- Unit 1 Exploring Business-
Assignment 1
P1- Explain the features of two contrasting businesses (Tesco)
Today I will talk about two contrasting businesses and investigate the features of these two
businesses, I will talk about what sectors, what scope of business activities they are in etc...
The first business that I will be investigating will be Tesco and this is a national business, and
I will be describing the features and how they have made themselves successful, the second
business that I will be investigating will be McMillan cancer research and this organisation is
a charity which has been successful in the way they operate. I will talk about the features of
this charity organisation and how they operate.
The background research that I have done for Tesco is that they started in 1919, when a
person called jack Cohen started to sell surplus groceries from a market stall in Hackney, the
brand of Tesco did not show up way until 1924 When Cohen purchased a shipment of tea
from the supplier Thomas Edward Stockwell, using the name they made labels TES and the
first two letters of jack’s surname CO which then formed Tesco. The very first Tesco store
opened in 1929 and it bought a few more stores until the 1950s until they had a dramatic
increase in population when they had reached over 800 stores. After this successful expansion
there was a new leader who had to replace Cohen and that was His son in law Leslie Porter, in
1994, Tesco fought Sainsbury’s for control over a firm in Dundee which then allowed Tesco
to expand their brand into Scotland and Ireland. Tesco now own more than 6 small businesses
such as Tesco extra and Tesco express etc…
The Ownership Status for Tesco is that they are a public limited company and has the plc next
to their brand name and what this means is that the people of the public are allowed to buy
Tesco’s shares if they were ever offered for sale and its different to a private limited company
because people who own a private company are only allowed to sell shares to family
members or close relatives but not the public. The ownership for Tesco is owned by
thousands of people because it is a plc. The advantages that Tesco will get from being a
public limited company is that they will have the ability to raise a greater amount of capital
and this will help the company to keep growing and expanding, the risks that come with being
a public limited company is that shareholders may have to make a decision they do not really
want to make just please other shareholders, if one shareholder holds a dispute about a
decision then it will then make the relationships between shareholders crumble and that will
then in fact affect the business, so it is also a massive risk to be a public limited company. The
advantage that they have is that they are a limited liability which means that the owners only
stand to lose the money that they have invested into the company unlike a sole trader who
would lose all their belongings and put them into bankruptcy, so this is a significant
advantage to what Tesco have. Their business product and services offer that they offer are
the books, clothing, electronics, furniture, toys, petrol, software, financial services, and
internet services.
The Mission Statement That Tesco promotes is we make what matters better, together and
this statement makes it perfectly clear that everyone is part of the success of the company and
will then make an environment where everyone can achieve their potential to contribute to the
continued growth of the corporation and together with Tesco’s strategy, they have a key role
in achieving success. They also want to retain loyal people hence why they have introduced a
Club card service to see who the loyal customers are and rewards them. The slogan for Tesco
,is every little help, and it first started to appear in 1993 in stores. The size of Tesco is huge as
it is a nationwide brand and available to many shareholders as it is a public limited company,
and it is a large business as they have more than 20000 employees nationwide, so it is a brand
well known by everyone. The brand is huge as it is known everywhere in the Uk and the
nature of it is normal, each store is big in square feet and offers multiple products. The aims
and objectives of Tesco are that they want to become the leading retail supermarket and
provide good quality services and products at a low cost so that they are cheaper than their
competitors, they also want to maximise sales to gain more profit and sell new stock so it
attracts new customers, They want to make cheaper prices so that customers can save more
money on their shopping, the final objective is that they want to create a large online service
where shopping can be done online with ease.
