weight with a menu plan. The consummate(a) margin of food division change magnitude by 20 basis points to Marks and Spencer Group plc MarketLine Page 18 Marks and Spencer Group plc SWOT Analysis 30. 8% in FY2011. This was mainly driven by better management of promotions and waste. Fur ther, in the four th quar ter of FY2012 ended March 2012, M&S launched 500 new products in the food division.The gross revenue in this quar ter increased by 3. 1%, The companys promotions such as roast dinner for ? 5 ($7. 8), Dine In, etc offered its customers with great value solutions for special occasions. M&S food division has been performing well in a ver y competitive market and against tough competitors. By launching innovative products and with an expanded food offering, the company has been able to attract the customers in a highly competitive market. Strong market position in the clothing segment M&S has a strong market position in the clothing segment.With more than one in 10 clothing items bought from M&S, the company ranks amongst the three largest clothing retailers in the UK. According to a repor t released by Verdict (Datamonitors retail arm) in May 2012, M is known for its product quality. The company was ranked first with a score of 49 for its product quality to a higher place the market comely of 23. According to another repor t released by Verdict in April 2012, M enjoys highest conversion rate of 50. 7% and is very successful in conver ting visitors to loyal main users through its varied product offer, in-store service and garment quality.This indicates that M is a trustwor thy brand, which all main users would return to knowing that the quality, fit, and ser vice are good and consistent. The retailer has recognized that its core market of predominantly mature customers has been especially hard hit by rising core costs of living, falling intimacy on savings and worse prospects for pensions, and in reaction has lowered its entr y prices to compete more effectively with high street/value operators and supermarkets, helping to hold in the loyalty of its main users and prevent them from shopping elsewhere.Verdict, in its repor t in March 2012, ranked, M seventh in the global depar tment store market with a share of 3. 2%. This market leadership enabled M to excel throughout the economic downturn, while other mid-market retailers are pressured from the ever expanding value players. Leading market position indicates access to a large customer base and also popularity of M offering in the clothing segment. Going forward, this market position would enable the company to drive revenues as consumer spend recovers.Geographical expansion to increase the addressable market and reduce vulnerability to mature UK market With a por tfolio of over 361 owned and franchised stores in 42 territories M&S con tinues to grow its international business. This mix of ownership models and countries enabled the company to perform well in FY2011, even when individual markets were weak. Fur ther, during FY2011, the company entered the Egyptian market with a 28,000 square feet store in the Dandy Mega Mall in Cairo. M&S international business grew by 4% in FY2011 despite tough economic situation.As an established retailer in a mature market, it is going to be hard for M to continually award significant increases in UK sales. However, in the long run, its international business offers an oppor tunity for high harvest-feast. By generating much higher volumes, it can deliver margin benefits with suppliers. With production costs rising, this will be an advantage in the UK. International expansion will enable the company to access three-fold sales points for most of the product ranges. This is especially relevant for clothing and homewares segments.Also, through expansion in the international market s M can reduce Marks and Spencer Group plc MarketLine Page 19 Marks and Spencer Group plc SWOT Analysis vulnerability to mature UK market. The company can also par ticipate effectively in some of highest growing markets such as China and India. All these factors would enable the company to reduce the overall business risk and facilitate increased revenues. M etched a highly effective CSR strategy M has to its credit an effective corporate social responsibility (CSR) strategy.CSR has been gaining prominence not just among the stake holders and governments but the consumers as well. The company has the highest propor tion of consumers believing it to be a responsible retailer and this can largely be attributed to the success of its Plan A, a ? 200 million (approximately $320. 