Global Business Environment - Case Study: Carrefour
Introduction 3
I. Globalization and Retailing market 4
Market overview 4
Forces driving competition 5
• Buyer power 5
• Supplier power 5
• New entrants 6
• Threats of substitutes 6
• Degree of rivalry 6
II. Carrefour SWOT 7
Strengths 7
Weaknesses 8
Opportunities 8
Threats 9
III. External business environment: Key challenges and implications 10
Political and legal 10
Economic and Financial 11
Social, cultural, and Environmental 11
Technological 12
IV. Conclusion 13
Sources 14
Introduction
For businesses, globalization is a great opportunity to stretch further and thus reach another level. Hamilton and Webster (2009) state that “globalization generates opportunities for business to enter new markets, take advantage of differences in the costs and quality of labour and other resources, gain economies of scale and get access to raw materials”. Business globalization, or in other words international business, refers to the increased of mobility of services, goods, capital and technology throughout the world. The goods and services created in one location can now be found throughout the world.
According to Harrison (2010) globalization is characterized by several aspects: the development of international trades and the creation of the global marketplace lead to the increase over time of international trade and service. Then, production and investment flows are globally organized. Thus, costs are lower and specialist advantages are in different geographical location. Thanks to the technological development, people around the world are more connected and migration is a major feature of the globalization. This later offers them the possibility of moving across national borders. With this migration and the speed with which communication has improved, communication and cultural flows are important.
Although globalization can be a real opportunities for companies, it could be also a threat for their development if managers in charge of this
I. Globalization and Retailing market 4
Market overview 4
Forces driving competition 5
• Buyer power 5
• Supplier power 5
• New entrants 6
• Threats of substitutes 6
• Degree of rivalry 6
II. Carrefour SWOT 7
Strengths 7
Weaknesses 8
Opportunities 8
Threats 9
III. External business environment: Key challenges and implications 10
Political and legal 10
Economic and Financial 11
Social, cultural, and Environmental 11
Technological 12
IV. Conclusion 13
Sources 14
Introduction
For businesses, globalization is a great opportunity to stretch further and thus reach another level. Hamilton and Webster (2009) state that “globalization generates opportunities for business to enter new markets, take advantage of differences in the costs and quality of labour and other resources, gain economies of scale and get access to raw materials”. Business globalization, or in other words international business, refers to the increased of mobility of services, goods, capital and technology throughout the world. The goods and services created in one location can now be found throughout the world.
According to Harrison (2010) globalization is characterized by several aspects: the development of international trades and the creation of the global marketplace lead to the increase over time of international trade and service. Then, production and investment flows are globally organized. Thus, costs are lower and specialist advantages are in different geographical location. Thanks to the technological development, people around the world are more connected and migration is a major feature of the globalization. This later offers them the possibility of moving across national borders. With this migration and the speed with which communication has improved, communication and cultural flows are important.
Although globalization can be a real opportunities for companies, it could be also a threat for their development if managers in charge of this