Vera Bradley is a leading designer of stylish as well as functional accessories for woman. They are headquartered in Fort Wayne, Indiana with a distribution center in Roanoke, Indiana. For over 30 years the passion for both design and customer service has been the cornerstone of Vera Bradley (Shareholder, 2012). In 2012 an additional 17 stores including both full price and outlets were opened. There was also a 45% increase with almost 43 million people who visited the website verabradley.com (Shareholder, 2012).…
associates at Bath and Body, so everyone knows each other and we are all very close. The hours I receive are around four shifts a week for six to eight…
L.L Bean has an 100% satisfaction and lifetime guarantee on all of their products. Old Navy inspires their women workers to do more by providing education and hands on training they need to advance in work and life. And Pier 1 Imports offers products not found on Amazon to make your house feel like a home. All of these aspects are incorporated into the company culture of each business. All three of these companies take pride in their culture and work environments they’ve created. Without culture, businesses would struggle to succeed.…
The Lowes Corporation operates in what is known as the home improvement industry. The home improvement industry is about $300 billion in the US and another $48 billion in Canada. This industry was formed out of a consolidation of the industry of local hardware stores. Local hardware stores still exist and are a small competitor in the home improvement industry. However, the home improvement industry took on a form of its own in the late 1970’s when The Home Depot Corporation made a decision to compete with a large regional chain of hardware stores called Lowes. Lowes recognized the threat of competition and both Lowes and Home Depot stores begun to invest in rapid expansion and grew their stores to be large big box retailers where customers could come to buy a variety of products ranging from appliances to tools, to paint, lumber and nursery products to improve their home. There have since been a few large regional chains that have been able to penetrate this market including Menards and Rona. This industry is largely confined to North America, with the exception of the recent expansion of Home Depot into China. Between the big box retailers in this industry, there is little differentiation and the margins are generally pretty low.…
The Case Study, “Ceja Vineyards: Marketing to the Hispanic Wine Consumer?” by Armand Gilinksy Jr., Linda I. Nowak, Cristina Santini, and Ricardo Villarreal deSilva (2010) outlines a critical decision a small, family owned winery in California is facing. The winery, Ceja Vineyards, is located in the Carneros region and is equally owned by four Mexican born immigrants of farm workers.…
In a political atmosphere where homosexuality has become trendy, and those opposing it citing religious freedom are criticized, a debate has arisen between parties both for and against this exercise of religious freedom. Issues stem from the applications of personal religious freedom and their applications to business. This position has become increasingly difficult for courts to rule on, especially given the supreme court ruling on the legalization of same sex marriage which pushed this debate on religious freedom into the living room of America and out of court. The debate has captivated the interests of individuals in the US, even those without strong feelings for or against, given the conundrum that has arisen between the clash of religious freedom and personal expression. The question remains, should the views of an individual entitle them to discriminate when when conducting business with another, and in a union founded upon the separation between…
Lapa Rios seeks to support the local economy. It opens its doors to Caminos de Osa, a group of entrepreneurs from the Osa Peninsula looking to strengthen their businesses by learning best practices from more experienced companies. LR spent just over US $2.6 million from October 2001 to August 2005, with 24.2% of the total known expenditures going into the local peninsula economy, whereas 20% could not be categorised, with the information available, as either within the peninsula or…
Since I am still in high school, time with friends along with extracurricular and curricular studies took most of my time outside of work. As I progressed through the first couple of months of my Hy-Vee career, I began to enjoy my job more. Helping customers and watching them leave satisfied put a smile to my face and made work rewarding. I began to think about other job opportunities within…
The place that I decided to volunteer at was the St. Thomas Church Pantry. The purpose of this service is to get food to people who have fallen upon tough financial times. One business skill that this group needs to keep the food pantry running is marketing skills. One of the struggles that food pantries have is not getting enough food donations of items they need. So, the leader of the pantry must ask for donations of the items that they run low on. This also means that the volunteers at the Pantry must take inventory on food items to ensure that they will not run out of certain food items. Also, they have to have a volunteer schedule just like most businesses this is to ensure that at least two volunteers will be working during the two days of the week that the Pantry is…
My mom works as a customer service representative for Mohawk Finishing Products. The company that she works for sells products that repairs wood to make it look nicer. She does not actually sell the products herself, but she does work with the customers on a lot of things. The main thing she does at her job is assisting customers and coworkers in fulfilling orders for touchup and repair products. Her job…
This business analysis will compare the financial strength and wellness of Wal-Mart, Target, and Sears. The income statements, balance sheets, and cash flow reports for Wal-Mart, Target, and Sears have been researched to complete this analysis. The analysis will cover the period from 2008 to 2011. Some reports were unavailable because the final quarter of the year for Target ended January 31, 2012.…
helping people, the amazing hours, and the generous pay, I feel as if being an…
There are several landscaping services that compete or do business in the same area that some of my business is located. Landscaping business is a very competitive business. The 15-year-old down the street can be a competitor. To get into this business you only need a rake. It is enough business to go around. Most of my business is repeat customers. Miller Lawn Service is one of the businesses that I see most in my areas. Most of my repair parts come from the Home Depot right down the street from the house. Competition will be welcome as long as they come when they say.…
My school always required volunteer hours in the community; that’s how I originally began working with Emergency Infant Services. I joined their Junior Board of Directors after two years of volunteering. I worked in a group setting to create and promote a benefit concert for a local charity three times over my years there. I did everything from marketing to stage management as chairman of the Entertainment Committee. While I had to work with other people and help coordinate the acts onstage and the activities at the event. During the event, I had to manage time and problem solve when acts did not show up on time and move things around so the show would run smoothly. We surpassed our goal and raised over $40,000 to help families in need with…
With the diagnosis for my mother, I had to help out at home a lot more, which proved to be an experience that led me to try volunteering. I helped my mother in various aspects like getting groceries, administering shots for medicinal treatment over one year, helping out with chores at home, and setting up her physical therapy unit. In spite of all that was going on, my mother continued her job at both home and…
