Frida Kahlo Essay Example for Free

Frida Kahlo Essay The â€Å"Henry Ford Hospital† (The Flying Bed) completed in 1932, created by the artist Frida Kahlo was her first painting on tin. The painting contains all components of â€Å"Frida Style† ex-voto (retablo); which is small in size, painted on tin, portrays a tragic event and an inscription. The style used for this painting is Surrealism. This work is made by Oil on Metal. The dimensions of the work are 12  ¼Ã¢â‚¬  x 15  ½Ã¢â‚¬  In a shape of a Rectangle. Frida used rich colors to express strong feelings. This artwork was made during the Modern Art period. Frida Kahlo was the creator of the â€Å"Henry Ford Hospital† (The Flying Bed) 1932 painting. This is one of her most painful self-portraits that she had ever painted. Frida created this artwork of herself during one of her most painful times in her life. She was suffering her second miscarriage, and she was also was also realizing that she would not ever be able to carry a pregnancy to term. She experienced this situation in a foreign city that she did not like, the city of Detroit, Michigan. They were in the city of Detroit because her husband Diego was creating his famous Detroit Industry frescoes (frescoes, is a technique of mural painting executed upon freshly laid lime plaster) at the Detroit Institute of Arts. In the background of the painting Frida included the Ford family’s factories because they dominated the skyline from the hospitals view. In Henry Ford Hospital Frida lies naked in her bed. Frida has a large tear falls from her left eye. The sheet beneath her is bloody, because she is had a miscarriage. Her stomach is still swollen from pregnancy. The bed frame bears the inscription Henry Ford Hospital Detroit, but the bed and Frida floats or flies in an abstract space circled by a series of six floating objects around her bed that are symbolic of her emotions at the time of her miscarriage. They are attached with festive bows; the ends of red ribbons I suggest are veins or umbilical chords that she holds against her stomach with her left hand. There is a side view of the female anatomy, a fetus, a snail, a machine, an orchid and an image of a pelvis. The main object or image is a perfectly formed male fetus; the little Diego Frida had hoped to have. The others refer to aspects of childbearing. The snail Frida explained refers to the slowness of her miscarriage. At the bottom of the painting is the broken pelvis that prevented Frida from having children. The large lavender orchid looks like an extracted uterus, Diego had given it to Frida in the hospital. When she painted the orchid, she had the sexual thing mixed with the sentimental. The female torso is to explain the inside of the female. The machine at lower left symbolizes the mechanical part of the whole business. This works meaning and the feelings involved are expressed openly. The objects are much larger than her actual body, symbolizing how her fears and tragedies are overtaking her life. The fact that she lies alone in her bed, with no one around her except the sky, shows that she feels alone. This shows the feeling of loneliness, abandonment and helplessness. It also illustrates the fragility of her body and therefore shows that she is in a weak, painful, grieving and depressing point in her life.

Democracy in Government of Republic of Korea

Democracy in Government of Republic of Korea Korea and the U.S. have been maintaining a friendly relationship since South Korea became independent from Japan. Korea got emancipated from Japan as soon as the United States dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, during World War 2 on the 15th of August, 1945. Since then, The U.S. backed up South Korea with democracy, and the Soviet Union backed up North Korea with communism. They both had totally opposite ideologies about government. The U.S. and South Korea headed toward democracy, on the other hand, the Soviet Union and North Korea pointed to communism. Due to the inconsistency of the opinions between the U.S. and the Soviet Union, South Korea had to be separated from North Korea by decision of other countries. Going through the process of electing the president and the members of the National Assembly and framing the constitution, Korean government was established as a formal country in the world under the constitution with help of the U.S. on 15th of August in 1948 . That is why Korean and the U.S. government structure have very similar aspects; however, as time goes by, Koreans have changed their government to fit their people better. In this paper, I am going to look into government structure, political issues, and public attitudes between the U.S. and Korea. The government structure of the U.S. and Korea is basically almost the same. They both consist of three branches: legislative, executive, and judicial to check and balance. First of all, the legislative branch of South Korea is called the National Assembly of the Republic of Korea. The biggest difference of the structure is that Korean legislative consists of a single house in the National Assembly which has 299 members, elected for a four year term, 243 members in single-seat constituencies and 56 members by proportional representation. On the other hand, the legislative of the U.S. is divided into two houses, Senate and the House of Representatives. The reason why Korea has only one House is because South Korea is a small country, having too many people in Congress would actually slow the political process. The organization of the National Assembly is made of the individual members, the Speaker and two Vice Speakers as a presiding officer, 16 committees, and other supporting admini strative organs. Main activities of the congress can be divided into three parts extensively such as legislation, finance, and nation. Congress is able to pass legislation, and the bills go through a very similar process to the U.S. Even the presidential signing of bills is similar. When the bill is finally delivered to the president, the president is able to sign or veto, including pocket veto. The only thing which is different from the U.S. legislative process is the time the president has in order to make a decision regarding a bill. In financial work, they make a budget on the government’s