Berkshire Partners: Bidding for Carter’s Essay

1. Berkshire brought expertise in finding the right financing structure and operational and strategy related to the retail and manufacturing industry. Berkshire managers believed that the equity portion of a capital structure should be at least 25% to order to achieve the desired results as far as return and to show true commitment to the lending base. When determining the capital structure, they also seriously took into account such questions as: Is this the appropriate amount of leverage for a business of this type; what do the rating look like; how difficult will it be to get financing and what about financing costs? Once Berkshire had taken an equity position in a firm, Berkshire would help the firm management by prioritizing key objectives, improving organizational design, building a quality team of managers and aiding the integration process of a subsequent acquisition. Berkshire would add value up front with extensive due diligence, addressing opportunities for companies, and aligning strategically and building a strong relationship with management. Since Carter’s was an established business, they would receive a great deal of care and attention up front and then moderate to low oversight during the rest of the investment until exit. Berkshire also added value by exiting most of their investments by sale of a company instead of the typical IPO used by most private equity firms. Berkshire was more apt to facilitate an IPO in the middle of ownership with the intention of staying involved with the management and helping the company grow. Berkshire’s deep acquisition experience and familiarity with capital markets enabled very attractive financing to be put in place, as Berkshire solicited the views of a range of potential partners including Merrill, First Union, Lehman etc. in order to ensure the optimal financing structure. In addition, Berkshire had met with the Carter Management on two occasions and had a strong, open line of communication. Therefore, Berkshire should have a strong understanding of Carter’s goals. Ultimately, Berkshire used â€Å"internal and external resources to undertake a thorough planning process that both built a road map to guide management’s operating execution, but also served to coalesce the team around the significant potential inherent in the opportunities ahead of their company.† 2. Berkshire had developed a focus on â€Å"building strong, growth oriented companies in conjunction with strong equity incented management teams.† Carter’s was definitely financially strong as mentioned in the last question and growth orientated, as they recently diversified into the discount market for baby and young children’s apparel and were looking to move into the two to six year old playwear segments . They had shown success in a competitive, non-seasonal industry. Carter’s management team was disciplined and working to increase operating efficiencies by shortening development cycle and aiming to use 100% offshore sourcing in the near future. Management was also set on building on relationships with major customers (top eight wholesale customers represented 74% of wholesale revenue), and to continue to build profitable retail outlet stores. Berkshire liked the fact that Carter’s was a strong recognizable brand that could be leveraged across multiple channels and be viewed as a consumer products company. The only problem could be that Goldman Sachs was using a staple on financing structure. Berkshire felt this structure limited their ability to get an edge in the bidding process by bringing more creative financing deals to the table with Carter’s Investcorp wanted to exit the company in mid 2000 because they were at the end of a 5 year investing period and wanted liquidity in order provide quality returns for investors to set the stage for future financing. They could of went public (IPO) with Carter’s in 2001 but it would take over a year to exit the situation after the IPO and the IPO market was at a standstill. In addition, in summer of 2001 Carter’s was on the path to operational and financial success. From 1992 to 2000, the company increased revenue at a compound annual growth rate of 9.5% with EDITDA increasing 22.1%. Since Carter’s was bought by Investcorp, the firm had a improved brand recognition, a lower cost structure, expanded into the discount channel with Tykes, and the movement of some manufacturing operations offshore to reduce cost. These improvements and Carter’s ability to weather economic swings made the company a attractive commodity among financial buyers.

