Unit 54 Business Skills for Proposal and Pitches Assignment

Introduction

The industry of apparel is flourishing and quite promising. The assignment is thus going to focus on the apparel industry. There is a great potential in the wedding dress business as every years hundreds of couple get married and they also like to have the special wedding dress for the special occasion. The Unit 54 Business Skills for Proposal and Pitches Assignment is going to focus on the business proposal and evaluation of the market conditions before presenting the idea. To start one’s own business is not an easy task because most of the businesses fail because of only one reason i.e. improper research about the market. The focus of this assignment is thus on making the learner able to assess the risks involved in the business proposal.

Task 1

a) Conduct market research in a particular business area using appropriate online resources including market and industry reports.

The apparel industry is quite a flourish industry. The people all over the world love to wear the trendy clothes and this is the reason that the business environment proposal about the apparel industry is one of the effective business proposals. Providing the low cost wedding dress replica is going to be a good idea as people love stylish things but they also want the cost effectiveness.  The apparel business constitutes a good amount of business in UK itself.

As the graph illustrated above depicts that there is a huge potential for growth for the apparel industry. With people having more and more interest in the stylish apparels the growth of the clothing industry seems quite promising and flourishing. As the graph shows above that the business of the clothing is quite promising in the UK because evry year the apparel industry constitutes the $4bn of business in UK. Thus low cost apparel business idea seems quite promising. (RFID, 2013)

b) Select one market and evaluate the current trends in that market.

As in the section above we have discussed the conditions of the market. After the research it is assessed that the business of apparel is quite promising and flourishing in the UK industry. In London people like to wear trendy clothes but with the limited incomes of the people sometimes they have to make a compromise with their wedding dresses. This is where the idea of the cost effective wedding dress replica comes in the existence. The current trend in the apparel industry is the cost effectiveness of the dresses. With the vulnerable economy of the world the people have become conscious about their savings this has given the rise to the new trend in the apparel industry and this trend is cost effectiveness of the wedding dresses.

Wedding dress is worn on the most special occasion of the person’s life but having wear the wedding dress only once there is trend of the replica of the beautiful dresses which is not as expensive as the original dresses as well as which are beautiful also. This is the reason that the trend is of the affordable beautiful stylish clothes. The dresses which are made this way are worn by the middle and lower middle class families.

The figure above shows that there are a great percentage of the average income people in UK. The average income people like to spend less for the apparels as their income is limited. (Doughty, 2013)

c) Within that market choose a particular product or a service and analyse its strength and weaknesses.

Within the apparel industry the wedding dress industry is chosen. The cost effective replica of business seems quite promising and flourishing business.  As there is the strength of every product as well as there are the few weaknesses also; thus the strengths and weaknesses of the wedding dress business are the:

Strengths of the Product

• The greatest strength of my business proposal is that the economy of the London is in the growing stage and this is the reason that people are spending more.
• The second Strength of my business proposal is that the 60% of the total population of UK comprises of average people income which means that the cost effective replicas are going to be a good idea. (Department for Business Innovation and Skills, 2013)
• Another, strength is that the business of apparel needs fewer investments in comparison to other businesses.
• The best feature of my business is that the stylish replicas would be made which would be the ‘dream wedding dresses’ for everyone.

Read About: Unit 5 Contract Law Sample Assignment

Weaknesses of the Product

• The greatest weakness of my product is that there is the great and very fierce competition in London and there are lots of individuals who copy such innovative ideas.
• The weakness of my proposal is also that the entry in such business is quite easy and which can make the more and more people enter into the same business with the same idea.
• The weakness could also be that some of the people would compare my prepared wedding dress to the original and it is almost impossible to provide the same quality of the replica as of the original one in this much cost.
• Perhaps the biggest weakness of the business is that my brand is not known to the people and they might feel skeptical about going to the unknown brand as well as the time would be taken before getting popular in the market.  (Mind Tools, 2015)

Task 2

a) For your selected product/service analyze the macro-environment through the use of a PESTEL analysis.

The PESTEL analysis is tool which is used to analyze the macro environment and the various factors which affect the business. To analyze the micro as well as the macro environment is of greatest importance for the business. Without assessing the impact of the various factors of the micro and macro environment the success of the business cannot be imagined.  Thus for this purpose the PESTEL analysis is done by the company. The PESTEL analysis for my company is as follows:

P- Political.
E- Economic.
S- Social.
T- Technological.
E- Environmental.
L- Legal.

