Case Study Sony

RESTRUCTURING SONY The electronics and media giant Sony was struggling through the late 1990s and early part of the 21st century. With each disappointment, it seemed that Sony’s management launched another restructuring of the company. By 2003, commentators were beginning to ask whether restructuring was part of the solution or part of the problem. How should Sony be managing its strategic renewal? Introduction For the first quarter ending 30 June 2003, Japan based Sony Corporation (Sony)2 stunned the corporate world by reporting a decline in net profit of 98 per cent.

Sony reported a net profit of ? 9. 3 million compared to ? 1. 1 billion for the same quarter in 2002. Sony’s revenues fell by 6. 9 per cent to ? 1. 6 trillion for the corresponding period. Analysts were of the opinion that Sony’s expenditure on its restructuring initiatives had caused a significant dent in its profitability. In the financial year 2002–03, Sony had spent a massive ? 100bn on restructuring (??? 500m; ?? a750m). Moreover, the company had already announced in April 2003 about its plans to spend another ? 1 trillion on a major restructuring initiative in the next three years.

Analysts criticized Sony’s management for spending a huge amount on frequent restructuring of its consumer electronics business, which accounted for nearly two-thirds of Sony’s revenues. In 2003, the sales of the consumer electronics division fell by 6. 5 per cent. Notably, Sony’s business operations were restructured five times in the past nine years. Analysts opined that Sony’s excessive focus on the maturing consumer electronics business (profit margin below 1 per cent in2002–03), coupled with increasing competition in the consumer electronics industry was severely affecting its profitability.

However, Sony’s officials felt that the restructuring measures were delivering the desired results. According to them, the company had shown a significant jump in its profitability in the financial year 2002–03. Sony reported a net income of ? 115. 52bn in the fiscal 2002–03 compared to ? 15. 31bn in 2001–02. (See Table 1 for Sony’s key financials in the past 13 years. ) A statement issued by Sony said, ‘The improvement in the results was partly due to the restructuring of its electronics business, especially in the components units.

At the beginning of the new millennium, Sony faced increased competition from domestic and foreign players (Korean companies like Samsung and LG) in its electronics and entertainment businesses. The domestic rivals Matsushita and NEC were able to capture a substantial market share in the internet-ready cell phones market. Analysts felt that the US-based software giants like Microsoft and Sun Microsystems and the networking major Cisco Systems posed a serious threat to Sony’s home entertainment business.

Background On 7 May 1946, Masaru Ibuka (Ibuka) and Akio Morita (Morita)4 co-founded a company called Tokyo Tsushin Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha (Tokyo Telecommunications Engineering Corporation) with an initial capital of ? 190,000 in the city of Nagoya, Japan. They gave importance to product innovation and decided to offer innovative, high quality products to their consumers. The founders introduced many new products like the magnetic tape recorder, the ‘pocketable radio’, and more. By the 1960s, the company had established itself in Japan and changed its name to Sony Corporation.

During the 1960s, the company focused on globalization and entered the US and European markets. In the 1970s, Sony also set up manufacturing units in the US and Europe. During this period, Sony developed and introduced the Walkman, which was a huge success. It significantly boosted Sony’s sales during the 1980s. By the mid-1980s, Sony’s consumer products were marketed in Europe through subsidiaries in the UK, Germany and France. In 1989, Norio Ohga (Ohga) took over as the chairman and CEO of Sony from Morita. Under Ohga, Sony began to place greater emphasis on process innovations that improved efficiency and controlled product costs.

By 1994, Sony’s businesses were organised into three broad divisions – Electronics, Entertainment and Insurance and Finance (see Table 2). Each business division was in turn split into product groups. The electronics business division was split into four product groups, which produced a wide variety of products. The entertainment division, which consisted of the music group and the pictures group, made music videos and motion pictures. The finance division consisted of Sony’s life insurance and finance business. The company’s growth was propelled by the launch of innovative products and by its foray into the music and films business.

Restructuring of electronics business (1994) Under Ohga’s leadership, Sony witnessed negligible growth in sales during 1990 and 1994. Sales and operating revenues improved by only 2 per cent during that period. However, the net income and operating income registered a drastic fall of 87 per cent and 67 per cent respectively. Analysts felt that the stagnation in the electronics industry coupled with factors such as the recession in the Japanese economy and the appreciation of the yen against the dollar led to the deterioration in the company’s performance.

It was noticed that in the electronics business (see Table 3), the revenues of the video and audio equipment businesses were coming down or were at best stagnant, while the television and ‘Others’ group were showing signs of improvement. The ‘Others’ group, which consisted of technology intensive products such as computer products, video games, semiconductors and telecom equipment was performing very well and had a growth rate of nearly 40 per cent. In order to focus on the high growth businesses, Sony announced major changes in the structure of its electronics business in April 1994.

Sony’s management felt that the ‘Group’ structure, which had fuelled the company’s growth in the 1980s, was proving to be redundant in the dynamic business environment of the 1990s. In the new structure, the product groups of the electronics businesses were regrouped into eight divisional companies. The eight companies were the Consumer Audio & Video Products Company, the Recording Media & Energy Company, the Broadcast Products Company, the Business & Industrial Systems Company, the InfoCom Products Company, the Mobile Electronics Company, the Components Company, and the Semiconductor Company.

The restructuring exercise laid special focus on the products that formed the ‘Others’ group. Each divisional company had its own goals and was responsible for all its operations (production, sales and finance). The presidents of the divisional companies were authorised to decide upon theinvestments to be made up to a prescribed limit. They could also take decisions regarding the HR issues for all employees up to the level of divisional director. In addition, they were made responsible for the financial performance of the companies headed by them.

Sony’s presidents were expected to perform a role similar to that of CEOs and were accountable to shareholders. The restructuring of Sony’s electronics business was aimed at improving the company’s focus on high potential products and expediting the decision making process to make the company more responsive to changing market conditions. Following the restructuring, the number of layers in the decision-making process was reduced from six to a maximum of four layers.

Commenting on his responsibilities within the new structure, Ohga said, ‘First of all, I would like for the divisional presidents to run their companies as if they were reporting to shareholders once a year at a shareholders’ meeting. My role will be to review their strategies, examine any points I feel should be questioned and provide advice when and where necessary. The main goals of Sony’s newly formed organization system were explained in a memorandum entitled ‘The Introduction of the Company within a Company System’ (see Table 4).

Explaining the rationale for the new system, Ohga said, ‘By revitalising its organization, Sony aims to introduce appealing products in the market in a timelier fashion while further strengthening cost-competitiveness companywide. In 1995, after the implementation of the divisional company structure in the electronics business, changes were announced in Sony’s management structure. Under the new framework, Sony was to be led by a team of executives at the top management level. The team included the Chairman & CEO, Vice Chairman, President &Chief Operating Officer (COO), Chief Officers and the presidents of divisional companies.

Analysts felt that Sony’s management took this measure to reduce the company’s reliance on a single leader. In March 1995, Nobuyuki Idei (Idei) was appointed the President and Chief Operating Officer of Sony. Despite the organizational changes, the financial performance of Sony deteriorated in 1995. For the fiscal year ending March 1995, Sony reported a huge net loss of ? 293. 36bn. The write off of goodwill during 1994, the poor performance of the Pictures group and the strength of the yen were regarded as major reasons for this loss.

During 1994, the yen was at an all-time high against the dollar, making Sony’s exports uncompetitive. Analysts also felt that Sony’s consumer electronics business lacked new, innovative products. Given this poor financial performance, the top management of Sony decided to integrate the company’s various domestic and global business functions such as marketing, R&D, finance, and HR. The functions of its numerous divisional companies were thus brought under the direct purview of headquarters. Idei also decided to strengthen the existing eight-company structure and to lay more emphasis on R&D in the IT field.

He felt that Sony needed to focus on eveloping IT-related businesses. Accordingly, Sony’s management reorganized the existing structure o create a new ten-company structure. The ten-company structure (1996) In January 1996, a new ten-company structure was announced, replacing the previous eight-company structure (see Table 5). Under the new structure, the previous Consumer Audio & Video (A&V) company was split into three new companies – the Display Company, the Home AV Company and the Personal AV Company.

A new company, the Information Technology Company, was created to focus on Sony’s business interests in the PC and IT industry. The Infocom Products Company and the Mobile Electronics Company were merged to create the Personal & Mobile Communications Company. The other companies formed were the Components & Computer Peripherals Company (formerly called the Components Company), the Recording Media & Energy Company, the Broadcast Products Company, the Image & Sound Communications Company (formerly called the Business & Industrial Systems Company) and the Semiconductor Company.

In order to devise and implement the corporate strategies of the Sony Group, an Executive Board was created. The board was chaired by Idei. The other members of the board included the Chief Human Resources Officer, the Chief Production Officer, the Chief Marketing Officer, the Chief Communications Officer, the Chief Technology Officer, the Chief Financial Officer, the Executive Deputy President & Representative Director and the Senior Managing Director.

In an attempt to consolidate the marketing operations of Sony, the marketing divisions that belonged to the previous organizational setup were spun off to create three new marketing groups – the Japan Marketing Group (JMG), the International Marketing & Operations Group (IM&O) and the Electronic Components & Devices Marketing Group (ECDMG). The JMG was responsible for all marketing activities in Japan for five companies – the Display Company, the Home AV Company, the Information Technology Company, the Personal AV Company and the Image & Sound Communications Company.

The IM&O was responsible for supporting all overseas marketing efforts for these companies. The ECDMG oversaw the worldwide marketing operations for the Semiconductor Company and the Components & Computer Peripherals Company. Analysts felt that this consolidation was done to separate Sony’s Japanese marketing operations from its worldwide operations so that the company could operate in a focused manner. To centralize all the R&D efforts of Sony, the previous R&D structure (in which each company had its own R&D division) was revamped and three new corporate laboratories were established.

The laboratories were the Architecture Laboratory (responsible for carrying out R&D for software, network and IT-related technologies), the Product Development Laboratory (R&D for product development in AV businesses) and the System & LSI Laboratory (R&D for LSI and system design, the basic components of hardware products). In addition, a new D21 laboratory was established to conduct long-term R&D for future oriented technology intensive products. Sony also gave emphasis to grooming young, talented people to take up top management positions.

The company also introduced the concept of ‘virtual companies’ – temporary groups consisting of people from different divisions for launching hybrid products. Sony applied this idea when developing the latest generation Mini Disk players. For the financial year 1995–96, Sony registered a 15 per cent increase in revenues and became profitable again. In April 1998, a new organization, Corporate Information Systems Solutions (CISS), was established to realign and upgrade Sony’s information network systems and its global supply chain.

The CISS comprised an advisory committee of individuals from management consultancy firms and Sony’s CISS representatives. The committee members advised the President on technological and strategic issues related to CISS. Representatives of the CISS were placed in all divisional companies to accelerate the implementation of corporate IT projects. During early 1998, Sony formed Sony Online Entertainment in the US to focus on internet-related projects. In May 1998, Sony changed the composition of its board of directors and established the new position of Co-Chief Executive officer (Co-CEO).

Idei was appointed Co-CEO. Idei reshuffled the management system to facilitate speedy decision making, improve efficiency, and provide greater role clarity to managers. The new system separated individuals responsible for policy-making from those who were responsible for operations. Under the new system, Idei was responsible for planning and designing Sony’s strategies and supervising the growth of e-business. Along with Ohga, he had to supervise the performance of the entire Sony group. President Ando was made responsible for overseeing Sony’s core lectronics business, while Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Tokunaka was made responsible for the company’s financial strategies and network businesses. In addition, the top management positions of Sony’s global subsidiaries, which were previously called Corporate Executive Officers, were redesignated Group Executive Officers. Explaining the rationale for these changes, a Sony spokesman said, ‘These changes are aimed at making Sony’s management more agile The implications From 1995 to 1999, Sony’s electronics business (on which the restructuring efforts were focused) grew at a compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of 8. 5 per cent (see Table 6). The music business had a CAGR of 10. 5 per cent while the pictures business had a CAGR of 17 per cent. Significant gains were, however, recorded by the games and insurance business. The games business registered a CAGR of 215 per cent, while the insurance business registered a CAGR of 31 per cent. In the late 1990s, Sony’s financial performance deteriorated. For the financial year 1998– 99, its net income dropped by 19. 4 per cent. During that period, Sony was banking heavily on its PlayStation computer game machines.

It was estimated that the PlayStation (Games business) accounted for nearly 42 per cent of Sony’s operating profits and 15 per cent of total sales for the quarter October– December 1998. In the late 1990s, many companies across the world were attempting to cash in on the internet boom. At that time, Sony’s management felt the need to establish a link between its electronics business (TVs, music systems, computers) and its content-related businesses (music, video games, movies and financial services) by making use of the internet.

The management felt that in future, the revenues generated by internet-related businesses might even surpass those earned through the consumer electronics business. It wanted to use the internet as a medium for selling its electronic products as well as its content (music, movies and so on). In order to achieve this, Sony announced another reorganization of business operations. Analysts felt that Sony was in a good position to exploit the opportunities offered by the internet since the company already had an established position in the electronics and content-related businesses.

The unified-dispersed management model In April 1999, Sony announced changes in its organizational structure. Through the new framework, the company aimed at streamlining its business operations to better exploit the opportunities offered by the internet. Sony’s key business divisions – Consumer Electronics division, Components division, Music division and the Games division – were reorganized into network businesses. This involved the reduction of ten divisional companies into three network companies, Sony Computer Entertainment (SCE) Company and the Broadcasting & Professional Systems (B&PS) Company (see Exhibit 1).

SCE Company was responsible for the PlayStation business while the B&PS Company supplied video and audio equipment for business, broadcast, education, industrial, medical and production related markets. The restructuring aimed at achieving three objectives – strengthening the electronics business, privatizing three Sony subsidiaries, and strengthening the management capabilities. The restructuring also aimed at enhancing shareholder value through ‘Value Creation Management’.

Strengthening the electronics business The three network companies created were the Home Network Company, the Personal IT Network Company and the Core Technology & Network Company. Each network company was governed by a network company management committee (NCMC) and a network committee board (NCB). The NCMC was responsible for developing management policies and strategies. Its members included the officers and presidents of the concerned network company. The NCB was responsible for managing the day-to-day operations of the network company while keeping in mind the overall corporate strategy of the entire organization.

Each NCB was chaired by the concerned company’s President & CEO, Deputy President, President and Representative Director, two Executive Deputy Presidents and Representative Directors, and Corporate Senior Vice President. The new structure aimed at decentralizing the worldwide operations of the company. The corporate headquarters gave the network companies the authority to function as autonomous entities in their corresponding businesses. To facilitate more functional and operational autonomy, the corporate headquarters also transferred the required support functions and R&D labs to each network company.

To give a further boost to Sony’s electronics business, the management created Digital Network Solutions (DNS) under the purview of headquarters. The role of DNS was to create a network business model by charting strategies and developing essential technologies for exploiting the opportunities offered by the internet. The basic aim of creating DNS was to develop a network base that would provide customers with digital content (such as music and movies) and financial services.

Privatizing Sony’s subsidiaries As part of its strategy to promote functional and operational autonomy and to devote more attention to units which contributed significantly to its revenues and profits, Sony decided to convert three of its companies – Sony Music Entertainment (Japan), Sony Chemical Corporation (manufactured printed circuit boards (PCBs), recording media and automotive batteries), and Sony Precision Technology (manufactured semiconductor inspection equipment and precision measuring devices) – into wholly owned subsidiaries of Sony.

In addition, Sony converted SCE, which was jointly owned by Sony and Sony Music Entertainment ( Japan), into a wholly owned subsidiary of Sony. Strengthening the management capability To strengthen the management capability, Sony clearly demarcated the roles of headquarters and the newly created network companies. Accordingly, distinction was made between the strategic and support functions. Sony’s headquarters was split into two separate units – Group Headquarters and Business Unit Support. The role of Group Headquarters was to oversee group operations and expedite the allocation of resources within the group.

The support functions, such as accounting, human resources and general affairs, were handled by the network companies so that they could enjoy more autonomy in their operations. Significant long-term R&D projects were directly supervised by the headquarters, while the immediate and short-term R&D projects were transferred to the concerned network companies. In order to evaluate the performance of the network companies, a value based performance measurement system9 was introduced. The implications While pursuing its restructuring efforts, Sony started developing products which were compatible with the internet.

Its electronic products, such as digital cameras, personal computers, music systems, and Walkman, were made web compatible. Through its website, www. sony. net, consumers could participate in popular television game shows, listen to music, and download songs and movie trailers. Sony also ventured into e-business with the acquisition of Sky Perfect Communications. 10 While focusing on offering internet-enabled products, Sony also attempted to increase internet penetration by offering internet connection at lower cost and higher speed to consumers in urban areas.

Sony’s restructuring efforts in 1999 were well received by investors. Following the announcement of the restructuring programme, Sony’s stock prices nearly tripled. This positive trend continued even in 2000. By March 2000, its stock prices were at a high of $152. Having already offered its PlayStation game console on the internet, Sony successfully launched its PlayStation 2 (PS2) video game console in Japan in March 2000. The PS2 sold 980,000 units within the first three days of its launch.

However, Sony still faced problems since its other businesses, including electronics, movies, personal computers, and mobile telecommunications, were not performing well. Analysts felt that the low internet penetration rate in Japan (estimated to be 13 per cent in 1999) was proving to be a major hurdle for Sony. Consequently, Sony’s financial performance deteriorated by the end of 1990s. For fiscal 1999–2000, Sony’s net income fell to ? 121. 83bn compared to ? 179bn in the fiscal 1998–99. This resulted in a major fall in its stock prices.

By May 2000, Sony’s stock prices fell by 40 per cent to $89. Analysts were quick to criticize Sony’s efforts towards transforming itself into a web- enabled company. They commented that the company had created more hype rather than taking a few significant steps in this regard. In response to these financial problems, Sony announced a reshuffle in its top management. Idei became the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Sony. Ando, who headed Sony’s PC division, was made the President, while Tokunaka, who previously headed the PlayStation unit, was made the Chief Financial Officer of Sony.

Sony also undertook a massive cost-cutting exercise. Its global manufacturing facilities were reduced from 70 in 1999 to 65 in 2001. Sony planned to further bring down the number of manufacturing facilities to 55 by the end of 2003. This move would result in the elimination of 17,000 jobs. While implementing these measures, the company had to deal with severe resistance from employee unions and local governments (in areas where jobs would be eliminated). Despite the above measures, Sony’s financial condition did not show any significant improvement in 2001.

The company was severely affected by the slowdown in the IT industry during 2000–01, which led to a decline in the demand for its computer-related products. As a result, in spite of a 9. 4 per cent increase in revenue in the fiscal 2000–01 (mainly due to the improved sales of the PlayStation games console) Sony’s net income dropped significantly from ? 121. 83bn in the fiscal 1999–2000 to ? 16. 75bn in the fiscal 2000–01. Analysts commented that Sony required a new business model.

The company had immediately to take concrete measures to increase its net income. Sony’s management also felt that with the emergence of net-compatible devices like cellular phones, audio and video gadgets and laptops, PCs were losing their charm. It felt that in the emerging age of ‘broadband’ the demand for the above products was likely to increase in future. Sony’s management felt that in order to boost profitability and exploit the opportunities offered by the broadband era, there was a need for yet another organizational restructuring.

Restructuring efforts in 2001 Sony announced another round of organizational restructuring in March 2001. The company aimed at transforming itself into a Personal Broadband Network Solutions company by launching a wide range of broadband products and services for its customers across the world. Explaining the objective of the restructuring, Idei said, ‘By capitalizing on this business structure and by having businesses cooperate with each other, we aim to become the leading media and technology company in the broadband era. The restructuring involved designing a new headquarters to function as a hub for Sony’s strategy, strengthening the electronics business, and facilitating network based content distribution. New headquarters to function as a hub for Sony’s strategy Under the new structural framework (see Exhibit 2), Sony’s headquarters was revamped into a Global Hub centred on five key businesses – electronics, entertainment, games, financial services and internet/communication service. The primary role of the Global Hub (headed by the top management) was to devise the overall management strategy of the company.

Sony’s management decided to integrate all the electronics business related activities under the newly created Electronic Headquarters (Electronics HQ). In order to achieve the convergence of Audio Video Products with IT (AV/IT convergence), Sony devised a unique strategy called ‘4 Network Gateway’. Under this strategy, the games and internet/communication service businesses were combined with the electronics hardware business so that innovative products could be developed and offered for the broadband market. The three businesses were under the supervision of Ando.

In order to provide support services for the entire group, a management platform was created, which consisted of key support functions in diverse fields such as accounting, finance, legal, intellectual copyrights, human resources, information systems, public relations, external affairs and design. The management platform was later split into the Engineering, Management and Customer Service (EMCS) Company and the Sales Platform (which comprised the regional sales companies and region-based internet direct marketing functions).

The management platform was headed by the Chief Administrative Officer, a newly created position. Sony’s management also converted the product centric network companies into solutionoriented companies by regrouping them into seven companies. Group resources were allocated among the network companies on the basis of their growth potential. Strengthening electronics business To enhance the profitability of the electronics segment, Sony’s management decided to give emphasis to product development efforts. The management felt it was also essential to enhance the quality of the electronic devices manufactured.

