Tesco.Com as an Online Distribution Channel free essay sample

This case discusses and analyses how Tesco started online-grocery-retailing as a new distribution channel for its business, as well as the challenges, milestones, and rewards it encountered along the way. In recent years the internet has served as a platform for online retailing for most products, take the case of online retailers such as Amazon. com or EBay who have successfully been able to sell a wide range of products over the internet. However, most companies have not been able to emulate this success in online grocery retailing. In fact, most early attempts resulted in failure as it is the case of Webvan. com and Peapod. com among others. Failure in this arena can be attributed to three main reasons. First, many customers want to actually sample the products to ensure their freshness, specially fruits, vegetables and meats. Second, high distribution costs due to large volumes and the fact that many products are perishable. We will write a custom essay sample on Tesco.Com as an Online Distribution Channel or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page And third, grocery retailing is a low margin/highly cost-competitive business. Tesco PLC also struggled in the 1990s when it first tried to deliver groceries to customers’ homes via catalog and phone ordering â€Å"It was an operational mess and very inefficient† as CEO Laura Wade-Gery recalled. With the emergence of the internet, Tesco found the platform it needed to satisfy its customers by being able to deliver the groceries to their homes in a cost-efficient manner. Tesco PLC sales increased from $55. 3 billion in 2005 to 64. 6 billion in 2006, and profit before tax from 2. 8 billion to 3. 3 billion. Today, Tesco is the biggest and most successful online grocery retailer in the world, and it has been able to do so without cannibalizing its brick and mortar business. The next section analyses the process Tesco went through in implementing this new distribution channel and the key factors that allowed its unprecedented success in online grocery retailing. The success of Tesco. com has a lot to do with what the company did at the very early stages of implementing its new distribution channel. Tesco followed a very conservative approach to reduce the risk of failure. The company used what they call the â€Å"in-store picking model† which basically means picking the goods the customer wants from their existing brick and mortar stores. The other option was to build large warehouses and use them exclusively for their online distribution channel; this is the strategy that failed online groceries retailers such as Webvan. com and Peapod. com had used. In this context, Tesco was wise to stay away from the warehouse model, which would have also required an initial multimillion investment that the company was hesitant to undergo on an unproven business. Another important initiative from the company at the early stages of Tesco. com was to open cyber-cafes in stores across the country during the year 2000 to empower customers that were not comfortable with using the internet. This idea was probably crucial in gaining customers that were interested in the convenience of having their groceries delivered to their homes but that might have stayed away from Tesco. com just because of their internet illiteracy. Additionally, Tesco. om focused all the efforts on designing their website to be as user-friendly as possible rather than aiming their efforts towards a highly technical and complicated website, and keeping in mind that convenience is what the customers wanted in the first place. The previous shows how Tesco successfully aligned technology (its website) with its business, which ties right with the article â€Å"Key Issues for IT Executives 2011† where IT and business alignment is at the top of the list of issues for IT execut ives. (3). Tesco also offered convenience to their customers by making the transition from the brick and mortar experience to the online experience as smooth as possible. When customers registered into the online system, they were encouraged to key in their Tesco Clubcard number which allowed the system to identify the customer’s most frequently bought items (in physical stores) and then suggest those items for their online shopping cart. By doing this Tesco was not only offering its customers convenience, but it was also providing them with an incentive to get the Tesco Clubcard which in turn would increase customer loyalty. An additional benefit of having customers use the Tesco Clubcard was that it allowed the company to track how many online shoppers were also frequent Tesco (physical) store shoppers, and this would in turn help the company gather useful data to analyze performance metrics to compare and contrast the two distribution channels. Once Tesco. com was up and running, the company still had challenges to overcome and decisions to be made in order to become successful in the unproven business of online grocery retailing.

