Best Buy Case Report
Best Buy, before changing their name, was called The Sound of Music and was a retail store which offered audio equipment. The new company was founded in Saint Paul, Minnesota by Richard M. Schulze, who used his own savings and a second mortgage. The Sound of Music was in a niche in the greater consumer electronics industry. The first shift of changes came around 1982, when the company expanded to start selling appliances and VCRs. The major success that The Sound of Music saw was right after a tornado hit one of its stores, and the company proceeded to gather their inventory, mark it down, and advertise it. As a result, the company decided to hold the sale annually. Around 1985, the company changed their branding to Best Buy, which customers had nicknamed the annual sale. This name change marked the beginning of Best Buy’s new strategy of gaining market shares while adopting a new low-cost sales environment
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Mitchell wrote that “Best Buy announced that effective Dec. 15, 2008, nearly all of its corporate employees are eligible for a voluntary separation package in order to reduce its corporate expenses significantly.” (Mitchell) The recession of 2008 has had an impact on the company’s performance, but the Best Buy was able to survive since other rival companies exited the market. Best Buy features the latest tech gear and will continue to because of its agreement and relationship to the newest tech companies. “The CEO of Best Buy realized stores could ship packages to customers, serving as a mini-warehouse for the surrounding area allowing for more availability as well as speeding up shipping.” (Roose) Best Buy’s corporate responsibilities are the most important to the business and its stockholders. Best Buy seeks to be transparent with customers on which items are eco-friendly as well as improving the company’s operations and supply
TechForward Inc. v. Best Buy Co Inc. is a federal court case centering on the allegation that Best Buy unlawfully formed its buyback program after TechForward created its own promise to customers regarding a buyback plan and embezzled TechForward’s trade secrets to do so. Within the buyback program, customers are able to trade in electronic devices they purchased in return for store credit and are also allowed to choose their set pricing for in store credit. Best Buy was having trouble creating their own buyback program and sought for help through a California based start-up company, TechForward Inc. The two companies had signed a confidential and concealed agreement in February of 2008.
“Our customers trust that the products we bring to market are sourced from reputable suppliers who provide safe and fair working conditions for their workers. Kroger is working to ensure an ethical supply chain for the products sold in our stores (Kroger).” They plan to have 100% sustainable seafood, cage-free eggs, and sourced palm-oil. Kroger wants to not only meet but exceed the Environmental Protection Agency’s “Zero Waste” policies. It also plans to improve transportation efficiency.
From shared operating and advertising costs to exposure to diverse customer demands. However, the ability to respond to changing consumer needs and a combination of wholesaling and retailing operations led to the biggest and most noticeable effect, lower prices to consumers. The heart of the Wal-Mart strategy was to aggressively plan, organize and outthink their competitors by providing the best products, values, and prices. The Wal-Mart mission and vision statement “Saving people money so that they can live better.” (Wal-Mart, Inc., 2017)
So in 1925, the company opened a brick-and-mortar store in Chicago. It was called the Sears, Roebuck and Co. Retail Store, and it was built inside the massive warehouse where Sears processed its catalog orders.” This shows that Sears was a brick-and- mortar store that only went out of business a few years ago; this is still happening today. Another example of this is in the article “The Rise of Amazon” on page 25 when Carro states “Today, many brick-and-mortar businesses are having trouble surviving in the world of online shopping. Over the past decade, many companies have struggled to stay afloat—or have gone out of business entirely.
Modern day businesses have to be socially responsible; actions are taken to satisfy customers who might have a cause that they care deeply. Social responsibility occurs when a person or a company acts in an ethical and sensitive way towards important social issues of the day such as economic, environmental, and cultural concerns. Many businesses have a section of their website or business literature dedicated to social responsibility. Companies proudly detail the steps they are taking to address concerns that people have with the environment and economic issues. Having companies act in a socially responsible way is necessary because their actions have a tremendous positive impact on society.