• Political-Legal Factors: The political-legal factors also affect the company directly. The political-legal factors for my business idea (replica wedding dress) are the policies of the government for the particular industry and the legislations to be followed.  (Verma, 2011). For the business of cost effective wedding dresses the political factors that I have to take care of are the policies of the government towards the business of apparels, the various laws and legislations, the taxes which are supposed to be imposed, the policies like the fiscal policy and the monetary policy etc. after the extensive research I have found out that the factors (political & legal) seem quite positive for the business of apparels.
• Economic Factors: The Economic factors also have a direct impact on any business. They can have the positive impact or the negative impact on my business also. For the success of the business the favourable economic condition is needed of London.  The economic factors that have I have to consider for my business are the factors that are like whether there is inflation in London or deflation, what are the availability of the credit etc. (Oakley, 2013). After the research I also found out that the economic factors of London are in the favour of my business.
• Social Factors: The Social factors also have a direct impact on the businesses of the companies. The social factors consist of the factors which are directly related to the customers. These are very important to be analysed as these include the behaviours of the customers, their beliefs, the things that they prefer and the patterns of their demand etc. After the research I also found out about few of the social factors like what the people of London like and how they are affected. This is the reason that I chose the wedding dress which are affordable as I found out that the customers of London like to buy cost effective apparels which are affordable yet stylish in looks.
• Technological Factors: This is the era of the technology and this is the reason that technology is one of the most important factors determining the success of the business.  For my business I have to assess that what type of sewing machine I would like to buy for the manufacturing of the dresses. The advertising is also one of the factors that I have to consider. I would like to choose the social media as a source for the advertising of my business.
• Environmental Factors: My business is also going to be affected by the numbers of environmental factors also. These include the regulations regarding the substances of the environment. (Rodrigo, 2012).  

b) For your selected product/service select a target market through the process of market segmentation.

The segmentation is the process which is very crucial for approaching the customers by the company.  For my business the segmentation is very essential as the market of the apparel is quite large and impossible to be approached as a whole. There are numbers of customers who have their own preferences and life style. One single strategy is not going to be a successful for each and every individual of the market.  This is the reason that I would like to segment the market for my business. The segmentation can be defined as:

‘The segmentation process refers to divide the entire market into small portions in order to make the effective strategy for that small portion of market which has the individuals who have the similar needs and preferences. This is the reason that their demand patterns are also similar. (Business Plans, 2014). The types of segmentation are:

1. Psychographic Segmentation: In this type of segmentation the division is done on the basis of the attitudes of the individual towards the particular strategy.
2. Demographic Segmentation: When the market is segmented as per the age, income and gender of the consumers etc. this is known as demographic segmentation.
3. Behaviouristic Segmentation: When the market is divided according to the behaviours of the individuals it is known as the behaviouristic segmentation.
4. Geographic Segmentation: When the market is segmented as per the geographical area of the market this segmentation is known as the geographic segmentation.  (MSG, 2013)

The product that I selected for my business is the cost effective replicas of the wedding dresses. For which I would use the cost effective material in making the dress and the main emphasis would be laid down on the style of the dress.  The market segmentation for my product is ‘the Y generation females who like to have a great degree of impact of the TV and Social Media on their choices’.  The target market is ‘working Females’.

For my product the segmentation is Demographic as well as behaviouristic. As the target market is the working class of females which defines their income and the behaviouristic also which defines the behaviour of the females towards the costs of the dresses.

c) For your selected product/service analyze the micro-environment through the use of Porter’s five forces analysis.