Types of Spooky Unusual Plants

Types of Spooky Unusual Plants Have you ever heard of white ghost or vampire plants? Plants are amazing organisms. They are able to create their own food through photosynthesis, and provide food for millions of other organisms. Plants may seem dull to some, but here are a few that I think are interesting and even kind of spooky. They are living proof that plants are not just boring old green things that grow in the ground. Lets start with a plant that has a built-in first aid kit. Bandagers Milkweed is so named because of the milky white juice that seeps out when the plant is broken off or cut. When the juice dries, it serves as a bandage covering the exposed area. The juice is also important because it acts as a poisonous deterrent to any insects that might try to feed on the plant. One exception is the Monarch butterfly which is immune to the effects of the poison. Milkweed plants are the only plants young Monarch caterpillars will eat. Chokers Strangler Figs get their name because they actually choke the life out of their host. They are found in tropical rainforests around the world. They grow from the top to the bottom of a tree with the help of animals. For example, a bird may drop a fig seed on the branch of a tree. Once the fig plant starts to grow, it sends its roots to the ground, which then anchor into the soil and completely surround the tree. Eventually, the host tree will die because it will no longer be able to get enough water or food. Deadly Nightshade Deadly nightshade plants, sometimes called devil’s berries, are named so because they are very toxic and deadly. The toxins from these plants can cause delirium and hallucinations. Their poison can also be fatal as it only takes consuming a few berries to kill a human. The berries from this plant were once used to make poison-tipped arrows. Dolls Eyes Dolls eyes plants are very unusual looking plants with berries that resemble eyeballs. While the entire plant is poisonous, eating berries from this plant could lead to cardiac arrest and death. Dolls eyes berries contain toxins that sedate cardiac muscles and can stop the heart. Birds however, are immune to the plant poisons. VampiresDodder plants attach to their host and suck off food and water. Dodder seedlings send out stems that search for other plants. Once a host is found, the dodder will cling to and penetrate the stems of the host. It will then grow and remain attached to its victim. Dodders are considered harmful parasites because they often spread plant diseases. Werewolf Plant Wolfsbane, also known as devils helmet, is an extremely toxic plant. Poisons from this plant at one time were used in hunting animals, including wolves. The toxins are quickly absorbed through the skin. Wolfsbane was also thought to ward off werewolves. White Ghosts Indian Pipes are tubular shaped plants with white flowers. The white color of the plant gives it a ghostly appearance. They grow in shaded places and receive all of their food from a fungus that lives in their roots.

Key Facts About the War on Drugs

Key Facts About the War on Drugs What Is the War on Drugs? The War on Drugs is a general term used to refer to the federal governments attempts to end the import, manufacture, sale, and use of illegal drugs. Its a colloquial term that does not refer in any meaningful way to a specific policy or objective, but rather to a series of anti-drug initiatives that are vaguely directed towards the common goal of ending drug abuse. Origin of the Phrase War on Drugs President Dwight D. Eisenhower began what The New York Times then called a new war on narcotic addiction at the local, national, and international level with the establishment of an Interdepartmental Committee on Narcotics on November 27, 1954, which was responsible for coordinating executive branch anti-drug efforts. The phrase War on Drugs first came into common use after President Richard Nixon used it at a press conference on June 17, 1971, during which he described illegal drugs as public enemy number one in the United States. Chronology of Federal Anti-drug Policy 1914: The Harrison Narcotics Tax Act regulates the distribution of narcotics (heroin and other opiates). Federal law enforcement will later incorrectly classify cocaine, a central nervous system stimulant, as a narcotic and regulate it under the same legislation.​1937: The Marijuana Tax Act extends federal restrictions to cover marijuana.1954: The Eisenhower administration takes a significant, albeit largely symbolic, step in establishing a U.S. Interdepartmental Committee on Narcotics.1970: The Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Act of 1970 establishes federal anti-drug policy as we know it. Human Cost of the War on Drugs According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, 55% of federal prisoners and 21% of state-level prisoners are incarcerated on the basis of drug-related offenses. This means that over a half million people are presently incarcerated as a result of anti-drug laws- more than the population of Wyoming. The illegal drug trade also sustains gang activity, and is indirectly responsible for an unknown number of homicides. (The FBIs Uniform Crime Reports describe 4% of homicides as being directly attributable to the illegal drug trade, but it plays an indirect role in a much larger percentage of homicides.) Monetary Cost of the War on Drugs According to the White Houses National Drug Control Strategy Budgets, as cited in Action Americas Drug War Cost Clock, the federal government alone is projected to spend over $22 billion on the War on Drugs in 2009. State spending totals are harder to isolate, but Action America cites a 1998 Columbia University study which found that states spent over $30 billion on drug law enforcement during that year. Constitutionality of the War on Drugs The federal governments authority to prosecute drug-related offenses theoretically stems from Article Is Commerce Clause, which grants Congress the authority to regulate commerce with foreign nations, and among the several states, and with the Indian tribes- but federal law enforcement targets drug offenders even when the illegal substance is manufactured and distributed only within state lines. Public Opinion Regarding the War on Drugs According to an October 2008 Zogby poll of likely voters, 76% describe the War on Drugs as a failure. In 2009, the Obama administration announced that it would no longer use the phrase War on Drugs to refer to federal anti-drug efforts, the first administration in 40 years not to do so.