In order to achieve this, Sony’s management devised an innovative business model called the Ubiquitous Value Network, which connected the company’s existing hardware, content and services through an agency of networks. Sony planned to develop a wide range of products which could be connected through this network. Network-based content distribution Like the electronics, games and internet/communication service businesses, the entertainment and financial services businesses were also developed in a network compatible manner to facilitate electronic content distribution.

In the entertainment business, music and movies were converted into a digital format and distributed over the internet (apart from being distributed through traditional channels such as music stores and theatres). In Japan, Sony Music Entertainment launched online music through its website. This website allowed customers to download popular songs for a fee. In the financial services business, Sony Life Insurance Japan launched the ‘Life Planner’ consultancy system which offered personalized financial services online to its customers.

Sony Life Assurance Japan also went online and started selling its insurance policies over the internet. The implications Soon after the reorganization, Sony launched some innovative products to cater to the broadband market. For instance, in 2001, the company launched a series of internet-compatible mobile phones. However, the product was unsuccessful (owing to problems in the software used in the mobile devices) and in early 2002 Sony had to recall three batches of phones sold to Japanese companies. In consequence, Sony had to write off $110m in the quarter ending June 2002.

In April 2003, Sony announced another major restructuring exercise (to be carried out in the next three years) in order to strengthen its corporate value (see Exhibit 3). Following this announcement, Sony was reorganized into seven business entities – four network companies and three business groups (see Exhibit 4). These business entities were given the authority to frame short-term and long-term strategies. According to analysts, the company’s financial performance did not improve in spite of the frequent restructuring by Sony’s management.

For the financial year 2001–02, Sony’s operating income fell by a significant 40. 3 per cent while its revenues registered a marginal increase of 3. 6 per cent. According to a BusinessWeek report, sales of Sony’s most profitable products – the PlayStation and the PS2 game consoles – were likely to fall (see Exhibit 5). Due to Sony’s poor financial performance, the management planned to further reduce the number of manufacturing facilities and shift some production activities out of Japan.

Analysts also criticized Sony for being a diversified business conglomerate engaged in several businesses from semiconductors to financial services. They felt that the company should focus on a few highly profitable businesses like games, insurance, and audio-video equipment and hive off the unprofitable businesses. Analysts felt that spending huge amounts of money on restructuring was not justified, particularly since the restructuring exercises had not yielded the expected results. In 2001, restructuring efforts had cost the company ? 00bn; and the proposed restructuring in April 2003 was expected to cost another ? 140bn. Analysts also felt that the convergence of consumer electronics, PCs and the internet was not only opening up new opportunities for Sony but also creating more competition for its core businesses. As Sony took steps to strengthen its networking capabilities, the company faced new forms of competition in both domestic as well as foreign markets. For instance, in the US, software giants like Microsoft and Sun Microsystems (as well as a few startups) were planning to enter the home entertainment market.

Even Cisco Systems, which provided network solutions, had started manufacturing consumer electronics products. A BusinessWeek report said that Sony lacked any distinctive competencies in the internet-related businesses. It was neither an aggregator of content like Yahoo! , nor a limited-product vendor with an efficient distribution network such as Dell. QUESTIONS 1. During the first half of the 1990s, Sony’s financial performance was not satisfactory. In 1994, in an attempt to improve Sony’s financial performance, Ohga decided to restructure Sony’s electronics business.

Discuss in detail the restructuring exercise undertaken by Ohga. Do you think the restructuring yielded the desired results? 2. Critically analyze Sony’s restructuring efforts since 1999 and discuss the efficacy of each of them. 3. Analysts felt that frequent restructuring at Sony had a negative impact on the company’s financial performance. Do you think there was a need to restructure Sony so frequently/ Was the top management at Sony right in implementing frequent restructuring changes ?

Health Belief Model – Health Promotion Model – Obesity in Adolescents

Help Belief Model (HBM) – – Hochbaum, Rosenstock, & Kegals (1950) ? ??????? CONCEPT DEFINITION APPLICATION Perceived Susceptibility One’s opinion of chances of getting a condition Teenager’s who were deemed overweight or obese would more than likely be only too aware of the Social and Psychological aspects and not the ramifications of their morbidity rate lowing by their condition and the ensuing health problems in later life. The data and facts above speak for themselves and provision of these to Teenager’s will help them make a learned response.

Provide them the statistics on the growing trend of overweight and obesity within Teenagers show them they are not alone so that they will not feel so isolated, hopefully improving moral and self esteem. Provide them with the facts and figures on morbidity rates, what health issues are going to arise. Make them aware of food and nutrition and educate them on how it can be changed, especially if they have been overweight from childhood whereupon they might not have had any control on what they ate.

Help them understand as individuals the responsibility of food intake and physical activity, showing them that it does not take much effort to become more active and just commence with a walk 20 minutes a day. Make them aware that it is not their fault they are the way they are and it is a trend within society that has brought about the inactivity. However, it must be stressed to them they do have a choice now on how to live their lives. Perceived Severity

One’s opinion of how serious a condition and its consequences are The consequences of the risk of carrying on their current behaviour to their weight and lack of inactivity will result in early Death and the need for Medical Intervention if not already in place. Help them to write down and be aware of their current food consumption. Show them a computerised picture of another youth adding pounds on them over the years and how the ration and control of calorie intake of food and lack of inactivity will just keep adding on the weight putting them at greater risk..

Perceived Benefits One’s belief in the efficacy of the advised action to reduce risk or seriousness of impact Empower teenagers to make a choice on food intake by supplying them and/or educating them on healthy food types and calorie content in normal foods as well as soft drinks intake and how just a little bit of exercise each day i. e. walking can benefit them and encourage non competitive physical activities. Good nutrition in general can help them not only with the health benefits in the long term but also short term as in the skin’s better, improved energy, improved memory.

Higher self esteem that they will feel when the weight is dropped. There are lots of evidence based schemes about: we are incorporating a questionnaire on food intake and also access to cook books within our leaflet. This alongside a community run effort should help. Overall to encourage an awareness of types of food eating and there calorific content and developing an active lifestyle that can be maintained throughout life. Perceived Barriers

One’s opinion of the tangible and psychological costs of the advised action Initially you would have to determine if the teenager has a pre-disposition to obesity within there family, environment and/or within there genes then this will have many barriers to take into consideration and you would have to consider there environment, culturally and family support as well as the pressures the individual may be facing sociologically: Does there family eat healthily, if not then there is an even bigger issue on as to whether you can change the diet of all the family members, that also goes for culturally defined foods.

Can they afford to eat healthy and cut out cheaper less nutritional foods? Would there family and friends support them. Does the persons friends eat frequently at fast food places. Are they prepared to opt for say an apple whilst all there mates are eating at a fast food place etc. Do they have available to them on a day to day basis access to a variety of readily available food to consume as in the school they are attending or work place. When addressing the balance of food and content of ood eaten this will have to be treated very carefully and sensitively so as not to undermine them in any way because if they start of with low self esteem it could make them go further in depths of despair. Also consideration has to be taken with reference to the risk of fad and yoyo dieting of which also has its own dangers. You also have to consider their attitude to there weight and as to whether they have any motivation to take the course of action required as well as an overall mental well being.

With the changing views on being overweight these days of it being acceptable it may be very hard to motivate/encourage someone to change when they are ‘ok’ as they are and are they actually prepared or wanting to change. Overall you would be looking into a complete behavioural change of which has a knock on effect of the people around them as well, are they able to communicate this and will they be supported.

There will need to be a lot of collaboration and encouragement given not only on an individual basis but also within the person’s family and peer group and encouragement should be given to these persons to find solutions to any issues that may be raised with special effort given to the teenager’s confidence, choices and capabilities. Cues to Action Strategies to activate ‘readiness’

First and foremost it should be established in a sensitive manner as to whether the individual is overweight or leaning that way or obese of which we have opted for a questionnaire given in a community environment with information on statistics and all the health risks involved. This will help them to be aware of what food they eat and show them what a healthy eating plan is and give them lots of assortment of information they can access with various information on recipes and food choices, as in booklets and web addresses.

Encourage more activity like walking instead of taking a bus and give them information on all the readily available places in the area that offer an assortment of exercise facilities like swimming pools and keep fit classes. Give them individual based diet and exercise plans that you have worked out together. Encourage them and other persons within their family, peer groups and the community encouraging them to work together and give them a sound basis of support that is readily available to them.

Self-Efficacy Strategies to activate ‘readiness’ Informing the individual what is available to them within there own environment. Educate and train them on healthy eating regimes and exercise plans. Encourage choices and let them know that help is readily available for any assistance they feel they may require.

Iphone Strategic Intent

iPhone Strategic Intent Apple – A Company • Apple was founded on April 1, 1976 by Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak, and Ronald Wayne to sell the Apple I personal computer kit. • Focused on designing and manufacturing consumer electronics and closely related software products. iPhone Strategic Intent Strategic Intent behind iPhone • Develops, sells, and supports a series of personal computers, portable media players, computer software, and computer hardware accessories. • Apple is the early mover in the product category and its strategy is to cash in on market before competition creeps in. Phone iPod Apple Macintosh Operating System with GUI Assembled Personal Computer IPHONE EXPERIENCE Arena • CATEGORY : Smartphone – It’s the next-generation iPod – It’s the next generation mobile web browser and email client – It’s the next generation phone – It’s a software design innovation competing against hardware design innovations IPHONE IS EVERYTHING • Market Segmentation – Elite class was 1st priority – Now focus is on the teenagers and office goers • Geographic areas – Already launched in the US, UK markets on NOV 9, 2007 – Phase wise launch in European and Asian countries

CORE Technologies – User friendly interface – Accelerometer – Multitouch – OS X – Proximity – Video of features • Value creation – Bundling “free” and generic phones with cell phone service – Network Providers pay $150 to $250 for handsets – It has created a phone that consumers see as sexy and desirable, so desirable in fact that they will actually pay $399 for one. Vehicle • Internal development • Exclusive contract with AT&T in US • International expansion in UK, Germany and France • In next 3 months, planning to launch in Japan, India & China Differentiator • Image: Super brand in iPod/Laptop and Desktop/ OS segment in US. • Price: $399 for 8GB storage capacity iPhone – Plans start at US$59. 99 a month – 450 minutes, – 5000 night and weekend minutes, – 200 text messages, – unlimited mobile to mobile minutes, – unlimited data with a two-year service plan. • Styling: – The iPhone’s 320 x 480 screen puts it in a class by itself. With 153,600 pixels to light up, images look better. – Breathtaking clarity of the iPhone screen – iPhone can present visuals no other phone can touch – The iPhone takes full 2. 0 megapixel resolution 1600 x 1200 photos, Treo has a 1. megapixel, only takes 640 x 480 photos. Other features • iPhone has an “advanced Safari browser” that allows one to view entire webpages as designed for a computer. • HTML capable e-mail client that fetches e-mail in the background over POP3 and IMAP, a calendar, and “Widgets”. • Google Maps as well as weather and stock feeds • Speed and sequence of moves: – Product Curiosity – “freezing the market” – Market Skimming Strategy – Priced its product at $599 and as soon as break even sales were achieved it has reduced its products at $399 so as to penetrate more into the market. Speed of expansion: – The speed and expansion of events can be gauged by the fact that in three short months its planning to launch the product all across Europe and in emerging markets across the globe. – Production capacity has been ramped up to cope with increased demand. • Invested into visibility: – The marketing strategy of APPLE is such that it created a buzz in the market by announcing the product launch beforehand and keeping all details under wraps. – Thus creating customer curiosity.

Besides this it has invested in creating visibility through outdoor advertisement and also ads at APPLE stores iPhone Kiosks at Public places • Availability of the Product: – Apple online stores 24×7 – AT&T Locations – Over 1800 stores in US – Apple stores – 172 in US, 10 in UK, – 7 in Japan, 4 in Canada Economic sense • Apple has priced iphone at $599 and within three months it has achieved break even sales now with the festive season fast approaching it has reduced its price $399 it hopes to have to do around 2 million pieces. $15 / user / month from AT&T and already 1 million users have already joined the AT&T network so far • Thus a win-win situation is created for both APPLE and AT&T • Large number of APPLE STORES Look at some Figures • First 30 hours sales of iPhone — 146,000 new activations of AT&T and 270,000 sales. • $5 million revenue from iPhone accessories. Bibliography • Search Engine • www. google. co. in • • • • • • • Websites www. wikipedia. com www. apple. com http://www. wired. com http://www. everyipod. com/iphone-faq http://www. appleinsider. com/articles www. brentevans. blogspot. com

Oedipus: Fate vs. Free Will

Fate is responsible for many events, such as the tragedy of Oedipus. Although some people may lay the fault on others, they were really just part of fate’s plans all along. Jocasta and Laius, a queen and King from ancient Greece, found out they were to have a son. But they did not know from the moment Jocasta became pregnant, fate had plans for their son. Before he was even born Oedipus was destined to kill his father and marry his mother. Despite his parent’s attempt to kill him as a baby and Oedipus himself running from his fate, the result was still what fate had planned all along.

Fate used everybody and made them all play a part in the tragedy. Even without the actions of Oedipus’ parents, Tiresias, and the gods, Oedipus still would have killed his father and married his mother. Although the blame from the tragedy of Oedipus could fall on many different people, ultimately fate is at fault. Revealing the future to humans is one way the tragedy is fate’s fault. “One often meets his destiny on the path to avoid it” (Max Wippermann). If Jocasta and Laius had not known their fate there never would have abandoned Oedipus.

If he had not been abandoned, Oedipus would have known his real parents and the prophecy would not have come true. But this was fate’s plan all along. After Oedipus went to Delphi to hear his fate, he started “running towards some place where [he] would never see the shame of all those oracles come true” (879-880). In Oedipus’ flight, he encountered Lauis and killed him. He then continued into Thebes to marry his mother. If Oedipus had never saw the oracle then he would have stayed in Corinth, but this was his destiny. Learning one’s fate causes them to follow the path towards it even more quickly than if they were oblivious to it.

Fate shapes the path of Oedipus’ life. The shepherd who was meant to have him killed “pitied the little baby” and “he saved him” (1301-1303). But by saving him from death he caused him to live out a life of pain. If the shepherd had left Oedipus in the mountains like he was ordered to do, Oedipus would have dies and the prophecy would have not come true. Fate saw this possibility when Oedipus was given to the shepherd and changed the direction of the path Oedipus followed so he could live to fulfill his fate. As Oedipus ran from Delphi and Corinth after hearing his fate he came upon

Lauis and his men who “were about to thrust [him] off the road” (889). This provoked Oedipus and caused him to strike Lauis which started the fight. Fate made Lauis shove Oedipus to the side of the road. Fate lets most things go on their own, but sometimes needs to interfere in order to make sure the end result is still what it wants. The tragedy of Oedipus was caused by fate. Fate changed to course of events and twisted the future to make things happen the way they did. Fate made new paths for people to follow so the prophecy would come true exactly the way it wanted. Without fate, the tragedy of Oedipus never would have occurred.

Great Depression

Great Depression From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia {draw:frame} Dorothea Lange’s Migrant Mother depicts destitute pea pickers in California, centering on Florence Owens Thompson, age 32, a mother of seven children, in Nipomo, California, March 1936. The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression) in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s. 1] It was the longest, most widespread, and deepest depression of the 20th century, and is used in the 21st century as an example of how far the world’s economy can decline. [2] The depression originated in the United States, starting with the stock market crash of October 29, 1929 (known as Black Tuesday), but quickly spread to almost every country in the world. [1] Countries started to recover by the mid-1930s, but in many countries the negative effects of the Great Depression lasted until the start of World War II. [8] {draw:frame}

USA annual real GDP from 1910–60, with the years of the Great Depression (1929–1939) highlighted. {draw:frame} Unemployment rate in the US 1910–1960, with the years of the Great Depression (1929–1939) highlighted. Start of the Great Depression {draw:frame} US industrial production (1928–39). {draw:frame} US Farm Prices, (1928–35). See also: Timeline of the Great Depression Historians most often attribute the start of the Great Depression to the sudden and total collapse of US stock market prices on October 29th, 1929, known as Black Tuesday. 1] However, some dispute this conclusion, and see the stock crash as a symptom, rather than a cause of the Great Depression. [9][3] Even after the Wall Street Crash of 1929, optimism persisted for some time; John D. Rockefeller said that “These are days when many are discouraged. In the 93 years of my life, depressions have come and gone. Prosperity has always returned and will again. “[10] The stock market turned upward in early 1930, returning to early 1929 levels by April, though still almost 30% below the peak of September 1929. 11] Together, government and business actually spent more in the first half of 1930 than in the corresponding period of the previous year. But consumers, many of whom had suffered severe losses in the stock market the previous year, cut back their expenditures by ten percent, and a severe drought ravaged the agricultural heartland of the USA beginning in the summer of 1930. By mid-1930, interest rates had dropped to low levels, but expected deflation and the reluctance of people to add new debt by borrowing, meant that consumer spending and investment were depressed. 12] In May 1930, automobile sales had declined to below the levels of 1928. Prices in general began to decline, but wages held steady in 1930; but then a deflationary spiral started in 1931. Conditions were worse in farming areas, where commodity prices plunged, and in mining and logging areas, where unemployment was high and there were few other jobs. The decline in the US economy was the factor that pulled down most other countries at first, then internal weaknesses or strengths in each country made conditions worse or better.

Frantic attempts to shore up the economies of individual nations through protectionist policies, such as the 1930 U. S. Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act and retaliatory tariffs in other countries, exacerbated the collapse in global trade. By late in 1930, a steady decline set in which reached bottom by March 1933. {draw:frame} Causes Crowd gathering on Wall Street after the 1929 crash. Main article: Causes of the Great Depression There were multiple causes for the first downturn in 1929, including the structural weaknesses and specific events that turned it into a major depression and the way in which the downturn spread from country to country.

In relation to the 1929 downturn, historians emphasize structural factors like massive bank failures and the stock market crash, while economists (such as Peter Temin and Barry Eichengreen) point to Britain’s decision to return to the Gold Standard at pre-World War I parities (US$4. 86:? 1). Recession cycles are thought to be a normal part of living in a world of inexact balances between supply and demand. What turns a usually mild and short recession or “ordinary” business cycle into an actual depression is a subject of debate and concern.

Scholars have not agreed on the exact causes and their relative importance. The search for causes is closely connected to the question of how to avoid a future depression, and so the political and policy viewpoints of scholars are mixed into the analysis of historic events eight decades ago. The even larger question is whether it was largely a failure on the part of free markets or largely a failure on the part of government efforts to regulate interest rates, curtail widespread bank failures, and control the money supply.

Those who believe in a large role for the state in the economy believe it was mostly a failure of the free markets and those who believe in free markets believe it was mostly a failure of government that compounded the problem. Current theories may be broadly classified into three main points of view. First there are the monetarists, who believe that the Great Depression started as an ordinary recession, but that significant policy mistakes by monetary authorities (especially the Federal Reserve), caused a shrinking of the money supply which greatly exacerbated the economic situation, causing a recession to descend into the Great Depression.

Related to this explanation are those who point to debt deflation causing those who borrow to owe ever more in real terms. Second, there are structural theories, most importantly Keynesian, but also including those who point to the breakdown of international trade, and Institutional economists who point to underconsumption and overinvestment (economic bubble), malfeasance by bankers and industrialists, or incompetence by government officials. The consensus viewpoint is that there was a large-scale loss of confidence that led to a sudden reduction in consumption and investment spending.

Once panic and deflation set in, many people believed they could make more money by keeping clear of the markets as prices dropped lower and a given amount of money bought ever more goods, exacerbating the drop in demand. Lastly, there are various heterodox theories that downplay or reject the explanations of the Keynesian and monetarists. For example, some new classical macroeconomists have argued that various labor market policies imposed at the start caused the length and severity of the Great Depression.

The Austrian school of economics focuses on the macroeconomic effects of money supply, and how central banking decisions can lead to overinvestment (economic bubble). The Marxist critique of political economy emphasizes the tendency of capitalism to create unbalanced accumulations of wealth, leading to overaccumulations of capital and a repeating cycle of devaluations through economic crises. Marx saw recession and depression as unavoidable under free-market capitalism as there are no restrictions on accumulations of capital other than the market itself.

Monetarist explanations Main article: Causesof_the_Great_Depression#Monetarist_explanations_ {draw:frame} Crowd at New York’s American Union Bank during a bank run early in the Great Depression. Monetarists, including Milton Friedman and current Federal Reserve System chairman Ben Bernanke, argue that the Great Depression was mainly caused by monetary contraction, the consequence of poor policymaking by the American Federal Reserve System and continued crisis in the banking system. 13][14] In this view, the Federal Reserve, by not acting, allowed the money supply as measured by the M2) to shrink by one-third from 1929 to 1933, thereby transforming a normal recession into the Great Depression. Friedman argued that the downward turn in the economy, starting with the stock market crash, would have been just another recession. [15] However, the Federal Reserve allowed some large public bank failures – particularly that of the New York Bank of the United States – which produced panic and widespread runs on local banks, and the Federal Reserve sat idly by while banks collapsed.

He claimed that, if the Fed had provided emergency lending to these key banks, or simply bought government bonds on the open market to provide liquidity and increase the quantity of money after the key banks fell, all the rest of the banks would not have fallen after the large ones did, and the money supply would not have fallen as far and as fast as it did. [16] With significantly less money to go around, businessmen could not get new loans and could not even get their old loans renewed, forcing many to stop investing.

