Have you ever been interviewed?have you ever filled out a survey?if you've done both and you've participated in qualitative and quantitative research,the purpose of qualitative research is to explore the meaning of people's experiences,people's cultures and how people view a particular issue or case known as a case study,but the purpose of quantitative research is to examine the relationship between variables.a variable is a characteristic,we'll talk more about this in just a second but for this class we're going to learn about three kinds of variables independent,dependent and extraneous.independent variables are variables or characteristics that are manipulated by the researcher,dependent variables are characteristics that are impacted by that manipulation of the independent variable,extraneous variables are variables that are extreme as to what the researcher is really trying to focus on and they're usually demographic information,information such as age,sex,race,ethnicity things like that,so let's say a researcher makes a poster that says hey you probably got some of you or other people's pee or poop on your hands so wash your hands,the researcher puts up a poster puts up that poster in one bathroom and doesn't put it in another bathroom ,then the researcher watches to see if more people wash their hands after peeing or pooping who were exposed to the poster compared to those who were not exposed to the poster, it turns out that more people wash their hands who went to the bathroom where the poster was,the independent variable in this study is the poster on the wall it was manipulated by the researcher, the dependent variable was the characteristic of hand-washing,it was the effect of their being or not being a poster in the bathroom,some extraneous variables are the people in the bathrooms a age,sex,race,ethnicity and so on,the point of the study was to examine the relationship between these variables,more hand washing the dependent variable took place in the bathroom that had the poster which was the independent variable,let's talk about research questions,since qualitative research is exploratory in nature qualitative research questions usually start with the words what or how since these words imply discovery or exploration,for example a qualitative research question could be water college students experience in trying to eat healthy on campus or how two college students celebrate the sub cultural holiday of 4/20,because qualitative research is exploratory,it typically does not have a hypothesis which is a prediction,in a nutshell qualitative research tries to explore not predict participants views,similar to qualitative research quantitative research questions can start with the words what or how ,but they might also include the word does in the beginning of the question,in descriptive quantitative research research questions ask how much how often what's the relationship between variables what's the difference between the variables, for example what percent of male college students wash their hands after using campus bathrooms or what is the relationship between college student gender and hand-washing practices after using campus bathrooms,in experimental research questions research questions this is where they might start with the word does ,such as does hand-washing increase when the poster is placed in the campus bathroom compared to qualitative research quantitative research does have hypotheses or predictions about what will happen in the study,typically in qualitative research,researchers collect more than one type of data in order to get a better more holistic picture of what's going on in the field,the data used in qualitative research is almost always it in what people say or their words,this data usually comes from interviews documents like newspapers or journals etc observations and audio-visual materials like videos or audio recordings,researchers usually obtain multiple types of these kinds of data in order to answer a research question,all of this data comes from in the field which means the natural settings where participants are in qualitative research,researchers go into the field and spend a lot of time there interviewing and observing the participants in their environments,it's also important to note that surveys or questionnaires are also known as instruments,well in qualitative research there are no instruments no surveys in qualitative research,the researcher is the instrument what this means is that the researcher acts as an instrument the researcher is kind of like a Living Survey ,they ask all the questions and make observations instead of relying on surveys to gather data ,it's also important to note that a hallmark of qualitative research is its emergent design ,this means that the way in which the study is conducted can change during the study during qualitative research it may become apparent that other forms of data,from other groups of people should be included into the study,for instance let's say the researchers studying college students experience trying to eat healthy on campus originally the researcher has planned to just interview a bunch of students,but let's say that the that during the interviews the students keep talking about the ice cream area of the cafeteria and Student Union,how there's over 400 kinds of ice cream and you have to walk around the ice cream to get to the apples and on and on and about the ice cream bar,the researcher here is enough students talk about this crazy ice cream bar that the researcher decides that observational data should be included in the study she needs to see the ice cream bar for herself and see how it overshadows the Apple bed she needs to see why everyone's talking about this crazy ice cream bar,so the research design emerges and different kinds of data might be collected as the study goes on,the data for quantitative research is in the form of numbers these numbers usually come from what people checkoff on instruments which are surveys or questionnaires or observational checklists and so on,so qualitative research looks at words quantitative research looks at numbers,about analysis,in qualitative research analysis is all about creating themes researchers read their interviews look at documents observations and audio-visual materials and then they organize all of that data all of those words into themes ,this can take a considerable amount of time,they're often pages and pages of interview transcripts to read for example it's a researcher interviewed students about their experience eating healthy on campus,from the interview there are over 80 pages of interview text to read,from those pages the researcher was able to group the data or analyze the data group into three major themes which were students believed that there was a lack of healthy options on campus the students believed the healthy options were too expensive and they believed they felt that unhealthy options were just too tempting,it's important to note here that qualitative research is inductive in nature,that means that the research questions the data collection the analysis and all that stuff is not based off of a theory or preconceived notions that their researcher had,the researcher lets the data speak for itself and form itself into themes without the bias of an existing theory or existing ways of thinking about things already,on the other hand in quantitative research analysis involves the use of statistics to crunch numbers and figure out what those numbers mean in terms of answering research question,qualitative research looks at themes quantitative research and analysis crunches numbers statistics,quantitative research is also usually deductive it's based from existing theories and information that's already out there to help form research questions and how data is collected and how its analyzed,let's talk about the final report in qualitative research the final report is usually narrative in nature,the author's will sometimes write in the first person it's more interpretive and it contains a lot of writing and it has direct quotes from participants,the final reports for quantitative research are more rigid in form and it's more in the form of a statistical report,in conclusion there are noteworthy differences between qualitative and quantitative research in terms of their purpose research questions data analysis and so on.

1. Explain how is data validation done for quantitative research and qualitative research.
2. Discuss what is the research instrument for quantitative research and qualitative research?
3. Explain what type of data will be collected foe quantitative research and qualitative research?
4. Explain the research design for quantitative research and qualitative research?