White Privilege (Compare and Contrast) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

White Privilege (Compare and Contrast) - Essay Example The concept of white privilege has remained a contentious subject of academic discourse within critical race theory and the focus of this paper is to compare and contrast the different perspectives pertaining to the concept of white privilege with specific reference to Tim Wise’s â€Å"This is Your Nation on White Privilege†, Blanche Curry’s â€Å"Whiteness and Feminism†; Joy James’ â€Å"maintaining and Kicking White Supremacy†; Peggy McIntosh’s â€Å"White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack†, and Tiffany Joseph’s â€Å"Why don’t you get somebody new to do it† Race and cultural taxation in the academy. It is submitted at the outset that the underlying common thread between these academic commentaries is the acknowledgement of the theoretical concept of white privilege as a symbol of inequality between the opportunities and advantages accorded to white people in contrast to non-whites within the Ame rican social construct. For example, whilst using different narrative perspectives, both Wise and McIntosh highlight what they appear to believe is the undisputed reality of white privilege in America. McIntosh uses subjective experience to refer to the distinct advantages she has in the workplace in comparison to her African American counterparts: â€Å"39. I can be late to a meeting without having the lateness reflect on my race... 43. I can have low credibility as a leader I can be sure that my race is not the problem† (McIntosh 4). Similarly, Wise refers to the distinction in racial perceptions being directly attributable to the concept of â€Å"white privilege† by using a listing technique for emphasis similar to McIntosh. For example, Wise comments that â€Å"white privilege is when you can call yourself a â€Å"fuckin’ redneck... talk about how you like to â€Å"shoot shit† for fun, and still be viewed as a responsible all American boy....rather than a thug† (Wise). However, whilst these commentaries seek to highlight the concept of white privilege and its impact on the perception and stereotypes within the American social paradigm; some of the commentaries seek to go beyond pre-existing assumptions regarding white privilege within critical race theory by evaluating the white privilege paradigm through a contextual approach. This is particularly evident with Curry and Joseph’s contextual analysis of the overriding influence of white perspectives in seminal aspects of academic discourse. For example, on the one hand Wise’s somewhat sarcastic take on the concept of white privilege highlights the fact that racial inequality permeates social assumptions and preconceptions in American society in particular (Wise). On the other hand, Curry’s discussion of white privilege undertakes a contextual approach with specific reference to developments in feminism and feminist theory to highlight how the dominanc e of the white perspective in feminist theory ignores important female perspectives which are imperative to a comprehensive and representative model of feminist theory (Curry 243). Moreover, Curry argues that the concept of feminism is intrinsically linked to the subjective experience and as such, the cultural experience is important in the continuous development of feminist theory. Curry suggests that the dominance of white privilege within America’s social history means that the pre-existing discourse on feminism and feminist theory has developed with a white bias that ignores other cultures (Curry 244). For example, Curry highlights the point that whilst there is a â€Å"known and populist version of feminism†, she suggests that the dominance of accepted feminism theory being white has led to â€Å"deja-vu† marginalisation, which in turn undermines the weight accorded to

Management theory and application Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Management theory and application - Essay Example Invisible Management is an attempt to approach the subject of leadership in a more theoretically precise and useful way by grounding it in a social constructionist framework. The book is an edited volume consisting of thirteen chapters, eleven of them empirical. It draws on a tradition of scholarship--particularly in sociology, anthropology, social psychology, and neo-Freudian psychology--that emphasizes the role of society in the construction of leadership. To turn these pages is to be reminded again of the critical importance that the classical sociologists, Weber and Simmel, as well as psychologists such as Freud and Erickson, placed on developing a useful theory of leadership, especially one that recognized the social dimensions of leadership as opposed to simplistic hero worship. The book also reminds one of the narrowness of the approach to executive leadership taken by contemporary American scholarship, with its emphasis on social demography and statistical work at the expense of theory development and field data. In many ways, the contributors to this volume are suggesting that the way to go forward in leadership scholarship is to take a step back toward these earlier theoretical and empirical traditions. The first two chapters lay out the books basic theme of the role of social constructionism in leadership studies. My understanding of the argument that links the various chapters is as follows. Leading and following are social processes that are mediated through language and other forms of symbolization.