This interpretation blames the Federal Reserve for inaction, especially the New York branch. [17] One reason why the Federal Reserve did not act to limit the decline of the money supply was regulation. At that time the amount of credit the Federal Reserve could issue was limited by laws which required partial gold backing of that credit. By the late 1920s the Federal Reserve had almost hit the limit of allowable credit that could be backed by the gold in its possession. This credit was in the form of Federal Reserve demand notes.

Since a “promise of gold” is not as good as “gold in the hand”, during the bank panics a portion of those demand notes were redeemed for Federal Reserve gold. Since the Federal Reserve had hit its limit on allowable credit, any reduction in gold in its vaults had to be accompanied by a greater reduction in credit. On April 5, 1933 President Roosevelt signed Executive Order 6102 making the private ownership of gold certificates, coins and bullion illegal, reducing the pressure on Federal Reserve gold. [18] Debt deflation

Main article: Causesof_the_Great_Depression#Debt_deflation_ Irving Fisher argued that the predominant factor leading to the Great Depression was over-indebtedness and deflation. Fisher tied loose credit to over-indebtedness, which fueled speculation and asset bubbles. [19] He then outlined 9 factors interacting with one another under conditions of debt and deflation to create the mechanics of boom to bust. The chain of events proceeded as follows: Debt liquidation and distress selling Contraction of the money supply as bank loans are paid off A fall in the level of asset prices

A still greater fall in the net worths of business, precipitating bankruptcies A fall in profits A reduction in output, in trade and in employment. Pessimism and loss of confidence Hoarding of money A fall in nominal interest rates and a rise in deflation adjusted interest rates. [19] During the Crash of 1929 preceding the Great Depression, margin requirements were only 10%. [20] Brokerage firms, in other words, would lend $9 for every $1 an investor had deposited. When the market fell, brokers called in these loans, which could not be paid back.

Banks began to fail as debtors defaulted on debt and depositors attempted to withdraw their deposits en masse, triggering multiple bank runs. Government guarantees and Federal Reserve banking regulations to prevent such panics were ineffective or not used. Bank failures led to the loss of billions of dollars in assets. [21] Outstanding debts became heavier, because prices and incomes fell by 20–50% but the debts remained at the same dollar amount. After the panic of 1929, and during the first 10 months of 1930, 744 US banks failed. (In all, 9,000 banks failed during the 1930s).

By April 1933, around $7 billion in deposits had been frozen in failed banks or those left unlicensed after the March Bank Holiday. [22] Bank failures snowballed as desperate bankers called in loans which the borrowers did not have time or money to repay. With future profits looking poor, capital investment and construction slowed or completely ceased. In the face of bad loans and worsening future prospects, the surviving banks became even more conservative in their lending. [21] Banks built up their capital reserves and made fewer loans, which intensified deflationary pressures.

A vicious cycle developed and the downward spiral accelerated. The liquidation of debt could not keep up with the fall of prices which it caused. The mass effect of the stampede to liquidate increased the value of each dollar owed, relative to the value of declining asset holdings. The very effort of individuals to lessen their burden of debt effectively increased it. Paradoxically, the more the debtors paid, the more they owed. [19] This self-aggravating process turned a 1930 recession into a 1933 great depression. Macroeconomists including Ben Bernanke, the current chairman of the U.

S. Federal Reserve Bank, have revived the debt-deflation view of the Great Depression originated by Fisher. [23][24] Structural explanations Keynesian Main article: Causesof_the_Great_Depression#Keynesian_explanation_ British economist John Maynard Keynes argued in General Theory of Employment Interest and Money that lower aggregate expenditures in the economy contributed to a massive decline in income and to employment that was well below the average. In such a situation, the economy reached equilibrium at low levels of economic activity and high unemployment.

Keynes basic idea was simple: to keep people fully employed, governments have to run deficits when the economy is slowing, as the private sector would not invest enough to keep production at the normal level and bring the economy out of recession. Keynesian economists called on governments during times of economic crisis) to pick up the slack by increasing government spending and/or cutting taxes. As the Depression wore on, Roosevelt tried public works, farm subsidies, and other devices to restart the economy, but never completely gave up trying to balance the budget. According to the Keynesians, this improved the conomy, but Roosevelt never spent enough to bring the economy out of recession until the start of World War II. [25] Breakdown of international trade Main article: Causes of the Great Depression Many economists have argued that the sharp decline in international trade after 1930 helped to worsen the depression, especially for countries significantly dependent on foreign trade. Most historians and economists partly blame the American Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act (enacted June 17, 1930) for worsening the depression by seriously reducing international trade and causing retaliatory tariffs in other countries.

While foreign trade was a small part of overall economic activity in the United States and was concentrated in a few businesses like farming, it was a much larger factor in many other countries. [26] The average ad valorem rate of duties on dutiable imports for 1921–1925 was 25. 9% but under the new tariff it jumped to 50% in 1931–1935. In dollar terms, American exports declined from about $5. 2 billion in 1929 to $1. 7 billion in 1933; but prices also fell, so the physical volume of exports only fell by half.

Hardest hit were farm commodities such as wheat, cotton, tobacco, and lumber. According to this theory, the collapse of farm exports caused many American farmers to default on their loans, leading to the bank runs on small rural banks that characterized the early years of the Great Depression. New classical approach Main article: Causesof_the_Great_Depression#New_classical_approach_ Recent work from a neoclassical perspective focuses on the decline in productivity that caused the initial decline in output and a prolonged recovery due to policies that affected the labor market.

This work, collected by Kehoe and Prescott,[27] decomposes the economic decline into a decline in the labor force, capital stock, and the productivity with which these inputs are used. This study suggests that theories of the Great Depression have to explain an initial severe decline but rapid recovery in productivity, relatively little change in the capital stock, and a prolonged depression in the labor force. This analysis rejects theories that focus on the role of savings and posit a decline in the capital stock. Austrian School

Main article: Causesof_the_Great_Depression#Austrian_School_explanations_ Another explanation comes from the Austrian School of economics. Theorists of the “Austrian School” who wrote about the Depression include Austrian economist Friedrich Hayek and American economist Murray Rothbard, who wrote America’s Great Depression (1963). In their view and like the monetarists, the Federal Reserve, which was created in 1913, shoulders much of the blame; but in opposition to the monetarists, they argue that the key cause of the Depression was the expansion of the money supply in the 1920s that led to an unsustainable credit-driven boom.

In the Austrian view it was this inflation of the money supply that led to an unsustainable boom in both asset prices (stocks and bonds) and capital goods. By the time the Fed belatedly tightened in 1928, it was far too late and, in the Austrian view, a depression was inevitable. According to the Austrians, the artificial interference in the economy was a disaster prior to the Depression, and government efforts to prop up the economy after the crash of 1929 only made things worse. According to Rothbard, government intervention delayed the market’s adjustment and made the road to complete recovery more difficult. 29] Furthermore, Rothbard criticizes Milton Friedman’s assertion that the central bank failed to inflate the supply of money. Rothbard asserts that the Federal Reserve bought $1. 1 billion of government securities from February to July 1932, raising its total holding to $1. 8 billion. Total bank reserves rose by only $212 million, but Rothbard argues that this was because the American populace lost faith in the banking system and began hoarding more cash, a factor quite beyond the control of the Central Bank.

The potential for a run on the banks caused local bankers to be more conservative in lending out their reserves, and this, Rothbard argues, was the cause of the Federal Reserve’s inability to inflate. [30] Inequality of wealth and income Main article: Causesof_the_Great_Depression#Inequality_of_wealth_and_income_ Power farming displaces tenants from the land in the western dry cotton area. Childress County, Texas, 1938. Two economists of the 1920s, and William Trufant Foster, popularized a theory that influenced many policy makers, including Herbert Hoover, Henry A.

Wallace, Paul Douglas, and Marriner Eccles. It held the economy produced more than it consumed, because the consumers did not have enough income. Thus the unequal distribution of wealth throughout the 1920s caused the Great Depression. [31][32] According to this view, wages increased at a rate lower than productivity increases. Most of the benefit of the increased productivity went into profits, which went into the stock market bubble rather than into consumer purchases. Say’s law no longer operated in this model (an idea picked up by Keynes).

As long as corporations had continued to expand their capital facilities (their factories, warehouses, heavy equipment, and other investments), the economy had flourished. Under pressure from the Coolidge administration and from business, the Federal Reserve Board kept the discount rate low, encouraging high (and excessive) investment. By the end of the 1920s, however, capital investments had created more plant space than could be profitably used, and factories were producing more than consumers could purchase. Franklin D.

Roosevelt, elected in 1932 and inaugurated March 4, 1933, blamed the excesses of big business for causing an unstable bubble-like economy. Democrats believed the problem was that business had too much money, and the New Deal was intended as a remedy, by empowering labor unions and farmers and by raising taxes on corporate profits. In addition, excess price and entry competition, integrated banking, and the sheer size of corporations were viewed as contributing factors. [34] Regulation of the economy was a favorite remedy to this problem. draw:frame} Turning point and recovery The overall course of the Depression in the United States, as reflected in per-capita GDP (average income per person) shown in constant year 2000 dollars, plus some of the key events of the period. [35] Various countries around the world started to recover from the Great Depression at different times. In most countries of the world recovery from the Great Depression began in 1933. [1] In the United States recovery began in the spring of 1933. [1] However, the U. S. id not return to 1929 GNP for over a decade and still had an unemployment rate of about 15% in 1940, albeit down from the high of 25% in 1933. Gold standard Economic studies have indicated that just as the downturn was spread worldwide by the rigidities of the Gold Standard, it was suspending gold convertibility (or devaluing the currency in gold terms) that did most to make recovery possible. [43] What policies countries followed after casting off the gold standard, and what results followed varied widely. Every major currency left the gold standard during the Great Depression. Great Britain was the first to do so.

Facing speculative attacks on the pound and depleting gold reserves, in September 1931 the Bank of England ceased exchanging pound notes for gold and the pound was floated on foreign exchange markets. {draw:frame} The Depression in international perspective. [44] Great Britain, Japan, and the Scandinavian countries left the gold standard in 1931. Other countries, such as Italy and the United States, remained on the gold standard into 1932 or 1933, while a few countries in the so-called “gold bloc”, led by France and including Poland, Belgium and Switzerland, stayed on the standard until 1935–1936.

According to later analysis, the earliness with which a country left the gold standard reliably predicted its economic recovery. For example, Great Britain and Scandinavia, which left the gold standard in 1931, recovered much earlier than France and Belgium, which remained on gold much longer. Countries such as China, which had a silver standard, almost avoided the depression entirely. The connection between leaving the gold standard as a strong predictor of that country’s severity of its depression and the length of time of its recovery has been shown to be consistent for dozens of countries, including developing countries.

This partly explains why the experience and length of the depression differed between national economies. [45] World War II and recovery The Great Depression ended as nations increased their production of war materials at the start of World War II. A factory worker in 1942. Fort Worth, Texas. The common view among economic historians is that the Great Depression ended with the advent of World War II. Many economists believe that government spending on the war caused or at least accelerated recovery from the Great Depression.

However, some consider that it did not play a great role in the recovery, although it did help in reducing unemployment. [46][1][47] The massive rearmament policies leading up to World War II helped stimulate the economies of Europe in 1937–39. By 1937, unemployment in Britain had fallen to 1. 5 million. The mobilization of manpower following the outbreak of war in 1939 finally ended unemployment. [48] America’s late entry into the war in 1941 finally eliminated the last effects from the Great Depression and brought the unemployment rate down below 10%. 49] In the United States, massive war spending doubled economic growth rates, either masking the effects of the Depression or essentially ending the Depression. Businessmen ignored the mounting national debt and heavy new taxes, redoubling their efforts for greater output to take advantage of generous government contracts. Productivity soared: most people worked overtime and gave up leisure activities to make money after so many hard years. People accepted rationing and price controls for the first time as a way of expressing their support for the war effort.

Cost-plus pricing in munitions contracts guaranteed businesses a profit no matter how many mediocre workers they employed or how inefficient the techniques they used. The demand was for a vast quantity of war supplies as soon as possible, regardless of cost. Businesses hired every person in sight, even driving sound trucks up and down city streets begging people to apply for jobs. New workers were needed to replace the 11 million working-age men serving in the military. [50] Effects

The majority of countries set up relief programs, and most underwent some sort of political upheaval, pushing them to the left or right. In some states, the desperate citizens turned toward nationalist demagogues—the most infamous being Adolf Hitler—setting the stage for World War II in 1939. Australia Main article: Great Depression in Australia Australia’s extreme dependence on agricultural and industrial exports meant it was one of the hardest-hit countries in the Western world, amongst the likes of Canada and Germany. Falling export demand and commodity prices placed massive downward pressures on wages.

Further, unemployment reached a record high of 29% in 1932,[51] with incidents of civil unrest becoming common. After 1932, an increase in wool and meat prices led to a gradual recovery. Canada Unemployed men march in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Main article: Great Depression in Canada Harshly impacted by both the global economic downturn and the Dust Bowl, Canadian industrial production had fallen to only 58% of the 1929 level by 1932, the second lowest level in the world after the United States, and well behind nations such as Britain, which saw it fall only to 83% of the 1929 level.

Total national income fell to 56% of the 1929 level, again worse than any nation apart from the United States. Unemployment reached 27% at the depth of the Depression in 1933. [52] During the 1930s, Canada employed a highly restrictive immigration policy. [53] Chile See also: Economic history of Chile Chile initially felt the impact of the Great Depression in 1930, when GDP dropped 14 percent, mining income declined 27 percent, and export earnings fell 28 percent.

By 1932 GDP had shrunk to less than half of what it had been in 1929, exacting a terrible toll in unemployment and business failures. The League of Nations labeled Chile the country hardest hit by the Great Depression because 80 percent of government revenue came from exports of copper and nitrates, which were in low demand. Influenced profoundly by the Great Depression, many national leaders promoted the development of local industry in an effort to insulate the economy from future external shocks.

After six years of government austerity measures, which succeeded in reestablishing Chile’s creditworthiness, Chileans elected to office during the 1938–58 period a succession of center and left-of-center governments interested in promoting economic growth by means of government intervention. Prompted in part by the devastating earthquake of 1939, the Popular Front) government of Pedro Aguirre Cerda created the Production Development Corporation (Corporacion de Fomento de la Produccion, CORFO) to encourage with subsidies and direct investments an ambitious program of import substitution industrialization.

Consequently, as in other Latin American countries, protectionism became an entrenched aspect of the Chilean economy. France Main article: Great Depression in France Germany “Diligent young man seeks work” Main article: Great Depression in Central Europe Germany’s Weimar Republic was hit hard by the depression, as American loans to help rebuild the German economy now stopped. [54] Unemployment soared, especially in larger cities, and the political system veered toward extremism. [55] The unemployment rate reached nearly 30% in 1932. 56] Repayment of the war reparations due by Germany were suspended in 1932 following the Lausanne Conference of 1932. By that time Germany had repaid 1/8th of the reparations. Hitler’s Nazi Party came to power in January 1933. Bonnie and Clyde were notorious bank robbers during what is sometimes referred to as the “public enemy era” between 1931 and 1935. During the Depression bankers became so unpopular that bank robbers, such as John Dillinger, became folk heroes. [57] Japan The Great Depression did not strongly affect Japan. The Japanese economy shrank by 8% during 1929–31.

However, Japan’s Finance Minister Takahashi Korekiyo was the first to implement what have come to be identified as Keynesian economic policies: first, by large fiscal stimulus involving deficit spending; and second, by devaluing the currency. Takahashi used the Bank of Japan to sterilize the deficit spending and minimize resulting inflationary pressures. Econometric studies have identified the fiscal stimulus as especially effective. [58] The devaluation of the currency had an immediate effect. Japanese textiles began to displace British textiles in export markets. The deficit spending, however proved to be most profound.

The deficit spending went into the purchase of munitions for the armed forces. By 1933, Japan was already out of the depression. By 1934 Takahashi realized that the economy was in danger of overheating, and to avoid inflation, moved to reduce the deficit spending that went towards armaments and munitions. This resulted in a strong and swift negative reaction from nationalists, especially those in the Army, culminating in his assassination in the course of the February 26 Incident. This had a chilling effect) on all civilian bureaucrats in the Japanese government. From 1934, the military’s dominance of the government continued to grow.

Instead of reducing deficit spending, the government introduced price controls and rationing schemes that reduced, but did not eliminate inflation, which would remain a problem until the end of World War II. The deficit spending had a transformative effect on Japan. Japan’s industrial production doubled during the 1930s. Further, in 1929 the list of the largest firms in Japan was dominated by light industries, especially textile companies (many of Japan’s automakers, like Toyota, have their roots in the textile industry). By 1940 light industry had been displaced by heavy industry as the largest firms inside the Japanese economy. 59] Latin America Main article: Great Depression in Latin America Because of high levels of United States investment in Latin American economies, they were severely damaged by the Depression. Within the region, Chile, Bolivia and Peru were particularly badly affected. Netherlands Main article: Great Depression in the Netherlands From roughly 1931 until 1937, the Netherlands suffered a deep and exceptionally long depression. This depression was partly caused by the after-effects of the Stock Market Crash of 1929 in the United States, and partly by internal factors in the Netherlands.

Government policy, especially the very late dropping of the Gold Standard, played a role in prolonging the depression. The Great Depression in the Netherlands led to some political instability and riots, and can be linked to the rise of the Dutch national-socialist party NSB. The depression in the Netherlands eased off somewhat at the end of 1936, when the government finally dropped the Gold Standard, but real economic stability did not return until after World War II. [60] Buried machinery in a barn lot; South Dakota, May 1936. The Dust Bowl on the Great Plains coincided with the Great Depression. 61] Entering Gulag (a leaf from ‘s notebook). During the Depression thousands of Americans emigrated to the Soviet Union. Many were arrested as potential “spies” during the Great Terror of 1937-38. [62] South Africa Main article: Great Depression in South Africa As world trade slumped, demand for South African agricultural and mineral exports fell drastically. The Carnegie Commission on Poor Whites had concluded in 1931 that nearly one-third of Afrikaners lived as paupers. It is believed that the social discomfort caused by the depression was a contributing factor in the 1933 split between the “gesuiwerde” purified) and “smelter” (fusionist) factions within the National Party) and the National Party’s subsequent fusion with the South African Party. [63] Soviet Union Main article: _Economy of the Soviet Union#Economic development_ Having removed itself from the capitalist world system both by choice and as a result of efforts of the capitalist powers to isolate it, the Great Depression had little effect on the Soviet Union. A Soviet trade agency in New York advertised 6,000 positions and received more than 100,000 applications. 64] Its apparent immunity to the Great Depression seemed to validate the theory of Marxism and contributed to Socialist and Communist agitation in affected nations. Many Western intellectuals, like New York Times reporter Walter Duranty, looked upon Soviet Union with sympathies, ignoring criticisms about Soviet famine that killed millions of people. [65] President Roosevelt also looked upon Soviet Union with sympathies, favoring closer diplomatic and economic ties between two countries. [66] United Kingdom Main article: Great Depression in the United Kingdom

The effects on the industrial areas of Britain were immediate and devastating, as demand for British products collapsed. By the end of 1930 unemployment had more than doubled from 1 million to 2. 5 million (20% of the insured workforce), and exports had fallen in value by 50%. In 1933, 30% of Glaswegians were unemployed due to the severe decline in heavy industry. In some towns and cities in the north east, unemployment reached as high as 70% as ship production fell 90%. [67] The National Hunger March of September–October 1932 was the largest[68] of a series of hunger marches in Britain in the 1920s and 1930s.

About 200,000 unemployed men were sent to the work camps, which continued in operation until 1939. [69] Shacks, put up by the Bonus Army (World War I veterans) on the Anacostia flats, Washington, DC, burning after the battle with the 1,000 soldiers accompanied by tanks and machine guns, 1932. [70] United States Main article: Great Depression in the United States Hoover administration Bennett buggies, or “Hoover wagons”, cars pulled by horses, were used by farmers too impoverished to purchase gasoline. President Herbert Hoover started numerous programs, all of which failed to reverse the downturn. 71] In June 1930 Congress approved the Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act which raised tariffs on thousands of imported items. The intent of the Act was to encourage the purchase of American-made products by increasing the cost of imported goods, while raising revenue for the federal government and protecting farmers. However, other nations increased tariffs on American-made goods in retaliation, reducing international trade, and worsening the Depression. [72] In 1931 Hoover urged the major banks in the country to form a consortium known as the National Credit Corporation (NCC). 73] By 1932 unemployment had reached 23. 6%, and it peaked in early 1933 at 25%,[74] a drought persisted in the agricultural heartland, businesses and families defaulted on record numbers of loans,[75] and more than 5,000 banks had failed. [76] Hundreds of thousands of Americans found themselves homeless and they began congregating in the numerous Hoovervilles that had begun to appear across the country. [77] In response, President Hoover and Congress approved the Federal Home Loan Bank Act, to spur new home construction, and reduce foreclosures.