revenue and expenditures for the fiscal year. They are also empowered to inspect about, audit and impeach public officials according to the legal procedures. Second, the executive branch consists of the President, the Prime Minister, and executive ministers in cabinet. In the U.S. the popular vote plays a role to determine which candidates are going to have the electoral vote of states, and the candidate who gets more electoral vote finally becomes the president. On the other hand, in Korea the president is elected every 4 years only by popular vote. The U.S. and Korean president have the same powers such as the appointment power, the power to convene congress, the power to make treaties, the pardoning power, and so forth. Back in the 1950s, Korea used to have the position of a vice president. Before a revolutionary movement for anti-irregularities and anti-government broke out on April 19th, in 1960, the first president of South Korea had held the office for 12 years. At that time, there was the vice president who organized a political party which supported the president. He became the vice president by a fraudulent election and helped t he president who was involved to be able to keep the position for long time. Since then, the system got changed by removing a vice president and giving more power to the prime minister. Therefore, the prime minister plays a role as a vice president in Korea and is nominated by the president with the approval of the National Assembly. The prime minister’s main role is to assist the president, to succeed the president in an emergency, and to supervise 18 ministries. At last, the judicial branch used to consist of three levels of courts; the Supreme Court, the appeals courts, and the district courts. However, the court system was changed recently, so that there is only a federal court. Provinces and local government are not allowed to establish their own prosecution system. The biggest difference between the U.S. and Korea is a jury system. Korea’s judicial system is generally based on judges’ verdicts in all case. There is no trial by jury. The Supreme Court consists of thirteen justices and a chief justice. The process of appointing the Supreme justices is the same as the prime minister. They do not hold a lifetime postion, but serve for 6 years. The appeals courts are placed in five locations such as Seoul, Taegu, Pusan, Kwangju, and Taejeon which serve as retional centers. Besides the three-tier court system, the judicial also operates a family court, an administrative court and a patent court. As it was mentioned above, the government structure of the U.S. and Korea does not look very different. However, one thing to know is that Korean local government does not have as much power as state government has in the U.S. The U.S. states have autonomous government, but Korean local government tightly belongs to central government in many parts which means the power of central government is pretty strong. The federal government of the United States also has strong power according to diplomacy and other policies, but in Korea, the international issues, education, industry, environment, are all under the central government control. Another thing to consider is political parties. There are two political parties; Democratic and Republican. These parties are the ones with a realistic chance for winning the general election in the U.S. It is called a two party system. The reason why two parties could persist for a long time is because Democratic and Republican have their own ideology. In other words, they have directly-opposed platforms. Unlike the U.S. political parties, Korean political parties have been changed many times over the history of 63 years. Many political parties were formed and disappeared. For instance, the Democratic Party has been changed 25 times, and the Republican Party has been changed 11 times so far. The theme of ideological political parties got highlighted in Korean politics since the Democratic Labor Party which has a tendency to the leftwing liberal entered into the political party arena. However, the Korean political parties used to be more apt to be a group for benefits than a group fo r ideologies before. They used to take their regions more seriously than their ideologies. Now, two parties are opposed to each other; the Grand National Party as Republican and the Democratic Party as Democratic, but they are still not as conservative or progressive as the Republican and Democratic in the U.S. Since Korea became an independent coutry in the world, it has been as a democratic country for 63 years. However, in the beginning, civil freedom was not pretected by the government. People had to go through many hardships in order to have the liberties Koreans enjoy now; such as freedom of speech, religion, and assembly. For example, in 1980, a landmark event changed Korean laws to pretect citizens against abuse of power from the government and the president. Students and citizens rose up against Chun Doohwans government of military dictatorship. The president who held the real power of government and military declared martial law and sent troops to the city in order to put down the rebellion. They used violence against students and civilians, but all they wanted was a government of the people, by the people, and for the people. During this time, approximately 200 people died and 900 people injured and the incident is referred to as â€Å"5.18 Gwangju Democratization Movement† to commemorate the date happened. Because of people who tried to secure their rights and liberties, South Korea is now one of the â€Å"freest† coutries in the world meaning that Korean citizens can enjoy a wide range of civil liberties protected by law. According to the website, Freedomhouse, it says how free people in countries have political rights and civil liberties in a certain range from 1 up to 7; 1 to 3 is free, 3 to 5 is partly free, and 5 to 7 is not free. Obviously, the United States has the highest score; 1 for both political rights and civil liberties, and South Korea was evaluated one grade lower for civil liberties. The public attitude of Koreans has been changed simultaneously with Korean politics, but, unfortunately, it has been decreasing. Back in the 1990s, 71.2% of