defining a Patriot essays

defining a Patriot essays Ever since the towers came down, and the flags went up, there has been a widening split over the best way to fight this war on terror. New legislation created to deal with these threats was initially met with full support, as immediate action was needed to effectively respond to the attacks. In the past couple of years however, these laws have been more carefully scrutinized, and met with increasing opposition. The central issue to these concerns is the possible violations of civil liberties that these laws may allow. But the larger issue goes beyond the laws themselves, asking the question, Do the ends justify the means? In fighting this war on terror we have been forced to change the way we view and approach the world, and while most Americans agree that freedom is worth fighting for, we all have different ideas on how to protect it. One such piece of legislation, the Patriot Act, has become the poster child for people frustrated with the way the Bush administration has handled our security after 9-11. While there are questionable sections to the act that deserve our attention and analysis, the cries are more against the misrepresentation and disenfranchisement many are feeling. In fact, when it comes to protecting our country and promoting freedom throughout the world, we may be closer in policy than we think. The testimony of John Ashcroft to the committee on the Judiciary goes a long way in explaining why these rifts exist. Not only by what is said, but by the way he says it. Throughout this entire campaign the Bush administration has relied on fear to force people to accept its mandates. Mr. Ashcroft opens his remarks by reading off the names of 6 people killed on September 11th, and then goes into quoting the fanatical fatwas made against the United States by terrorists. This is used to put fear into our hearts, so that when he gets to the proposed amendments to the Patriot Act, we would find them...

Business Law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 16

Business Law - Essay Example This is because after the purchase of the vehicle, it developed various mechanical problems that led him to sue the seller of the vehicle. Ford Motor Company is a company that deals with motors. Denny is suing Ford Motor Company for the injuries that she sustained from the accident. The accident occurred as a result of her trying to avoid a deer that was walking directly into sport utility vehicle (SUV) path. In her case she argued that she purchased Bronco for the purpose of using it in a paved city and not for off road use. Peter and Geraldine Tabala are debtors who purchased a house and carvel ice cream business from carvel incorporation. Carvel incorporation is suing Tabala for failure to pay debt obligation of $100,000. The couple however had transferred their house to their three daughters and is claiming bankrupt forcing carvel incorporation to sue them. Top Quality is Auto sales that deal with used old cars and its inventory is financed by credit obtained from ICE. ICE is suing Alderson for recover the truck that was sold to them by Chrisman who had bought the same truck from Top Quality. On selling the truck to Alderson and Christiana, they found out that the truck had not been paid for by Top Quality to ICE. Dan miller is a professional photographer who takes series of photographs some appearing in New York Times. Miller is suing Newsweek newspapers for his photographs that were lost. Newsweek newspaper had requested 72 photographs from Miller which they were to use for their commercial. On delivery of the photographs Miller attached a delivery memo that contained various conditions for example that in each photograph that was lost, Newsweek was to pay $1500 for each of the lost or destroyed photo. Newsweek however decided that they were no longer in need of the photographs they told miller that the photos were lost, Miller demanded for payment but they declined forcing him to sue them. A&M was a small