The final attempt of the Hoover Administration to stimulate the economy was the passage of the Emergency Relief and Construction Act (ERA) which included funds for public works programs such as dams and the creation of the Reconstruction Finance Corporation (RFC) in 1932. The RFC’s initial goal was to provide government-secured loans to financial institutions, railroads and farmers. Quarter by quarter the economy went downhill, as prices, profits and employment fell, leading to the political realignment in 1932 that brought to power Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Roosevelt administration

Great Depression: man lying down on pier, New York City docks, 1935. See also: New Deal_ and _Recession of 1937 Shortly after President Roosevelt was inaugurated in 1933, drought and erosion combined to cause the Dust Bowl, shifting hundreds of thousands of displaced persons off their farms in the Midwest. From his inauguration onward, Roosevelt argued that restructuring of the economy would be needed to prevent another depression or avoid prolonging the current one. New Deal programs sought to stimulate demand and provide work and relief for the impoverished through increased government spending and the institution of financial reforms.

The Securities Act of 1933 comprehensively regulated the securities industry. This was followed by the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 which created the Securities and Exchange Commission. Though amended, key provisions of both Acts are still in force. Federal insurance of bank deposits was provided by the FDIC, and the Glass-Steagall Act. The institution of the National Recovery Administration (NRA) remains a controversial act to this day. The NRA made a number of sweeping changes to the American economy until it was deemed unconstitutional by the Supreme Court of the United States in 1935.

CCC workers constructing road, 1933. Over 3 million unemployed young men were taken out of the cities and placed into 2600+ work camps managed by the CCC. [78] Early changes by the Roosevelt administration included: Instituting regulations to fight deflationary “cut-throat competition” through the NRA. Setting minimum prices and wages, labor standards, and competitive conditions in all industries through the NRA. Encouraging unions that would raise wages, to increase the purchasing power of the working class. Cutting farm production to raise prices through the Agricultural Adjustment Act and its successors.

Forcing businesses to work with government to set price codes through the NRA. These reforms, together with several other relief and recovery measures, are called the First New Deal. Economic stimulus was attempted through a new alphabet soup of agencies set up in 1933 and 1934 and previously extant agencies such as the Reconstruction Finance Corporation. By 1935, the “Second New Deal” added Social Security) (which did not start making large payouts until much later), a jobs program for the unemployed (the Works Progress Administration, WPA) and, through the National Labor Relations Board, a strong stimulus to the growth of labor unions.

In 1929, federal expenditures constituted only 3% of the GDP. The national debt as a proportion of GNP rose under Hoover from 20% to 40%. Roosevelt kept it at 40% until the war began, when it soared to 128%. By 1936, the main economic indicators had regained the levels of the late 1920s, except for unemployment, which remained high at 11%, although this was considerably lower than the 25% unemployment rate seen in 1933. WPA employed 2 to 3 million unemployed at unskilled labor. In the spring of 1937, American industrial production exceeded that of 1929 and remained level until June 1937.

In June 1937, the Roosevelt administration cut spending and increased taxation in an attempt to balance the federal budget. [79] The American economy then took a sharp downturn, lasting for 13 months through most of 1938. Industrial production fell almost 30 per cent within a few months and production of durable goods fell even faster. Unemployment jumped from 14. 3% in 1937 to 19. 0% in 1938, rising from 5 million to more than 12 million in early 1938. [80] Manufacturing output fell by 37% from the 1937 peak and was back to 1934 levels. 81] Producers reduced their expenditures on durable goods, and inventories declined, but personal income was only 15% lower than it had been at the peak in 1937. As unemployment rose, consumers’ expenditures declined, leading to further cutbacks in production. By May 1938 retail sales began to increase, employment improved, and industrial production turned up after June 1938. [82] After the recovery from the Recession of 1937–1938, conservatives were able to form a bipartisan conservative coalition to stop further expansion of the New Deal and, when unemployment dropped to 2%, they abolished WPA, CCC and the PWA relief programs.

Social Security, however, remained in place. There has always been debate among politicians and scholars as to whether New Deal policies lengthened and deepened the Depression. One small voluntary response survey from 85 PhD holding members of the Economic History Society, which the author stated may not be representative of all economic historians, showed that there were statistically different opinions between economic historians who taught or studied economic history and those that taught or studied economic theory.

The former were in consensus that the New Deal did not lengthen and deepen the depression, while the latter were more evenly divided. [83] Political consequences Social movements The rise of the Technocracy movement occurred around the transition time of the Hoover administration into that of Franklin Roosevelts administration. The Technocrats advocated a Non-market economics system based on Energy accounting, which was also a non political approach (biophysical economics) to governance. [86] Technocracy held that all politics and all economic arrangements based on the Price system (i. . , based on traditional economic theory) were antiquated. Also that building a successful modern government could be based on engineering principles. “Production for use,” a term they used, was meant as a contrast to production for profit in the capitalist system. Production for use became a slogan for many of the radical-left movements of the era also. Upton Sinclair, among others, affirmed his belief in “production for use” and the Technocrats briefly made common cause with Sinclair, and even Huey Long, in California.

But the Technocrats were not of the political left, as they held every political and economic system, from the left to the right, to be unsound. As a mass movement its real center was California where it claimed half a million members in 1934. Technocracy counted among its admirers such men as the novelist H. G. Wells, the author Theodore Dreiser and the economist Thorstein Veblen. Among the collection of movements of the 1930s, the Technocracy movement survives into the present day. [87] Literature Other “great depressions” There have been other downturns called a “Great Depression,” but none has been as worldwide for so long.

British economic historians used the term “Great depression” to describe British conditions in the late 19th century, especially in agriculture, 1873–1896, a period also referred to as the Long Depression. [88] Several Latin American countries had severe downturns in the 1980s. Finnish economists refer to the Finnish economic decline around the breakup of the Soviet Union (1989–1994) as a great depression. Kehoe and Prescott define a great depression to be a period of diminished economic output) with at least one year where output is 20% below the trend.

By this definition Argentina, Brazil, Chile, and Mexico experienced great depressions in the 1980s, and Argentina experienced another) in 1998–2002. This definition also includes the economic performance of New Zealand from 1974–1992 and Switzerland from 1973 to the present, although this designation for Switzerland has been controversial. [89][90] The economic crisis in the 1990s that struck former members of the Soviet Union was almost twice as intense as the Great Depression in the countries of Western Europe and the United States in the 1930s. 91][92] Average standards of living registered a catastrophic fall in the early 1990s in many parts of the former Eastern Bloc – most notably, in post-Soviet states. [93] Even before Russia’s financial crisis of 1998, Russia’s GDP was half of what it had been in the early 1990s. [92] Some populations are still poorer today than they were in 1989 (e. g. Ukraine, Moldova, Serbia, Central Asia, Caucasus). The collapse of the Soviet planned economy and the transition to market economy) resulted in catastrophic declines in GDP of about 45% during the 1990–1996 period[94] and poverty in the region had increased more than tenfold. 95] People have been taking to calling the current economic recession the “Great Recession”. [96][97][98][99] See also Aftermath of World War I America’s Great Depression written by Murray Rothbard. Arthurdale Bennett buggy Cities in the Great Depression Economic collapse Great Contraction Hoovervilles Hunger marches Late 2000s recession Panic of 1837 The Second Great Depression (book)) Wall Street Crash of 1929 Recession of 1937

Consumer Protection in Singapore

LGST 101 BUSINESS LAW LAW OF NEGLIGENCE Academic Year 2007/08 (Term 1) PREPARED FOR: PROF SAW CHENG LIM PREPARED BY: LEE KAI XIN DORENE QIU HUI LING YVONNE ANG XINYI ZHU YING ZHAO LI JUAN Consumer Protection in Singapore Lee Kai Xin Dorene, School of Accoutancy Qiu Hui Ling Krisa, School of Accoutancy Yvonne Ang Xin Yi, School of Business Zhu Ying, School of Business Zhao Li Juan, School of Accountancy This paper aims to analyze the adequacy of consumer protection in Singapore.

We will examine five difficult issues regarding consumer protection in Singapore, namely consumer rights, present day consumer protection legislation, the dispute resolution process, limitation of our local consumer watchdog, presence of monopolies in Singapore and lastly, education of consumers on their rights. Each section will embed the shortcomings of the present-day system, our group’s suggestion on how to enhance it and the lessons that Singapore can learn from other countries regarding the specific issues. 1. Consumer rights

Webster’s dictionary defines consumerism as “a movement for the protection of the consumer against defective products, misleading advertising, etc. ” As consumers, we possess four basic rights as extolled by former US President John F. Kennedy in 1962 which are later called The Consumer Bill of Rights— a right to be safe, a right to choice, a right to be heard and a right to be informed[1]. CASE successfully lobbied for the Consumer Protection of Fair Trading Act (CPFTA) in 2004, which sets out a list of unfair trade practices where consumers can seek civil remedies by showing that traders have committed these practices. 2] We will further explore the adequacy of Singapore’s consumer protection in these four major areas. 1. 1 Right to be safe It would be highly unethical of a seller to endorse a product that would ultimately harm the consumer. Conversely, no consumer would want to buy an item which is unsafe for use or consumption. In Singapore, an agency which provide quality assurance for products and services and promote industry use of Singapore and international standards would be SPRING Singapore (Standards, Productivity and Innovation Board), a national standards and conformance body.

One unique tool that SPRING Singapore came up with to ensure that household appliances and accessories designated as controlled goods meet specified safety standards and are safe for use is the SAFETY mark under the Consumer Protection (Safety Requirements) Registration Scheme[3]. 1. 2 Right to free choice The right to free choice states that consumers should have a variety of options provided by different companies to choose from. Locally, this right is imbedded in our economy. The Singapore government has prevented monopolies and promoted fair competition among firms, indicating their ersistent belief in consumers’ right to choice. A clear example is the Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore (IDA), whose main objective is to encourage effective competition in the telecommunications market in Singapore. To endure this in a multi-operator, multi-network environment, IDA formulates and develops short- and medium-term infocomm-related policies, as well as standards, codes of practices and advisory guidelines – all of which are enforceable by IDA – pertaining to issues such as licensing, interconnection, resource and competition management[4]. 1. Right to be heard The right to be heard asserts the ability of consumers to voice complaints and concerns about a product in order to have the issue handled efficiently and responsibly. National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) which is run by the government, founded Consumer Association of Singapore (CASE) in 1971 to be the consumer watchdog to champion consumer issues. CASE works towards hearing consumers’ concerns and redressing their grievances. Aggrieved consumers can seek CASE’s help in resolving their disputes with traders through mediation, for a fee from $15 to $400.

Should mediation fails, consumers can file at the Small Claims Tribunal, which will minimize legal cost for all concerned. Besides this, many consumers who suffered injustice from traders also can voice their grievances on the Straits’ Times forum. These various avenues can adequately protect consumers’ right to be heard. 1. 4 Right to be informed [pic] The right to be informed holds that businesses should always provide consumers with adequate and truthful information for them to make informed product choices. From our survey of 100 people, we have found that an appalling 72. % felt that their rights to be informed are not adequately protected. While there is no main body championing for this right, this right is already integrated into our legal structure through certain acts like the Sale of Goods Act (SGA) and the Misrepresentation act. Advertisements, the common tool that firms adopt to market their product, must also contain accurate information about the product. Misleading advertising is a serious offence especially since it unfairly affects the consumers’ free choice. We will illustrate this with an example in the following paragraph. . 41 Advertisements According to our survey, a huge 60% of our surveyors feel that advertisements are not informative, citing reasons that advertisements are mere puffs, containing only the good points and relying on irrelevant appeals on emotions. Advertisements are pervasive and run the risk of the overloading of information, making it hard for the average consumer to discern between the mere puff and facts. M1, a leading mobile communications provider in Singapore, has introduced SMS 2. 0 which is an application that brings together messaging, content and advertising.

Jim Goh, Regional Managing Director of M1’s media agency, said, “We recognized the changing consumer lifestyles and evolution of the communication channels and the need to adopt new ways of reaching the consumers[5]. This shows how businesses are innovating more ways to advertise and get to the consumers and there is no running away. In Australia, global drugs company GlaxoSmithKline was fined NZ$217,000 in New Zealand for misleading advertising. They face charges alleging 15 breaches of the Fair Trading Act.

GlaxoSmithKline produces the drink Ribena, which they claimed blackcurrants to have 4 time the Vitamin C as compared to oranges. These drinks were produced in New Zealand and Australia. Channel 8 News reported the story, but added by saying that the Ribena sold here were made in Malaysia & Philippine. This brings about the question that if GlaxoSmithKline produces Ribena with no detectable Vitamin C in pro-consumer countries like New Zealand and Australia, why should it adhere to its advertisement claims and produce better quality drinks in Malaysia and Philippines? 2.

Consumer protection Law Singapore is racing to break into the league of industrial and commercial nations in the realm of consumer protection; hence Singapore has too put in place a relatively comprehensive regime of consumer protection laws. Consumer law relates essentially to the prescription of safety, labeling, advertising, service standards and the provision of redress in cases where business fail to meet those standards. For instance, SGA made provisions for the protection of consumers by requiring the sellers to take on board certain obligations as to description, quality and title.

To prevent any likelihood of the seller maneuvering himself out of these obligations towards consumers imposed by the SGA, the introduction of the Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977 (UCTA) stipulates that the liability of the seller for lack of title, merchantability or fitness for purpose cannot be excluded or restricted. The most important piece of legislation of interest to consumers in Singapore is the Consumer Protection (Trade Description and Safety Requirements) Act 1975 which prohibits the use of misleading trade descriptions and false representations about goods.

Incorporating the consumers’ right to be informed, it would be an offence to either apply false trade descriptions to any goods or supply those to which such description has been applied. Furthermore, it would also be an offence to use a false representation as to the supply or approval of goods (by any person including government departments or international bodies). 2. 1 Inadequacy of law When we inspect the existing law in Singapore, we found that Singapore has no any comprehensive statute.

The sales law in Singapore does not include the general rights and remedies available to the parties, which belong to Common law[6]. Therefore, if a consumer wants to determine his rights or the remedies, he has to refer to various rules under general contract law. The sales of land and building, intangibles such as shares or copyright are governed by other specific laws except the sales law. It is really an obstacle for consumers to understand their rights and protection. Secondly, Consumer Protection (Trade Description and Safety Requirements) Act and SGA all cover only tangible goods.

Meanwhile, services have not been embraced within other laws[7]. Since Singapore aims to be a tourism hub, the lack of legal protection in services is worrying especially when the conflicts in customer services appear. 2. 2 Enhancing the legal framework The Government can improve the sales law by including the general rights and remedies for consumers should their rights be violated. In this way, the consumers will not have to refer to other rules which are etched in the general contract law to determine their rights and remedies if they face injustice.

In addition, the CPFTA can include services as part of their protection area. Singapore is aiming to become a top-notch service hub in the region, and with the building of the Integrated Resorts, we anticipate an augmented number of aggrieved consumers in the service sector. Thus this inclusion would leverage the CPFTA in terms of consumer protection in Singapore. 2. 3 Learning from Canada, Ontario The Consumer Protection Act in Ontario has in place, under Chapter 30, Part IV, protection for consumers in personal development services.

It includes for example, Requirements for personal development services agreements:  Every personal development services agreement shall be in writing shall be delivered to the consumer and shall be made in accordance with the prescribed requirements, and Payments not required or accepted:  No supplier shall require or accept payment for personal development services from a consumer with whom the supplier does not have an agreement that meets the requirements established under subsection (1). 8] These regulations in Ontario protect consumers from unlawful merchants in the service sector, and Singapore may include these laws in the CPFTA to make it a more comprehensive framework. 3. Limitation of CASE . As mentioned earlier, CASE champions the cause of the consumer to achieve a caring and consumer-friendly community. [9] Its possession of independent status both from the government and businesses allows it to offer advice, education and guidance to the general public and to represent consumer concerns to the government. 10] While CASE has greatly improved the scene for consumerism locally, inadequate consumer protection is still evident as CASE faces certain limitations in the fight for its cause. 3. 1 Lack of power to enforce regulations The biggest limitation of CASE is it does not have strong legal power to force retailers to comply with regulations. The main powers CASE has own presently are entering into Voluntary Compliance Agreement (VCA) with retailers whereby retailer can agree to stop an unfair practice and taking injunction or declaration proceedings[11].

However, CASE still faces difficulties when carrying out this power. Firstly, CASE has to turn to other avenues for help when retailers refuse to sign a VCA. The President of CASE, Mr Yeo Guat Kwang expressed his concerns and said that: “We need to enhance the enforcement because at the moment, we’re only able to propose to the traders to sign a VCA. In most cases, we find that there are a small number who will make use of these loopholes to drag on the case and continue to mislead or make misrepresentation. “[12]

For instance, Global Europe (Asia) in 2007, and Orion’s Belt Network (OBN) in 2006, both timeshare companies, rejected the requirement of CASE to sign a VCA to stop their unfair practices towards customers, so the consumer watchdog had no chice but to take them to court. Although in August 2007, OBN has agreed an out-of-court settlement; the time taken to reach the agreement was considerably long, and it will take another one year before the customers get their refunds. Secondly, under the CPFTA, CASE has been designated as one of the bodies to apply to court for injunction against a supplier engaging in unfair practices[13].

However, CASE needs the approval of up to 2 of its committees and also the endorsement of the Injunction Proposals Review Panel before taking up injunction proceedings. [14] This law bestowed upon them is only worth as much as the paper it was written on because of the lengthy injunction proceeding processes. Before CASE can effectively take injunction, the supplier would have transferred his assets and business elsewhere or would have ceased the business altogether, in bid of escaping liability, thus rendering the injunction useless.

In our interview with Mr T. Pillay, Assistant Director, Legal, of CASE, he mentioned that CASE lacks the enforcement power mainly because the government refuses to include criminal sanctions, unlike that of Australia’s, making their consumer watchdog a powerful voice of consumers. 3. 1. 1 Increasing the leverage of CASE One of the ways to increase the leverage of CASE is to grant more power to CASE by introducing business and criminal sanctions so as to enable CASE to carry out their functions more effectively.

With the criminal sanctions in place, should the corrupted merchants try to evade getting caught by changing companies or erasing their past records, they will be dealt with by criminal sanctions. This would greatly strengthen the position of CASE as consumers’ representative in taking merchants to task, and the efforts and money spent on filing an injunction against the merchants will not go to waste. Moreover, the business sanctions will also serve as a greater deterrence for businesses to engage in unlawful practices. 3. 1. 2 Learning from Britain The consumer watchdog in Britain has full authority over consumer protection issues.

The ‘Big Four’ supermarkets in Britain came under the scrutiny of the public and the consumer watchdog after officials decided that their recent expansion could affect consumers, and if Britain’s most powerful consumer watchdog finds the firms acting unconstructively against free competition, it could order them to close down some stores. [15] This exhibits the very power and authority that CASE lacks, allowing the Britain’s consumer watchdog to come down hard on uncompetitive acts by merchants and other issues of consumer protection at its own discretion. 3. CASE is dependent on the government for funds In our interview with Mr. T Pillay, he mentioned that although CASE is an independent association on paper, it is still dependent on government for funds, and this may prove to be an obstacle for CASE to develop as a true consumer protection body. It is widely known that NTUC, being an organization that is linked to the government, founded CASE. Furthermore, three quarters of CASE’s annual budget is from a government body, the Ministry of Trade and Industry, and another rough sum of about $100,000 comes from NTUC[16].

Because CASE is a non-profitable organisation, it would be unable to operate without these government funding. Moreover, the Singapore government itself is the biggest trader and seller of goods and service in the nation. It is questionable that such a major “retailer” should be funding the main consumer watchdog in Singapore. This relationship undermines the credibility of CASE as the representative of consumers, especially since our group has found out that several consumers has challenged the credibility of CASE on the Straits Times discussion board during the uproar of NETS’ price hike.

The dependence of CASE on government and its sponsors had, and will continue to restrain it from protecting consumer rights effectively. 3. 2. 1 True independence of CASE The government should allow more independence in the functions of CASE so that they will be able to enforce their regulations more firmly. With more power, CASE will then be able to develop a fairer trading legislation to promote a fairer and more equitable marketplace, thus create a fair trading environment for consumers and businesses alike.

Though CASE is considered an independent organization, it still depends on a considerable amount of government funding. Thus to be a truly independent organization, CASE should aim to gain more recognition in Singapore so that other bigger multinational companies will possibly sponsor it as this will goes to show that the companies do recognize consumers as an important priority while at the same time gain more publicity. With more private sponsorships and funding, CASE will then be able to break away from the government fully and operate independently.

However, it is to be noted that the private funding should come without any strings attached to enable CASE to function impartially and not be biased towards any of its sponsors, particularly when sponsors are usually the merchants themselves. Hence, transparency of CASE and the sponsor is of utmost importance. 3. 2. 2 Learning from Britain In Britain, a train firm, First Great Western, was slammed for unclear and exorbitant pricing for tickets. After years of campaigning by independent consumer watchdog, Passenger Focus, the firm finally took steps to tackle the issue. 17] We can learn a few things from this example. Firstly, more than one consumer watchdog is required to protect the rights of consumer, especially in cases where long-term campaigning is the only solution; Secondly, firms related to key infrastructures in Singapore are most likely to be governed by the State and it is in the best interest of consumers to have an independent consumer body to represent them instead of CASE for its relations to the government. Hence there might be a need for independent consumer watchdogs to complement CASE in bid to safeguard the rights of the consumers.

Although Singapore may be too small to contain more than one consumer watchdog, it is our group’s suggestion for Singapore to have either CASE truly independent of the government, or another independent consumer watchdog to champion consumers’ cause. 4. Presence of monopolies in Singapore Although the government tries to prevent the formation of monopolies in the market, some monopolies are inevitably formed because of the lifestyle and habits of Singaporeans. Hence, the presence of monopolies prevents consumers from opposing freely issues that dissatisfy them.