people answered that politics is important, but it is decreased by 19% in 2009. In addition, the proportion of people who talk about politics is decreased by almost 30% when they have a conversation with other people. Since procedural democracy was introduced in 1987, people’s expectation about politics was high. As time goes by, more people started regarding things they enjoy now as a natural result. In 1990, 34.2% of people thought of the government positively, but 19 years after, 10.8% of people trust the government and only 1.4% out of 10.8% was very trustworthy. It happens to voting turnout as well. However, many people still directly or indirectly participate in government even though people do not trust the government and are not interested in the government. For example, there are more people who launch and sign a signature-collecting campaign for political issues because of not only the improvement of freedom of expression, but also increase of opportunities to participate. Moreover, more people attend legal assemblies than before. As it was mentioned above, voting which is referred to as a formal and direct way people can participate in government is losing the interest from people. In spite of the fact, they find other ways to define their thought and position for political issues. The best example of the public attitude of Koreans about political issues is the large demonstrations against the resumption of beef imports from the United States in 2008. It has been a hot issue whether Korea opens the door to import beef from the U.S. The reason why people got angry at the government is because the government did not listen to the public opinions. There were many reasons why people strongly disagreed with the policy that the government decided. First, it would definetely affect the domestic livestock industry. Once they are imported in large quantities, people are going to buy the imported beef more than the domestic beef because the imported beef will be much cheaper. Second, there was a possibility of the â€Å"mad-cow† disease from the imported beef. Because of many facts, it has been postponded by two former presidents. All over the country, countless people went out to join the peaceful street demonstration againtst the government’s policy. Some people even brought their children, and people from all age groups were involved in the demonstration.Although the government’s response was very different from that of â€Å"5.18,† many Koreans still feel the government has a long way to go in order to be the democracy people want. In conclusion, Korea has been a democratic country for 63 years in the world. Many people sacrified their rights, liberties, and sometimes even life in order to create a better government for the next generation. Korean democracy might not be as stable as the U.S. which has the democratic history of 200 years. People never know if it is going to be better than now or how long it is going to take to get improved. However, Korean people know that their democracy is still going through a process of development. Works Cited â€Å"Introduction† The National Assembly of the Republic of Korea. 19 Nov. 2009 http://www.assembly.go.kr/renew09/main.jsp>. â€Å"Introduction of Supreme Court† Supreme Court of Korea. 19 Nov. 2009 http://www.scourt.go.kr/main/Main.work>. â€Å"Federal government of the United States† Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. 19 Nov. 2009 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U.S._Government>. â€Å"Gwangju Democratization Movement† Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. 27 Nov. 2009 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gwangju_Democratization_Movement>. â€Å"Korean political culture† [emailprotected] 15 Nov. 2009 http://www.kapa21.or.kr/kapaforum2/kapaforum.php?fid=58>. â€Å"Map of Freedom in the World† Freedomhouse. 10 Nov. 2009 http://www.freedomhouse.org/template.cfm?page=363year=2009>. â€Å"4.19 Revolution† 15 Nov. 2009 http://sigma101.nazip.net/menu_1_data/4_19.htm>. â€Å"Introduction of Democratic Party† Democratic Party. 28 Nov. 2009 http://www.minjoo.kr/>. â€Å"Introduction of Repulican Party† The Grand National Party. 28 Nov. 2009 http://www.hannara.or.kr/ohannara/index.jsp>.

dress codes :: essays research papers

Are School Uniforms Good Or Bad?   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  A safe and structured learning environment is the first requirement of a good school. Children who feel safe and secure will better learn basic American values.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  For some schools violence may be a minor issue. For other schools it may be a daily concern. Threats of violence can keep students away from school. To make schools, safer everyone can and must help stop the violence that goes on at school. By everyone helping we can help solve the problem. I believe school uniforms should be required in public schools because it will help stop violence, lower cost for parents and help kids learn at school.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  One reason for having school uniforms is to stop violence that is goes on at schools. By having mandatory uniforms students can no longer bring weapons to school. Weapons are hard to conceal when wearing school uniforms. â€Å"American public schools are facing violence on campus at an unprecedented rate. The National School Board Association estimates that approximately 135,000 guns are brought to America’s 85,000 public schools on a daily basis.† (Madrid 1) When students wear street clothes they have more places to hide weapons. By wearing school uniforms fewer weapons are brought to school and school functions. When weapons aren’t brought to school the school is a safe and structured learning environment. Students can no longer wear bagging clothes to hide weapons. Gangs usually wear bagging clothes to hide guns and drugs. The statistics say that schools having a school uniform policy have seen a decrease in crime. Long Beach Unified School District was the first large urban school district in the United States to require school uniforms. They have seen substantial decreases in crime in the past five years since they have required uniforms. One incredible reduction was that sex offenses have decreased 93%.

