Marks and Spencer Basic Analysis

A major contemporary issue for most firms is that they live in a competitive world, which is increasingly occupied by global companies. Using Bartlett and Ghoshal’s definitions of Global, Multinational, International and Transnational organisations, (see Moodle website and lecture notes), examine the extent of your firm’s global ‘reach’:

a) Does it operate in more than just its home country? If so, does it have manufacturing plants and/or buy from firms in a number of different countries?

Operates in more than just home country. Does have manufacturing plants

b) Does it sell its products or services in other countries, apart from its home market?

Yes – China, India, Central Europe, Middle East, Asia

c) Given that the United Nations lists 193 countries (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Member_states_of_the_United_Nations) and the American intelligence service, the CIA lists 257 countries (see https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/), how great an international or global company is your chosen firm?

d) Are its major markets its home country and its near neighbours (so an American firm would do nearly all of its business in the USA, Canada and Mexico, for example), or is most of its business away from its home market? Why might this be?

Its near neighbours are a small proportion of its overall business. Breakdown of revenue shows that majority of its international trading is done with China and India – territories which are both geographically and culturally distant.

This topic MUST be the first one that you submit, as in the instructions above and in the first briefing document.

Our key International markets in India and China continued to trade strongly with double digit growth. However, sales were impacted by currency translation of Euro denominated countries as well as continued macro-economic weakness in the Republic of Ireland and Greece and on-going restructuring of our Central European business.

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