In order to illustrate this point, we will look at a NETS case study. 4. 1 NETS akin to monopoly NETS raised its transaction fees for retailers from 0. 35-0. 55% of purchases to 1. 5-1. 9% and this represents a three-fold increase in the amount merchants will have to pay for each transaction. [18] Some merchants passed on this increase in cost to consumers despite being clearly told it was illegal, thereby causing the public’s disappointment at the incompetence of CASE. ‘What other alternative do they (the consumers) have? It’s like a monopoly; retailers have no choice but to accept it,’ Mr.

Yeo said. There are six million Nets users, 13000 Nets merchants and 30000 Nets transaction points nationwide. Eight of 10 neighborhood retailers offer Nets as their only form of cashless payment. [19] From this, we can see that NETS’s control over the cashless market is akin to a monopoly. In the event that this system is abandoned, it will most likely cause a huge disruption concerning electronic transactions since majority of the public especially the low income earners do not have access to alternative modes of cashless payment, i. e. credit cards.

Although opposition was aplenty, the consumers could not defend their rights and are at the mercy of NETS and unlawful merchants who increased the price of their goods as boycotts are not feasible actions. Due to this unfeasibility, consumers may choose to give up their rights instead of pursuing remedies. 4. 2 Enhance consumer protection against monopolies Even though regulations are in place to prevent the retailers from passing on the extra costs to consumers, there is no solid enforcement by any regulatory bodies to prevent the retailers from doing so; this is partly due to the limited power of CASE as illustrated earlier.

The government could pass a regulation stating that the prices of all products are to remain the same as it was before the announcement of the NETS hike thus ensuring that the cost increase is not passed onto the consumers. This will thereby ensure the rights of the consumers. The enforcement of this regulation may not be necessarily done solely by CASE as it may be too cumbersome for CASE to check on every single retail outlet. Therefore, we suggest that the consumers should be the whistleblowers instead and take the matters into their own hands.

Consumers could possibly report the retailers who increase the prices of their products without any valid reason to CASE. With consumers acting as eyes and ears of CASE, we are certain that this would be a major deterrent for retailers. 5. Education of Consumers on their rights It has always been one of the missions of CASE: to educate consumers. Knowing when they have been treated unfairly and knowing the means of recourse will empower these consumers to take responsibility for their own welfare, as well as seek recourse should these rights be encroached upon.

CASE introduces on their website several articles on consumer issues, publishes a magazine, The Consumer, which brings consumers the latest issues and trends in consumer matters, empowering them with the information to make wise purchase decisions and to be a smart consumer, and it also includes exclusive research reports, commentaries, saving tips, readers’ letters, CASE event updates. [20] Also, CASE frequently holds talks, seminars and forums to educate consumers on their rights, such as the CASE-ACISS joint forum, just to name one.

As good as this sounds, it should be noted that this magazine is only published four times a year, and subjected to the subscription of consumers, and also, registration for talks is voluntary which means a large group of consumers who do not take the initiative will be left out of this education process, most particularly, the youngsters. 6. 1 Enhancing the education process With regards to the above, one of the ways in which CASE can further spread their reputation is to collaborate with magazines like Lifestyle to publicize the workings of CASE in order to let the public have a greater nderstating about them as well as reach a greater spectrum of consumers as Lifestyle is posted for free to more than 60% of the entire Singapore population. CASE can also hold seminar talks in schools. This plans to target the young adults, people who are susceptible to consumer pressure and these are the people who will have substantial purchasing power. To reach out to the older population, newspapers advertisements may be considered as a medium.

For example, the Central Provident Fund Board transmits information about their new policies through print ads on newspapers, using colourful and entertaining cartoon strips to bring the point across. Even better, television commercials will reach out to the heartland consumers, the population that needs this education the most. 6. 2 Learning from the European Union The EU has in place three major branches of consumer education for its member countries: (1) The training course for staff of consumer organizations, (2) the Inter-active Consumer Education Project and (3) European Consumer Diary.

The one that may apply to Singapore would be the third branch. The European Consumer Diary is an education tool which covers a range of their specific concerns: e. g. travel, drugs, shopping, money matters, sustainable consumption, etc, and is accompanied by a teacher’s kit which contains background information on different consumer topics[21], and suggested classroom activities – worksheets, discussions, role-playing etc. [22] This allows the teachers to touch on important consumer issues in an interactive way.

Children and adolescents are a priority target group, since young people are particularly susceptible to consumer pressure, have substantial spending power and are able to greatly influence their parents’ purchases. Giving them the skills to act as responsible consumers is even more important in view of their role as tomorrow’s parents. [23] This is a great example for Singapore to follow as mentioned earlier in our report, consumers in Singapore do not know of their rights. Conclusion After the analysis of several consumer issues in Singapore, and the informative interview session with assistant director of CASE, Mr.

T. Pillay, our group feels that Singapore’s consumer protection is not infallible. Although there is plenty of evidence for the relative comprehensiveness of consumer protection laws in Singapore[24], there is still much to be done in the area of consumer protection. We feel that the power of CASE in taking merchants to task is integral and criminal sanctions should be considered carefully by the government instead of brushing it off with the reason of maintaining a pro-business environment in Singapore.

We believe that once better regulations are in place, together with the increased leverage of CASE and more educated consumers, consumers in Singapore will be more completely protected from pernicious merchant practices. (4052 words) ———————– [1] Consumer Bill of Rights (www. bookrags. com) [2] CASE official website http://www. case. org. sg/cpfta. htm [3] Record 15,000 Products Registered with SAFETY Mark SPRING and CASE sign MOU to enhance Product Safety Awareness http://www. spring. gov. sg/Content/ModulePage. aspx? group=nw&id=72be4173-e949-4da4-8fc9-82e22eb83823 [4] IDA Singapore http://www. da. gov. sg/About%20us/20060406102431. aspx [5] M1 brings mobile advertising to Singapore with next-generation SMS by Affle Successful SMS2. 0 trial sets stage for mobile messaging revolution [6] Marketing and consumer law in Singapore by Assafa Endeshaw and Erin Goh [7] Markeing and consumer law in Singapore by Assafa Endeshaw and Erin Goh [8] Consumer Protection Act, 2002 (http://www. e-laws. gov. on. ca/html/statutes/english/elaws_statutes_02c30_e. htm) [9] http://www. case. org. sg/case. htm [10] An overview of Consumer Protection Law in Singapore by Assafa Endeshaw [11] Fair Trading & You CASE published 12] ‘Complaints to CASE pass record 20, 000 mark last year. ’ By Ng Lian Cheong and Julian Ng http://www. todayonline. com/articles/167234. asp [13] Fair Trading & You CASE published [14] Fair Trading & You CASE published [15] ‘Big Four Stores Battle Watchdog’ by Ross Kaniuk, Daily Star [16] ‘A new protection law’ (http://www. littlespeck. com/content/economy/CTrendsEconomy-021223. htm) [17] ‘Train firm slammed for complexity and price of tickets. ’ Express and Echo 12 October 2007 [18] CASE concerned about impending NETS fee hike by Wong Siew Ying From: http://www. channelnewsasia. com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/280223/1/. tml. [19] Case slams Nets fee hike as a ‘great disservice’ by Lim Wei Chean From: http://www. straitstimes. com/Free/Story/STIStory_126022. html [20] http://www. case. org. sg/central4. htm [21] Europa – Consumer Affairs (http://ec. europa. eu/consumers/cons_info/consumer_diary_en. htm) [22] Europa Diary Final Report (http://ec. europa. eu/consumers/cons_info/cons_diary2007-2008/Europa_diary_Final_Report_2006-2007. pdf) Pg 12 [23] Consumer Education Fact sheet (http://ec. europa. eu/consumers/publications/consedu_en. pdf) [24] http://www. ntu. edu. sg/nbs/sabre/working_papers/01-98. pdf ———————– [pic] [pic]

Market Research for Godrej Home Furniture Segment

GODREJ & BOYCE MANUFACTURING CO. LTD. SUMMER PROJECT ON: MARKET RESEARCH ANALYSIS FOR HOME FURNITURE SEGMENT SYMBIOSIS INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT STUDIES SUBMITTED BY: SHALINI II A – 44 SIMS (BATCH OF 2008-10) PNR No: 08020441050 Shalini. 1086@gmail. com Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment ACKNOWLEDGEMENT The completion of a report is never and can never be a unilateral effort. Through this sentence, I wish to make a modest effort to thank and express my gratitude to all those who extended their cooperation and assistance for this project.

I place my sincere gratitude to Mr. Vaibhav Tanwar for giving me the opportunity to work with the Organization. I would like to thank Mr. Inderpal Singh, Manager of Okhla Interio store for his constant encouragement and personal involvement in the project which far exceeded that of mere guidance and also to Mr. Rajiv Mishra, who helped, guided and inspired me. I would also like to express my gratitude to all the staff members of Godrej Interio Showroom, Okhla without whose help this project would not have taken its current shape. I would also like to thank Mr.

Govind Hemrajini, my course coordinator and internal guide at SIMS for extending his assistance, support, valuable advice and time. WITH REGARDS SHALINI 3 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment EXECUTIVE SUMMARY My summer project at Godrej & Boyce Manufacturing Co. Ltd. was divided into various parts. In the first part, I was required to identify and study the catchment areas for the Interio Showroom at Okhla. The neighbouring areas were visited for the purpose and the catchment areas were identified as the following colonies: ? Sarita Vihar ? Jasola Vihar ? New Friends Colony ? Kalkaji ? Greater Kailash ? South Extension ?

Chittaranjan Park Information about the living standard of the residents of these colonies was obtained from the RWAs and Residents’ directories with the contact details of all the residents of the colonies was obtained and submitted to the store. In the second part of the project, a survey was conducted with a sample size of 100 amongst the residents of the catchment areas to check their awareness about Interio vis-a-vis the other Furniture brands and also to check how satisfied Godrej customers were with their furniture. In the third part of the project, various competitors of Interio such as Durian, Style Spa, EVOK, Home Centre etc. ere studied minutely by visiting their showrooms posing as prospective buyers and asking probing questions. Finally, in the last part, a SWOT analysis of Godrej Interio, Okhla was conducted and some marketing activities that the company can conduct to improve its visibility and awareness were suggested. 4 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENT…………………………………………………………… 2 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY………………………………………………………….. 3 OBJECTIVES………………………………………………………………………… 5 INTRODUCTION……………………………………………………………………. 6 ? Overview of The Furniture Market……………………………………. ? Factors Influencing Furniture Buying Trends…………………………8 COMPANY OVERVIEW…………………………………………………………….. 9 TERRITORY MAPPING & IDENTIFYING CATCHMENT AREAS…………….. 20 QUESTIONNAIRE ANALYSIS……………………………………………………. 34 ? Research Methodology………………………………………………. 35 ? Research Design……………………………………………………… 36 ? Analysis and Interpretation………………………………………….. 39 COMPETITOR ANALYSIS…………………………………………………………46 ? Style Spa……………………………………………………………… 48 ? Durian………………………………………………………………… 66 ? Ebony Gautier……………………………………………………….. 70 ? EVOK………………………………………………………………… 75 ? Villa………………………………………………………………….. 79 ?

Home Centre…………………………………………………………82 SWOT ANALYSIS………………………………………………………………….. 85 FINDINGS & RECOMMENDATIONS……………………………………………. 88 BIBLIOGRAPHY……………………………………………………………………89 APPENDIX.. …………………………………………………………………………90 5 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment OBJECTIVES ? Territory mapping of Godrej Interio Showroom, Okhla and identifying the catchment areas. To estimate the number of flats and the number of households in the catchment areas and prepare a residents’ profile. To identify the awareness about Godrej Interio vis-a-vis its competitors amongst the residents of the catchment areas.

To identify, study and analyse the competitors of Godrej Interio Home furniture division. To conduct a SWOT analysis of Godrej Interio. ? ? ? ? 6 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment INTRODUCTION 7 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment OVERVIEW OF THE FURNITURE MARKET The Indian furniture market is estimated to be worth Rs 350,000 million. Within this, the wooden furniture accounts for Rs 60,000 million. Of this the imported furniture market is currently worth Rs 6000 million and is growing at 50 – 60% each year. The furniture sector in India only makes a marginal contribution to the GDP, representing about 0. per cent of the total GDP. The major part of this industry is in the informal sector that is, about 85%. The remaining 15% is in the formal sector and is made up of manufactures and importers catering to the various segment of the industry. Some of the major segments in furniture industry are Residential, Office, Contract and Institutional. There are other segments also based on the application (Kitchen, Bathroom, Bedroom, etc. ) or on the raw material (wooden, plastic, metal, bamboo, etc). These industry segments includes big payers from the formal sector such as Godrej & Boyce Manufacturing Co. Ltd. BP Ergo, Featherlite, Haworth, Style Spa, Yantra, Renaissance, Millenium Lifestyles, Durian, Kian, Tangent, Furniture Concepts, Furniturewala, Zuari, Truzo, N R Jasani & Company, V3 Engineers, PSL Modular Furniture, etc. FURNITURE INDUSTRY: SOME FACTS ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? The share of the wooden furniture market is around Rs 60 crore (Rs 600 million). The world home furniture market is worth Rs 20,000 crore (Rs 200 billion). During the past three years, it grew by 20 per cent a year. According to a World Bank study, the organised furniture industry is expected to grow by 20 per cent a year and India, Russia and Brazil will witness a boom.

The range of indigenous furniture available in India includes both residential and contract system furniture, with an increased concentration in office and kitchen furniture. Manufacturers in India generally use a three-tier selling and distribution structure, comprising the distributor, wholesaler and retailer. India was the biggest furniture importer in 2007-08, with a 17 per cent share in furniture imports worldwide. A total of 10,476 importers shipped furniture to India during this period. The current imports are mainly from Italy, Germany, Spain, China, Korea, Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines and Japan.

The furniture market in India is mainly concentrated in A, B and C cities (the top 589 cities). It has been estimated that the top 784 urban centres contribute 41 per cent to the total consumer furniture market. A and B type cities together contribute 33 per cent of the total market. 8 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment Factors Influencing Furniture Buying Trends With the rise in the disposable income level of the Indian middle class, interior design for homes is no longer the preserve of the rich and wealthy. The concept of good living is catching up with the middle class Indians.

They do not mind spending an extra buck in decorating their new homes. This has resulted in a boom in the decor market. Imported and designer seem to be the key words when it comes to buying furniture at home. It’s hardly surprising, considering that more and more foreign furniture manufacturers and traders have been finding their way into the country of late. • While decorating a NEW residence: Buying Decision is left to a Builder/Architect/Interior Decorator or the owner. • While RENOVATING a Residence: Buying Decision is made by an Interior Designer or by the owner. While furnishing a commercial complex: Buying Decision is made by the Builder/Architect/Interior Designer. Exposure coupled with easy availability of funds have made more and more urban middle class couples to look for interior decorators while doing up their houses. In conclusion, it is important to target: • Architects • Builders • Interior Designers • Participation in Furniture / Interiors Trade Fairs for good exposure 9 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment COMPANY OVERVIEW 10 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment

ABOUT US Godrej is today one of the largest engineering and consumer products company in the country having varied interests from engineering to personal care products. It is also one of the most respected corporate houses known for its philanthropy and initiation of labour reforms besides being recognized for its values of fair, transparent and ethical dealings On 7th May, 1897, Ardershir Godrej gave up law and took up lock making. Godrej and Boyce Mfg. Co. Ltd. , was established at Lalbaug, Mumbai. This was the holding company of the Godrej Group. On 3rd March, 1932, it was incorporated with limited liability.

Even though Boyce was a business partner for a limited period only, his name was retained for legal purposes. The Godrej Name displaced well established foreign brands from the Indian market. The name ‘Godrej’ engraved into the shiny metal of the Godrej Locks came to be known as a symbol of self reliance, trust-worthiness, assertiveness and progressiveness for a new generation of Indians. Ardeshir Godrej’s relentless quest of self-reliance made him explore newer avenues of opportunities. Manufacturing Soap was one of them. In the year 1918, Godrej Soaps Limited came into being.

In 1920, he revolutionized the Soap industry by manufacturing the first toilet soap purely from vegetable oils. Before that, animal fat was used in soap manufacture. For his achievement, Ardeshir Godrej was bestowed with praises from India and from foreign lands too. Timeline:? ? ? 1897 – Godrej & Boyce Mfg. Co. Ltd. was established. 1918 – Godrej Soaps Limited was incorporated. 1971- Godrej Agrovet Limited began as an Animal Feeds division of Godrej Soaps. 1974 – Veg oils division in Wadala, Mumbai was acquired. 1990 – Godrej Properties Limited, another subsidiary, was established. 991 – Foods business started. Godrej Agrovet Limited was incorporated. 1994 – Transelektra Domestic Products was acquired. ? ? ? ? 11 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment ? ? ? 1995 – Transelektra forged a strategic alliance with Sara Lee USA. 1999 – Transelektra was named Godrej Sara Lee Limited. 2001 – Godrej Consumer Products was formed as a result of the demerger of Godrej Soaps Limited. Godrej Soaps was renamed Godrej Industries Limited. 2002 – Godrej Tea Limited was set up. 2003 – We entered the BPO solutions and services space with Godrej Global Solutions Limited. 004 – Godrej HiCare Limited was set up to provide a Safe Healthy Environment to customers by providing professional pest management services. ? ? ? ? 2006 – The foods business was merged with Godrej Tea and Godrej Tea was renamed Godrej Beverages & Foods Limited. ? 2007 – Godrej Beverages & Foods Limited formed a JV with The Hershey Company of North America and the company was renamed Godrej Hershey Foods & Beverages Limited. In April 2001, Godrej Industries was formed the consumer products division of Godrej Soaps Limited was de-merged to form Godrej Consumer Products Limited.

In the same year, Godrej Soaps was renamed Godrej Industries Limited. Godrej Industries expanded its portfolio of products. It added a slew of investments to its associate companies, while re-in forcing its existing businesses that include oleo chemicals, veg oils and medical diagnostic equipments. As they say no guts, no glory. But at Godrej, we must say it has been a glorious 106 years of being the face of Indian industry. We have always set the trends, always defined the market place and always achieved our glory. 12 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment Vision & Mission:- 13

Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment Values:- Commitment to Quality Customer Orientation Dedication & Commitment Discipline Honesty & Integrity Learning Organisation Openness & Transparency Respect/Care & Concern for People Teamwork Trust 14 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment OUR COMPANIES ? Godrej Consumer Products- Godrej Consumer Products Ltd. (GCPL) is a major player in the Indian FMCG market with leadership in personal, hair, household and fabric care segments GPCL is among the largest marketer of toilet soaps in the country with leading brands such as CINTHOL , FAIRGLOW , GODREJ NO 1 .

Its FAIRGLOW brand, India’s first Fairness soap, has created marketing history as one of the most succesful innovations. It is the leader in the hair colour category in India and has a vast product range from GODREJ RENEW COLOURSOFT LIQUID HAIR COLOURS, GODREJ LIQUID & POWDER HAIR DYES to GODREJ KESH KALA OIL, NUPUR based Hair Dyes. Its liquid detergent brand EZEE is the market leader in its category. ? Godrej Industries- Godrej Industries Limited is India’s leading manufacturer of oleochemicals and makes more than a hundred chemicals for use in over two dozen industries.

It also manufactures edible oils, vanaspati and bakery fats. Besides, it operates real estate. ? Geometric Limited- Geometric is a specialist in the domain of engineering solutions, services and technologies. Its portfolio of Global Engineering services and Digital Technology solutions for Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) enables companies to formulate, implement, and execute global engineering and manufacturing strategies aimed at achieving greater efficiencies in the product realization lifecycle. ? Godrej Infotech- Godrej Infotech Ltd. s in the business of software Development, e-solutions Development, ERP Implementation, Customisation & ERP Consulting Services, Database Outsourcing & Consultancy services. An SEI-CMM Level 4 Company, it also has to its credit ISO-9001:2000 Quality Systems Certification for Design and Development and Development of Commercial application software, ERP Consultancy Services and Operations and Technology. 15 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment ? Godrej Agrovert- Godrej Agrovet was formerly a division of Godrej Soaps Limited. It was set up as a separate company with focus on the agri-sector.

Over the years, the company has developed and nurtured a close relationship with farmers. Providing them with innovative Products, as well as educating them on world-class farming practices. Together with its subsidiaries Goldmohur Foods and Feeds Limited and Golden Feed Products Limited , Godrej Agrovet has revenues close to Rs 1000 Crores (US $ 250 million – FY 2007). The activities of the company are vast : Compound Animal feeds, Agricultural Inputs, Integrated Poultry Business, Oil Palm Plantations, Plant Biotech, Retailing of Fresh Farm Produce in urban areas, and rural retailing of a wide range of products including Agricultural inputs. Godrej Saralee- Godrej Sara Lee is a joint venture company between the Godrej Group, India and Sara Lee Corporation, USA. It is the world’s largest manufacturers of home insecticides. The company is involved in research and manufacture of quality household insecticides, and holds a substantial market share in the domestic market, with some of the most popular brands like GoodKnight, Jet, Hit and Banish, which have become generic with mosquito repellants today. ? Godrej Hicare- Godrej Hicare Ltd (GHCL) is an initiative by Godrej Group to introduce professional pest control services in India by utilizing its strengths.