3 million) 100-point plan launched in 2007 with five areas of taper climate change, fair par tnership, health, sustainable raw materials, and waste. In FY2011, the company included two more areas in its Plan A involving customers, and making Plan A how we do business.In the last few years, initiatives launched under the Plan A banner include launching the companys first eco-store, encouraging suppliers to set-up eco-factories, removing hydrogenated fats from its ready meals, change magnitude the propor tion of original food, reducing the salt content of its produce, cer tifying a larger percentage of its fish as originating from sustainable races, and beginning to sell recycle and composting bins. It is the high profile presence of Plan A in adver tising campaigns, product labeling and store signage that gives M&S one of the best consumer perceptions of a retailer for social responsibility.The campaign plant not just as a direct to consumer channel, but also because of the positive coverage it creates. peradventure more impor tantly, it has publicized all of these initiatives extensively. In 2008, M&S launched a TV adver tising campaign center on its ethical, environmental and healt h-conscious credentials, highlighting that it only uses free range eggs and that its products are now free from ar tificial colors and flavorings. Other, more innovative, ideas have included a joint venture with Oxfam to promote the recycling of old clothes.In addition, more controversially, the retailer introduced a 5p charge for carrier bags at all of its food depar tments in 2008. Though many consumers resented this charge, it has undoubtedly boosted M&S reputation as an ethical retailer. Overall, sculpting its CSR strategy into such a high publicity campaign, divided into such clear action points and highly visible benefits, has seen the company move to the forefront of responsible retailing. In FY2011, the company launched Indigo Green, its first range of clothing made apply more sustainable fabrics.In April 2012, the company announced to accept secondhand clothes at all the UK outlets except Simply Food stores, to recycle them into other fabrics or to reuse them in order to c ut waste. Plan A has seen CSR become core to M principles in the eyes of the consumer and it has reaped the benefits of this, gaining shoppers as a result and repor tedly saving more than ? 70 million (approximately $108. 9 million) in efficiencies gained in FY2011 compared with ? 50 million (approximately $77. 8 million) in FY2010.In addition, M&S improved energy efficiency in its stores by 23% and warehouses by 24% in FY2011 compared to FY2007. It also improved the fuel efficiency of its deliver y fleets by 20% and total carbon emissions have been reduced by 13%. The company now recycles 94% of all the waste it generates from its stores, offices and warehouses. The total waste is down by more than a third. M&S also met its sustainable standards by sourcing 90% of wild fish in FY2011 (62% in FY2010) and 76% of wood in FY2011 (72% in FY2010). Marks and Spencer Group plc MarketLine Page 20 Marks and Spencer Group plcSWOT Analysis By actively promoting a products greener attributes ( for shell fewer, more recognizable and natural ingredients), retailers such as M have positioned products as improving ones personal environment while benefiting the global environment too. Many of their successes have come from emphasizing the former rather than the latter, especially as consumers often associate ethics with a sense of wellbeing. In terms of the issues that headache consumers, the sustainability of natural resources is a major fear, as are climate change and the fairness of sourcing arrangements.Consumers are also attracted to products with health benefits and there is a clear trend that consumers can be persuaded to par t with more money in return for products with a positive impact, not just to them personally, but also to wider society. Indeed, differentiating among products becomes harder and harder to achieve, Verdict expects consumers to turn to auxiliary considerations such as ethicality and sustainability to study their choices. Consumers are no longer purely satisfied with how a product looks and functions they want assurances over aspects such as nvironmental impact, hygiene, safety, and fairness. In light of the above mentioned trends where the customer choices are increasingly guided by the sustainability issues, M&S will benefit due to its reputation of being a responsible retailer. Weaknesses M&S legacy stores and systems are a competitive disadvantage M&S suffers some competitive disadvantages compared to Tesco, which has been able to drive earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) growth even in the mature UK market. Tesco benefits from supplier power and state-of-the-ar t IT, supply chain and systems compared with M&S legacy systems.The supermarket retailer has been able to break up the demand cur ve with metro, articulate and big box store formats out of town and on the high street. Moreover, Tesco stores have been carefully designed with consistent store layouts in order to facilitate store navigation. Extra back room store space has also been allocated to allow for smooth execution of its picking and distribution model. Tesco sells both own label and branded goods (food and non-food) in a bid to drive up footfall and sales conversion. M&S legacy stores are inconsistent in terms of layout.Store size tends to dictate product availability, while a lack of back room store space does not facilitate the same style supermarket pick and delivery model. The legacy systems and stores of M&S are constraining effective servicing of customer demands on a consistent basis. This is placing the company at a clear competitive disadvantage compared to a unnerving opponent, Tesco. Declining general merchandise division sales due to inadequate stocking The companys general merchandise division sales declined in recent times, M&S general