For the past several years, Steffy Lopez has operated a part-time consulting business from his home. As of July 1, 20Y2, Steffy decided to move to rented quarters and to operate the business, which was to be known as Diamond Consulting, on a full-time basis. Diamond entered into the following transactions during July:

Record the following transactions on Page 2 of the journal:

CHART OF ACCOUNTS

Diamond Consulting

General Ledger

2.  Post the journal to a ledger of four-column accounts. Add the appropriate posting reference to the journal.  6. b.  Post the adjusting entries, inserting balances in the accounts affected.  9. b.  Post the closing entries, inserting balances in the accounts affected. Leave the ITEM column BLANK for each row. If the account balance is zero (0) after closing entries are posted, enter a zero (0) in the account's normal balance column.

1.  Journalize each transaction in a two-column journal starting on Page 1 - 2, referring to the chart of accounts in selecting the accounts to be debited and credited. (Do not insert the account numbers in the journal at this time and be sure to add the date for each entry.)

6. a. Journalize the adjusting entries on page 3 of the journal. Adjusting entries are recorded on July 31.

9. a. Journalize the closing entries on page 4 of the journal.

3. Prepare an unadjusted trial balance

UNADJUSTED TRIAL BALANCE

July 31, 20Y2

Diamond Consulting7. Prepare an adjusted trial balance.

ADJUSTED TRIAL BALANCE

July 31, 20Y2

8a. Prepare an income statement for the month ended July 31, 20Y2. Be sure to complete the statement heading. If a net loss has been incurred, enter that amount as a negative number using a minus sign. Refer to the Accounts, Labels and Amount Descriptions provided for the exact wording of the answer choices for text entries. You will not need to enter colons (:) on the income statement.Income Statement

8b. Prepare a statement of stockholders’ equity for the month ended July 31, 20Y2. Be sure to complete the statement heading. Negative amount should be indicated by the minus sign. Refer to the Accounts, Labels and Amount Descriptions provided for the exact wording of the answer choices for text entries. If an amount is zero, enter "0".

.8c. Prepare a balance sheet as of July 31, 20Y2. Be sure to complete the statement heading. Fixed assets must be entered in order according to account number. Refer to the Accounts, Labels and Amount Descriptions provided for the exact wording of the answer choices for text entries. You will not need to enter colons (:) or the word "Less" on the balance sheet; they will automatically insert where necessary. Negative amount should be indicated by the minus sign. Include; Assets, Liabilities and Stockholder's Equity.

10. Prepare a post-closing trial balance

POST-CLOSING TRIAL BALANCE

Diamond Consulting

July 31, 20Y2

DATA EXERCISE #1

Format of the Project:

The Data Exercise must be posted to the LEO Student Assignments as a Attachments are limited to a maximum two files in doc, docx., xls. xlsx., or rtf. formats. OTHER FORMATS ARE NOT ACCEPTABLE, will not be reviewed or graded.

Please note that hand-written and scanned works, pdf. files, jpg. files, as well as files posted in google drive, will not be accepted or graded.

The paper should be written in APA style Research Paper format.

Please note that Use of APA Citation Methodology is required for all parts of the assignment

Written projects must be:

typed, double-spaced, in 12-point Times New Roman or Arial font, with margins no wider than one inch

have footnotes or endnotes, with correct citations

have a bibliography of sources used

include, for each entry, the author, title, city and state of publisher, publisher's name, year, and page numbers

prepared using word processing software (Microsoft Word preferred), in a manner similar to the preparation of a written assignment for classroom submission

Data exercise #1 Assignment

Consists of four parts

Part 1: Expenditures Approach to Calculating GDP (weight 25% of the assignment grade)

Complete the following exercise

Visit the Bureau of Economic Analysis Web site at  www.bea.gov In “U.S. Economic Accounts” under “National” click on “Gross Domestic Product (GDP)”, then “Interactive Tables”: “GDP” and the” National Income and Product Account (NIPA)” Historical Tables, click “Begin using the data”, and use Section 1 - Tables 1.1.5 (Gross domestic product (nominal)) and 1.1.6 (Real Gross Domestic Product).

a) Create the table that contains the following information for the last quarter. You need this information from both tables. Omit the intermediate lines found in Tables 1.1.5 and 1.1.6 on the web site.

Gross domestic product

Personal consumption expenditures

Gross private domestic investment

Net exports of goods and services

Government consumption expenditures and gross investment

b) Calculate the percentage (the proportion) of each category in nominal GDP and in real GDP.

Using Nominal GDP:

[Personal consumption expenditures / Nominal GDP]*100%

[Gross private domestic investment / Nominal GDP]*100%

[Net exports of goods and services / Nominal GDP]*100%

[Government consumption expenditures and gross investment/ Nominal GDP]*100%

And using Real GDP:

[Personal consumption expenditures / Real GDP]*100%

[Gross private domestic investment / Real]*100%

[Net exports of goods and services / Real GDP]*100%

[Government consumption expenditures and gross investment/ Real GDP]*100%

Present the information that you received in 1 (a) and 1 (b) as a table(s) in your project.

Write a report (2 pages double - spaced), which contains an analysis of the results you received.

In this report consider, but do not be limited to the following:

Why was the nominal GDP greater than the real GDP? By how much?

GDP is composed of a number of categories. What category makes up the largest portion of GDP? What category makes up the smallest portion of GDP?

What is “Gross private domestic investment”? What does gross private domestic investment measure?

What is “Net exports of goods and services”? Why it is negative?

In the table 1.1.5 find the category “National defense”. How much was the National defense for the last quarter? Calculate percentage of National defense out of “Government consumption expenditures and gross investment”. Calculate percentage of National defense out of GDP.

Please analyze and discuss the significance of the data that you received for this Data exercise. Reflect on what you have learned from this exercise.