Libya and Qatar's role in the Libyan Revolution Essay - 1

Libya and Qatar's role in the Libyan Revolution - Essay Example In the eastern city of Benghazi, there are headquarters of the opposition forces whose fighters have stronghold in the Jebel Nafusa.These rebels took over the village of Gualish that stood at a distance of about 90 km from Tripoli.This takeover was followed by a deadly battle between hundreds of fighters. The forces of Col. Muammar Gaddafi have conventionally displayed strong determination to overpower the rebels. The government troops are equipped with a broad range of weapons which keep the rebels from advancing permanently. In Gualish, battles could be seen smouldering in the houses located on the battlefield that were abandoned by the local people. Looters entered the buildings and the rebel fighters siphoned petrol from the petrol filling stations. The rebels replaced the green flag of Gaddafi’s Libya with their own red, black, and green flag in several places which imitated their attempt to free Libya. Prior to the entrance of rebels in the area, Nato had bombed some of the heaviest weapons possessed by Col Gaddafi. A rebel fighter said, â€Å"The Gaddafi forces booby-trapped some of the houses with trip wires and explosives †¦ We had to be very careful as we went through the town† (Doyle). Gualish is only at a distance of about 45 km from Gharian, that is the strategic garrison town controlled by Gaddafi’s soldiers. Rebels could not immediately reach Tripoli, but Gharian has remained a target for the uprising. The main north-south road that connects Tripoli to the Sahara desert is dominated by Gharian. According to the rebels, Col Gaddafi kept arms depots in the desert and also recruited fighters from other countries in the same desert. A young Libyan woman who was the member of the youth protest movement said, Now people are dying we’ve got nothing else to live for. What needs to happen is for the killing to stop. But that won’t happen until he [Gaddafi] is out. We just want to be able to live like human beings. N othing will happen until protests really kick off in Tripoli, the capital. It’s like a pressure cooker. People are boiling up inside. I’m not even afraid any more. Once I wouldn’t have spoken at all by phone. Now I don’t care. Now enough is enough. †¦ I’ve seen violent movies and video games that are nothing compared to this. I can hear gunshots, helicopters circling overhead, then I hear the voices screaming. I can hear the screeching of four-by-fours in the street. No one has that type of car except his [Gaddafi's] people. My brother went to get bread, he’s not back; we don’t know if he’ll get back. The family is up all night every night, keeping watch, no one can sleep. (Worthington). But such views of the public seemed to both Col Muammar Gaddafi seemed little. â€Å"I am a glory that will not be abandoned by Libya, the Arabs, the United States, and Latin America... revolution, revolution, let the attack begin,† Gaddafi cited in Ashour). Such a behavior is typical of the Dean of Arab leaders who has ruled Libya as a self-declared King for over 42 years. Gaddafi has made a large number of show-stopping appearances at various gatherings within the Arabian Peninsula and abroad (Asser). It is not only his outlandish clothing that makes him stand out, but is also his unconventional attitude and blunt speeches. Uprisings in Egypt and Tunisia resulted into immense bloodshed and became the cause of demise of Hosni Mubarak and Zine El-Abidine Ben Ali, but Colonel Gaddafi would not relinquish authority without an intensely deadly encounter. One of his sons, Khamis led the uprising’s brutal suppression in Benghazi. Khamis is â€Å"the Russian-trained commander of an elite special forces unit† (Worthington). Gaddafi has also had full support of his other sons. However, the tactics used by Gaddafi have boxed him in. It will be difficult for him to face internal exile like Hosni Mubarak or else, seek refuge abroad like Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali,