merchandise division sales decreased by 2. % in the four th quar ter of FY2012 ended March 2012. This was mainly due to shor tage of stock in its stores, Due to this, the company w as also not able to meet customer demand for 300,000 knitwear garments under the M&S Woman label. It only sold Marks and Spencer Group plc MarketLine Page 21 Marks and Spencer Group plc SWOT Analysis 100,000 knitwear garments during this period. Fur ther, in times of high demand, inadequate stock could baffle the sales of the division and result in loss of sales to competitors.This not only affects the revenues of the company but could also result in shift of customers to its competitors. Opportunities Online channel continues to boom and will enable M&S to boost revenues Online retail sales in the UK have grown significantly over a period of time. According to Office for National Statistics, non-seasonally adjusted average weekly value for internet retail sales in the UK was ? 414 million (approximately $644. 3 million) in Februar y 2010, this increased to ? 573. 6 million (approximately $892. 7 million) in February 2012, representing an increase of 18%.Internet sales accounted f or only 8% of the total retail sales (excluding fuel) in Februar y 2010. This figure increased to 10. 7% in February 2012. The growing desire for convenience is seeing shoppers buy more online, especially in the category of food and grocery. Consumers have also become savvier, using the internet more to get the best deal they can. Voucher codes, and cashback sites have been instrumental in this. Additionally, improved deliver y and fulfillment options have been encouraging consumers to shop more online.The company operates in the internet channel through M&S Direct where the products are offered through website and newly launched Shop Your Way facility, a new request service that has been rolled-out in 444 stores (including 151 in Simply Foods stores) during FY2011, allowing customers to place orders either in stores, online or over the phone, for deliver y to either a nominated address or free of charge to their nearest store. M&S Directs sales increased from ? 413 million (approx imately $642. 8 million) in FY2010 to ? 543 million (approximately $845. million) in FY2011, an increase of 31. 5%. Fur ther, in the first half of FY2012, M&S Directs sales increased by 11. 7% with more than three million visitors per week. Thus, by leveraging its online presence, M&S can cater to the requirements of a growing number of customers who are looking for convenience and better deals over the internet. Focus on China and India can lead to expansion in two of the fastest growing markets China and India are two economies which are recording highest growth rates which, in turn, are expected to aid the retail market growth in these two countries.Asias retail sales are estimated to increase with China driving the growth. According to the preliminary estimation, the gross domestic product (GDP) of China was CNY47,156. 4 billion ($7,285. 7 billion) in 2011, a year-on-year increase of 9. 2% at comparable prices. The fast pace economic development in China coupled with the rise of the middle class income group and their increasing disposable income have fur ther pushed up the demand for several consumer goods. According to National Bureau of Statistics of China, the total retail sales reached CNY18,391. 9 billion (approximately $2,841. billion) in 2011, representing a year-on-year nominal growth rate of 17. 1%. Fur ther, according to industr y estimates, the countr ys total retail sales are expected to increase from approximately CNY20 trillion ($3 trillion) in 2012 to approximately CNY26 trillion ($4 trillion) in 2016, representing an increase of about 30%. Strong Marks and Spencer Group plc MarketLine Page 22 Marks and Spencer Group plc SWOT Analysis key economic trends, population growth and the increasing wealth of individuals are key factors that contribute to the retail market expansion in China.The retail industry in India is large owing to a large population and is set to grow as several factors contribute. According to the industry sources, the re tail sales in India are forecast to grow from around $411 billion in 2011 to $804 billion by 2015. The key factors behind the forecast growth include strong underlying economic growth, population expansion, increasing wealth of individuals and the rapid twisting of organized retail infrastructure. Also, as middle and upper class consumer base expands, there will also be oppor tunities in Indias second and third-tier cities.The greater availability of personal credit and a growing fomite population are to improve mobility which will also contribute to a trend towards retail sales growth. M is strengthening presence in India and China as par t of its geographic expansion and for some time to come, these countries would be the key contributors to the companys international expansion strategies. The company in with par tnership with Reliance Retail, an established retailer in India, can tap into this lucrative market while expansion in China also continues. Indian and Chinese markets would provide a huge potential revenue base for M&S.Threats Surge in shoplifting losses costs the retailers and customers The UK retailers are exposed to increased costs of shoplifting. Shoplifting has assumed massive propor tions in recent times. According to industry estimates, retail crime costed UK stores ? 