Part 2: Income Approach to Calculating GDP (weight 25% of the assignment grade)

Complete the following exercise:

Go to http://www.bea.gov/

Find the information on GDP in billions of current dollars for the past four quarters. In U.S. Economic Accounts under National click on Gross Domestic Product (GDP), then click on Interactive Tables: GDP and the National Income and Product Account (NIPA) Historical Tables – click “Begin using the data”- choose Section 1: Domestic Product and Income and find table 1.7.5

Create the table that contains the following information for the last year quarterly. Omit the intermediate lines found in Table 1.7.5 on the web site.

Gross domestic product

Gross national product

Net national product

National income

Personal income

2. Write a report in your own words (1 page, double-spaced), which contains the analysis of the results you received. In this report consider, but do not be limited to the following:

What is the difference between gross domestic product (GDP) and gross national product (GNP)? What is the difference in what GDP measures compared to GNP?

Based on the table, what calculations must you make to determine GNP from GDP?

What is national income (NI)? What does NI measure?

Which was higher in this year, GNP or NI? By how much?

What calculations must you make to determine NI from GNP?

NI is composed of a number of categories. What category makes up the largest portion of NI?

Please analyze and discuss the significance of the data that you received for this Data exercise. Reflect on what you have learned from this exercise.

Part 3: GDP in Different Countries (weight 25% of the assignment grade)

Complete the following exercise:

Go to World Development Indicators database:

http://databank.worldbank.org/data/views/variableSelection/selectvariables.aspx?source=world-development-indicators

Select 8 countries for your project by checking the check boxes under Country.

Select the 2 data series GDP (current US$) and Population (Total) under Series.

Select the most recent year under Time.

You can now retrieve that data by clicking one of the options on the upper right of the window. Clicking “Table” will allow you to view and copy the data for each country. Clicking “Download” will allow you to download the data in Excel, which can then be copied into your report table.

Or you can simply type the required data into the table below.

Fill in the table below. Present the table in your project. Calculate the per capita GDP for the most recent available year for the countries with the equation given in the far right column.

Write a short report in your own words (1 page, double-spaced), which contains the analysis of the results you have gotten. In this report consider, but do not be limited to the following:

List the countries by highest per capita GDP to lowest.

Does the order remain the same for total GDP as for per capita GDP.

If not, explain why is it different?

Please analyze and discuss the significance of this data and reflect on what you have learned from this exercise.

Part 4: Index of Economic Freedom (weight 25% of the assignment grade)

Log onto the Heritage Foundation's website at http://www.heritage.org/Index/

“Today, we live in the most prosperous time in human history. Poverty, sicknesses, and ignorance are receding throughout the world, due in large part to the advance of economic freedom. In 2017, the principles of economic freedom that have fueled this monumental progress are once again measured in the Index of Economic Freedom, an annual guide published by The Wall Street Journal and The Heritage Foundation, Washington’s No. 1 think tank.

The Index covers 12 freedoms – from property rights to entrepreneurship – in 186 countries. Each of the ten economic freedoms within these categories is graded on a scale of 0 to 100.”

Click on COUNTRY RANKING to find the rank of economic freedom. IMPORTANT – Make sure you use the Rank and not the Overall Score.

Click on EXPLORE THE DATA to find the rank of business, trade, financial freedom, and property rights.

Find the rank in economic freedom (overall) of the countries that you were using in part III of the assignment.

Find the rank in business, trade, financial freedom, and property rights of the countries that you were using in part III of the assignment.

Compare the rank in economic freedom (overall) and other indicators with the order of the countries using the per capita GDP in the table in part III of the assignment.

Present the information that you received in your project as a table.

Write a report in your own words (1 page, double-spaced), which contains the analysis of the results that you received. Discuss the significance of the data and what you feel is the relevance of rankings. Please reflect on what you have learned from this assignment.

Morrow Enterprises Inc. manufactures bathroom fixtures. The stockholders’ equity accounts of Morrow Enterprises Inc., with balances on January 1, 20Y5, are as follows:

The following selected transactions occurred during the year:

ted corporate transactions

Instructions

Chart of Accounts

Amount Descriptions

T Accounts

Journal

Retained Earnings Statement

Stockholders’ Equity

X

Instructions

Morrow Enterprises Inc. manufactures bathroom fixtures. The stockholders’ equity accounts of Morrow Enterprises Inc., with balances on January 1, 20Y5, are as follows:

The following selected transactions occurred during the year:

X

Chart of Accounts

X

Amount Descriptions

Fukui Prefecture is situated on the northwest coast of Japan, over 400 kilometers west of
Tokyo. In 2014, over 95 percent of Japanese-produced eye-glass frames were made in Fukui
Prefecture, principally in the cities of Fukui and Sabae. In the early 20th century, the Fukui
economy was dominated by agriculture. Taking advantage of the seasonal lull in
employment during the winter months, Mr Masunaga Gozaemon and his brother Kohachi
started a business in the village of Shono to manufacture celluloid eye-glass frames.
Initially, the quality of Fukui-made eyeglasses was low. To raise standards, Mr
Gozaemon established a guild like system in which full-fledged craftsmen could set up their
own businesses. Production took off during World War I, and by 1937, the Fukui industry
comprised 70 factories employing 800 workers, and producing 1.5 million pairs of eyeglasses
a year.
In the 1980s, Fukui manufacturers perfected the production of titanium frames. These
are light and sturdy, and cause fewer allergies than conventional metals, but require
considerable skill to make. The strong tradition of craftsmanship in Fukui enabled the
production of titanium frames.
Mr Shoji Gozaemon, great grandson of the pioneer, Masunaga Gozaemon,
emphasized, “One of the characteristics of Japanese craftsmanship is a kind of redundancy of
detail. There is a tendency to pay careful attention to the minutest details. The spirit of
Japanese craftsmanship often involves spending more time and effort over producing
something than is strictly necessary” (Nippon.com 2012).
Besides manufacturers of eye-glass frames, the Fukui industry also includes
manufacturers and suppliers of lenses, sunglasses, reading glasses, parts, materials such as
titanium wire and preformin, and machines and tools.
With the entry of low-cost Chinese manufacturers into the market, the manufacturing
of eye-glasses in Fukui prefecture peaked in 1992. Within twenty years, by 2012, 40 percent
of Fukui eye-glass manufacturers had gone out of business, and employment and production
dropped by one-third. Another challenge is demographic. Japan is a rapidly ageing society.
In just eight years between 2011-17, the working population of Sabae fell by 11 percent to
30,000.
One possible response is automation. Fund manager, Howard Smith, asserts that
“with chronic depopulation challenges in rural areas, most companies must adapt or die. That
involves planning for succession and investing heavily in automation” (Financial Times,
2018).
(c) 2018. I.P.L. Png. This case is based in part on “Sabae, Fukui: A Town with an Eye for Design”,
Nippon.com, 24 April 2012, “Luxottica Group Invests in ‘made in Japan’”, Press Release, Luxottica
Group, 6 March 2018, and “Made in Japan: can handcrafted glasses survive an automated world?”
Financial Times, 4 April 2018.
2
Mr Ryozo Takeuchi is chairman of Takeuchi Optical, founded in 1932 and presently
employing 80 persons. Mr Takeuchi is also president of the Fukui Optical Association. He
describes automation as a buzz-word, and maintains that metal frames must be finished by
hand. In his factory, titanium frames pass through the hands of ten different workers and are
then polished for 72 hours in a bath of pulverized walnut shells.
Another response has been to shift away from the previous OEM (original equipment
manufacturing) model, in which Fukui produced eye-glasses and parts for international
brands such as Prada and Dior. In 1996, Fukui manufacturer Boston Club launched its own
brand, Japonism, and followed up in 2002, by opening a retail store in the fashionable
Minami-Aoyama district of Tokyo.
Chief designer of Boston Club, Kasashima Hironobu, remarked, “Traveling to
international fairs overseas … brought home to me that constantly emphasizing the technical
know-how we have built up over the years is not enough to make us internationally
competitive. ... We need to promote the worldview expressed by our brand and appeal to the
consumer by emphasizing the values that lie behind it” (Nippon.com 2012).
Boston Club’s previous strategy had been to design products that could only be made
with Japanese technology. Turning design convention on its head, Boston Club decided to
emphasize durability – to produce eyeglasses which could be used for life. It developed the
new Rudder Hinge which can be detached and replaced when necessary. With replaceable
parts, the frames can be used almost indefinitely.
In 2003, over 20 Sabae manufacturers joined to develop an industry brand, “291.” In
2008, they opened Glass Gallery 291, a retail outlet in the Aoyama district of Tokyo and then
another outlet in the Megane Museum at Sabae. In 2017, Masunaga Optical, the company
founded by pioneer Masunaga Gozaemon, employed 173 workers at its factory, and operated
retail stores in Tokyo, Osaka, Nagoya, and Nara.
However, not all Fukui eye-glass manufacturers have been able to adapt. Some lack
the managerial expertise or capital. Looking out from his factory, Mr Takeuchi pointed to
three businesses that had recently gone bankrupt.
Some owners are selling. Founded in 1966, Fukui Megane presently employs 170
workers and specializes in making titanium and solid gold frames. It pioneered multi-colored
gold frames and is still the only the producer in the world. In March 2018, Fukui Megane
sold a 67 percent stake to multinational eyeware manufacturer, Luxottica, which owns brands
including Ray Ban and Oakley, and manufactures for brands such as Chanel, Prada, and
Giorgio Armani.
Luxottica Group Executive Chairman, Mr Leonardo Del Vecchio, explained that “The
acquisition of Fukui Megane represents a first step for the entry of our Group in the world of
Japanese production. We intend to continue investing to recreate a productive pole of
excellence in Sabae, in line with the Luxottica model. For the first time in the history of
3
eyewear, we will have under the same roof two great artisan schools such as the Italian and
the Japanese ones” (Luxoticca 2018).
The aging ownership of other Fukui eye-glass manufacturers without successorship
plans presents an opportunity for mergers and acquisitions. Specialists, Nihon M&A Center,
M&A Capital Partners, and Strike, can help find buyers and consolidate and automate the
industry.
In 2007, former investment banker, Mr Kenzo Matsumura, bought five companies
that were spun off from the merger of Japanese toy manufacturers Tomy and Takara. Among
them was a trading house that sold reading glasses through a television shopping channel. Mr
Matsumura expected that, in a fast ageing society, the demand for reading glasses would
boom. However, the reading glasses were bad and hardly profitable. The cost of production
was 3,300 Yen, the trading house charged a wholesale price of 3700 Yen, while the television
channel priced the glasses at 10,000 Yen.
The condition of the factory in Sabae was parlous. In Mr Matsumura’s words, “The
machinery was battered and looked 40 years old. There were women doing lens coatings by
hand. Everything was manual. The defect rate was 30 percent” (Financial Times, 2018).
Major lens manufacturers like Hoya and Nikon outsourced production to China and
Thailand. Mr Matsumura criticized their strategy, “If you fully automate a factory, you can
be in Japan running that factory more productively and at lower cost than in China”
(Financial Times, 2018).
He set up an automated factory in Chiba prefecture, east of Tokyo, which produces
Hazuki reading glasses at a rate of 20,000 a day. Shrouded in secrecy, with further
automation, the factory is expected to triple the rate of production.
Hazuki has also repositioned the product as a sophisticated fashion item, while
maintaining the retail price at 10,000 Yen. In February 2018, during the Winter Olympics,
Hazuki spent US$5 million on television advertising, which led to a spectacular boost in sales.

Questions:

1. With reference to the Japanese eye-glass manufacturing industry, discuss why productivity differs within an industry.
2. What does a buyer get from acquiring a Fukui manufacturer of eye-glass frames?
Compare the benefits to Luxoticca vis-à-vis a private equity firm.
3. Do you agree with Mr Takeuchi that automation is a buzz-word?
4. If you were Mr Matsumura, where would you locate your factory? Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of locating in a cluster.