Athen vs Rome Essay Example for Free

Athen vs Rome Essay â€Å"Human behavior flows from three main sources: desire, emotion, and knowledge† (Plato). Such a great philosopher like Plato, he strives to educate the people of Athens on behalf of Socrates. With the passion of various ideas on philosophy and political science, Plato pushes through his learning to teach our people. The former philosopher Socrates, Plato had gained the knowledge of the various meanings and the strive after Socrates was sentenced to death which the Athenian Council had given him for what he believed in. Plato’s ideas of teaching weren’t so complicated for us to bestow our knowledge to further extent. Later the teaching will not stop at the cost of false individual in the democracy. Aristotle will continue to prevail in the teaching of philosophy and other subjects that will lead to be a better person with great judgment in the political system in Athens. The â€Å"Academy† was a gift from Plato to expand our knowledge of learning philosophy, mathematics, and theoretical astronomy. It will show that written dialogues are far easy to comprehend because they are in play style form instead of textbooks. The challenges in learning are tend to be hurdles yet they are not to be giving up on. Towards the Athenian council, I truly demand that politics should be controlled by well educated individuals. Our former Athenian, Socrates, had to pay the consequences on his belief because he believe that people should devote themselves to individual excellence and justice for achievements above any other concern meant that they should abandon commitment towards the moral code. Socrates had his own principle to stand by on what he believed and to speak to us Athenians to examine our unexamined assumption about individual virtue. With this in mind he was labeled as a traitor and a false philosopher to corrupt the young minds of Athenians. Is this the way we have to go with ourselves in believing that there are gods out there who help us in fights, fights in which we have fought with our own sweat, blood, and tear to acknowledge that we are getting assistant from the gods. I truly state within the teaching of the Academy it shows people to make understandable judgment before the execution on one of our own. The Athenian Council before you, even confessed they had made a terrible mistake in giving Socrates a death sentence. We as a great nation made a huge mistake and informed this tragic situation with creating this horrific democracy. Plato, a great philosopher that was once under Socrates first created this Academy for the teaching of philosophy, mathematics, and theoretical astronomy to us Athens. Creating this Academy Plato shows us that he wanted to make readers reflect thoughtfully on difficult philosophical questions. It was a challenge for us to inherit the aspect of learning and understanding the key elements towards metaphysics. As all teachers their views are critically changed over time where Plato presents a consistent set of doctrines. Plato maintained one essential idea â€Å"Moral virtues are universal and absolute, not relative. † Our people of Athens need to believe the proper goal for humans is to seek order and purity in our own souls by using reason to control their irrational desires. We have far yet to prove that we live for ourselves we don’t live under someone, not until the soul is taken away after death from our bodies. With the system of democracy justice wont prevail it will need hierarchy. Leading back to Socrates death the citizens of Athens are incapable of rising above ignorant self-interest. With the ideal society that Plato showed that high ranked men and women should live together and create healthy babies. This might not lead to become true, but the sought of teaching the people into thinking this way it leads to live justly. Within this Academy that was created by Plato it won’t stop for the future philosopher and more Academies to assemble. The prodigy of a young gifted soul that was under the famous Plato came to be recognized as Aristotle. His teaching was soon to be more advance and hence for us as Athenians. He showed much more morals to ourselves then we could imagine. Aristotle achievement towards the system showed that logic argument and scientific investigation of the natural world we stand by. Unlike Plato, Aristotle insisted on explanations based on common sense rather than metaphysics. Aristotle showed us that observing an object or a human being is best to acknowledge on how they tend to act. With patience we tend to realize slowly that we develop behaviors and not just good intentions. â€Å"Self-control did not mean denying human desires and appetites; rather, it meant striking a balance between suppressing and heedlessly indulging physical yearnings, of finding the mean† (Aristotle). The Council of Athens, we tend to realize some of our moral code is sacred, but do tend to open your horizons on us as individuals for achieving goals and valuing self-control. As we come to an end, I hope you have the same output as I have explained the teachings and most importantly the Academy that was first formed by our own, Plato. The aspect of growing is not to just have beliefs, but to believe in ourselves as Athenians that we can strive to pursue anything whether it is war, learning, teaching, or creating. The future of our children needs to be well educated to know the difference between right or wrong with some aspect towards our moral code. Our people deserves better, for which they are messengers to expand the knowledge, power, and desire for Athens. They will not have any of those values what so ever if they are not well educated through the Academy that Plato and further more Aristotle has provided. May we have hope for the future as you, the Athenian Council to accept and recognize the great Academy was a best gift that the gods have given to Athens.

Television Programs: How They Affect Society :: essays research papers

Television Programs: How It Affects Society   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã¢â‚¬Å"It was an accident,† proclaimed Janet Jackson after her Super Bowl fiasco, â€Å"a wardrobe malfunction.† It didn’t appear to be one to the millions of people who witnessed the exposing of one of Jackson’s breasts. Many were shocked and outraged, but this type of thing isn’t new for the infamous â€Å"boob tube†. In 1977, the miniseries â€Å"Roots†, was the first TV show to air bare breasts (Clark 1070). Even still, television programs have come a long way since that and the time of their creation.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Invented in 1923, television programs started off with airing sporting events, news hours, and cookie cutter programs (â€Å"History of TV† History). These programs usually taught morals and lessons at their closings and gave a false sense of reality. Today, you can see just about anything on TV, from someone being gunned down to wild and risk-free sex between couples (Gay couples too!). Studies have been done to see if these scenes seen by society can affect us negatively, as children have been analyzed through adulthood to see if violent and sexual behavior on TV has affected them badly. The results are children starting to deal with adult issues at an early age due to the graphic nature of television programs. Society now is more aggressive and losing it’s values. With this said, television programs have clearly evolved since 1923 and affected society negatively due to it’s violent and sexual content.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Since it’s start television has grown in availability and reached the living rooms of many. Television’s expansion started off slow due to the Depression and World War II. By the end of World War II, TV was certain to grow as fast as the radio had twenty years prior (Jost 1139). Television has also developed better technology as it is now shown in color with digital picturing. This started towards the late 1930's, when new technology was being used to show baseball games and special events (Jost 1138).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  With the rise in technology companies have come up with a new system, interactive television. â€Å"With digital interactivity, consumers are in total control of the programming they bring into their homes,† declared Time Warner Chairman Gerald Levin on interactive television (qtd. in Jost 1131). I have witnessed firsthand, interactive TV as my cable company, Comcast, offers something similar called On Demand TV. With it I can choose movies or shows I want to watch.