Call Report :: essays research papers

Bosch fuel tube report On August 9th, Bosch realized a failure of their fuel pump/filter unit for a new model fuel tank. In the past they used a  ½Ã¢â‚¬  gasket on the old fuel tank, when GM changed the design, this became a problem. There was no longer a  ½Ã¢â‚¬  gasket, thus causing problems for the pump to retract all the way to the top flange of the pump unit. The top flange has a rough grove on top where the fuel tube comes in contact. I was asked by Bosch to investigate a more durable abrasive sleeve then the one they currently using. Bosch uses a GPT-483 3/8† (131,843 cycles to failure) sleeve for their current application. By the use of SAE ARP 1536 test method, I was able to make a few recommendations on Sofanou sleeving products. The product line that I recommended is; Nu-Guard NTW-WR  ½Ã¢â‚¬  (1,163,483 cycles to failure), Nu-Guard DPT 3/8† nylon 6, 6 (new to Sofanou product line) (356,425 cycles to failure), and Nu-Guard N 3/8† (295,198 cycles to failure). On August 20th I met and brain-stormed with Bosch Engineers; Martin Kling (Engineering Manager), John Lennen (Engineering Unit Manager), Ralph Gordinier (Sr. Program Lead Engineer), Ted Perniciaro (Senior Engineer), Mike Zick (Engineer), Dave Toutant (Component Specialist), Dave Brown (Senior Test Engineer) and Rich Minix (Lead Technician) on developing a test that would reflect the current process problem. Similar to the ARP 1536 test method, we decided to use an aggressive saw blade for a tear test for the three different products. Entela Testing was in charge of this test project. On August 23rd, Andrew Gleason (Engineering 1) from Entela coordinated the testing and reported: Nu-Guard NTW-WR  ½Ã¢â‚¬  @ 2,200 cycles to fail, Nu-Guard DPT 3/8† nylon 6, 6 @ 750 cycles to fail, Nu-Guard and Nu-Guard N 3/8† @ 410 cycles to fail.

Film “Run Lola Run” Essay

â€Å"Cinema that interests me is cinema about opening, unresolved questions and experiments.†- Tom Tykwer. The film Run Lola Run by Tom Tykwer uses distinctively visual features to create a positive effect on an audience’s appreciation of the text. He uses these visual elements to explore three major themes: chance, love and gameplay. Re-occurring motifs, split screen and tripartite structure are all examples of techniques Tykwer has used to create distinctively visual features in his film. Similar to Tykwer’s film Run Lola Run, Wilfred Owen in his poem Dulce et Decorum Est too uses distinctively visual techniques to have a positive effect on an audiences appreciation of his text. Unlike Tykwer, Owen expresses the theme horrors of war through multiple poetic techniques to create images in his reader’s minds. Chance lies at the core of the film where nothing is definitive. In the film Run Lola Run Tykwer expresses the theme chance through multiple techniques such as re-occurring motifs, symbolism and rapid-fire snapshots. Throughout the entire movie, Tykwer has used the motif of spirals to represent chaos and randomness within the text. They are seen at the start of the film when the animated Lola is running; the camera is shown spiraling around Lola as she thinks about whom to ask for the money, the stairway in the introduction and the roulette wheel in the final sequence. This motif pops up to symbolize the films central message that life spirals around continuously and out of control. Endings are new beginnings and beginnings mark the end of that which came prior. Throughout the films three versions of events, rapid-fire snapshots of minor characters are used to pose deeper existential philosophical questions that challenge our perceptions of happenstances, causality and fate. On simple step to the left on Lola’s adventure could differ the lives of a minor character majorly. For example the lady at the start of Lola’s run could quite possibly win the lottery, become a kidnapper or even a Jehovah’s Witness. Tykwer never lets the audience forget that the film is a race against time, clocks are used throughout the film to symbolize time and its impact on life. Lola is constantly looking at the clocks, checking the time making sure she gets the 100 000 marks to Manni in 20 minutes. Lola’s lack of time creates a developed understanding and briefness of life. Tykwer displays distinctively visual features throughout the theme chance to give a positive appreciation of the text. The love story between Lola and Manni is what drives the film. Tyker uses red-hued scenes, split screens and extreme close-ups to clearly portray love throughout this film. The red-hued scenes in between Lola’s runs clearly demonstrate the importance of their love and insecurities as they ask each other â€Å"What would you do if I died† and responding with â€Å"I wouldn’t let you die†. The intimate red tint reinforces the love they share and how love can conquer anything. With the use of a split screen we as a viewer see how they almost read each other’s minds when Lola is running to stop Manni from robbing the store. This portrays a special bond they share even when they are apart. The first two alternate endings end with Lola and Manni dying, we as an audience see a close up of when they are dying showing the reflection of each others face in their dying eyes conveying the refusal to allow each other to die. Tykwer clearly portrays distinctively visual features throughout the theme love to give a positive appreciation of the text. The last important theme throughout the film Run Lola Run is gameplay. Tykwer uses film techniques such as tracking shots, animated sequence and tripartite structure to portray distinctively visual features throughout this theme. The tracking shot of Lola running with her flame red hair streaming behind her is used to visually represent that she is the main player throughout this game and has power and purpose over other characters. Tykwer uses an animated sequence at the beginning of each run to convey game like elements of her life and how out lives too can be played like a game. Tykwer then uses a tripartite structure that offers Lola chances to win. The thesis is the first run where the journey is set up, the antithesis is the second run and is the opposite to the thesis, finally the synthesis is the third run and it is what Lola learns from run one and two that assist her in winning the game. Tykwer uses this technique to express to his audience that there are chances in life to achieve your set goals. From the three major  themes, chance love and gameplay it is evident that Tykwer has effectively used distinctively visual features to create a positive appreciation of his text. The poem Dulce et decorum est starts off in the middle of action, a battle that is not quite finished. Owen begins to describe the conditions these soldiers were in, â€Å"Bent double, like old beggars under sacks.