Economic Activity
The sector that Tesco operate in is the tertiary sector as it offers a service to customers
however, they also come in the secondary sector as they do manufacture and sell their own
products, tertiary sector is a commercial service that support the production and distribution
services. Secondary sector is the use of raw materials produced by primary sector and process
them into manufactured goods and products. Tesco's main purpose as a business is to create
values for customers to earn a lifetime loyalty hence why they have introduced a club card
service which rewards the customers for being loyal to Tesco. The scope of the business
activities for Tesco is that they are international business because they have now expanded
into 11 different countries in the world as well as the Uk, this is good thing to be known
internationally because it attracts customers from the whole wide world and makes it known
that there is a big brand called Tesco. In terms of the different liabilities, there are two which
are unlimited and limited liability. Limited liability is the condition by which shareholders are
legally responsible for the debts of a company only to the extent of the value from their
shares, Unlimited liability is liability is when the owner is responsible for all the debts of the
company. Tesco is in the unlimited liability section as they are a large business which will
allow them to make more money in bigger amount of sums. In terms of the turnover and sales
for Tesco is that sales in the Uk and Ireland rose 8.6% to 24.3 bn with overall revenue of
£28.7 bn and food sales went up by 9.2% during the period of covid. In terms of how Tesco
are doing now in the market they are doing well in term of turnover, sales and revenue, their
market shares right now average a 2.15 and 0.77% increase per day which is good for a
business that is known by many people across the country. Their growth success is mostly
because of their powerful brand name which influences customers to buy their products, the
brand has the face for value as well as being very consumer focused, their equity and relations
aided industry in expanding into new segments and markets. In terms of development Tesco
offers a long-term development strategy for its employees through workshops and learning
logs, also helping employees continuously carrying evaluations on themselves. Tesco are
outperforming their rivals right now and were showed as Britian's biggest retailer earning
their highest ever market share since February 2019. So economically, Tesco are doing well
right now in the current market.
,P1- Explain the features of two contrasting businesses (MacMillan Cancer
Support
MacMillan Cancer Support
The background research I have done for Macmillan cancer support is that the organisation
was found in 1911 when a young man named Douglas Macmillan watched his father die of
cancer, his father’s pain and suffering moved Douglas So much that he wanted to set up the
foundation for the prevention and relief of cancer, Douglas wanted information to be given to
be provided to all people with cancer and homes for patients at low cost. The size of the
business is that they are one of the largest business charities in the Uk so are well known and
have more than 2000 employees nationwide, the nature of the business is that they are a
charity so are a non-profitable organisation and only give to the people who desperately need
the financial support, the figures are extremely high in terms of people as 6.7 million are
affected by cancer and MacMillan will try and help majority of that specific population.
the aims and objectives that the organisation Macmillan have are to improve the lives of
everyone affected by cancer and to inspire millions to do the same and they want to do that by
providing medical, practical, emotional, or financial help and to provide better cancer care.
The objectives that Macmillan have are that they want to provide high quality information on
health and its determinants to decision makers who can make changes to their lives for the
cancer population. There is limited liability because the owners stand to lose the money that
other people have invested into the charity. MacMillan Cancer support is a public limited
company and that means that the public can buy shares if offered for sale and the advantages
of this are that there is the ability to raise a greater amount of capital and helps company to
grow and expand. Out of the three business categories, MacMillan is a non-profit (public,
private and non-profit). This refers to a company that is organised with the goal of doing
something good for the community rather than merely generating a profit. They are raising
money, getting sponsored, and accepting donations. A non-profit organisation is distinguished
by the fact that it is not based on the concept of profit. Although it is unquestionably
important to make as much money as possible (to have the greatest possible resources to offer
individuals in need too). Cancer research is a non-profit organisation dedicated to providing
,as much social help as feasible. A non-profit organisation is enjoyable to work for, not for
personal gain, but for the benefit of the public. They are not in it to earn a profit, so they
receive further government assistance, including a tax exemption, allowing them to avoid
paying taxes.
MacMillan Cancer Research UK's mission is to conduct effective cancer research while also
attempting to raise awareness. It was founded in 1911. MacMillan Cancer Research UK
works to identify causes and develop techniques for prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and
cure. The Imperial Fund for Cancer Research and the Cancer Research Campaign were
formed to form the non-profit organisation. The annual revenue of the organisation is £247.7
million. Out of the three firm sectors, MacMillan Cancer Research is a non-profit organisation
(public, private and non-profit). This refers to a company that is organised with the goal of
doing something good for the community rather than merely generating a profit. They are
raising money, getting sponsored, and accepting donations. As a registered charity in the
United Kingdom, MacMillan Cancer Research is obligated to devote its resources and
resources to charitable operations. The charity must be based in the UK and cannot use any of
its funds to benefit its trustees.