Going into a new business is not easy as there always are threats to the business. This is the reason that model is given to assess the threats available to a business. The model for assessing these threats is the model given by Porter. This model is known as Porter’s Five Forces model. In this model the five forces are defined. These forces directly affect the strategy of a business and also to assess these forces is of great importance for the success of the business. The Porter’s Five Forces helps a business to know its current position in the market and also helps to know that what those advantages are that the business can make the use of and what are the weaknesses of the business.  (Manktelow, 2015)

                                    Fig: Porter’s Five Forces Model

• Rivalry among Competitors (HIGH): For my business the rivalry among the competitors is quite high. In the market there are a numbers of players which have the apparel as their business. There are a numbers of popular brands which deals with the wedding dresses and can adopt the strategy which can increase the competition.
• Threat of New Entrants (HIGH): For the apparel business the threats of the new entrants is also high. The reason behind this is that to enter into the apparel business is not quite difficult in London. The investments requirement is also not high for this business as this is the low cost model of the apparel business. Thus the threat of the new entrants is high as people can easily copy my idea and can come into this business.
• Threat of Substitute Products (Medium): For my business the threat of substitute products is medium because the replicas in such low cost are not available in market and also there are no other substitutes for the wedding dresses.
• Bargaining Power of Suppliers (LOW): The bargaining power of the suppliers for my business is low as there are quite a huge number of suppliers who want to supply for the product. Thus because of the competition they do not have the power of the bargaining.
• Bargaining Power of Buyers (HIGH): The bargaining power of buyer behaviour for the business of apparel is very high. The buyers of today have a number of options available to them. They can choose from a numbers of options and this is the reason that they possess the high power of bargaining. 

d) Based on the research that you’ve conducted, justify the suitability and feasibility of this strategy.

The strategy of providing the low cost product to the customer seems quite promising because of the following reasons:

1. Less Investment: The business that I have selected needs quite low investments in comparison to other apparel businesses which are good for the starters.
2. Majority of the Average Income Consumers’ in London: In London the majority is of those consumers whose incomes are low to average thus they would like to opt for the low cost dress.
3. Stylish Dresses are Preferred: The stylish dresses are preferred and the youth like to wear the trendy clothes.
4. High Impact of Social Media: The impact of social media is also very high on the working class of today. Thus the choice of social media as a source of advertisement is going to cover a wide range of customers. (Jenny, 2014)

Task 3

a) Pre-meeting communication

From:	Mariana Buzenschi
To:	Mr David  Mr James  Mr Thomas Mr Edward Ms Christine
Cc:	director@company.com
Bcc:
Subject:	Business Proposal Session
Sent:	Thu 15 Nov, 2015 12:43:54

Sub: A Formal Meeting of Directors to present their business idea.

Dear Directors of Company

Apropos, I am writing to inform about the meeting to be held for discussing the business ideas. It is required though that each individual comes with specific and feasible business idea. The meeting will be chaired by Mr. Robin the honorable CEO of our company. The objective of meeting is ‘to forward a proposal to the group of venture capitalists’ so that they can invest in our business. The time and venue of meeting is:

Day: 18/November/2015
Time:  12:15 pm
Duration: 1 hour 45 minutes
Venue: The Common Meeting Office

I will send the agenda and details of the meeting by tomorrow. Please confirm your presence at your earliest.

We look forward to receive your esteemed support in this matter.

Sincerely
XYZ Company
ABC
Director
12548 (Master Adviser, 2014)

b) Participating in a formal meeting and presenting a proposal

The meeting was attended by 5 directors (including me) and the Chairperson.

Discussion: The discussion was held on the agenda new business ideas.

The ideas that were discussed are listed below:

1. Give discounts to the customer making a purchase of the good amount.
2. Sales in the season.
3. Discount on festivals- thanksgiving, Christmas etc.
4. Discount on referral.
5. Free alteration of dress.

• The first idea is good. But the problem is that giving more discounts to the customers will have a direct impact on business.
• Sales can also be given but the same thing applied to this idea the sale will have the impact on the profitability of the business.
• Discount on festivals can be given and this is a good idea. People tend to spend more on the festivals.
• Discount on referral is my idea and I think this will provide the company the competitive edge as people would like to refer other people and will get the discount if the referred person makes a purchase. This will also help in creating a positive word of mouth.
• Free alteration of dress is such a good as it will create a good image of the business in the minds of the consumers.  (ucu, 2015)

My proposal: To offer was the referral discounts. In this if any person refers her known one to the shop and that known person makes a purchase than the customer will get a discount on this referral. This will have two benefits. First benefit is that the sales will increase twice and second benefit is that it will also create the positive word of mouth; which is the most important and effective advertising and promotion for any business.

c) Produce a brief but formal record of a meeting

Meeting Minutes

XYZ Company

Opening:
The meeting of XYZ Company was duly called and held on 15/Nov/2015 at Common Meeting Office. The meeting was commenced at 12: 15 pm.