1. 4 billion ($2. 2 billion) in 2011. There are about two million thefts per year, which concludes to an average of more than one per minute. According to another industr y repor t, the thefts across the UK stores increased from ? 4. 2 million ($6. 5 million) in 2009 to ? 5. 1 million ($7. 9 million) in 2011, an increase of 20%.Long-term trends also show the figure is probably to continue rising. As a result, retailers have been increasing their surveillance spend. This is increasing the costs for retailers as well as for the end consumers. The shoplifting losses are adding to the costs for the retailers and the customers have also been bearing the brunt. The surge in shopli fting could negatively impact the cost structure for M&S as well. Weak consumer spending in the UK The UK market is suffering from weak consumer spending. The European debt crisis added more downward pressure to the growth prospects of the UK.According to Eurostat, the UK economy grew by 0. 7% in 2011 and is expected to grow by 0. 5% in 2012. In addition, the UK has witnessed high unemployment rate. According to the Office of National Statistics, the unemployment rate for the three months period November 2011 to January 2012 was 8. 4% with 2. 67 million unemployed people in the UK. Increasing unemployment rate is expected to fur ther put pressure on the economy of the UK. High inflation, led by the increase in VAT to 20% and public spending cuts reduced disposable Marks and Spencer Group plc MarketLine Page 23 Marks and Spencer Group plc SWOT Analysis income, leading to a fall in consumer spending on discretionary items. Consumers have been cautious with their spending especially du e to soaring petrol prices, tax increases and uncer tainty over jobs. The UK is the key market for M&S. In FY2011, the UK accounted for 89. 7% of M&S total revenues. Thus, the sluggish consumer spending and high unemployment rate in the UK could affect most of the non-food retailers and lead to reduced sales volume or shrinking profit margins. Rising labor cost in the UKLabor costs are rising in the UK. In recent times, tight labor markets, increased over time, government mandated increases in minimum wages and a higher propor tion of full-time employees are resulting in an increase in labor costs, which could materially impact the companys results of operation. The National Minimum Wage (NMW) Regulations came into force in 1999 and since then the NMW rates have been increased annually. The national minimum wage increased from ? 5. 93 per bit ($9. 23 per hour) in October 2010 to ? 6. 08 per hour ($9. 46 per hour) in October 2011.Fur ther, the national minimum wage is expected to in crease to ? 6. 19 per hour (9. 63 per hour) from October 2012. In FY2011, M&S employed 78,169 people. Increasing labor costs can adversely affect the companys operating costs as its wage bills would escalate. This, in turn, could impact its margins adversely. Marks and Spencer Group plc MarketLine Page 24 Marks and Spencer Group plc Top Competitors TOP COMPETITORS The following companies are the major competitors of Marks and Spencer Group plc ASDA Group Limited Debenhams plc H & M Hennes & Mauritz AB J Sainsbury plcNEXT plc Selfridges plc Tesco PLC Gap, Inc. , The French tie-in Group Plc House of Fraser Group Plc John Lewis Par tnership plc Arcadia Group Limited Home Retail Group Plc Marks and Spencer Group plc MarketLine Page 25 Marks and Spencer Group plc Company View COMPANY VIEW A argument by Rober t Swannell, the Chairman of the Board at Marks and Spencer Group, is given below. The statement has been interpreted from the companys Annual Repor t for FY2011. I feel ver y pri vileged to be Chairman of this unique company and at such an exciting time in our evolution.Since joining Marks & Spencer in October and assuming the role of Chairman in Januar y, I have spent much of my time getting to know the business better meeting our employees, shareholders, customers and suppliers. I first became deeply involved with M during the unsolicited takeover attempt in 2004, when I led the advisory team that helped put the M case to its shareholders. It was then I buncoed first hand about this unique company about the extraordinarily strong relationship it has with its many stakeholders and about its very special ethos.This ethos is a reflection of the high standards our customers expect from M trusting us not only to deliver great value, great quality products but also to do the right thing socially, environmentally and ethically. We know that putting Plan A at the hear t of how we do business is not just the right thing to do it is also fundamental to our long- term success. Performance In a challenging marketplace M has go along to grow, with underlying profits up 12. 