Drug use laws Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Drug use laws - Essay Example At the same time, the above-mentioned initiative does not touch upon workplace as well as the issue of drug testing, which means employers have an absolute freedom to test their employees, and they choose to use this right (Turner, 2014). Many of the employers decide to test their employees for marijuana and other drugs use for it is what is stated in their legally adopted policies. The main reason why they should do it is that such drug tests guarantee that employees are able to do their work properly and are not impaired while being at their work place. In addition to this, they should continue testing to identify those who abuse drugs, are not able to perform established tasks properly and, consequently, threaten the quality of work of the entire company. What is more, as employers and business groups state, testing for marijuana and other drugs can help create a safer workplace for in many cases safety at a workplace depends on people who are present there (Healy, 2014). In case an emergency situation takes place, there is no guarantee that one who abuses drugs can handle it. Finally, employers should continue to test for marijuana, despite it being legal in order not only to save employees but to be on the safe side when it comes to their businesses. In accordance with Raabe of the Denver Post (2014), â€Å"there seems to be a movement toward more testing. A lot of people are freaked out about the prospects of employees’ legal marijuana use†. In this regards, it is worth mentioning that the number.

History Of The Blue Harbour Brand Marketing Essay

History Of The Blue Harbour Brand Marketing Essay In 1884 Michael Marks, a Russian born Polish refugee opened a stall at Leeds Kirkgate market. Since then, Marks and Spencer was born, opening over 300 stores worldwide and also being the UKs largest clothing retailer. In 1999, online shopping was introduced to their website for customers to enjoy in the comfort of their own home. The internet had just started to become known and more and more people were staring to use it, so Marks and Spencer took this opportunity and set this up at the correct time. In 2000, MS brought out their healthy Count on us range, for the healthier people on diets or who were just watching what they ate. Their 1st Simply food stores opened in Surbiton Twickenham in 2001, selling nothing but healthy food, no home furnishing or clothes like the normal stores. They also launched Per Una a brand of clothing specifically targeting the fashion-conscious women. Shortly after in January 2001, Blue Harbour was introduced, a casual wear brand for males. View form and DB07 another brand of clothing was introduced in 2002, View form for sportswear and DB07 for children designed in collaboration with David Beckham. Mission Statement Marks and Spencers mission statement is broken into 3 parts which include: Vision To be the standard against which others are measured Mission To make aspirational quality accessible to all and Values Quality value, service, innovation and trust. This mission statement has been kept up since the start of making it; MS have worked hard to achieve all these factors. Even though there have been ups and downs during the years they have tried hard and have kept to their word. There are many companies which look up to MS and measure themselves against them, helping their company to improve and gain more customers. Marks and Spencers have been known for their quality value, service, innovation and trust to all their customers who as a company they have stuck to very well. They are continuing to attract new customers as well as keeping their old ones, offering them new and improved products all the time. Objectives Every year MS had many objectives which were to be met, they were not really split into long term and short term but just objectives as a whole for each coming year. In 2001, they had many objectives but their main ones were attracting new customers, developing stronger relationships with their suppliers, aim for market leadership and also to restore the heart of MS, stop non-core and profit losing activities and also to keep an effective balance sheet calling these three sectors their fundamental strengths. In 2002, not only did they want to develop stronger relationships with suppliers but also to build on a unique relationship with their customers. They needed to keep rebuilding on their fundamental strengths, continue to regain market leadership with value, quality and also appeal. It was aimed for MS to open their 1st standalone home store in spring 2003, also to improve every aspect of their company, overcome the competition and continue to attract more customers to their stores. Before 2004, the MS fundamental strengths were changed, which included improving the management team, still ensuring the balance sheet was effective and also delivering impactful but low cost improvements. In 2005, MS only wanted to refocus on their core values in their business which is quality, value, service, innovation and trust. Pestel Analysis In this section a PESTEL analysis will take place and will look at the external factors that impact on Mark and Spencers performance. Political According to the Marks and Spencer website there are constraints on out of town shopping has been but in place by the government. This is causing problems for M and S. This is because it is highly expensive for retail stores to be in the centre of large towns and cities with all the business rates and M and S is not selling enough produce to break even with these extra expenses they have to pay for being in the centre. MS is trying to move some of there stores out of the centres but with constraints it is causing problems for them. The UK not having the Euro is working as a disadvantage to MS in relation to there western European store because MS products are too expensive as there are being sold at UK prices. Economical The UK