† Owen uses a simile to express to his audience the horrible conditions these soldiers were put through. Soldiers at war are usually strong and healthy but Owen erases this image and replaces it with a â€Å"beggar† This conveys that war can cause terrible damage to ones appearance changing it dramatically. In the quote â€Å"Drunk with fatigue; deaf even to the hoots† Owen uses a metaphor but also hyperbole in this stanza to convey just how tired they were and weren’t taking any notice of the shells dropping behind them. This reinforces the effects of war has on soldiers and how they feel whilst fighting for your country. In the quote † he plunges at me, guttering, choking, drowning† Owen illustrates the fact that he is stating clearly, through use of onomatopoeia such as: â€Å"guttering†, â€Å"choking†, and â€Å"drowning† not only show how the man is suffering, but that he is in terrible pain, pain no human being should endure. Owen uses onomatopoeia to visually depict the effect of a gas attack on the human body and how it can cause extreme amounts of pain. This strengthens the idea that war is a horrible thing for the soldiers fighting. This poem is extremely effective as an anti-war poem, making war seem absolutely horrid and revolting, just as the author wanted it to. Similar to Tykwer, Owen too uses distinctively visual techniques to demonstrate particular themes throughout their texts to provide the audience with a positive appreciation of the text. Ultimately, the composers of Run Lola Run and Dulce et Decorum Est use distinctively visual techniques to convey different themes throughout their texts. Tykwer effectively expresses the themes, chance, love and gameplay while Owen conveys the horrors of war through his text. Tykwer communicates his themes through film techniques such as reoccurring motifs, split screen and tripartite structure however Owen articulates his theme through the use  of poetic techniques such as metaphors similes and personification. As both texts deal with chaos in their own way, it might be suggested that the visual techniques can allow us to enter a new realm of reality created by the composer.

MCDonalds Essay

Strategy and Repositioning the Brand McDonald’s in India Sameer, Sharanbir Kaur Abstract- Despite global slowdown, Indian economy is resurgent and offers fresh opportunities as well as challenges to global players. McDonald‘s still treats the Indian market as one of their young markets although what they have achieved in 15 years here, it would usually take them 25 to 30 years in another market. McDonald‘s philosophy of Quality, Service, Cleanliness and Value (QSC&V) is the guiding force behind its stellar service to the customers. However there is still a huge potential in the Indian food market that remains untapped in terms of family restaurants, quick service restaurants and breakfast eateries. Coming in the wake of these, their rebranding effort requires much more than a mere change of the logo or signage. There is a need to critically evaluate the right marketing mix. The article is focused upon assessing the marketing efforts in India in terms of positioning of McDonald‘s. Index Terms- Rebranding, Repositioning, Demography, Marketing Mix I. FAST FOOD INDUSTRY IN INDIA T he Indian fast food industry has evolved over time and always has been in line with the needs of people of all ages and segments. There are enterprises which scale from one room outlet to a chain having hundreds of outlets like McDonalds in India. As per new research report ? Indian Fast Food Market Analysis? , India is blessed with one of the fastest growing fast food markets in the world. The Indian fast food market is growing at an annual growth rate of 30-35%. Almost all big fast food brands of the world have succeeded in making their presence felt in the country and most of them posting an appreciable growth. Although the market has witnessed robust growth in the past couple of years, it remains largely under penetrated and concentrated in the metropolitan cities. However, there is large room for growth in tier-II cities, tier-III cities which are mostly untapped. Therefore, the future of Indian fast food industry lies in masses that live in tier-II and tier-III cities. In 2013, the global fast food market is forecasted to have a value of $200 billion, an increase of 29. 3% and a volume of 94. 7 billion transactions, an increase of 10. 4% since 2008. The consumer spending on processed food has increased at an average rate of 7. 6 per cent annually from 2008 to 2010 and this is expected to rise at an average of around 8. 