Explore the features of different businesses and analyses what makes them successful
Introduction:
I have been accepted onto a work placement in the Economic Development Unit (EDU) at
Southampton City council. The EDU is dedicated to helping businesses to start, grow and
Prosper. I will be working with the officers who are responsible for publications, brochures and
guides. I have been asked to research and collect information on two contrasting businesses
and use this evidence to write a report on why businesses are successful.
Features of businesses:
Ownership:
Private limited company (Ltd) - a private limited company is a type of business entity in ‘private’
ownership used in many jurisdictions in contrast to ‘public’ ownership, with some differences
from country to country.
Public Limited Company (PLC) - a public limited company is a type of public company under
United Kingdom company law, some commonwealth jurisdictions, and the republic of Ireland
Non-Profit - a non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity or non-profit
institution is an organisation typically dedicated to furthering a particular social cause or
advocating a shared point of view.
Sole trader - a sole trader, also known as a sole proprietorship, individual entrepreneurship or
proprietorship, is a type of enterprise that is owned and run by one person and in which there is
no legal distinction between the owner and the business entity.
Partnership/Co-operative - a partnership or a co-operative is a member owned business
structure with at least 5 members, all of whom have equal voting rights regardless of their level
of involvement or investment. All members are expected to help run the co-operative.
Amazon is a public limited company (PLC) which means that shares are bought and sold
between the public. The owner of Amazon is not subject to personal liabilities following the
collapse of the business and is protected from debt. Amazon is one of the largest public limited
companies in the world and has advantages and disadvantages to being a public limited
company. Firsty, Amazon is able to raise its capital through public issues and shares as
previously mentioned. Since the company is able to sell its shares to the public and anyone is
able to invest their money, the capital that can be raised is typically much higher than that of a
private limited company. Furthermore, by having more finance potential more readily available
and on better terms than a private company, Amazon can be in an advantageous position to:
pursue new products, new projects and new markets. Fund research and development, make
, acquisitions, pay off existing debt and grow organically. However, at worst, a company can
become vulnerable to a hostile takeover if a majority of shareholders agree to a bid. With shares
being freely transferable, a potential bidder can build up a shareholding in advance of launching
a bid attempt.
Oxfam is a Non-Profit Organisation that is dedicated to furthering the cause of wealth
inequalities around the world. It is a movement of people working together to end the injustice of
poverty. The organisation tackles the inequality that keeps people poor, claiming to build better
lives for themselves and for other people. The company was founded in Britain, Oxford in 1942.
The group started as a campaign for food supplies to starving women and children in enemy
occupied Greece during the second world war. The nature of the non-profit organisation allowed
the group to expand throughout the world and increase their members daily because they were
fighting against a common cause throughout the globe. Oxfam has the advantage of being able
to easily build and scale their team to make a bigger impact on the problems they’re facing.
Managers and employees of the non profit organisation are also not personally liable for the
debts of the non-profit. This means that if someone wants to sue your nonprofit for a business
related debt, or injury, they can only go after the corporate entity, not the personal assets of its
owners. However, there are also downsides to a nonprofit organisation - aside from the obvious
No Profits to the business itself (employees may be still paid their salary, but any extra funds will
be cycled back into the cause; the organisation is quite prone to public scrutiny. Anyone may
request copies of the nonprift’s filings and review their expenditures, salaries and income. If the
nonprofit has a large public facing, like oxfam, expect scrutiny over how you handle
administrative expenses.
Liability:
Amazon is a limited liability company and this means that if there is ever a significant corporate
loss, the loss will not exceed the amount invested in a partnership or limited liability company
(LLC). In other words, investors, owners (Jeff Bezos) and private assets are not at risk if the
company fails.
Oxfam has a limited liability meaning that the members of the company are liable for the
company’s debt or liabilities. However, the trustees of the charitable limited company have the
protection of the limited liability for debts or other financial obligations. A limited company has a
legal personality that is distinct from its trustees, and it is the charity that is liable for any debts.
Purposes:
Amazon is a very profitable business established across many countries around the world.
Amazon was initially an online book store but it’s purpose has since shifted. Today, amazon is
the largest online retail marketplace in the world and is used to buy products online millions of
times a day. Amazon’s main goal is to provide an effortless place for the public to buy and sell
goods online, they are able to do this because they have a great track record and brilliant
security. Ultimately, all of these factors combined generate huge profits for the company year
after year. Amazon actually takes their profits and returns it right back into the business so that
they can generate more profits in the future.