For instance, Godrej’s internationally acclaimed R & D facility for development of over the counter pest control products. ? Godrej Efacec- The Godrej Group is one of the largest groups in India in the Engineering industry and the Godrej Storage Solutions Group has been a market leader for more than 40 years in providing efficient storage solutions. It is the first Storage system manufacturing unit, which has been accredited with the prestigious ISO 9001 certification in India. With a view toward providing the latest Warehousing Solutions, Godrej has formed a Joint Venture with Efacec of Portugal, the leading manufacturers of Automated

Storage and Retrieval Systems in Europe, who have to their credit more than 90 installations the world over. Efacec is also an ISO 9001 company. 16 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment ? Godrej Properties- Godrej Properties was established in 1990 as a real estate development company within the Godrej Group of businesses. The promise to deliver value drives the organization at every stage of operation. Firstly, the company evaluates the potential of possible locations and is led by a team of qualified managers.

Once a location has been identified as a potential development zone, GPL works with only the foremost architects, contractors, and project managers to bring the project to life. GPL knows that its obligation to its customers and partners does not end upon the completion of a project, and therefore, provides post-project professional and accessible support also. ? Overseas Establishments- These include the following: ? ? ? ? ? Godrej Malaysia Godrej Oman Godrej Vietnam Godrej Sharjah Godrej Singapore 17 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment OUR PRODUCTS

Godrej is a part and parcel of every Indian’s life. From locks to personal care. From appliances to air care. From furniture to construction. There are innumerable ways we enrich quality of life – everyday, everywhere. We offer an entire spectrum of industrial solutions from storage to material handling to process equipment and many, many more. Whether clients are looking for standard equipment or custom engineering solutions, the first name is Godrej. 18 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment BRAND PHILOSOPHY A new era in interior solutions beckons. And who better than Godrej to script new beginnings!!

Years of understanding consumer needs, through R and matchless expertise means our products –home furniture, office furniture and special project furniture – are world-class and evolving with time. This phenomenal drive to think new is ably backed by exclusive showrooms and dealer outlets across India. The changing customer, competitive environment and respect for big brands calls for a younger face of Godrej. Hence GODREJ INTERIO, A perfect amalgamation of time tested values and contemporary outlook. It reflects the godrej philosophy of breathing life into monotony.

It’s vibrant stylish and comfortable. Godrej Interio recognizes the needs of modern lifestyle and stands dedicated to meet these with ease and aplomb. Interio: The Philosophy ‘Interio’ is simply the unified platform to convey that our solutions allow you to ‘transform your space’ making it a comfortable, productive & vibrant environment that makes your home worth living in & your office worth working in. It reflects the expertise Godrej has, in the business of Furniture & Interior solutions, that, which enables change the 4 walls of any space into one that breathes of a ‘quality life’.

With the range of Home furniture & decor solutions, Godrej intends to provide the warmth & comfort that reflects a happy, at ease family; where the ups & downs of daily life can be forgotten, where the entire family comes together for dinner after a tired day at work, where guests are impressed by the style of the decor, where you can recharge yourself for the next day ahead. With the Office Furniture Solutions, Godrej wants to create a positive environment that encourages employees & employers alike to deliver their best.

A comfortable workspace that instils confidence, pride, understands pressures of work & provides furniture that ensures employee well-being at all times so that he can be successful at work & exudes energy even when he gets back home. So whether you are a busy & ambitious executive at work or a doting father and loving husband at home, Godrej Interio provides the most aesthetic & ergonomically friendly interiors that make you feel good about yourself and your environment. 19 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment

The Brand Promise Godrej Interio is a contemporary, stylish & ergonomically designed range of furniture & interior solutions that transforms any space. It comes from our expertise & constantly evolving solutions that we provide to the consumer. And the belief that, ‘No one knows interiors better’ than us. INTERIO SHOWROOMS Godrej Interio has nearly 51 exclusive stores spread across 25 cities in India with a total display area of over 1,50,000 sq ft, which sell a wide range of Godrej products catering to the needs of every home and office.

The range includes furniture for living rooms, dining rooms & bed rooms, storwels, kid’s furniture, office executive tables, chairs, filing & storage systems, computer tables, security products, locks, bean bags, bed Linen & health seating products. Good ambience along with trained, friendly staff ensures an excellent shopping experience. The Interio locations all over India are as follows: ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?

AHMEDABAD BANGALORE BHOPAL BHUVANESHWAR CHANDIGARH CHENNAI COIMBATORE DELHI GUWAHATI HYDERABAD INDORE INDORE JABALPUR JAIPUR KANPUR COCHIN KOLKATA LUCKNOW MUMBAI PUNE SECUNDERABAD RAIPUR THANE TRIVANDRUM VISAKHAPATNAM 20 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment TERRITORY MAPPING & IDENTIFYING CATCHMENT AREAS 21 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment CATCHMENT AREA A catchment area is the area and population from which a service attracts visitors or customers. On mapping the territory around the Interio Showroom, Okhla, the catchemnt areas were identified as follows: 1. . 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. Jasola Vihar Sarita Vihar New Friends Colony East of Kailash Greater Kailash Kalkaji South Extension C. R. Park ? Information on the living standard of the people in the catchment areas was obtained by visiting the areas and from the RWAs of the colonies. The number of blocks and houses in the various colonies were identified. Residents’ directories of the various colonies were obtained from the RWAs and submitted to the store so that the store can contact the residents directly in case of promotions etc. A brief of the various catchment areas follows in the report. ? ? 22 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment JASOLA VIHAR SECTOR Sector 1 Sector 2 Sector 7 No. of Households 47 7 220 OFFICE BEARERS: RESIDENTS’ WELFARE ASSOCIATION SECTOR 1 & 2 DESIGNATION President Vice-president Gen. Secretary Jt. Secretary Treasurer NAME Aftab Chaudhari Ameer Azam S. C Joshi Jawed Jamal N. D Reihan ADDRESS & TEL No. 13T, 26975756 85T, 26972789 92T, 26971042 39G, 26972415 35F, 26972376 SECTOR 7 DESIGNATION President Vice-president Gen. Secretary Jt. Secretary Treasurer NAME D. K. Chaterjee J. P. Chaudhary A. K. Sharma G. R. Chug S. S. Kumar ADDRESS & TEL No. 7T, 26950988 7G, 26946523 26S, 29941717 23T, 29940078 87F, 26972519 23 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment SARITA VIHAR BLOCK A B C D E F G H J K L LIG M&N NO. OF HOUSEHOLDS 634 550 560 183 240 492 240 190 360 285 410 150 450 OFFICE BEARERS: RESIDENTS’ WELFARE ASSOCIATION BLOCK A DESIGNATION President Vice-president Gen. Secretary Treasurer NAME S. K. Kalra I. M. Kapoor J. S. Jassal M. D. Gupta ADDRESS & TEL No. A262, 26942386 A436, 26941966 A427, 26954130 A771, 26949913 BLOCK B DESIGNATION President Vice-president Gen. Secretary Jt. Secretary Treasurer NAME V. K. Jain H. C. Malik R.

S Monga S. K. Mukharjee S. L. Banerjee ADDRESS & TEL No. B396, 26947103 A450, 40540649 B498, 26943988 B393, 26944296 B428, 26972112 BLOCK C DESIGNATION President Vice-president Gen. Secretary Jt. Secretary Treasurer NAME Sarita Chaddha Vivek Mehta C. P. Vohra Rajendra Dhillon Sanjay Sharma ADDRESS & TEL No. C438, 26946446 C312, 41401220 C4, 26947560 C252, 26946584 C462, 26973624 24 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment BLOCK D DESIGNATION President Vice-president Treasurer NAME Dr. Gopal K. Pukait Mrs. Ranbir Singh Ms. Manju Sharma ADDRESS & TEL No. D54, 41402067 D170, 26941545 D12, 26941158

BLOCK E DESIGNATION President Vice-president Gen. Secretary Jt. Secretary Treasurer NAME K. L. Kapoor Dr. R. K. Sinha M. B. Gandhi G. S. Tamber P. P. Khurana ADDRESS & TEL No. E68, 26947067 E127, 26948229 E30, 26951013 E128, 29940029 E275, 26942275 BLOCK F DESIGNATION President Vice-president Gen. Secretary Jt. Secretary Treasurer NAME D. S. Mathur H. C. Sharma K. C. Gupta Manoj Kumar Paramvir Singh ADDRESS & TEL No. F394, 26943319 F606, 26949134 F502, 29942712 F384, 29942712 F350, 26945251 BLOCK G DESIGNATION President Vice-president Gen. Secretary Jt. Secretary Treasurer NAME J. R. Malhotra P. K.

Sarkar P. L. Sharma I. R. Kidwai Madan Kumar ADDRESS & TEL No. G246, 26943759 G272, 26944150 G232, 26940486 G8, 26941611 G251, 26946662 BLOCK H DESIGNATION President Gen. Secretary Treasurer NAME M. Bhasin Dr. S. K. Awana Sanjay Basil ADDRESS & TEL No. H22, 41401690 H123, 41401927 H52, 26945050 BLOCK J DESIGNATION President Vice-president Gen. Secretary Treasurer NAME A. L. Tandon S. P. Pradhan Smt. Rani Ghattani J. P. Gupta ADDRESS & TEL No. J213, 26949905 J342, 26947044 J23, 41401201 J280, 29941269 25 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment BLOCK K DESIGNATION President Vice-president Gen.

Secretary Jt. Secretary Treasurer NAME V. K. Mathur Prabhati Lal Sanjeev Rajput Ashok Kr. Dutta K. K. Joaddar ADDRESS & TEL No. K96, 9810943236 K375, 9211013790 K35, 9871411936 K51, 9811087581 K68, 9868724616 BLOCK L DESIGNATION President Vice-president Gen. Secretary Jt. Secretary Treasurer NAME G. I. Sikri S. K. Nayyar R. S. Maurya S. S. Bajaj Dr. S. K. Badhan ADDRESS & TEL No. L313, 26975220 L117, 26951150 L181, 40541641 L137, 41571637 L-398, 26940670 LIG BLOCK DESIGNATION President Vice-president Gen. Secretary Jt. Secretary Treasurer NAME Narendar Bidhuri Devash Mathur Ramesh Mishra G. S. Gupta A.

K. Aggarwal ADDRESS & TEL No. LIG-109, 26941210 LIG-90, 26940925 LIG-153, 26949517 LIG- 21, 9868859973 LIG-22, 26940006 BLOCKS M&N DESIGNATION President Vice-president Gen. Secretary Jt. Secretary Treasurer NAME O. P. Garg Joseph Bhaw Kirori Mal Goyal Babu George H. Kumar Sharma ADDRESS & TEL No. M-139, 9213913456 N-288B, 9811614493 M-92B, 9213906948 N-319B, 9868101056 H-21B, 9818061881 Professions of Majority of the Residents ? ? ? ? Architects Lawyers Artists Chartered Accountants 26 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment NEW FRIENDS COLONY BLOCK A B C D NO. OF HOUSEHOLDS 298 324 245 313

OFFICE BEARERS: RESIDENTS’ WELFARE ASSOCIATION DESIGNATION President Vice-president Sr. V. P Financial Controller Treasurer NAME T. Mehta Ramesh Kumar Rommel Jaggi N. K. Tayal ADDRESS & TEL No. B-35, 26787808 A-243, 26784598 C-54, 26789856 A-128, 26782376 RESIDENTS’ PROFILE: ? Businessmen – 80% ? Retired & service class – 20% EAST OF KAILASH ? 350 Flats, 720 households OFFICE BEARERS: RESIDENTS’ WELFARE ASSOCIATION DESIGNATION President Vice-president Secretary Jt. Secretary Treasurer Jt. Treasurer NAME V. Kumar S. Kumar I. K. Ramani J. K. Jain Mrs. Savitri Khanna Col. N. M. Sharma ADDRESS & TEL No.

E243, 26462137 E400, 9350825677 E300, 26423346 E220, 41621116 E171, 26432468 E205, 26437882 RESIDENTS’ PROFILE: ? Businessmen ? Advocates ? Doctors 27 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment GREATER KAILASH I A & B BLOCK – 277 Flats, 455 households OFFICE BEARERS: RESIDENTS’ WELFARE ASSOCIATION DESIGNATION Patron President Sr. Vice-president Vice-president Secretary Jt. Secretary Treasurer NAME Brij Mohan Lal Munjal V. P. Tandon A. N. Kaul Bimal Kapoor Arun Vohra Rajesh Srivastava Kul Bhushan ADDRESS & TEL No. B-109, 29246864 B-233, 29237904 B-237B, 29232846 B-270, 9818428885 B-222, 29236299 B-228, 9810119890 B-231F, 29231431

RESIDENTS’ PROFILE: ? Businessmen ? Advocates ? Doctors ? Designers ? Bankers ? Jewellers ? Retd. Army officers GREATER KAILASH I C BLOCK – 235 Flats, 470 households OFFICE BEARERS: RESIDENTS’ WELFARE ASSOCIATION DESIGNATION Patron President Vice-president Secretary Jt. Secretary Treasurer NAME B. L. Bhatia Brijender Singh K. K. Nagpal Ravi Bhatia Pawan Sahani R. K. Arora ADDRESS & TEL No. C-147, 29230864 C-137, 29235528 C-163, 29238995 C-144, 29230644 C-110, 29234480 C-85, 41733073 28 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment RESIDENTS’ PROFILE: ? Businessmen ? Builders ? Doctors ? Sr. Govt. fficials GREATER KAILASH I E BLOCK – 406 Flats, 1025 households OFFICE BEARERS: RESIDENTS’ WELFARE ASSOCIATION DESIGNATION Chairman Sr. Vice Chairman Jr. Vice Chairman Secretary Treasurer NAME Rajiv Kakria Brig. M. C. Gogia Raj Kumar Tanwar Pawan Madhok Sanjay Anand ADDRESS & TEL No. E-230, 29238933 E-123, 29238667 E-114, 46536253 E-293, 29231024 E-334, 29245992 RESIDENTS’ PROFILE: ? Physicians & Cardiologists ? Chartered Accountants ? Consultants ? Retd. Govt. officials GREATER KAILASH I M BLOCK – 92 Flats, 150 households OFFICE BEARERS: RESIDENTS’ WELFARE ASSOCIATION DESIGNATION Patron President Vice-president Secretary Jt.

Secretary Treasurer NAME J. G. Sukhija T. N. Tikir D. K. Dutta Mrs. Promila Badhwar Asha Sachdev Prabodh Badhwar ADDRESS & TEL No. M-42, 29230574 M-38, 41635139 M-94, 41644419 M-45, 41734464 M-07, 41630787 M-45, 41734464 RESIDENTS’ PROFILE: ? Businessmen ? Advocates ? Industrialists ? Retd. Govt. officials 29 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment GREATER KAILASH I N BLOCK – 253 Flats, 650 households OFFICE BEARERS: RESIDENTS’ WELFARE ASSOCIATION DESIGNATION Patron President Vice-president Jt. Secretary Treasurer NAME Dr. Iqbal Singh Manish Gupta Anil Kapoor Surinder P. Singh Ravinder Gupta ADDRESS & TEL No.

N-266, 29235532 N-10, 29236034 N-208, 41730869 N-260, 55696234 N-213, 41633896 RESIDENTS’ PROFILE: ? Businessmen ? Jewellery Designers ? Insurance Consultants ? Share Brokers ? Retd. Govt. officials GREATER KAILASH I R BLOCK – 295 Flats, 600 households OFFICE BEARERS: RESIDENTS’ WELFARE ASSOCIATION DESIGNATION Patron President Vice-president Gen. Secretary Jt. Secretary Treasurer NAME Lt. Col I. S. Gujral (Retd) O. P. Sharda R. C. Puri Lt. Col. D. R. Aggarwal D. R. Sahni Lakshman Aswani ADDRESS & TEL No. R-60, 26485322 R-34, 981101799 R-26, 9891379740 R-59, 26472488 R-149, 26485037 R-112, 9810011555

RESIDENTS’ PROFILE: ? Doctors ? Tax Consultants ? Politicians ? Income Tax Officers ? Retd. Govt. officials 30 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment GREATER KAILASH I S BLOCK – 534 Flats, 1024 households OFFICE BEARERS: RESIDENTS’ WELFARE ASSOCIATION DESIGNATION President Sr. Vice-president Vice-president Secretary Jt. Secretary Treasurer NAME A. S. Tyagi J. K. Luthra Brig. Hardev Singh Gulshan Bir Singh R. K. Das M. K. Gupta ADDRESS & TEL No. S-433, 29232116 S-350, 29232419 S-435, 41730147 S-294, 29235634 S-488, 29233889 S-153, 41631821 RESIDENTS’ PROFILE: ? Doctors ? Consultants ?

Chartered Accountants ? Businessmen ? Retd. Govt. officials GREATER KAILASH I W BLOCK – 159 Flats, 225 households OFFICE BEARERS: RESIDENTS’ WELFARE ASSOCIATION DESIGNATION President Sr. Vice-president Vice-president Gen. Secretary Treasurer NAME Raman Mehta K. P. Ghai V. Sehgal R. K. Pall M. Bidani ADDRESS & TEL No. W-117, 41630698 W-77, 41630555 W-158, 29230500 W-145, 41630359 W-32, 9810058673 RESIDENTS’ PROFILE: ? Engineers ? Doctors ? Builders ? Sr. Consultants ? IAS Officers 31 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment KALKAJI Kalkaji Bhagidari, Co-operative Committee, 9/7, Kalkaji Extn.

DESIGNATION Chairman Vice Chairman Secretary Secretary (Facility) Gen. Secretary NAME D. S. Chaudhary Ashok Sawhney R. S. Kumar Vinod Khurana Rajendra S. Dhillon CONTACT DETAILS 011-26436086 9811099406 011-26434275 9810081126 011-26488448 BLOCKS WITH FLOORS Block 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Floor 1-11 1-33 1-21 1-21 1-7 1-3 1-18 1-20 1-27 1-24 1-14 Block 12 13 14 16 17 18 19 A B C D Floor/Households 1-10 1-4 1-14 1-10 1-10 1-10 1-14 1-595 1-147 1-190 1-92 Block DD E F G H J K L M N P&T Floor/Households 1-34 1-193 1-84 1-149 1-90 1-221 1-79 1-73 1-64 1-40 1-26 A BLOCK ? Total houses-88 o All are bungalows, villas -independent floors ?

Residents’ Profile – Mainly retired personnel. B BLOCK ? Total houses-204 (including 150 DDA flats) ? Residents’ Profile – Mainly senior citizens and service class. C BLOCK ? Total houses-161 + 95 DDA Flats ? Residents’ Profile – Mainly business class, service class & retired personnel. D BLOCK ? Total houses-200 ? Residents’ Profile – Mainly business class & service class. 32 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment E BLOCK ? Total houses-350 ? Residents’ Profile – Mainly business class & senior citizens F BLOCK ? Total houses-100 ? Residents’ Profile – Mainly business class & service class. G BLOCK ?

Total houses-74 ? Residents’ Profile – Mainly business community. SOUTH EXTENSION I A Block B Block C Block D Block E Block F Block G Block H Block J Block 67 Flats 69 Flats 64 Flats 59 Flats 89 Flats (Mainly Kothis, Villas) 38 Flats 27 Flats 89 Flats 107 Flats Mainly middle, upper middle and upper class people reside in this area. 33 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment CHITTARANJAN PARK EPDP Association 1-1597, C. R Park Tel No: 011-26270311 BLOCK A B C D E F G H I J K No. OF HOUSEHOLDS 102 (Independent) 301 142 225 253 130 230 143 208 175 167 BLOCK L M N O P S2 K1 K2 56 DDA FLATS 88 DDA FLATS 48 DDA FLATS No.

OF HOUSEHOLDS 17 57 36 7 62 128 146 232 25A-52B 9A-44B 1A-24B OFFICE BEARERS: EPDP ASSOCIATION DESIGNATION President Vice-President Secretary Jt. Secretary Treasurer NAME Dr. Nitish Sengupta A. K. Sinha P. K. Roy Mrs. Snigdha Roy Dwidal Chakravarty ADDRESS & TEL No. 40/135, 9910267826 E-923, 26276042 P-122, 26273501 C-490, 26275472 D-744A, 26271511 RESIDENTS’ PROFILE: ? Advocates ? Architect ? Doctors ? Physicians ? Chartered Accountants 34 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment QUESTIONNAIRE ANALYSIS 35 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

The basic methodology on which the project is based upon is exploratory research and data collection as a whole lot of qualitative data had to be extracted from residents in the catchment areas. The basic methodology on which the project course took place is depicted below in the flowchart: EXPLORATORY STUDY QUESTIONNAIRE DESIGNED PILOT STUDY CORRECTIONS IN THE QUESTIONNAIRE DATA COLLECTION DATA ANALYSIS & RECOMMENDATIONS The questionnaire analysis provides a detailed insight into the awareness level of Godrej Interio vis-a-vis the other furniture brands, along with the factors that are important for the various segment of customers in their urniture buying behaviour. 36 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment RESEARCH DESIGN The way in which the interview is followed is clearly depicted in the chart: SURVEY SUBJECT STATED CONFIDENTIALITY PROMISED SIMPLER, GENERAL QUESTIONS FIRST (CONFIDENCE) PROBING QUESTIONS NEXT (GREATER RESPONDENT EFFORT) RESPONDENT THANKED (CONFIDENTIALITY CONFIRMED) 37 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment DATA COLLECTION: Primary Data: For the project, the company’s internal data has been extensively used to understand the market and the business. The Employees of Godrej & Boyce Mfg Co.