Mongols

In various times Mongols have been equated with the Scythians, the Magog and the Turkic peoples. Based on Chinese historical texts the ancestry of the Mongol peoples can be traced back to the Donghu, a nomadic confederation occupying eastern Mongolia and Manchuria. The identity of the Xiongnu is still debated today. Although some scholars maintain that they were proto-Mongols, the fact that Chinese histories trace certain Turkic tribes from the Xiongnu complicates the issue. 10] The Donghu, however, can be much more easily labeled proto-Mongol since the Chinese histories trace only Mongolic tribes and kingdoms (Xianbei and Wuhuan peoples) from them, although some historical texts claim a mixed Xiongnu-Donghu ancestry for some tribes (e. g. the Khitan). [11] The Donghu are mentioned by Sima Qian as already existing in Inner Mongolia north of the state of Yan in 699-632 BC. Mentions in the Lost Book of Zhou (Yizhoushu) and the Shanhaijing indicate the Donghu were also active during the Shang dynasty (1600–1046 BC).The Mongolic-speaking Xianbei formed part of the Donghu confederation, but had earlier times of independence, as evidenced by a mention in the Guoyu (â€Å" † section) which states that during the reign of King Cheng of Zhou (reigned 1042–1021 BC) the Xianbei came to participate at a meeting of Zhou subject-lords at Qiyang ( ) (now Qishan County) but were only allowed to perform the fire ceremony under the supervision of Chu (? ), since they were not vassals by covenant ( ).The Xianbei chieftain was appointed joint guardian of the ritual torch along with Xiong Yi. These early Xianbei came from the nearby Zhukaigou culture (2200-1500BC) in the Ordos Desert where maternal DNA corresponds to Mongolic Daurs and Evenks (Tungusified Xianbei). The Zhukaigou Xianbei (part of the Ordos culture of Inner Mongolia and northern Shaanxi) had trade relations with the Shang dynasty (1600-1046BC). The Zhou clan lived near the Beidi (who included the Xianbei) for 14 generations before moving to the Central Plains in middle Shaanxi under Gugong Danfu).Another closely connected core Mongolic Xianbei region was the Upper Xiajiadian culture (1000-600 BC) where the Donghu confederation was centered. After the Donghu were defeated by Modu Chanyu the Xianbei and Wuhuan survived as the main remnants of the confederation. Tadun Khan of the Wuhuan (died 207 AD) was the ancestor of the proto-Mongolic Kumo Xi. [12] In 49 AD the Mongolic Xianbei ruler Bianhe (Bayan Khan? ) raided and defeated the Xiongnu, killing 2000, after having received generous gifts from Emperor Guangwu of Han.The Xianbei reached their peak under Tanshihuai Khan (reigned 156-181) who expanded the vast, but short lived, Xianbei state. Xianbei Empire under Tanshihuai (141-181) Three prominent proto-Mongol groups split from the Xianbei, as recorded by the Chinese histories: the Nirun (claimed by some to be the Avars), the Khitan and the Shiwei (a sub-tribe called the â⠂¬Å"Shiwei Menggu† is held to be the origin of the Genghisid Mongols). [13] Besides these three Xianbei groups, there were other Xianbei groups with Mongolic affiliation such as the Murong, Duan and Tuoba.Their culture was nomadic, their religion Shamanism or Buddhism and their military strength formidable. There is still no direct evidence that the Nirun spoke a Mongolic language, although most scholars agree that they were proto-Mongolic. [14] The Khitan, however, had two scripts of their own and many Mongolic words are found in their half-deciphered writings that are usually found with a parallel Chinese text (for example, nair=sun, sair=moon, tau=five, jau=hundred, m. r=horse, im. a=goat, n. q=dog, m. ng=silver, ju. un=summer, n. m. ur=autumn, u. ul=winter, heu. ur=spring, tau. l. a=rabbit, t. q. a=hen