Question - Write a Client class with a main method that tests the data structures as follows:

• For the ArrayStack, LinkedStack, ArrayQueue, LinkedQueue, and ArrayList:
  • Perform a timing test for each of these data structures.
  • Each timing test should measure in nanoseconds how long it takes to add and remove N Integers from the structure.
  • N should vary from 10 to 1,000,000,000 increasing N by a factor of 10 for each test.
  • Depending on your system you may run out of memory before you reach the maximum value of N.
    • If you run out of memory, and your program crashes just decrease the maximum value of N by a factor of 10 and try a new run.
    • You should see that your program throws an OutOfMemoryError
    • Generally, you should not try to catch an Error because your memory space might be corrupted and there is not guarantee that you can recover from the error.
  • Test results must be displayed in a nicely formatted ASCII table similar to the examples provided.
  • In the ASCII table:
    • Values in each cell are padded by 2 blank spaces
    • Each column is just wide enough to display the widest entry in that column including the cell padding. Your program must dynamically adjust the width of each column based on the values that it needs to print.
    • Numeric values must be printed using the comma thousand separator, i.e.
      • you must print a large number like 12,345
      • and not 12345
    • It is strongly suggested that you create a method that generates and prints the ASCII table. You could pass this method a 2-dimensional array of values that are to be printed.
    • Future assignments may require that you print out results in a similar ASCII table.
  • You should have two final runs in your Word document.
  • For the first run set the max value of N to 1,000,000 so that the times are fairly small.
  • For the second run set the max value of N to 1,000,000,000
  • If you run out of memory reduce the max value of N by a factor of 10 and try a new run.
  • For this assignment your ASCII tables do NOT need to have column labels.
  • Include both runs in your Word document.
• ArrayStack code:

• public class ArrayStack<E> implements Stack<E> {
  public static final int CAPACITY=1000; // default array capacity
  private E[ ] data; // generic array used for storage
  private int t = -1; // index of the top element in stack
  public ArrayStack( ) { this(CAPACITY); } // constructs stack with default capacity
  public ArrayStack(int capacity) { // constructs stack with given capacity
  data = (E[ ]) new Object[capacity]; // safe cast; compiler may give warning
  }
  public int size( ) { return (t + 1); }
  public boolean isEmpty() {return (t == -1); }
  public void push(E e) throws IllegalStateException {
  if (size( ) == data.length) throw new IllegalStateException("Stack is full");
  data[++t] = e; // increment t before storing new item
  }
  public E top( ) {
  if (isEmpty( )) return null;
  return data[t];
  }
  public E pop( ) {
  if (isEmpty( )) return null;
  E answer = data[t];
  data [t] = null; // dereference to help garbage collection
  t--;
  return answer;
  }
  }

• LinkedStack code:

• public class LinkedStack<E> implements Stack<E> {
  private SinglyLinkedList<E> list = new SinglyLinkedList<>( ); // an empty list
  public LinkedStack( ) { } // new stack relies on the initially empty list
  public int size( ) { return list.size( ); }
  public boolean isEmpty( ) { return list.isEmpty( ); }
  public void push(E element) { list.addFirst(element); }
  public E top( ) { return list.first( ); }
  public E pop( ) { return list.removeFirst( ); }
  }

• ArrayQueue code:

• public class ArrayQueue<E> implements Queue<E> {
  // instance variables
  private E[ ] data; // generic array used for storage
  private int f = 0; // index of the front element
  private int sz = 0;
  private static int CAPACITY = 1000;
  // current number of elements

  // constructors
  public ArrayQueue( ) {this(CAPACITY);} // constructs queue with default capacity
  public ArrayQueue(int capacity) { // constructs queue with given capacity
  data = (E[ ]) new Object[capacity]; // safe cast; compiler may give warning
  }

  // methods
  /** Returns the number of elements in the queue. */
  public int size( ) { return sz; }

  /** Tests whether the queue is empty. */
  public boolean isEmpty( ) { return (sz == 0); }

  /** Inserts an element at the rear of the queue. */
  public void enqueue(E e) throws IllegalStateException {
  if (sz == data.length) throw new IllegalStateException("Queue is full");
  int avail = (f + sz) % data.length; // use modular arithmetic
  data[avail] = e;
  sz++;
  }

  /** Returns, but does not remove, the first element of the queue (null if empty). */
  public E first( ) {
  if (isEmpty( )) return null;
  return data[f];
  }

  /** Removes and returns the first element of the queue (null if empty). */
  public E dequeue( ) {
  if (isEmpty( )) return null;
  E answer = data[f];
  data[f] = null; // dereference to help garbage collection
  f = (f + 1) % data.length;
  sz--;
  return answer;
  }
  }

• LinkedQueue code:

• public class LinkedQueue<E> implements Queue<E> {
  private SinglyLinkedList<E> list = new SinglyLinkedList<>( ); // an empty list
  public LinkedQueue( ) { } // new queue relies on the initially empty list
  public int size( ) { return list.size( ); }
  public boolean isEmpty( ) { return list.isEmpty( ); }
  public void enqueue(E element) { list.addLast(element); }
  public E first( ) { return list.first( ); }
  public E dequeue( ) { return list.removeFirst( ); }
  }

• ArrayList Code:

• public class ArrayList<E> implements List<E> {
  // instance variables
  public static final int CAPACITY=16; // default array capacity
  private E[ ] data; // generic array used for storage
  private int size = 0; // current number of elements
  // constructors
  public ArrayList( ) { this(CAPACITY); } // constructs list with default capacity
  public ArrayList(int capacity) { // constructs list with given capacity
  data = (E[ ]) new Object[capacity]; // safe cast; compiler may give warning
  }
  // public methods
  /** Returns the number of elements in the array list. */
  public int size( ) { return size; }
  /** Returns whether the array list is empty. */
  public boolean isEmpty( ) { return size == 0; }
  /** Returns (but does not remove) the element at index i. */
  public E get(int i) throws IndexOutOfBoundsException {
  checkIndex(i, size);
  return data[i];
  }
  /** Replaces the element at index i with e, and returns the replaced element. */
  public E set(int i, E e) throws IndexOutOfBoundsException {
  checkIndex(i, size);
  E temp = data[i];
  data[i] = e;
  return temp;
  }
  /** Inserts element e to be at index i, shifting all subsequent elements later. */
  public void add(int i, E e) throws IndexOutOfBoundsException,
  IllegalStateException {
  checkIndex(i, size + 1);
  if (size == data.length) // not enough capacity
  throw new IllegalStateException("Array is full");
  for (int k=size-1; k>= i; k--) // start by shifting rightmost
  data[k+1] = data[k];
  data[i] = e; // ready to place the new element
  size++;
  }
  /** Removes/returns the element at index i, shifting subsequent elements earlier. */
  public E remove(int i) throws IndexOutOfBoundsException {
  checkIndex(i, size);
  E temp = data[i];
  for (int k=i; k< size-1; k++) // shift elements to fill hole
  data[k] = data[k+1];
  data[size-1] = null; // help garbage collection
  size--;
  return temp;
  }
  // utility method
  /** Checks whether the given index is in the range [0, n−1]. */
  protected void checkIndex(int i, int n) throws IndexOutOfBoundsException {
  if (i < 0 || i >= n)
  throw new IndexOutOfBoundsException("Illegal index: " + i);
  }
  
  /** Resizes internal array to have given capacity >= size. */
  protected void resize(int capacity) {
  E[ ] temp = (E[ ]) new Object[capacity]; // safe cast; compiler may give warning
  for (int k=0; k < size; k++)
  temp[k] = data[k];
  data = temp; // start using the new array
  }
  /** Inserts element e to be at index i, shifting all subsequent elements later. */

  }

Based on article below, Which distribution channel structure was adopted by IKEA in Russia? Please provide evidence to support your answer.

(word limit: 250)

IKEA is a leading home furnishing company with around 340 stores in 40 countries, selling a range of some 10’000 articles and having more than 150’000 employees. The company was founded in 1943 by Ingvar Kamprad in Småland, a province in Southern Sweden where people are renowned for working hard, being thrifty and innovative, and achieving big results with small means. Today, the IKEA group is controlled by a private foundation and the company is thus not on the stock market. Ingvar Komprad’s innovative idea was to offer home furnishing products of good function and design at prices much lower than competitors by using simple cost-cutting solutions that did not affect the quality of products. This is a prominent philosophy at IKEA, which is now realizing its ambitious plans in Russia. IKEA opened its first store in Moscow, Khimki, in March 2000, followed by one more in Moscow in 2001, one in St Petersburg in 2003, and one in Kazan in March 2004. In 2012, IKEA had 14 stores in Russia and some of them in distant places such as Novosibirsk (2007) and the newest ones in Ufa (2011) and Samara (2012). All Russian operations are controlled as fully owned ventures by the IKEA group. IKEA is characterized by a strong brand based on its vision to create a better everyday life for many people. A set of explicit values is linked to the vision and plays a guiding principle in the strategy development. The values are the foundation of a culture called internally the ‘IKEA Way’, which is an expression of lKEA's history, the product range, the distribution system, the management style, the human resource idea, etc. Brand and cultural values coincide and affect the strategy, organizational processes product development and customer relationship. Thus the key value of cost-consciousness that lies at the heart of IKEA's flat-package concept dictates the necessity of global sourcing, define the customer relationship where 'IKEA does a half and customers do a half' and guides the product design, choice of material and logistics. The value of simplicity is reflected in the fast planning process, behaviours and routine governed by common sense, straightforward relationships with suppliers and customer as well as in the product development process. By linking vision and values, IKEA thus create a firm platform for entering a new market. In each new market lKEA enters it must recreate its company culture from scratch. In Moscow that included the replication of the store design and layout in accordance with the latest version of the existing store and extensive cultural education that was implemented by the team of experienced IKEA people. It was the overall company vision that guided the desire to establish business in Russia; most particularly, the impression that few companies in Russia focused on solving the needs of the many people by offering attractive products at reasonable prices. However, knowledge of the Russian market when IKEA initially decided to open its first store in Moscow was very scarce. No special market research was carried out before setting up the store. IKEA’s basic strategy is to neither adjust the style of products to local needs nor follow the competitors’ products development was central as the cornerstone in preserving the IKEA concept and image: ‘The range is supposed to be IKEA – unique and typical IKEA’. All products are divided into four major categories or styles – Scandinavian, Country, Modern, and Young Swede – which are clearly distinguished in all business areas across the store. One of the reasons why IKEA was successful with its standard product ranges in Russia was the fact that several of these IKEA ranges emphasis the modern style, which is very different from the traditional Russian style but is attractive and fresh for the Russian customers because it symbolizes change. An important factor in the market approach was to identify needs that are not fully recognized and to teach customers what IKEA is about. IKEA's retail proposition is based to a large extent on its Swedish roots and history, which is, in turn, very different from Russian traditions. Therefore, learning as much as possible about the local culture and customer needs was considered essential. For example, lKEA made home visits to customers to talk to people, see how they lived and used their homes and to identify potential needs and wants not fully acknowledged by customer themselves. Understanding local family conditions and furnishing traditions then provided a basis for the effective introduction and marketing of the IKEA concept. As exemplified by a store manager, the main priority for Russians is normal living costs; then comes the car and TV; and afterwards maybe a trip abroad. The idea of changing people's priorities by explaining to them that a beautiful home does not have to cost a fortune and they can afford both the wardrobe and a trip abroad is an essential leitmotif of the marketing campaigns in Russia. The importance of aligning the IKEA concept with the desired image was critical from the very beginning. The intention was to build an image with a low price brand that also guaranteed attractive and modern products of good quality. To achieve this, IKEA has faced many challenges such as: high customs fees; the requirement to purchase more from the local producers; difficulties in finding and developing suppliers in Russia; still low buying-power of Russian customers etc. For IKEA, it was critical to associate the low price with the desired significance. An increased capacity and bigger volumes by the Russian suppliers will allow the company to cut costs and reduce prices in Russia as well as to export the Russian made furniture to its other markets. As a matter of fact, IKEA prices are still very high for many ordinary Russians. For example, even in St Petersburg, the second-largest city, shopping power is, according to different estimate, 30 to 50 per cent lower than in Moscow, where an average purchase value equals that in Stockholm. But for Russian customers low price was very strongly related to unattractive products of poor quality, and one challenge has been to overcome this and explain how it is possible to offer good product at low prices. Therefore, it has also been an ambition to provide the Russian market with the best and most attractive IKEA products. Marketing communications became an important tool in creating the right image of IKEA in Russia. The ways to communicate the image were many: the outdoor product ads (price), image ads in the glossy magazine, TV (though IKEA has used this very restrictively due to high cost), and articles in the newspapers (press coverage has become very broad and quite positive towards the IKEA culture and philosophy). Another very important communication means in Russia is the buzz network or word-of mouth communication that works very effectively. In addition, IKEA had an open and friendly approach towards Russian journalists. This was in sharp contrast to most other large organizations. IKEA was completely open to the journalists and introduced them to the IKEA way and values by organizing press trips to Älmhult in Sweden to learn how the range is created. The result was that the press coverage of IKEA in Russia became much more positive. In the spring of 2009 IKEA thus had 11 stores operating in Russia. Most of these locations were mega mall shopping complex operated by IKEA. The shopping complex at the Tyoplyi Stan site in Moscow for example accommodate around 210,000 square meters of retail space and 240 retail outlets. The mega malls were treated as a separate business, and were an addition to IKEA's core concept. Normally, IKEA does not manage or develop shopping centres but this was considered necessary in Russia due to its lack of an existing structure of large branded stores and external as well as central shopping centres of a Western kind. Previously, many Russians have shopped for furniture as well as other products in outdoor markets or at smaller, local stores. From IKEA’s perspective developing a whole mega mall was part of attracting Russian customers to the stores. As a whole, IKEA has made substantial investments in Russia, and turnover is increasing rapidly. However, a major principle has been that monetary returns are needed to back up further expansion: ‘As soon as we make a profit, I can see at least ten years ahead when we will need all the money that is generated in Russia. So, the day when we will start to take out profit from Russia and use it in other countries is perhaps 15 years away'.