Ltd. were also of immense help in providing some great insights into the business. The first leg of the project involved identifying the catchment areas for the Godrej Interio showroom, Okhla and identifying the customer profile in the catchment areas. This was done by visiting various colonies in the nearby areas and identifying if the residents in those areas were our target market segment or not by speaking to the RWAs and observing the living standards of the people in the colonies. It was followed by the questionnaire administration to understand the customer profile and the actors that affect their furniture buying behaviour. The second leg of the project which was the competitor study was done by visiting the showrooms of various competitors. Detailed insight into how their business is conducted was obtained by posing as potential customers and probing the sales executives. Secondary Data: Secondary data sources such as information on the internet as well as the detailed residents’ information in the directories collected from the RWAs of the various colonies were helpful in dispensing some very useful information.

Later on its was important to collect the data for Godrej Interio and its competitor brands in the market through online available data. Secondary data has been collected from various online journals, articles and websites. 38 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment SAMPLING Sampling involves a procedure that uses a small number of items or a portion of population to make a conclusion regarding the whole population. In other words, a sample is a subset of large population. Sampling consists of identifying the target population which in this case are the residents in the catchment areas.

Sampling method used- Convenience Sampling Sample Size-100 39 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment ANALYSIS & INTERPRETATION 1) In a sample of 100 respondents, only 33 had bought their furniture from retail showrooms while the rest 67 respondents had bought their furniture from local furniture dealers. 33% Local Furniture Dealers Retail Showrooms 67% It is a fact that home furniture is not an item which one purchases every other day. A majority of the respondents said that there furniture was pretty old and was manufactured by their local dealers.

In fact, some of the respondents were even using the furniture handed down to them by their parents. Since they took great care in choosing the quality of wood earlier, now they just need to change the cloth covering on a regular basis. We also must keep in mind the fact that organised retailing of furniture is a considerably new phenomenon. Hence, it will take some time before corporate houses can overshadow the local furniture dealers who have been there since a long time. 40 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment ) Out of the 33 respondents who have bought their furniture from retail showrooms, the breakdown is a follows: ? ? ? ? ? ? Godrej – 8 EVOK – 1 Style Spa – 4 Hometown – 6 Durian – 12 Others (Usha, Allwyn) – 2 12 12 10 8 6 4 2 0 ej ian k a wn yle eT o Go Du r ,A l lw yn rs (U sh a Ev o dr Sp ) 8 6 4 1 2 St Ho m As we can see in the above diagram, maximum number of customers (12) who buy furniture from retail showrooms have bought it from Durian. This is followed by Godrej with eight customers, HomeTown is close with six customers.

Style Spa, others and Evok follow with four, two and one customers respectively. Ot he 41 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment 3) The 8 respondents who had bought were Godrej Interio customers were asked to rate Godrej Interio on a scale of 1 to 5 on the basis of three factors: i. Satisfaction ii. Repurchase iii. Recommendation Where, 1 – Extremely satisfied/ extremely likely 2 – Moderately satisfied/ moderately likely 3 – Neither satisfied not dissatisfied/ neither likely nor unlikely 4 – Moderately dissatisfied/ moderately unlikely 5 – Extremely dissatisfied/ extremely unlikely

SATISFACTION: All the 8 respondents rated Godrej Interio as 1 on satisfaction which means all of them were extremely and completely satisfied with Godrej Interio. REPURCHASE: While 6 respondents rates Godrej Interio as 1 on this parameter which meant that it is extremely likely that they would purchase Godrej Interio furniture again, the other two respondents gave it a 3 which meant that they were undecided i. e. repurchase of Godrej Interio furniture by them was neither likely nor unlikely.

RECOMMENDATION: When asked as to how many Godrej customers would recommend Godrej furniture to their family and friends, all the 8 respondents rated Godej Interio as 1 on recommendation which means that it is extremely likely for all of them to recommend Godrej Interio furniture. INFERENCE: ? Because of the high quality of products and services that Godrej Interio always delivers, Godrej customers are a satisfied and happy lot. ? Due to the high degree of satisfaction and trust that customers have in Godrej, customers always keep coming back for more.

Hence, out of 8 Godrej customers, 6 were absolutely sure that they would come to Godrej for any purchase of furniture in the future. The other two who were not able to make up their mind said this was because they would also like to check out other Brands with so many options available and this does not mean that they were not happy with Godrej. The focus of Godrej interio should be convince the customers of the brand’s superiority so that they prefer it over other brands. 42 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment ) We also checked how aware were the respondents from the catchment areas of the various furniture retailing brands. The findings are as follows: BRANDS Durian EVOK Style Spa Home Centre Home Town Godrej No. OF AWARE RESPONDENTS 87 28 40 55 63 67 100 90 80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 87 67 28 40 63 55 n Go dr ej eT ow St yle Du ria Ho m ? As can be seen in the above diagram, the awareness of Durian is the highest i. e. 87%. This can be attributed to the regular newspaper advertisements with Malaika Arora Khan as their brand ambassador.

Godrej Interio follows next with an awareness of 67% how that is considerably lower than that of Durian. Even though almost 100% respondents were aware of Godrej storewells, only 67% were aware that Godrej also has a range of home furniture. Hence, there is a greater need for Godrej Interio to make its presence felt. ? Ho m ec en tre Ev ok Sp a n 43 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment 5) Out of the 100 respondents interviewed, 67% were aware that Godrej has a range of home furniture. Out of these 67 respondents, only 43 were aware of the locations of interio showroom in Delhi. 33

Aware of Godrej Interio & Interio Locations Not aware of Interio 24 OUR LOSS!! Not aware of Interio locations 43 ? In case the respondents who are aware of Godrej Interio but not its locations in Delhi need to buy furniture, it is is quite possible that they would not go out of their way to find the locations of our showroom and rather go to our competitors’ whose locations they are well aware of because of their regular advertisements. There has to be a stronger focus on advertisement by Godrej interio not only to gain awareness bit also to gain visibility. ? 44 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment ) Out of the 100 respondents interviewed, 62% were planning to buy new furniture in near future (within a period of 1 year). Out of these 62 respondents, only 22 were aware of Godrej Interio. 22 No immediate plans to buy new furniture Planning to buy furniture & aware of interio Planning to buy furniture & NOT aware of interio 40 OUR FOCUS!! 38 ? Out of the 62 respondents who were planning to buy furniture within a year, only 22 were aware of Godrej while the rest 40 were not aware that Godrej has a range of home furniture. Hence we lose out on valuable number of prospective customers.

Advertisement for Godrej Interio is a must for creating awareness. ? ? 45 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment 7) Factors Involved in Furniture Buying Decisions:- 60 52 50 40 30 20 10 0 Brand Quality Price Store Behaviour of ambience store staff 15 8 13 12 When quizzed on the factors important in their furniture buying decision, maximum 52 respondents rated quality as the most important factor. For 15 respondents price was most important while the furniture brand and the behaviour of the store staff were most important for 13 and 12 respondents respectively.

Finally, 8 respondents listed the store ambience as the most important factor in their furniture buying behaviour. Since Godrej is a trusted brand well known for its high quality products, Godrej Interio can capitalize on Godrej brand name in order to reach out to customers and make Godrej a preferred brand in their furniture buying decisions. 46 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment 8) When asked about the sources of information customers refer to in order to decide what furniture to buy and from where, following were the responses:

SOURCES Magazines Websites Newspapers Friends & Family Catalogues No. OF RESPONDENTS 55 28 40 87 63 ? Since 87% of our respondents depend on their friends and family while deciding about the kind of furniture to buy, greater awareness about Godrej is the only option. 47 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment COMPETITOR ANALYSIS 48 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment Competitor Analysis The main competitors of Godrej Interio, Okhla were identified as: ? Durian ? EVOK ? Style Spa ?

HomeCentre ? Hometown ? Villa These competitors were studied in depth by visiting their stores and asking probing questions by posing as customers. The findings along with a brief profile of the various competitors follows in the project. 49 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment STYLE SPA Headquartered in Chennai, India – Style Spa Furniture Limited, a company promoted by the ZuariChambal group of the K K Birla conglomerate was established in India in 1997 to manufacture and retail furniture. The anufacturing facility located near Chennai is a fully automated sophisticated plant equipped to manufacture exquisite pieces of furniture of impeccable quality. The plant is also one of Asia’s most modern and largest manufacturing facility. The products – elegant and contemporary furniture for homes and offices, mattresses and pillows – are retailed in exclusive Style Spa showrooms spread across the country. Style Spa is the largest retailer of furniture in India with over 90 exclusive showrooms spanning the length and breadth of the country.

Style Spa’s competitive edge lies in its elegant range of products which are difficult to replicate, its State of the Art manufacturing facility that ensures consistent quality, a large retail network, experienced, and qualified personnel that make up the Style Spa team and not to mention the tens and thousands of homes that revel in the Style Spa brand of Good Living. PRODUCT RANGE ? Bedroom ? Living room ? Dining room ? Study furniture 50 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment BEDROOM 51 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment EDEN

Bed 90 X 200 (Storage Drawer Optional) Bed 150 X 200 Bed 180 X 200 Storage drawer For Beds 2 Door Wardrobe Bedside Table 3 Door 2 Drawer Wardrobe 3 Drawer Chest (Mirror and Stool Optional) Stool Mirror TV Unit 52 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment ROYALE Exquisite detailing, world-class designs and fine finish by harmonious interplay of wood glass and metal are the hallmark of Royale bedroom range. 4 Door Sliding Wardrobe Corner Wardrobe 2 Door Wardrobe Tall Open Shelf Unit Optional 2 Drawer Unit Bed 180 x 200 Chest of drawer with mirror Bed 150 x 200 (Side table optional) 3 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment ESTILO Single Bed 90 x 200 3 Door Wardrobe 2 Door Wardrobe Single Bed 90 x 200 S Double Bed 150 x 200 Double Bed 150 x 200 S Double Bed 180 x 200 Double Bed 180 x 200 S Bedside Table with glass shelf Bedside Table with Drawer Storage Drawer for Bed 3 Drawer Chest 54 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment LIVING ROOM 55 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment VENUS Fabric Sofas Fabric Sofa TFJ Seater (with cushions) Fabric Sofa TFK Fabric Sofa TFG (with cushions) Fabric Sofa MFA Fabric Sofa MFB

Fabric Sofa CDX VII Fabric Sofa CDX IX Fabric Sofa CDX II 56 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment Leather Sofas Recliners 57 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment METRO V2 1 shelf unit with glass door Two shelf unit with glass door Three shelf unit with glass door Four shelf unit with glass door Optional Adjustable Shelves(2nos) Corner TV Unit Two Drawer Unit 1 Door 1 Drawer unit T V Trolley with glass door Two Shelf curved corner extension TV Trolley with Swivel Top 58 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment DINING ROOM

This section catalogues the complete range of Dining Room Furniture. Every one of them sports unmistakable Style Spa features – modular simplicity, legendary durability, thoughtful ergonomics, rich tones and silky smooth textures. 59 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment Dining Table (Glass) MG 180 x 105 Dining Table (Glass) MG 150 x 90 60 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment FIESTA DINING CABINETS 61 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment SOHO/STUDY FURNITURE S This section catalogues our complete range of SOHO/Study Furniture.

Every one of them sports unmistakable Style Spa features – modular simplicity, legendary durability, thoughtful ergonomics, rich tones and silky smooth textures. 62 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment MIDAS V2 COMPUTER TABLE Basic Computer Table 1 Drawer Computer Table 1 Drawer Computer Table with Top Unit 2 Drawer Computer Table 63 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment STUDY TABLE Study desk with flap Study desk without flap 64 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment STORE VISITED FOR COMPETITOR STUDY: ? Style Spa showroom at Wood Market, Kirti Nagar ?

Style Spa showroom in Noida RANGE OF FURNITURE PRESENT IN THE SHOWROOMS ? BEDS & SOFAS ? Double beds (3 King size, 4 Queen size) ? Price range- Rs. 19,000 to Rs. 35,000 ? Single beds (6 nos. ) ? Price range- Rs. 14,000 to Rs. 20,000 Sofa Sets (4 Three seaters, 2 Two seaters, 5 Single seaters) ? Price range- Rs. 40,000 to Rs. 70,000 ? Sinle seaters- Rs. 10,000 ? ? CUPBOARDS ? 4-Door (4 nos. ) ? Price range- Rs. 40,000 to Rs. 65,000 ? 3-Door (2 nos. ) ? Price range- Rs. 25,000 to Rs. 30,000 2-Door (2 nos. ) ? Price range- Rs. 25,000 to Rs. 35,000 ? ? DRESSING TABLES ? 5 nos. ? Price range- Rs. ,000 to Rs. 17,000 ? TEA TROLLEYS ? 5 nos. ? Price range- Rs. 10,000 to Rs. 13,000 ? TV TROLLEYS ? 3 nos. ? Price range- Rs. 15,000 to Rs. 20,000 65 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment POINTS OF OBSERVATION DURING SHOWROOM VISIT 1. LOCATION OF THE SHOWROOM ? The showrooms at Kirti Nagar as well as Noida are both facing the main road. ? The billboards are large in size and also face the main road. ? The above two factors make the showrooms highly visible as well as accessible for prospective customers. 2. PARKING SPACE ? Ample parking space available at both the locations. 3.

SIZE OF SHOWROOM ? Noida showroom- 3500 Sq. feet (approx. ) ? Kirti Nagar showroom- 4000 Sq. feet (approx. ) 4. AMBIENCE ? Inspite of the limited space at both locations, the furniture has been organised in a very clutter free manner which involves optimum utilisation of the space available as well as allows the customers to move and look around freely. ? No special effort taken as such to create a soothing ambience. ? Lighting was regular and homogenous throughout the showroom at both the locations. ? Wall colours regular ? No use of music or perfume to affect buyers’ mood in a positive manner. 5.

LOCATION OF WAREHOUSE ? Kamla Nagar 6. WARRANTY TERMS ? Life-time termite proof warranty. ? One year warranty for repairs etc. 7. PAYMENT TERMS ? Cash ? Credit/debit cards ? Cheque o Delivery only on the realisation of the cheque. 66 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment 8. No. OF EMPLOYEES ? Kirti Nagar-5 ? Noida- 4 9. QUALITFICATION OF EMPLOYEES ? Minimum qualification- Graduation 10. DISCOUNT/SCHEME RUNNING ? 20-35% OFF on all items. ? Offer was valid till 30th April 2009. 11. INVOLVEMENT OF THE TEAM ? Employees at both the showrooms extremely polite and courteous with a pleasant demeanour. Have excellent product knowledge. ? Are very patient and encourage customers to look around. ? No uniform but all employees dressed neatly and formally. 12. DELIVERY PERIOD ? Delivery of Wednesday and Saturday only. ? As the delivery list is prepared one day before delivery, hence if a customer buys a piece if furniture on Saturday, it will be delivered on the next Wednesday. 13. AVAILABILITY OF CATALOGUE ? No catalogue available ? No kiosk to display the items not present in the store. 14. STORE TIMING ? 10 a. m to 8 p. m 15. WEEKLY OFF ? No weekly off 67 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment

Durian today is one of the largest interior infrastructural household names in India with a network extending to every nook and corner of the nation. It has the most prominent ISO 9001 and 14001 certifications for its quality standards and contribution in the industry. Durian has also introduced readymade doors in this industry to make life troublefree for all the users with a range of designs and colors to suit every eye. Its imported home and office furniture range is sourced from all over the world which includes all kinds of designs be it classic or contemporary.

The furniture pieces which are sourced from across the world to meet the new changing taste of the Indian market. Alongside its furniture line, Durian also has an extensive range of accessories, artifacts, furnishings, painting and decorative lighting products which will enable their clients to characterize their space. For the first time in India, with the help of overseas research and technical team Durian has introduced Laminates which are guarded to resist borer, fungus and termite. It’s the proprietary know-how which Durian has developed in collaboration with highly techno-savvy foreign research laboratory.

They have also started offering services for turnkey projects to provide a complete package to their clients. In concise Durian offers lifestyle products related to interior design of office, home under one roof. Durian furniture, contrary to perception, is targeted to suit every budget. Their target customers are the middle, upper middle classes and even the top-end segment. Competitive pricing is possible because of the large volumes of sales envisaged. Positioned as ‘beautifully affordable’, the company is among the very few in the sector to use the electronic media. 68

Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment RANGE OF HOME FURNITURE ? Sofa sets o Leather Sofa Sets o Leatherite Sofa Sets ? Dining Sets ? Bedroom Sets ? Centre & Side Tables STORE VISITED FOR COMPETITOR STUDY: ? Durian showroom at Wood Market, Kirti Nagar RANGE OF FURNITURE PRESENT IN THE SHOWROOM ? BEDROOM ? Double bed+2 Side Tables+Dressing Table + 4 Door Almirah (10 nos. ) ? Price range- Rs. 98,000 to Rs. 3,00,000 ? One set of bed with curtains, cushions, headstand + 2 sidetables + dressing table + 4 door almirah ? Price- Rs. 6,00,000 Most of the beds had an old-age, traditional feel to them.

Very few designs in modern, chic look. ? ? ? SOFA SETS ? 6-Seater (10 nos. ) ? 4-Seater (12 nos. ) 69 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment POINTS OF OBSERVATION DURING SHOWROOM VISIT ? LOCATION OF THE SHOWROOM ? The showroom at Kirti Nagar is facing the main road. ? The billboard is large in size and also faces the main road. ? The above two factors makes the showroom highly visible as well as accessible for prospective customers. ? PARKING SPACE ? Ample parking space available. ? SIZE OF SHOWROOM ? Two Floors of about 6000 Sq. Feet each. ? Total showroom area- 12,000 Sq, Feet (approx. ? AMBIENCE ? Inspite of plenty of space being available, most of the furniture has been kept in a very cluttered manner in an effort to accommodate maximum number of furniture making one part of the showroom almost look like a warehouse. ? Because of this arrangement, not enough space is available for customers to walk around. ? No special effort taken as such to create a soothing ambience. ? Lighting was low and homogenous throughout the showroom. ? Wall colours regular ? No use of music or perfume to affect buyers’ mood in a positive manner. ? LOCATION OF WAREHOUSE ? Vasant Kunj ?

WARRANTY TERMS ? One year product warranty + Five years service warranty ? No charges for shifting within 5 years of purchase. ? Life-time termite proof warranty 70 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment ? PAYMENT TERMS ? Cash ? Credit/debit cards ? Cheque o Delivery only on the realisation of the cheque. ? Customers can also make 50% or 25% of the total payment at the time of purchase and the rest just before the delivery of the furniture, but in thus case the part payment made at the time of purchase has to be in cash. ? No. OF EMPLOYEES ? 5 ? QUALITFICATION OF EMPLOYEES ?

Minimum qualification- Graduation ? DISCOUNT/SCHEME RUNNING ? 20-60% OFF on all items. ? Offer was valid till 10th May 2009. ? INVOLVEMENT OF THE TEAM ? Store staff formally dressed, no uniform. ? Customer not greeted by sales executive. ? Sales staff have excellent product knowledge however not very pleasant in behaviour, appear to be curt. ? DELIVERY PERIOD ? Delivery within maximum 7 days. ? In case the product is not available in any of the nearby warehouses, then it has to be brought from Mumbai. ? Delivery period in this case is 18-20 days. ? AVAILABILITY OF CATALOGUE ?

No catalogue available ? No kiosk to display the items not present in the store. ? STORE TIMING ? 10 a. m to 8 p. m ? WEEKLY OFF ? No weekly off 71 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment Ebony Gautier’s range of contemporary styled furniture allows you to make a strong style statement. The furniture is designed and made in France and they add on a distinctive character and unmatched elegance to your Living rooms, Bedrooms and Children’s Bedrooms. Complementing the world class furniture is an exquisite range of home accessories to suit your specific home decor requirements.

At Ebony Gautier customers can expect high quality, contemporary and exclusive designs and good value for money. So every time you bring home Ebony Gautier products you can make quiet but powerful living style statements. FURNITURE RANGE ? Living Room o Sofas o Wall Units o Dining ? Bedroom ? Junior Bedroom ? Study Room 72 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment STORE VISITED FOR COMPETITOR STUDY: ? Ebony Gautier showroom at Atta Market, Noida. RANGE OF FURNITURE PRESENT IN THE SHOWROOM ? BEDROOM ? King & Queen size beds without boxes (18 nos. ) ? Side tables ? Wardrobes ? Dressing tables ? Price Range ?