9% on the year.We delivered this by staying true to our heritage of quality and innovation, reminding our customers what makes M special. This year Marc Bolland set out a clear medium-term plan for the business, after extensive discussions with colleagues and us, the Board. This is covered in detail in Marcs review. From day one, I have been struck by the passion and commitment of our people. I am charmed that this year we are paying a bonus to all employees to give thanks them for their energy and enthusiasm in what has been a difficult trading environment. DividendWe are committed to delivering consistent returns for our shareholders. To this end we have adopted a progressive dividend policy, with dividends broadly covered twice by earnings. We intend to pay a final dividend of 10. 8p per share (last year 9. 5p) in respect of the 2010/11 financial year. Governance Marks and Spencer Group plc MarketLine Page 26 Marks and Spencer Group plc Company View This year we returned to the traditional judicature structure of a separate Chairman and Chief Executive, providing clarity between Marc Bolland and me, with regard to our respective roles.Put simply, I run the Board and Marc runs the business. The Board has a wide range of responsibilities. There are three that I think are par ticularly impor tant for the success of the business first, to debate and agree our strategy and hold the executive team accountable for its execution second, to ensure that we have the most talented team to execute this strategy and that we plan effectively for succession and third, to set the tone for disposal, which is par ticularly impor tant at M where doing the right thing is an integral par t of our ethos. My ob is to ensure the Board has the right mix of skills and talents and to ensure that it whole caboodle effectively as a team towards shared goals with the right mix of enquir y and suppor t of the executive directors from the non-executive directors. During the year we commissioned a formal Board evaluation from an independent consultant, the findings of which are outlined in the Governance section. This process highlighted the real enthusiasm of the directors in suppor ting a shared ambition to guide M to the ver y best future. We know that you expect high standards from M its our responsibility to learn how we can improve.This review was an impor tant par t of that journey. As stated in our 2009/10 Annual Repor t, we reviewed the senior remuneration structure this year. Following extensive shareholder consultation, we believe we now have a simulation that is both relevant to todays M and fully aligned with our strategy. The Board Over the last year the Board has been strengthened by a series of executive appointments. In May 2010 Marc Bolland joined the business as Chief Executive, assuming the day-to-day running of the business from Sir Stuar t Rose in July.In October Alan Stewar t joined as Chief Finance Officer and in February we announced the appointment of Laura Wade-Gery as Executive Director, Multi-channel E-commerce she will join the Board in July. Whilst the Board features some new faces, these changes have taken place around a core of executive and non-executive directors that has remained stable over recent years. I would analogous to pay par ticular tribute to Sir Stuar t Rose. When he became Chief Executive in 2004, M was at a low ebb.He restored confidence in M, re-established its values and built a strong business. The solid political program from which Marc is now implementing his plan is a credit to Stuar ts energy and tireless commitment to M over the last seven years. The smooth management transition the meticulous handover to me and the suppor t of Marc is also a credit to Stuar t. In that connection, I would also like to thank Sir David Michels, and the Nominations & Governance Committee he led, for managing a change of leadership over the past year that was accomplished quietly and effectively.David has decided to step down from the Board at the end of his second term in February 2012, but I am delighted that he will continue his role as Deputy Chairman until then. Marks and Spencer Group plc MarketLine Page 27 Marks and Spencer Group plc Company View I must also thank Louise sabot for the significant contribution she has made over the last five years, playing an impor tant role in each of our Board Committees. As Louise reaches the end of her second three year term on the Board, she has decided not to seek re-election at the upcoming AGM. Looking aheadOur priorities for the year ahead are clear. We have a plan and it is now our collective job to make it happen. The Board will concentrate on delivering exemplary governance at the highest level to enable our executive team to drive this strategy forward. The economy still gives us reason to be cautious. Yet in diffi cult times, our core values of Quality, Value, Ser vice, Innovation and Trust take more than ever to M customers. These values remain at the hear t of our strategy and I therefore look forward to the future with confidence. Marks and Spencer Group plc MarketLinePage 28 Marks and Spencer Group plc Locations and Subsidiaries LOCATIONS AND SUBSIDIARIES Head Office Marks and Spencer Group plc Waterside House 35 Nor th Wharf Road London W2 1NW GBR P44 20 7935 4422 http//www. marksandspencer. com Other Locations and Subsidiaries Marks and Spencer International Holdings Limited Great Britain GBR Marks and Spencer (Nederland) BV NLD Marks and Spencer (Ireland) Limited IRL Marks and Spencer (Asia Pacific) Limited HKG Marks and Spencer Simply Foods Limited Great Britain GBR Marks and Spencer Marinopoulos Greece SA GRC Marks and Spencer SCM Limited