QUESTION: Mr. Horwell is unsure that NOBU has the resources to support the entire IMC you suggested in Q3(advertising, personal selling, public relations, social media marketing, sales promotion). Please rank the promotional mix tools (1= highest priority to 4= lowest priority) and justify.

Traveling in Nobu Style: Converting Restaurant Patrons to Hotel Guests The name “Nobu” is synonymous with an exceptional Japanese dining experience, perfected by chef Nobu Matsuhisa over a more than 30-year career. Matsuhisa, together with actor Robert De Niro and restaurateur Drew Nieporent, opened the first Nobu restaurant in 1994 and to date, there are now 38 Nobu restaurants worldwide. But if you talk to Trevor Horwell, the CEO of Nobu Hospitality, Nobu represents much more than just a restaurant experience. It’s a true lifestyle brand that also encompasses a relatively small, but growing portfolio of luxury hotels, too — eight of which are open now, and eight more are in the pipeline. Horwell’s primary focus as CEO is to continue to grow the Nobu Hotels brand and as he opens up diners’ eyes to the fact that cannot only eat at a Nobu but stay at one, too, he hasn’t forgotten the brand’s origins in the process. “We don’t normally do a hotel unless we think that a Nobu Restaurant can do well in that location,” said Horwell. “That’s very important because what we want to do first and foremost is to make sure there is a draw for locals, and that really comes down to the Nobu Restaurant.” Horwell said the majority of his Nobu hotel restaurant diners — 80 percent on average — are local residents, not hotel guests. “It’s not like a tourist restaurant. We like to attract the locals. We want that built-in customer.” “We are defined by the restaurant, in a way,” he said. “We play to our strengths. If you look at the hotel business today, the majority of hotels are suffering because they don’t lead with food and beverage. don’t have strong food-and-beverage concepts, and a lot of hotels are losing money. Today, we play to our strengths because that is one area that we do very, very well, and we bring in locals.” The idea to launch Nobu Hotels, he said, came from the fact that when Nobu Restaurants were located inside of a hotel, they “were the draw for the hotel and we were bringing in customers.” “If I only convert 5 percent of my customers in Nobu Restaurant to stay in our hotels, then at the end of the day, we’re filling out hotels. It’s not a tall order to do that, and you can do that very well and very quickly if you offer the right product.” Nobu Hotels has the advantage of having built its brand over a 24-year period with its restaurants first, followed by the first Nobu hotel that opened within Caesars Palace Las Vegas in 2013. “The first focus for us, really, is to expose the brand to our restaurant customers,” Horwell said. “We touch all types of Nobu customers. And we also provide instant identity. If you put ‘Nobu Hotel’ on a hotel, the word ‘Nobu’ says something and it attracts a certain type of customer.” Horwell said that, for example, when the first Nobu opened, the hotel had “more than one billion media impressions.” So, what’s next for the brand, and how does Horwell plan to grow Nobu Hotels? He explained, “We’re not driven by reservations systems because we’re small. It isn’t as if we need a huge reservations system to fill a 400-room hotel. That’s why a lot of these corporations do well, because they have the reservations platform to fill the big hotels.” Nobu Hotels, by comparison, average anywhere from 100 to 150 rooms generally. “The reason why those young lifestyle brands have emerged is because they’re like us. They are entrepreneurial, they’re unique because it’s a concept that’s come from the heart, from whoever is the original founder. But when it’s absorbed by a corporation, the whole thing changes. At the end of the day, the specialness is lost because then the corporation’s running it, and then, I think you lose what your original concept was all about. I think that’s the biggest issue.” Horwell also doesn’t necessarily think of Nobu Hotels as occupying a place in luxury hospitality, instead referring to the brand as “special.” “I look at our hotels not as luxury,” he said. “I look at them as special. I like us to be special, in each location we’re in. ‘Luxury’ is a word that’s used too much in terms of ‘everything is luxury today.’ For us, we’re ‘special.'” “That’s why I’m saying, from a company perspective, we’re very entrepreneurial. Today’s evolving luxury traveler is seeking “youthfulness” no matter what age they are, and they are “very curious and very adventurous. Because of that, it’s important for hospitality brands, Nobu included, to not just say they’re unique but to really offer unique experiences. He pointed to Nobu Ryokan Malibu in California as an example. The 16-room retreat overlooks the beach and is right by the ocean, and right next door to the Nobu Restaurant in Malibu. It becomes a destination, and that’s something Nobu wants to offer. It’s also a different concept from what the other Nobu Hotels have. While Nobu Hotels are places where there’s an emphasis on bringing in the locals, the Ryokans are meant to be more private. “The Ryokan is actually a place where people don’t want to necessarily be seen,” Horwell explained. “It’s a hideaway, a retreat. You can only book through a general manager and it’s a special place.” He added, “We will do more Ryokans, definitely, in locations that we think is right.” A major focus for Nobu Hotels is to grow the company and the brand with the right talent and partners, as well as make sure that the Nobu Hotels brand is reaching the right consumers. “The most important thing, from our perspective, is to build a relationship with our existing customers,” he said. “It’s about, first and foremost, on digital, working our databases. We like to do that through email, through a lot of channels. We just brought on a new head of digital. Capturing data is very, very important now, and that’s something that is a main focus and her team.” “I think the main thing for us is the customer relationship management (CRM) because you can do so much with it,” he said. “You can know your customer. It’s one part of the business that we are heavily focused in in and we can extract a lot of information from that.” In addition to beefing up its customer relationship management system, Nobu is also testing out a loyalty partnership, of sorts. The Nobu London Shoreditch joined Design Hotels last year, giving the property access to distribution on Design Hotels’ site, as well as a connection to the Starwood Preferred Guest loyalty program. Three Nobu hotels are also members of Leading Hotels of the World. “A lot of our customers aren’t driven by points,” he said. “When I travel, I don’t go for points. I want to stay in a hotel where I enjoy the staff, the food and beverage, the products — all of that — and I will pay a premium for it.” Appendix A Additional Information about NOBU Nobu Hotels "A Place to go and be seen" By “wrapping” the concept of a luxurious boutique hotel around energized public spaces, Nobu Hotels creates powerful stages for shared experiences of excitement and escapism. Featuring the best of everything with imaginative new restaurants, high- energy bars, relaxing rejuvenation, distinctive service, remarkable retail and an air of celebrity, Nobu Hotels will afford guests and privileged owners the most exclusive entry into unparalleled experiences that lay at the crossroads of innovation and imagination. Source: Excerpted from ‘Nobu Hotels CEO on a Restaurant-First Approach to Hospitality’ by D. Ting. Skift – March 22, 2018. +Experts and image from Nobu restaurant and hotel website