Beds: Rs. 29,500 to Rs. 70,000 ? Entire bedroom set: Rs. 70,000 to Rs. 2,50,000 ? SOFA SETS ? 2-Seater (2 nos. ) ? 4-Seater (3 nos. ) ? 6-Seater (6 nos. ) ? 8-10 Seater (4 nos. ) ? Price Range o Rs. 60,000 to Rs. 3,00,000 ? Dining Room ? Dining Tables (15 nos. ) ? Price Range- Rs. 35,000 to Rs. 75,000 ? Dining Chairs ? Price Range- Rs. 3,500 to Rs. 10,000 ? Kids Room ? Beds ? Bed cum study table ? Bunkers ? Study Tables ? Drawers ? Book Cabinets ? Price Range o Study Table- Rs. 12,000 to Rs. 25,000 o Individual drawers/book cabinets- Rs. 10,000 to Rs. 15,000 73 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment

POINTS OF OBSERVATION DURING SHOWROOM VISIT ? LOCATION OF THE SHOWROOM ? The showroom is located in the main Atta Market, Noida. ? The billboard is large in size and also faces the main road. ? The above two factors makes the showroom highly visible as well as accessible for prospective customers. ? PARKING SPACE ? Ample parking space available. ? SIZE OF SHOWROOM ? Five floors of about 5000 Sq. Feet each. ? Total showroom area- 25,000 Sq, Feet (approx. ) ? AMBIENCE ? The ample space available has been utilised extremely well with each floor dedicated to one particular furniture segment viz. edroom, kids room etc. ? Because of this arrangement, the entire showroom looks very well organised and well maintained. ? A lot of care has been taken to create a different mood and ambience on each floor. For example, bright colour on the Kids room floor while soothing colours in the bedroom floor. ? Soft and soothing music to enhance buyers’ mood. ? LOCATION OF WAREHOUSE ? Noida ? WARRANTY TERMS ? Five years product warranty ? Three years warranty on kids’ beds ? Life-time termite proof warranty ? WOOD USED ? Paritcle board ? French designs ? Almost all the furniture is imported from France. 74

Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment ? PAYMENT TERMS ? Cash ? Credit/debit cards ? Cheque ? Full payment to be made for delivery in 2-3 days. ? Customers can also make part payment at the time of purchase, however the rest of the payment has to be made 24 hours before delivery. ? No. OF EMPLOYEES ? 6 ? QUALITFICATION OF EMPLOYEES ? Minimum qualification- Graduation ? DISCOUNT/SCHEME RUNNING ? 10% OFF on all items. ? Offer valid till 31st May 2009. ? December being the anniversary month, Ebony Gautier offers upto 50% discount. ? No discount on furniture during Diwali, offer only on accessories. INVOLVEMENT OF THE TEAM ? Store staff formally dressed, no uniform. ? Customer greeted by sales executive. ? Sales staff have excellent product knowledge however not very pleasant in behaviour. ? DELIVERY PERIOD ? Delivery within 2-3 days. ? All purchases made above Rs. 20,000 will be delivered free of cost. ? All purchases below Rs. 20,000 will be home delivered within Delhi and Noida for a minimal cost of Rs. 500 and within Faridabad and Gurgaon for a minimal cost of Rs. 750 which will be inclusive of labour and installation. ? AVAILABILITY OF CATALOGUE ? Separate catalogues available for each of the sections. 5 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment ? WALK-INS ? Walk-ins generally are not too many ? Most of the furniture is sold online and through dealer at Khanpur. ? STORE TIMING ? 11 a. m to 8:30 p. m ? WEEKLY OFF ? Tuesday 76 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment HSIL made a foray through its subsidiary into retail by launching Home Interior Fashion Mega stores providing speciality home interior solutions with the ‘EVOK’ HSIL is the flagship company of the Somany Group. HSIL was incorporated as Hindustan Twyfords Ltd in 1960 by the Somany Group in collaboration with Twyfords, Ltd. , UK.

Established to introduce vitreous china ceramic sanitaryware in India, it has been instrumental in giving the concept of sanitaryware a new meaning. Over the last four decades, HSIL has earned respect in the Indian and international markets with its commitment to innovation, unwavering quality and customer satisfaction. HSIL has three strategic businesses – Building Products Division and Container Glass Division (AGI Glasspac). FURNITURE RANGE ? Living Room o Sofas o Wall Units o Dining ? Bedroom ? Junior Bedroom ? Study Room 77 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment STORE VISITED FOR COMPETITOR STUDY: ?

EVOK showroom at Crown Interiorz Mall, Faridabad. RANGE OF FURNITURE PRESENT IN THE SHOWROOM ? BEDROOM ? King & Queen size beds without boxes (12 nos. ) ? Side tables ? Wardrobes ? Dressing tables ? Price Range ? Beds: Rs. 25,500 to Rs. 70,000 ? Entire bedroom set: Rs. 90,000 to Rs. 2,50,000 ? SOFA SETS ? 2-Seater (3 nos. ) ? 4-Seater (4 nos. ) ? 6-Seater (5 nos. ) ? 8-10 Seater (3 nos. ) ? Price Range o Rs. 50,000 to Rs. 3,00,000 ? Dining Room ? Dining Tables (10 nos. ) ? Price Range- Rs. 25,000 to Rs. 75,000 ? Kids Room ? Beds ? Bed cum study table ? Bunkers ? Study Tables ? Drawers ? Book Cabinets 8 Market Research Analysis For Home Furniture Segment POINTS OF OBSERVATION DURING SHOWROOM VISIT ? LOCATION OF THE SHOWROOM ? The showroom is located in the Crown Interiorz Mall, Faridabad. ? Large billboards are present not only inside the mall but also outside the mall facing the main Mathura road. ? The above two factors makes the showroom highly visible a

Guilty or Innocent

Imagine someone being locked up in a cell for 25 years convicted of a crime he or she did not commit. This person whom has been locked up for all these years has been telling everyone that he or she is innocent of the crime they were convicted of. Even though this person was telling everyone this, nobody believed him or her for a long- time. Until one day, someone believed that persons story. With many people in prison, others tend to overlook the fact that some of those people are wrongfully convicted; there are many reasons for this wrongful conviction.

More than 350 innocent people in prison since 1989 that have been exonerated and released from prison (Eppler. 2009, Para. 3). The most common wrongful conviction is eyewitness error. Many who are wrongfully convicted some of which are very famous in history such as Dr. Rubin (Hurricane) Carter. There have been exonerations in 34 of the 50 states since the twenty-first century begun. Many people who are or were convicted of a crime in which they did not commit.

According to Eppler (2009) a study of all exonerations DNA and non-DNA has found that there have been more than 350 people wrongfully convicted and subsequently exonerated in the United States since 1989. (Para. 3) In 1989 the first DNA exoneration took place, which was for Gary Dotson. Gary Dotson was proven innocent of being convicted of rape. Since there has been thousands and thousands of DNA testing to prove that people were wrongfully convicted.

There are those people who believe that if a person was or is put in prison then there must be a reason for it, without taking into consideration that the people may have been wrongfully convicted. There are many different reasons for wrongful convictions that have been discovered in capital cases and many other cases some of the causes of wrongful conviction are; eye witness error, junk science, government misconduct, snitch testimony, false confessions, and biased juries. Eyewitness errors are where someone may have been confused or just have a faulty memory.

Junk science where people mishandled the evidence and the crime scene, which could also be government misconduct by the police or other government official. Many people have a misunderstanding about government officials especially police officers that is all police officers are trustworthy and they tend to forget that police officers are just people like everyone else who also has to decide what is correct and what s wrong. Snitch testimony where another person is trying to get there sentence reduced with a plea bargain by telling on someone else ven if it is or is not the truth. There are false confessions where people have confessed to a crime because he or she is mentally ill, they have been tortured by the police to confess to a crime he or she did not commit, some other causes for false confessions are; duress, coercion, intoxication, diminished capacity, ignorance of the law, fear of violence, misunderstanding the situation, and the threat of a harsher sentence. Also there are biased juries where people do not get to have the jury made up of his or hers peers.

Below is how each of these falls in a category with the most common being eyewitness error, in which is the single greatest cause of wrongful convictions nationwide, playing a role in more than 75 percent of convictions being overturned through DNA testing. (Dieter. 2009). (Death Penalty Information Center) In more than 25% of cases in a National Institute of Justice study, suspects were excluded once DNA testing was conducted during the criminal investigation. The study that was conducted in1995, included 10,060 cases where testing was performed by the Federal Bureau of Investigation Laboratories.

Police misconduct and biased juries were the cause in over half of all the convictions. These cases were exonerated by the DNA evidence (Eppler. 2009). Larry Peterson is an example of wrongful conviction. According to Dieter (2009) Larry Peterson was wrongly convicted in 1989 of murder and sexual assault which got him the sentence of life in prison. In Petersons’ case there were four different people who falsely testified against him. Of those four people three of them where him coworkers and one of them was a jailhouse snitch. During an investigation of the crime, police interviewed some of Peterson’s co-workers several times.

After lengthy interrogations, threats of prosecution and other questionable police tactics, the three men said Peterson had confessed to them during a ride to work. Records have since shown that Peterson did not work on the day these men said the confession occurred. As for the jailhouse snitch who had pending charges in three counties also testified that Peterson confessed to being guilty of the crime to him while they were in county jail together. Peterson struggled to convince people that he was innocent but eventually someone believed him. DNA testing in 2005 proved that he was innocent and he was exonerated in 2006.

James Woodard a man in Texas was exonerated April 29, 2009 after DNA testing proved his innocence. He was the eighteenth person whom was set free in Dallas County. Woodard was convicted of raping and murdering his girlfriend, he spent 27 years in prison before he was exonerated by DNA testing. Texas Senator Rodney Ellis said on April 29, 2008 “We’ve reached a tipping point on wrongful convictions in Texas. Nobody can seriously doubt that there is a problem. ” There have been over 30 exonerations of wrongfully convicted inmates in Texas since 2001. There are many people who have been wrongfully convicted of a crime.

It has taken some 27 years to prove their innocence even from setting inside the prison cell. Another example of this is Dr. Rubin Carter. This is one of the most popular cases in history. He was wrongfully convicted in 1966 and it took him until 1988 to be released from prison. He proved that he was innocent of one crime to later be charged in 1996 of selling drugs which he was also proven as a wrongfully convicted case for which he was released when the cops realized there mistake. The photo below is a picture of Dr. Rubin (Hurricane) Carter in the New Jersey State Prison in August 1975.

There is help for those who think that they have been wrongfully convicted. Some of this help comes from an organization known as the EJI (Equal Justice Initiative). They provide the free service of trying to prove that a person who is incarcerated is innocent. The EJI are helping those who are on death row that were illegally convicted, they also help those who are sentenced with harsh terms of imprisonment, children who were sentenced to adult prisons and the mentally ill along with many others To this day there have been nearly 130 people since 1973 released from death row because their innocence was uncovered.

The EJI has helped dozens of people who were illegally convicted. (Equal Justice, 2009) Many people believe that if a person has been convicted of a crime and placed in prison or put on death row then there is a reason for it. Whether that person really committed the crime or whether that person is just a bad person then they deserve to be in prison. These people do not think that a nice and caring person could be so wrongfully convicted. According to a case that was in Texas a man named Cameron Willingham was innocent of arson in which his three children died.

But they did not know he was innocent until it was too late because he had already been put to death. He was a loving father who tried his hardest to get back into the burning house to get the children but he was restrained by the firefighters and police officers to keep him from doing so. There are many cases in which a person is innocent but it is found out to late. The average length of time served by those exonerated by DNA testing is 12 years in prison (Eppler. 2009). With all of the technology that has been developed over the years we are just being able to use DNA testing to prove the innocence of some meant and women.

Some of these men and women have spent most of their lives in prison forma crime they did not commit. There are many reasons that a person is wrongfully convicted as the research has shown. There have been exonerations in 34 of the 50 States since the twenty-first century began (the year 2000). Many people just assume that someone is guilty until he or she can prove their innocence, whereas with the government today it is supposed to be innocent until proven guilty. With all the evidence that is available it seems that the government believes the same way as most people do.

A counter argument to innocent people being in prison is that if he or she could not prove their innocence before he or she is sentenced to prison then they must be guilty enough to be in prison. Every day there is someone who is wrongfully convicted of a crime in which it will take them close to 12 years to get proven innocent. Most of the time the reason that people get exonerated is because there is another person whom can be arrested for the crime so that the crime does not go unsolved, which would lead to the lawyers and judges conviction rates to decrease if it went unsolved.

Which many lawyers and judges do not want their rate to fall and all they really care about are their reputations that are involved, instead of caring about the person whom they are defending or trying to prove with the evidence that the person is guilty. With all of the technology and ability available to society today, a person would figure that the crime rate would be less and criminals would not want to commit any crimes. The way things have gone is that the more technology available the smart the criminals are getting and the easier it is for a crime to be committed.

There are still a large amount of people in prison who are innocent and who will never get that chance to be free again because the evidence for the case they were tried for in the beginning has been lost or destroyed. There is also those who were convicted of a crime that have lost the hope of being proven innocent because they have been in prison for so long that they would not know how to do anything in the world (this is called institutionalized). Even though there is a large amount of innocent people in the prison system there is also some that are guilty.

If every case was to go through the DNA testing then there would be about half that would be innocent. The problem with this is that not everyone wants to be proven innocent. So people have to keep in mind that just because someone is in prison it does not always mean that he or she is guilty of the crime in which they were convicted. People have to keep in mind that there are a large amount of innocent people in prison who are actually innocent of the crime for which they were tried and that that he or she is not just saying that they are innocent.

References Deal, C. (1975). Hurricane Carter. The other side of the story. Retrieved October 16, 2009. From http://www. graphicwitness. com/carter/carterjail. html Dieter, R. (2009). Causes of Wrongful Convictions. Death Penalty Information Center. Retrieved September 17, 2009. From http://www. deathpenaltyinfo. org/causes-wrongful-convictions Eppler, D. (2009). Mid-Atlantic Innocence Project. Exonerate. org. Retrieved September 17, 2009, from http://www. exonerate. rg/facts/ Equal Justice Initiative. (2009). EJI-Wrongful Convictions. Retrieved September 17, 2009, From http://www. eji. org/eji/deathpenalty/wrongfulconvictions Marshal, L. (2006). Northwestern Law. Retrieved October 25, 2009, from http://www. law. northwestern. edu/cwc/exonerations/iDotsonSummary. html Stoddard, Ed. (2008). DNA frees Texas man imprisoned for 27 years. Retrieved October 25, 2009, from http://www. reuters. com/article/newsOne/idUSN2938136220080430

Lean Manufacturing: Toyota Production System

Lean Manufacturing and the Toyota Production System The use of the term “Lean”, in a business or manufacturing environment, describes a philosophy that incorporates a collection of tools and techniques into the business processes to optimize time, human resources, assets, and productivity, while improving the quality level of products and services to their customers. Becoming “Lean” is a commitment to a process and a tremendous learning experience should you attempt to implement Lean principles and practices into your organization.

The term Lean in the manufacturing environment also refers to the Toyota Production system established by the Toyota Corporation. Within the organization, four prominent gentlemen are credited with developing the system: Sakichi Toyoda, who founded the Toyoda Group in 1902; Kiichiro Toyoda, son of Sakichi Toyoda, who headed the automobile manufacturing operation between 1936 and 1950; Eiji Toyoda, Managing Director between 1950 and 1981 and Chairman between 1981 and 1994; and Taiichi Ohno, the Father of the Kanban System.

Sakichi Toyoda invented a power loom in 1902 and in 1926 an automatic loom capable of detecting a snapped thread that automatically stopped the loom thus preventing production of poor quality. That same year, 1926, he founded the Toyoda Automatic Loom Works that manufactured automatic looms. In 1937, Sakichi sold his automatic loom patents to a company in England to finance an automobile manufacturing operation with his son Kiichiro managing the new venture.

At the same time in Yokohama, Japan, the Ford Motor Company was building Model A cars and trucks with mixed models in a plant converted over from the Model T. At this time, Ford was the largest manufacturer of automobiles in Japan with General Motors as the second largest manufacturer, together producing over 90% of the vehicles manufactured in Japan. The new automotive venture for the Toyoda Group was risky. Kiichiro Toyoda, the son of Sakichi, who possessed a greater interest in engines and automobiles then textiles and loom production, convinced his father to establish an automotive operation in 1936.

As managing director of the new operation, Kiichiro traveled to the Ford Motor Company in Detroit for a year of studying the American automotive industry. Kiichiro returned to Japan with a strong knowledge of the Ford production system determined to adapt the system to smaller production quantities. In addition to the smaller production quantities, Kiichiro’s system provided for different processes in the assembly sequence of production, the logistics of material simultaneous to production consumption, and a supplier network capable of supplying component material as required.

The system was referred to as Just-in-Time within the Toyoda Group. Eiji Toyoda, a nephew of Sakichi Toyoda, joined the Toyoda Automatic Loom Works family business after graduating from the University of Tokyo in 1936. In 1950, Eiji was named Managing Director of the Toyoda Automotive Works when the Japanese government forced Kiichiro Toyoda into reorganizing the Toyoda Group. The forced reorganization separated the family businesses and resulted in the resignation of Kiichiro and his entire staff.

In the first year as Managing Director, Eiji traveled to the United States to study the American automotive industry and report on American manufacturing methods. After touring the Ford Motor Company operations, Eiji returned to Japan with a desire to redesign the Toyoda Automotive Works plants. An important process learned during the trip was the Ford Motor Company suggestion system. Eiji instituted the concept and it is considered to be one of the major building blocks of the Toyota Production System of continuous improvement (Kaizen).

In 1957, Eiji renamed the Toyoda automotive operation The Toyota Company and again in 1983 to the Toyota Motor Corporation. In 1982, he established the Toyota Motor Sales USA. In 1986, Eiji returned to the United States to renew his study of the American automotive industry. Upon his return to Japan he presented the employees with new challenges. The Toyota Motor Corporation could not just copy the American automotive industry, but needed to produce superior automobiles, and do it with creativity, resourcefulness, wisdom, and hard work.

Taiichi Ohno, considered to be the creator of the Toyota Production System and the Father of the Kanban System, joined the Toyoda Automatic Loom Works after graduating from Nogoya Technical High School in 1932. Early in his career, he expanded upon the JIT concepts developed by Kiichito Toyoda to reduce waste, and started experimenting with and developing methodologies to produce needed components and subassemblies in a timely manner to support final assembly.

During the chaos of World War II, the Loom Works was converted into a Motors Works and Taiichi Ohno made the transition to car and truck parts production. The war resulted in the leveling of all Toyoda Group Works production facilities, but under the management of Eiji Toyoda, the plants were gradually rebuilt and Taiichi Ohno played a major role in establishing the JIT principles and methodologies developed in the Loom manufacturing processes.

At the reconstructed Toyoda Group Automotive Operations, Taiichi Ohno managed the machining operations under severe conditions of material shortages as a result of the war. Gradually he developed improved methods of supporting the assembly operations. The systems that were developed( the Toyota Production System), Ohno credited to two concepts. The first concept from Henry Ford’s book Today and Tomorrow published in 1926 provided the basis of a manufacturing production system.

The second concept was the supermarket operations in the United States observed during a visit in 1956. The supermarket concept provided the basis of a continuous supply of materials as the supermarket provided a continuous supply of merchandise on the store shelves. Two other gentlemen who helped shape the Toyota Production System were Shigeo Shingo, a quality consultant hired by Toyota, who assisted in the implementation of quality initiatives; and Edward Deming who brought Statistical Process Control to Japan.

The principles and practices of Lean are simplistic and developed over a 90-year period of time. While they have evolved by trial and error over many decades, and many prominent men have contributed to their development, the principles and practices are not easily to implement, which many companies will attest too. Implementation requires a commitment and support by management, and participation of the all personnel within an organization to be successful.

Childhood Memory

Steven Phillips, Childhood Memory My childhood memory takes me back to the mornings of breakfast in Charleston, SC. Every Saturday morning my grandmother, known to everyone as “Granny”, would be up around 4 in the morning preparing a hearty old fashioned breakfast. It usually consist of such items as made from scratch buttermilk pancakes, brown & serve link and patty sausage, bacon, eggs, toast and red colored kool-aid. I shared a room with my older brother Eric and my two cousins Artie and Toni, who were with us every summer as a vacation away from the big city of Brooklyn, NY.

I remember how Granny used to ease herself into the kitchen as quiet as a mouse as if trying not to even wake the air itself. However, once she gets in the kitchen all hell would break loose with pots and pans of all shapes and sizes falling and rambling about. At first, it would be a real bother and then it was like the rhythmic taps of a band drum line which would easily put you right back to sleep if you knew how to clear your mind properly.

Then the ravishing aroma of a hearty breakfast would fill your dreams with pure satisfaction. There was this old cast iron skillet that at the time had to be over 50 years old but it still out fried any new pan that anyone ever bought her for Christmas. She would do everything with this pan one minute she scrambling eggs, then she frying bacon, then the sausage. She would even take the drippings from the sausage and make home-style dark gravy with only oil, onion, and flower.

She would take the diced onion and drippings and heat them until golden brown then start adding flour to the skillet and before you know it she had the skillet full up with rich gravy. We all would just wake up with the food being our alarm clock and head in the kitchen like zombies about to feast on fresh tasty humans. There would be little talking as we dug into the ravishing feast of choice. I can hear Granny saying now; “Eric let your brother have that last piece of meat before I knock you into next week! Due to age and size I always got treated like royalty true her eyes. I would eat enough for two grown men before finally saying I had enough. All the food would be finished completely in less than an hour by me and siblings. She used to say that watching us eat was like watching a shark tear apart a seal. We would always ask for more to be sure to have enjoyed every last morsel. Once all is done and we have washed up it is now time to head to the fields to start harvesting crops. As we head out the only thing on our minds is how good that breakfast was.

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