The benefits they obtain as a charity should not be used for the personal profit of their
members. Trustees in a registered charity, such as cancer research, are regarded as the equal
of shareholders in a public limited business. The governing body of a charity is made up of
these trustees. The trustees are the ones who make the important decisions. They have a legal
responsibility to ensure that the organisations' revenue is used wisely and correctly, and that
any debts are disclosed. Trustees choose a board of directors for charities, which, like a PLC,
is led by a chief executive. Cancer research, as a registered charity, is liable for any misuse of
donated funds that is discovered. The trustees' responsibility is to make sure the money is
used for a beneficial cause rather than for personal benefit. As a result, another job would be
to guarantee that the organisation is not fined or in trouble for any reason. This is the trustees'
role, as they are also the authority's regulators of the corporation. This increases the charity's
liability because if it loses money, it will lose all the money that was donated to it.
Economic Activity
The sector that Macmillan cancer support operate in is the non-profit sector as they are a
charity, as they are a non-profit, they only give money to the ones who need it and they do not
work for their own cause of making money hence why they are a non-profit organization.
they also work in the tertiary sector because they also sell skill support so in this instance
Macmillan sell advice and information for people of the cancer population. The purpose of
the organisation Macmillan cancer support is that they want to improve the lives of the cancer
population by being able to give them the right advice and support and this is a good purpose
because it helps to save lives. The scope of the business is that they are a national
organisation and only helps the people from the Uk not internationally, MacMillan Cancer
Research UK has highlighted the tremendous progress made in the fight against cancer. In the
1970s, only about a quarter of those diagnosed survived; in the following 40 years,
survivability has more than doubled, and half of those afflicted will know how to survive. The
goal of cancer research is to improve cancer survival rates as quickly as possible. Within the
next 20 years, however, it is expected that at least three-quarters of the population will have to
survive the sickness. Cancer Research UK's mission is to fight cancer worldwide, not just in
the United Kingdom.
As a result, it benefits the entire planet and has a positive global influence. It is a well-known
non-profit organisation, particularly in Europe. It is home to one of the world's most advanced
cancer research centres. as a non-profit organisation, MacMillan Cancer Research UK's
,mission is to find a solution to the challenge of life loss due to cancer. They can change the
lives of so many poor people all over the world since they are a globally recognised charity.
One of the goals of UK cancer research is to ensure that the world has a cancer-free future.
Cancer Research UK is attempting to achieve these goals through offering long-term
programming, public education, and different awareness campaigns. They hope to develop
new and practical ways of learning from or collaborating with other organisations on a much
larger scale by doing all of this. This is one of the weaknesses of the organisation is that it is
not international which could help more people of the cancer population to save their lives.
The size of the charity is big nationwide purely because they are recognised as one of the
most successful cancer charities in the UK. Stats show that 5.2 million people in the Uk
affected by cancer has had an impact on their lives due to their charity with majority of these
people being treated very well. The reasons for their success could be down to the
determination of the founders of this charity and the effort that they are willing to put in to
help impact other people's lives.
The main reason could be the founder’s experience with his father having cancer and how
there was not any support for them at the time, this experience made the founder who goes by
the name of Douglas Macmillan more determined than ever to make sure people do not go
through what he went through in the past. The success of MacMillan is shown from the
figures of 6.7 million being helped by Macmillan in terms of their cancer support, they aim to
help financially and mentally support the lives affected by cancer. The status of Macmillan is
that they are known as one of the biggest charity organizations in the UK, the developments
that Macmillan can make are by improving their social image for the rest of the UK so that
they can get more donators in to improve their funding for people who need treatment for
their cancer support. There are many different branches of MacMillan Cancer support across
the UK as they are one of the biggest cancer charities to ever come across the UK. For
example, there are branches in Walsall, Wolverhampton, Burton, and Trent etc. This is vital
because these different branches allow there to be a chance to raise more money due to the
donations centre installed in each branch. This allows the charity to be more successful than it
already is due to the number of branches there are of this charity.