6 per cent until 2012, according to a report by Assocham. Almost all big fast food brands of the world have succeeded in making their presence felt in the country and most of them are posting appreciable growth. It is estimated through the Euromonitor International and Credit Suisse Emerging Consumer Survey, that the average Indian spends just $ 11 as compared to his Chinese counterpart who would ideally spend $ 20 on fast food. Yet , if we see the Indian spending on food in totality , they spend 23 % of their earnings on the same while the Chinese spending is 20 %. So, the inference that can be drawn is that owing to the eating pattern of Indians they prefer to eat at home and would spend on cooking ingredients over fast food. However, this does not spell good news for the industry. It is set to witness the entry of new fast food players that plan to hit the Indian market with a vengeance with international giants like Dunkin Donuts and Starbucks being amongst them. II. THE COMPETITION People prefer fast food because it’s cheap, easy to prepare, and heavily promoted. India is a developing country with 2 percent of organized and 98 percent of unorganized sector. So most of the fast foods that came into Indian market as India has a high growth in every sector. Major players in fast food in India are: McDonald’s KFC Pizza Hut Dominos Cafe Coffee Day Barista More than 75% of McDonald’s restaurants worldwide are owned and operated by independent locals. McDonald‘s product line in India is almost similar to other burger chains with a dominant Indian flavour. Perhaps, it would be correct to say that their only similarity with their foreign outlets is that they have French Fries and still use buns. Examining the immense Indianzation they have attempted in their menu here it wouldn‘t be surprising to see Indian Chapatis in place of buns. Their current offerings reflect the same. www. ijsrp. org International Journal of Scientific and Research Publications, Volume 2, Issue 9, September 2012 ISSN 2250-3153 2 Table I : Present Menu for McDonald’s India Menu Ranges Burgers and other Bites Spicy Delights McSpicyPaneer ExtraValue Meals Chicken McNuggets Meal McAloo Tikki Happy Price Menu Breakfast Menu Favourites Sausage McMuffin with egg French Fries McAloo Tikki Happy Meal Meals Source: McDonaldsIndia. com Desserts Big Spicy Paneer Wrap Filet O Fish Meal Maharaja Mac Meal McVeggie /McChicken Meal Chicken McGrill Beverages McSwirl Iced tea/ Cold Coffee Minute Maid Pulpy Orange/ Cappucino/ Tea Soft Serve (Strawberry /Chocolate) Veg Supreme Veg Pizza McPuff Veg McMuffin Sausage McMuffin Pancakes Filet O Fish Chicken Maharaja Mac Chicken McGrill Meal McChicken/ McVeggie McVeggie Meal McFlurry McChicken meal III. BUSINESS MODEL The Business Model of McDonald‘s is a franchise-based model coupled with strong corporate branding. The focus is on the branding of McDonald‘s as a globally accepted service provider with strong customer perception about: www. ijsrp. org International Journal of Scientific and Research Publications, Volume 2, Issue 9, September 2012 ISSN 2250-3153 3 Happy Employees means Happy Customers – McDonald’s Efforts of repositioning its Brand-Recently, McDonald’s management has decided to change itsstrategies. They now want to provide not only a place to sit and eat but also an experience that can be enjoyed by their customers. Figure 1: The Service Marketing Triangle Zeithaml and Bitner (1996 ) McDonald‘s realized very early in their business that in order to achieve happiness amongst customers;the possible route is through happy, motivated and committed employees. In accordance with this they played on the customer first strategy. Even in India, their efforts clearly indicated that they were keen to understand the Indian consumer. Hence they adapted themselves to tickle the taste buds of their Indian customers to become a brand that enjoys a very high brandrecall. Therefore they focused on internal as well as external marketing. The level of importance has changed to be in the following order (the most important people arenow at the top). Corporate Branding – The marketers are shifting the branding efforts from their product brands to a more holistic corporate branding . The reason for the shift can be traced to the belief that, it is the corporate image that carries a great impact on the buyers who are more aware and more exposed to media coverage on various issues be it environmental responsibility, being corporate social responsibility or be it responsibility towards health of future generation. McDonald‘s describe a corporate branding framework that is based on three elements: Figure 2: McDonald’s Service Pyramid Figure 3: Corporate Branding Source: Hatch and Schultz (2003)), â€Å"Bringing the Corporation into Corporate Branding†, European Journal of Marketing, The recent McDonald‘s rebranding strategy is a part of this thought and vision. McDonald‘s road to success has not always been rosy. They have been at the receiving end of the media‘s onslaught. There was a huge uproar in US after media exposure against McDonald‘s unhealthy menu that was affecting the nation and leading it to a generation suffering from obesity and heart diseases among many more ailments. There were employment issues internally which showed that they did not treat their workers well. Hence they assessed their strategies again and came up with new objectives that strengthened their previous aims and gave a new direction to them as well. www. ijsrp. org International Journal of Scientific and Research Publications, Volume 2, Issue 9, September 2012 ISSN 2250-3153 4 McDonald’s Marketing Efforts Over the Years – Proactive Rebranding – A Proactive strategy includes a new line of business or market that does not conform to the existing brand identity. When McDonald‘s once referred to itself as Mickey D‘s to target kids in a commercial, it had just coined a new way of catering to an audience separate from its traditional family audience. Objectives of McDonald’s Repositioning StrategyMcDonald’s, the promise of American fast food anywhere in the world, has had to rethink and reposition its brand offerings in different countries. While some basic elements like Ronald were left in place the menu underwent an overhaul. For example, in India, the menu has no beef dishes since it is not considered religiously correct to eat cow‘s meat: there is the very popular McAlooTikki, a potato-based patty in burger buns; the Big Mac is replaced by the Maharaja Mac, the Big Mac in chicken; there is also the paneer (cottage cheese) McVeggie burger. The Italian McDonald’s has a special coffee spot. To celebrate its 20th anniversary in China, McDonald’s