People Present were:

1. Mr Robin (CEO)
2. Mr David (Director)
3. Mr James (Director)
4. Mr Thomas (Director)
5. Mr Edward (Director)
6. Ms Christine (Director)

1. Approval of Agenda: The agenda was approved unanimously. The agenda was to propose a new business idea.
2. Approval of Minutes: The minutes of the meeting was approved unanimously as distributed.
3. Open Issues: The issue was to present the business idea to increase the customers.The best idea will go forward to the Venture Capitalist in order to persuade them to invest in the XYZ Company.
4. Adjournment: The meeting was adjourned at 02:00 pm by the honorable CEO.

Minutes Submitted by: Mr. David
Approved by: Mr. Robin (Biztree, 2015.)

d) Critical Evaluation

The meeting was successfully adjourned as the purpose of the meeting was fulfilled. The ideas were discussed and the related pros and cons with those ideas were also discussed. The benefits of the meeting were:

• A range of ideas were discussed.
• The feasibility of these ideas was also discussed.
• All of the members of the meeting came to a common agreement and reached to a conclusion.
• The best idea was chosen to put forward as a proposal.

Overall the purpose of the meeting was fulfilled as well as the meeting gave a range of diversified ideas which if are not being implemented now can be implemented later. The fruitful discussion also helped to overcome other general problems of the business. The meeting was successful in the following aspects also:

• The meeting was started as well as ended on time.
• Inputs were encouraged from all the participants of the team.
• The discussion was focused on the topic throughout the meeting.
• The action sheet was used to keep the record of the meeting.
• The meeting was concluded with the solution. (Ontario, 2010)

Day: 18/November/2015
Time:  12:15 pm
Duration: 1 hour 45 minutes
Venue: The Common Meeting Office

Task 4

b) Critical Evaluation

As a team the performance of every team member was equally good. And all the members participated and presented good ideas. Few ideas were kept on reserve to discuss them further. Not only that the ideas were also been voted and the best among them were chosen. These recommendations can be made to make the performance even better.

1. Critical analysis of the ideas before presenting it in the meeting.
2. Environmental analysis thoroughly.
3. The market research thoroughly so that the ideas would be more feasible.
4. The interruptions could be minimized.
5. The energetic level to be maintained.
6. The desired outcomes to be decided more specific.
7. The glimpse of the jotted down notes could have been more frequent. (Brans, 2011)

After completing this task I have learnt:

• How to communicate effectively in a team.
• How to organize a successful meeting.
• What preparations are needed for organizing a successful meeting?
• Preparing the minutes of the meeting.
• How to participate in a formal meeting.

Conclusion

This assignment gave me the insights about the research of the market before opening any new business. The aim of the assignment was to give the knowledge and information about the market and trends of the market. After completing the assignment I came to know about the business and how the risks are assessed and opportunities are analysed.

References

http://www.biztree.com/doc/minutes-for-a-formal-meeting-D13 [Accessed 04 November 2015]
http://www.informit.com/articles/article.aspx?p=1755015 [Accessed 08 November 2015]
Business Plans, (2014), Market Segmentation, [Online], Available: http://www.businessplans.org/segment.html [Accessed 16 November 2015]
Department for Business Innovation and Skills, (2013), Statistical Release, [Journal], Available: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/254552/13-92-business-population-estimates-2013-stats-release-4.pdf [Accessed 14 November 2015]
Doughty, S., (2013), News, [Archive], Available: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2303333/Great-British-Class-Survey-reveals-UK-7-social-classes-Are-precariat-new-affluent-worker-elite.html [Accessed 14 November 2015]
Jenny, Q., T., (2014), What Impact has Social Media Truly Had on Society, [Article], Available: http://www.business2community.com/social-media/impact-social-media-truly-society-0974685#5jq4O5KW8rBioEZy.97 [Accessed 07 November 2015]
Manktelow, J., (2015), Porter’s Five Forces, [Article], Available: http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newTMC_08.htm [Accessed 12 November 2015]
Master Adviser http://masteradviser.blogspot.in/2014/02/sample-letter-for-seeking-appointment.html [Accessed 01 November 2015]
Mind Tools, (2015), SWOT Analysis, [Article], Available: https://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newTMC_05.htm [Accessed 09 November 2015]

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