P2 Explain How two contrasting businesses are influenced by stakeholders
(Tesco)
M1 Assess the relationships between the stakeholders and the business. (Tesco)
For Tesco, shareholders invest in Tesco in the hope for a profit, shareholders have an
exceptionally large influence on Tesco as without them the business would not exist, the more
shareholders there are in a business the more money is available to expand and develop which
regarding to Tesco’s mean more stores could be opening a result for more profit, shareholders
invest money in Tesco by purchasing shares and they want it to be successful so that they
receive a good return on the investment. The return can take two forms: first, if share prices
improve, they may be able to sell their shares for a greater price; second, Tesco distributes a
percentage of its profits to each shareholder for each share they own, which is referred to as a
dividend; the larger the profit, the higher the dividends. Shareholders are internal stakeholders
of the business.
Internal Stakeholders of Tesco
Employees of Tesco are important stakeholders in the business. Tesco employs 440,000 in
over 6800 shops over the world. They have a financial stake in Tesco because their
compensation and job security are tied to the company's performance and profitability.
Employees have an impact on Tesco's operations and image because they represent the
company's face. They are responsible for achieving Tesco's mission objectives and ensuring
, the smooth operation of the business daily. Employees are crucial to Tesco's success and are
one of the essential stakeholders. If they do not perform properly and encourage good
customer relations, they may tarnish the company's reputation, causing customers to avoid the
shop, resulting in a loss in earnings.
Managers oversee ensuring that the company's business goals are met, that people in their
departments are working well, and that employee relations are positive. The finance managers
are responsible for financial controls and economic management of Tesco’s business
objectives. Finance managers generate financial reports, oversee investment operations, and
implement cash management methods. They also report on investments, profit and loss
information, and competent economic management is critical to Tesco's profit maximisation.
To provide good customer service, sales and marketing managers must understand consumer
wants and address them by ensuring Tesco provides high-quality items and services. Sales
managers must sell products and services to the customer for Tesco business to keep being the
number one retailer. The purchasing managers ensure right quality products are available in
stores on time and source excellent quality products at the best prices to ensure there are
maximum sales and high profit margins, the human resources manager ensure employee
relationships are at a high and to keep employees working effectively with prominent levels
of motivation.
External stakeholders of Tesco
There are also stakeholders who are external which basically means something outside of a
business which will impact the success of a business, some of the external stakeholders for
Tesco are customers and they are a very influential stakeholder as they can control how much
income Tesco enrol into their stores, this is a result of them buying products and services
from Tesco such as Tesco mobile and foods and drinks, the customers of Tesco generally
want quality goods at a low cost and if Tesco are successful in providing this then they will
only attract more customers through the various forms of advertisement, Tesco are very
customer orientated and research what the customers really want, this is why Tesco is really
successful in meeting customer demands, which allows Tesco to expand and keep on making
a high amount of profit making customers an essential external shareholder of Tesco.
Suppliers also have a key influence as Tesco need to source a range of suppliers to provide
quality goods and services at reasonable prices. The relationship between Tesco and their
suppliers is critical, Tesco has trouble with suppliers in the past and therefore created a Tesco
supplier network which allows Tesco to rebuild its relationships with suppliers and encourage
suppliers to communicate with the retailer about a broad range of issues. Tesco's innovation
helped them to increase communication, share ideas, and continuously improve the items they
offer customers. Tesco can sell products and services for less money and boost customer
loyalty and satisfaction if they can obtain excellent products and services at competitive costs
and in a timely manner.
The government has a stake in all businesses including Tesco: businesses must comply with
rules and regulations set out by the government, these rules and regulations are constantly
changing and businesses like Tesco need to keep it up to date. Government taxation policy
affects Tesco’s business for example a rise in Corporation tax, which is based on business
profits will influence overall profits, another government policy that can affect Tesco is
interest rates and if the government decides to raise interest rates, the cost of the business
borrowing money will rise which also means consumers would spend less which could result
in a fall of sales for Tesco. With regarding health and safety legislation if there are major
breaches the government can close Tesco down, Tesco must comply with any changes the
government make which can influence the way they operate their business.
Pressure groups and interest groups also influence Tesco as Tesco is facing increased pressure
from pressure groups on a variety of topics, including employee compensation, supplier pay,
social obligations, genetically modified feed, and many others. Similarly, Tesco's operations