rebranded under the â€Å"Make Room for Happiness† campaign. They had all you want coffee refills; Wi-Fi and a more modern restaurant design were unveiled. This was done exclusively for China, where McDonald’s positioned itself as a place to relax away from the high demands of the average Chinese‘s life. Its â€Å"I’m Lovin’ It† slogan made way for â€Å"Make Room for Happiness,† and McDonald’s became the place where the stressed young Chinese can spend quality time rejuvenating after working for long hours. The result was an 18% increase in sales, and an increasing legion of fans that is fueling McDonald’s’ growth in China. McDonald’s Changing Markets Changing Strategies Decades after its launch, the Big Mac is changing colours, literally. The world’s largest fast-food chain is letting go of its familiar red-and-yellow colours for more muted tones as it goes for its biggest and costliest revamp in the country, in line with its global strategy of attracting more adults. For the next generation of consumers McDonald‘s plans to cultivate a very different image from its existing one. After revamping 280 stores in various markets last year, McDonald’s is now opting for the Tampa model and will spread that design to upwards of 800 locations this year — roughly triple what it did last year. The company is donning a new look when India is on its way of becoming a global hotspot for food retailers, with chains like Starbucks, Burger King planning to enter the country. Some McRemodel highlights include : †¢Redoing roofs – The bright red roofs that have topped McDonald’s for several decades are getting the heave, replaced with flatter, more conventional roofs. †¢Muting paint – The neon yellows and reds common to the interiors and exteriors are becoming history, replaced with much more subtle oranges, reds, yellows and even greens. †¢Updating chairs – Those industrial steel chairs are giving way to wooden chairs, colorful stools and, in some cases, vinylcovered chairs that resemble leather. Some stores will have larger lounge chairs similar to the kind you might expect to find in a coffee shop. †¢Doubling drive-through – To ease lines inside and outside stores, many locations are adding second drive-through windows to speed up service. †¢Splashing colour – McDonald’s hasn’t junked it’s familiar red and yellow colors altogether, but it is making them far less obvious. Instead of filling the restaurants with them, it’s splashing bright yellow and red here and there for effect. †¢Dividing dining areas – The sea of tables and chairs is history in the remodelled stores. The new dining rooms are divided into separate eating zones for larger groups, eat-and-run customers and folks who want to stay and lounge. †¢Adding flat-screens TVs – Large, flat-screen TVs — some playing contemporary music — are showing up in many locations, though fewer than half of the remodelled stores will display them. The new design makes the customer feel more comfortable and at leisure to enjoy their surroundings. This offers to McDonald‘s two key opportunities- firstly, to shift to another www. ijsrp. org International Journal of Scientific and Research Publications, Volume 2, Issue 9, September 2012 ISSN 2250-3153 customer base with high spending power and then to broaden their menu with offerings at a higher price point. Risks Involved – When a global organization like McDonalds is going in for rebranding, a lot of financing is involved and the global impact is huge. Though the step taken by the managers of McDonalds is well calculated but speculations are on till the time it doesn‘t fair well in the market and most importantly to the customers. This kind of rebranding in the Indian Food Industry can help change the image of McDonald‘s completely like in the case of Pizza Hut, which has become a part of fine dining segment, which it was not earlier. The Indian consumer is considered to be loyal but still the risks involved are high. 1. A trade-off between what is expected from a company and what a company has to gain from the consumers One can see that one facet raises the scale while the other weighs it down making it a tough task. In order to sustain the balance, it requires big investments which will surely add to the costs incurred in the rebranding. If the rebranding falls flat, it will result in a major profit decline. 2. Store positioning McDonald‘s needs to have the most current information to determine if present outlets are cannibalizing each other‘s business. To achieve this McDonald‘s team willneed comprehensive, demographic data of India along with both theirs and competitors‘ outlets. IV. CONCLUSION The task is mammoth as McDonald‘s tries to keep up in the race for a piece of the great Indian pie . As per Forbes , McDonald‘s India operations contribute 30 % to their sales which is a considerable share. It might become imperative to create a Point of Difference to fight it out in the Indian market as all fast food brands have modelled themselves on local flavours now , the latest being KFC with its ? Streetwise‘ menu. While McDonald‘s does have the edge with its excellent supply chain and distribution network the customer ultimately does become the king with low brand loyalty in this category being the generalisation . The rebranding effort on their part seeks to bring 5 in a new flavour to their brand offering but what remains to be seen is whether they are still able to strike a chord with the customer. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT We would like to express our heartfelt gratitude to the people who assisted us in this endeavour of ours. First and foremost , we would like to thank Mr. Praveen Gupta, HOD , Lal Bahadur Shastri Institute of Management for his valuable time and support. Also, a special mention to the staff of McDonald‘s Jor Bagh, Delhi who was very patient and helpful during our visits to the outlet for the study. REFERENCES [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] Lovelock,Wirtz and Chatterjee ,? Services Marketing ? , in Plastics ,Sixth Edition ,India , Pearson , 2010 , pp. 66-98 , pp. 340-372 Aaker, D. A. (2004b), ? Leveraging the Corporate Brand? , California Management Review, 46 (3), pp. 6-18 Bijoor, H. , ? A Time to Rebuild? , Business India, February 20,2011 pp. 48. Hatch, M. J. and Schultz, ? Bringing the Corporation into Corporate Branding ? , European Journal of Marketing, 2003, 37 (7/8), pp. 1041-1064. Jacquelline, B. and Kline,S ,? From McLibel to McLettuce: Childhood, Spin and Re-branding? ,2007 , Society and Business Review, 2(1)