economy and currency is relatively strong compared to other countries so the strength of the pound is working as a disadvantage to Marks and Spencers in the UK and abroad. (www.bitc.org.uk) Current world events have affected global economies, which may result in fluctuations within the industry. This may lead to unpredictable consumer and supplier behaviours. Sociological Market trends are constantly changing and Mark and Spencers have always struggled to keep up with them. For example, Life style changes have made people more aware of their health, which has resulted in higher demand of quality health care related products. People are concerned with value for money. Consumers are concerned with their image, for example; they must have the latest labels. The population in the UK is ageing and with this, more people have a higher disposable income. Technological Internet shopping has lead to international buying opportunities, which means the consumer has an enormous amount of options when it comes to shopping. This means that the competition has also increased, but Marks and Spencers can use it to their advantage to promote new products and help to show that Marks and Spencers is an up to date company. (www.marksandspencers.com) Environmental MS is restricted to where they can build its stores because of the restrictions on Brown field sites and Green field sites. MS can only build on Brown field sites witch restricts them to having to stay in urban areas with competition. Legal The government is constantly redefining trading laws, which enables Marks and Spencers to trade for longer hours, for example; longer shopping hours on a Thursday. Marks and Spencers must follow advertising laws which are put in place to protect the consumer, but also to promote fair competition between companies. SWOT Analysis The Swot analysis looks at a companys strengths, weakness, opportunities and threats which are likely to have an impact on the companys performance. Strengths Marks and Spencers has been running since 1884 and has a good traditional reputation especially with the older generation. Marks and Spencers is also one of the biggest retailers on the high street having stores in most cities and large towns and with thirty other stores across the globe. (www.marksandspencers.com) The brand name is known in nearly every house hold. Marks and Spencers has a diversity of products such as food, underwear, menswear children wear, women wear and furniture. Weaknesses Fashions are constantly changing and Marks and Spencers has an inability to keep up with changes in the retail market. There are also problems with focusing on the right targets markets in terms of products and customers. (www.bitc.org.uk) Many consumers still feel that Mark and Spencers products are old fashioned and out dated compared to competitors. Even though this is some thing that Marks and Spencers is constantly trying to change. Marks and Spencers is now experiencing poor performance across the globe which has resulted in the pull out of foreign operations. Opportunities Marks and Spencers has the opportunity to collaborate with other companies to widen up product range even more. They could also collaborate with designers to help bring new ideas, and help expand on their furniture and beauty products. Threats There is constant competition from competitors such as John Lewis, Debenhams and Next. And especially from younger clothing competitors such as New Look. Ever changing fashions trends which Marks and Spencers struggle to manage is threatening Marks and Spencers performance. Gap analysis and Ratios A gap analysis involves identifying a gap or weakness in a specific company and looking to bridge that gap in order to meet a target objective as to where the company wants to be. The following quote helps to further identify a gap analysis: Gap analysis, consists of defining the present state, the desired or target state and hence the gap between them. In the later stages of problem solving the aim is to look at ways to bridge the gap defined www. Ifm.eng.cam.ac.uk [January 23] An example from Marks and Spencer is there downfall in the womenswear market, which in 2004 fell 0.6% to a 10.4% share of the market. Competition in womenswear has increased dramatically with women demanding style, quality, outstanding value and real choice. In order for Marks and Spencer to reclaim this market share they set out a clear plan, this involved listening to customers better during store visits, focus groups, better use of market data and keeping a closer eye on tracking trends, tracking competitors and also evaluating there own performance. From a purchasing point of view they looked to strengthen there buying teams, giving clearer responsibilities for design, buying and merchandising. The companies buying strategy changed to buy less, more frequently meaning better ranges and fresher lines of stock. It was also vital that Marks and Spencer didnt miss out on key trends like the previously did in 2003 such as with cardigans. In order to further close that gap Marks and Spencer learnt that they have to cater for particular needs and markets. For instance it is estimated that 42 % of womenswear brought is by women under the height of 5ft 3 inches, Marks and Spencer didnt previously cater for these, often producing large, baggy clothing. Now Marks and Spencer have now produced a petite range in 33 of its stores in order to cater for this market. The three ratios that were decided in order to assess Marks and Spencers financial position were the current ratio, gearing ratio and return on capital employed ratio. Firstly the current ratio can be calculated by dividing current assets by current liabilities, this identifies how far a firm can meet its short term liabilities from its current assets without having to raise finance by borrowing, selling fixed assets or issuing more shares. A ratio less than one for a period of time is a cause for concern; Marks and Spencers did have a healthy current ratio until 