and m. g. o=snake). [15] There is no doubt regarding the Khitan being proto-Mongol. [16] Asia in 500 AD, showing the Nirun (Juan-Juan) Empire and its neighbors Geographicall y the Tuoba Xianbei ruled Inner Mongolia and northern China, the Nirun (Yujiulu Shelun was the first to use the title Khagan in 402) ruled Outer Mongolia, the Khitan were concentrated in Southern Manchuria north of Korea and the Shiwei were located to the north of the Khitan.These tribes and kingdoms were soon overshadowed by the rise of the Gok-Turks in 555, the Uyghurs in 745 and the Yenisei Kirghizs in 840. The Tuoba were eventually absorbed into China. The Rouran fled west from the Gok-Turks and either disappeared into obscurity or, as some say, invaded Europe as the Avars under their Khan Bayan I. Some Rouran under Tatar Khan migrated east founding the Tatar tribes, who became part of the Shiwei. The Khitan, who were independent after their separation from the proto-Mongol Kumo Xi (ofWuhuan origin) in 388 AD, continued as a minor power in Manchuria until one of them, Abaoji (872-926), established the Khitan Liao Dynasty (907-1125). The Khitan fled west after their defeat by the Tungusic Jurchens (later known as Manchus) and founded the Kara-Khitan or Western Liao dynasty (1125–1218) in eastern Kazakhstan. In 1218 Genghis Khan destroyed the Kara-Khitan Kingdom after which the Khitan passed into obscurity. The modern-day minority of Mongolic-speaking Daurs in China are their direct descendants based on DNA evidence. [17][18] The Shiwei included a tribe called the Shiwei Menggu. 19] Bodonchar Munkhag (Chagatai tradition dates ‘Buzanjar Munqaq' to the rebellion of Abu Muslim or 747 AD. [20]) the founder of the House of Borjigin and the ancestor of Genghis Khan is held to be descended from the Shiwei Menggu. The early Shiwei paid tribute to the Tuoba Wei (386-534) and submitted to the Khitans. After the Khitans left Mongolia the Shiwei Mongols rose to prominence, when from the 1130s there were reciprocally hostile relations between the successive khans of the Khamag Mongol confederation (Khaidu, Khabul Khan and Ambaghai Khan) and the emperors of t he Jin dynasty.With the expansion of the Mongol Empire, the Mongols settled over almost all Eurasia and carried on military campaigns from the Adriatic Sea to Java and from Japan to Palestine. Mongols simultaneously became Padishahs of Persia, Emperors of China, Great Khans of Mongolia and one Mongol even became Sultan of Egypt (Al-Adil Kitbugha). The Mongols of the Golden Horde established themselves to govern Russia by 1240. [21] By 1279, the Mongols conquered the Song Dynasty and brought all of China under control of the Mongol Yuan Dynasty. 21] With the breakup of the Empire, the dispersed Mongols quickly adopted the mostly Turkic cultures surrounding them and were assimilated, forming parts of Tatars (not confused with a tribe in ancient Mongolia), Uzbeks, Kazakhs, Yugurs and Moghuls; linguistic and cultural Persianization also began to be prominent in these territories. However, most of the Mongols returned to Mongolia, retaining their language and culture. After the fall of t he Yuan Dynasty in 1368 the Mongols established their independent regime as Northern Yuan.However, the Oirads or Western Mongols began to challenge the Eastern Mongols under the Borjigin monarchs in the late 14th century. Present-day Khalkha Mongols and Inner Mongolians are the most prominent of the remaining Eastern Mongols while the Kalmyks (formerly Oirats) in Europe are the main descendants of the Western Mongols. The Khalkha emerged during the reign of Dayan Khan (1464–1543) as one of the six tumens of the Eastern Mongols. They quickly became the dominant Mongol clan in Outer Mongolia.