Costco Wholesale in 2012 Essay

Analysis and Evaluation Since the inception of Costco in 1983, one of its drawbacks is, they have 4,000 selections of merchandise compared to their competitors. In addition, customers can only purchase merchandises in bulk. Consumers who shop at Costco do not have the choice to pick up one single item, for instance a can of soup. Although Costco prices are low and the consumers get more for their money, more consumers are wasting food because they no longer have the big families. Costco needs to look at the demographics and re-evaluate their business model, as this could be detrimental to the company. In today’s society, more families are getting divorce and are becoming single parents. The big families are almost none existent; therefore, most consumers do not need to purchase in bulk. Many consumers want to have choices when it comes to the amount of food they purchase. One may say there are other shopping establishments a consumer may visit to get exactly what they want; however, that is beside the point. Giving consumers the choice to purchase individual merchandise will not only bring in more business but also an increase in cash flow, which will also increase profits for Costco. On the other hand, Costco competitors such as Wal-Mart stocked up 40,000 to 150, 000 items for shoppers to choose from and Sam’s Club have over 16,000 items. Sam’s Club have the treasure-hunt items but tend to be less upscale and carry lower price tags than those of Costco. Both Wal-Mart and Sam’s Club give shoppers more choices than Costco even though Costco offers a cheaper price on their merchandise. Costco spends very little in advertisements and they totally rely on their name and word of mouth by their customers. Compared to Sam’s Club they spent about $50 million annually advertising and direct mail promotions. Furthermore, Costco does not have a Public Relation department, which is not good business practice, even though they have been around for years and they are doing well financially. However, there are many opportunities for one of its competitor to come in take away their market share. Costco does not attract people who are below the poverty line; they cater to the business consumer and urbanites that have an annual income of $100,000; therefore, people who are impoverish cannot afford the membership fees and bulk purchase. In addition, Costco membership fee is more expensive compared to Sam’s Club. Recommendation Costco needs to improve the variety of choices by giving the consumer more than 4,000 items to choose from while their competitors are actually giving customers what they want. Costco needs to take into consideration the economy; people have lost their jobs and the recession, as customers are looking for cheaper prices and ways to saving money. Furthermore, if Costco does not come up with new and innovative strategies to entice low income and single household family to their establishment they are giving their competitors the upper hand. Costco should also focus on the advertisement because number of its rivals is already doing intense advertisement. In today’s global and technological world, many businesses are being aggressive and are taking advantage of investing heavily on the marketing. Costco cannot continue to use the concept of sitting back and waiting for their customers to spread the word by mouth. Costco needs to move in the direction of the 21st century by being more proactive by utilizing technology and a PR department for marketing purposes. It is true that company like Costco are doing good in economic downturn but competitors like Sam’s club is outperforming Costco in pricing which could be biggest threats to the Costco even though Costco keeps relatively branded and qualitative product than that of Sam’s Club The Five Forces Model of Competition Substitutes Strong threat Good substitutes everywhere Price not significantly higher Comparable product features More variety of features Low switching cost Potential new entrants Low threat Small pool entry candidates High barriers to entry Expanding market Attractive profits Buyers Weak bargaining power Some switching cost Large membership base Costco has the best value Suppliers Weak bargaining power Many suppliers Low switching cost Many substitutes exist Large quantities are needed Competing sellers Fierce Competition Costco is on top Quality is slightly better Buyer demand is growing Buyers switching cost is low SWOT Strength| Weakness| Low product and services†¢ Strong brand†¢ Excellent merchandise†¢ Exceptional employees†¢ 54 million members†¢ Economics of scale†¢ Efficiency| James Sinegal is 79†¢ Maintain high wages†¢ 42% higher than Sam’s Club†¢ Comparatively less attractive store layout for luxury items†¢Ã‚  Declining or inconsistent profit margins†¢ Primary focus on business customers rather than individual customers| Opportunities| Threat| Recession- Easier to find bargain luxury-items- Increased popularity of Costco†¢ Expanding foreign markets- Europe- China – India †¢ Positive image in terms of employees pay and social responsibility†¢ Increasing brand awareness| Fierce competition†¢Costco cannot attract people who are below poverty line due to its membership fees and bulk purchase†¢High competition from Sam’s Club and BJ†¢Political problems in other countries| References Thomspson, A. A., Peteraf, M. A., Gamble, J. E., & Strickland III, A. (2012). Crafting & Executing Strategy (19th ed.). New York, New York: McGraw-Hill/Irvin.