Sam Walton was selling supplies cheaper than other companies that way people who were less fortunate could afford it. However people did not stop to notice he is putting companies around his out of business. Other local business are selling supplies normal priced or high end prices because of the quality. The quality from the retailer stores around Walmart is more reliable and durable. Also Sam Walton is receiving his merchandise from overseas which causes his products to be cheaper.
Wal-Mart they give money to organizations and donate plenty of products throughout the year. This corporation plays a big role in society. They also allow their stakeholders (employees) to buy into to their company stocks. They show social responsibility and ethical behavior to their consumers by providing affordable goods at low prices everyday. They provide consumers with more choices so they can shop close to home and not have to drive as far.
Corporate social responsibility: It has started an initiative in which it gives one percent of its revenue i.e. sales, to grassroots environmental organizations. Not only that, but also it has convinced 1,400 other companies to join this "1% for the Planet" initiative which he refers to as an Earth tax. This helps it to make a positive contribution to the environment thus achieving its strategic goal. Benefits: a.
For the Home Depot organizations, they have managed to stay in line with their competition and align their strategies to fit the market. Some things that Home Depot’s management can do at the functional level to distinguish them from organizations like Lowe’s is continue to analyze the market and it’s changing trends. This will allow them to understand consumer buying habits and react to any changes. They need to continue with changes to its brand image in order to attract a broader customer base.
History between Netflix and Blockbuster Netflix Inc. is American entertainment Multinational Company. Netflix was founded by Reed Hastings in 1988; its headquarters is in Los Gatos, California. Netflix is one of the biggest internet television networks in over 190 countries that provide online streaming of TV shows and movies without any commitments or commercials. Blockbuster LLC is an American based company, their headquarters’ in Dallas, Texas. The company was founded in 1985 after the sharp downfall of the gas and oil industry.
On July 2, 1962, Sam Walton opened his first Wal-Mart in Rogers, Arkansas. Over 50 years later, Wal-Mart became known as the largest private employer in the United States and the largest retailer in the world. Wal-Mart have expanded to over 4400 stores across the globe. American truly love Wal-Mart. When there is not any groceries at house the first thought comes to mind is Wal-Mart.
Furthermore, this paper will discuss some proposed solutions to the current ethical issues facing Walmart that could assist Walmart in its objective of continued growth in an ethical and sustainable manner. One of the major ways in which Walmart was able to grow and out compete its rivals was through its ability to provide retail goods to consumers at prices lower than competitors (Ferrell 407). Walmart ability to keep prices low is based on its ability to secure cheaply made goods from foreign manufacturers while also keeping the wages for its workforce low. The combination of cheaply made goods and a low paid retail staff means that Walmart can pass the savings to consumers which made it a popular retail shopping spot for lower to middle income Americans
Thus, instead of focus on short-term profit maximizing or costs saving, firms should be stakeholder-oriented. A firm which is stakeholder-oriented focuses on the need of their stakeholder such as employees, customers, society and others who have a direct economic link to the firm (Habil, n.d.). Businesses that are socially responsible will avoid actions that may cause detrimental to stakeholders. They have greater concern on stakeholder well –being. A firm that decided to ignore the social issues may results in a loss of strategic opportunities ('Shareholder value or social responsiblity?', 2007).
It has been able to identify the dynamic wants of customers and compete with physical store rivals as well as its E-Commerce rivals such as Amazon. This is well showcased from Wal-Mart’s newest strategy of keeping its online prices almost on par to that of Amazon’s. It was seen that Wal-Mart kept its products priced just 0.3% higher than Amazon's listings, clearly exhibiting the company's endeavors to gain a significant market share during the festival
1. INTRODUCTION Apple Inc. Official, a famous IT company in the world, began with a computer. They produce electronic gadgets with a good quality and attractive over the year. With their massive success, however, they are actually having problems, regardless internal or external problems.