2003 but in the last couple of years they have dipped below one causing concern, whereas for example a competitive company such as Next has stayed consistent for the last 3-4 years. Secondly the gearing ratio can be calculated by total borrowings x 100 % and then divided by the capital employed. The ratio shows the proportion of capital employed, which is financed by borrowed funds. The relationship between both, ought to be balanced with shareholders funds significantly larger than the long term liabilities in order to have a health gearing ratio. The higher the gearing ratio, the higher the risk to the company is, as high levels of borrowing represent a significant risk to the company. In 2004 Marks and Spencers was sky high, massively bigger than that of competitors Next. The last ratio analysed was the return on capital employed, this can be calculated by Operating profit x 100% and then divided by capital employed. The ratio is an important indicator of how efficiently the business is being managed. As a rule if a company has a low return on capital employed then it is using its resources inefficiently even if the profit margin is high. In the years 2004-2005 both Marks and Spencers and Nets ROCE have been high indicating a healthy return on capital employed. Five force analysis Porters five forces model (below) can be used to help make an analysis of the competitive environment for a company within a certain industry. In this case, it is Marks and Spencer in the food and clothing industry. Source: Adapted from Porter, M, (1998) Competitive strategy, New York, free press QuickMBA, Strategic Management (1999) states that: The strategic business manager seeking to develop an edge over rival firms can use this model to better understand the industry context in which the firm operates. The threat of new entrants There are a variety of major companies in the market such as Next, Debenhams, Sainsburys and Tesco with regards to selling clothing and food products. These are well known companies which are strong in the market so the threat of new entrants is low. A company such as Marks and Spencer (MS) has a strong brand name which therefore creates a barrier to entry for potential new entrants. Companies would probably experience high start up losses in an attempt to try to promote its products in terms of trying to prise loyal customers away from MS. There is the threat however of company take over where one company buys another one out. Examples include Morrisons taking over Safeway and Walmart taking Asda in bids to try and create better companies without having to build many stores around the country. The government is also keen on new businesses starting up in the market to try to discourage a monopoly situation Bargaining power of suppliers MS has over 2000 direct suppliers where 1500 are for clothing and 500 for its food. Marks and Spencers corporate site online (2005) states: 90% of other products are now sourced overseas. Overseas suppliers provide plenty of choice for MS and also cheaper labour. The market that MS is in also makes it easier for the company to bargain with their suppliers because there are many suppliers which provide clothing and food which are relatively undifferentiated so MS can go to another supplier if they feel there are better suppliers to go to as opposed to their current ones. Bargaining power of buyers There are many clothing and food companies to choose from in terms of the consumer so it is the consumers who can dictate the price by demanding quality products at good prices. Clothing and food are not specific items unlike a Ferrari sports car. Food and clothing are readily available to everyone and so therefore it is important for a company like MS to offer quality goods at right prices in order to compete in a very price orientated market. With a Ferrari sports car, it is a very prestigious item and therefore prices are not as important for Ferrari. MS therefore needs to add value to their products such as the Autograph range of clothing launched in 2000 which The threat of substitute products If a product from a different company is cheaper then consumers may switch to that product. If there are low switching costs e.g. substitute products are much cheaper than MS ones then there could be more consumers switching to the cheaper product. For example, a pair of jeans in MS is  £25 but in Primark the jeans are £6. There are many retail stores selling clothes which are competing with MS and therefore could act as substitute products. To counteract the threat of substitutes, MS must concentrate on ensuring absolute product quality and customer service to keep loyal customers. The intensity of rivalry amongst existing competitors There food and (especially) the clothing market has fierce competition and MS must compete with companies such as Next, Debenhams, Tesco and Sainsburys for selling both their food and clothing products. These companies are all trying to obtain the largest market share possible in the retail sector. Conclusion Overall, MS (Marks and Spencer) have established themselves over 120 years as a well known high street name. The mission statement that has been created by MS, highlights that the company aims to be the standard to which other companies look too in terms of retailing. The objectives highlight on continuously improving the company (objectives in 2005 focused on the core values of the business). The SWOT analysis shows that MS is a very well known company although is poor at keeping up with fashion changes and therefore must be wary of changes and regard them as a threat. The five force analysis shows intense competition within the industry with big companies such as Next and Debenhams selling clothes and Tesco and Asda selling clothes and food. MS must be wary of substitute products with stores such as Matalan and Primark offering these products and also MS must recognise that the customer has high buyer power as they have the choice of many retailers at different prices.