Based on article below, What internal and external factors impacted the pricing decisions of IKEA in the Russian market?

(word limit: 250)

IKEA is a leading home furnishing company with around 340 stores in 40 countries, selling a range of some 10’000 articles and having more than 150’000 employees. The company was founded in 1943 by Ingvar Kamprad in Småland, a province in Southern Sweden where people are renowned for working hard, being thrifty and innovative, and achieving big results with small means. Today, the IKEA group is controlled by a private foundation and the company is thus not on the stock market. Ingvar Komprad’s innovative idea was to offer home furnishing products of good function and design at prices much lower than competitors by using simple cost-cutting solutions that did not affect the quality of products. This is a prominent philosophy at IKEA, which is now realizing its ambitious plans in Russia. IKEA opened its first store in Moscow, Khimki, in March 2000, followed by one more in Moscow in 2001, one in St Petersburg in 2003, and one in Kazan in March 2004. In 2012, IKEA had 14 stores in Russia and some of them in distant places such as Novosibirsk (2007) and the newest ones in Ufa (2011) and Samara (2012). All Russian operations are controlled as fully owned ventures by the IKEA group. IKEA is characterized by a strong brand based on its vision to create a better everyday life for many people. A set of explicit values is linked to the vision and plays a guiding principle in the strategy development. The values are the foundation of a culture called internally the ‘IKEA Way’, which is an expression of lKEA's history, the product range, the distribution system, the management style, the human resource idea, etc. Brand and cultural values coincide and affect the strategy, organizational processes product development and customer relationship. Thus the key value of cost-consciousness that lies at the heart of IKEA's flat-package concept dictates the necessity of global sourcing, define the customer relationship where 'IKEA does a half and customers do a half' and guides the product design, choice of material and logistics. The value of simplicity is reflected in the fast planning process, behaviours and routine governed by common sense, straightforward relationships with suppliers and customer as well as in the product development process. By linking vision and values, IKEA thus create a firm platform for entering a new market. In each new market lKEA enters it must recreate its company culture from scratch. In Moscow that included the replication of the store design and layout in accordance with the latest version of the existing store and extensive cultural education that was implemented by the team of experienced IKEA people. It was the overall company vision that guided the desire to establish business in Russia; most particularly, the impression that few companies in Russia focused on solving the needs of the many people by offering attractive products at reasonable prices. However, knowledge of the Russian market when IKEA initially decided to open its first store in Moscow was very scarce. No special market research was carried out before setting up the store. IKEA’s basic strategy is to neither adjust the style of products to local needs nor follow the competitors’ products development was central as the cornerstone in preserving the IKEA concept and image: ‘The range is supposed to be IKEA – unique and typical IKEA’. All products are divided into four major categories or styles – Scandinavian, Country, Modern, and Young Swede – which are clearly distinguished in all business areas across the store. One of the reasons why IKEA was successful with its standard product ranges in Russia was the fact that several of these IKEA ranges emphasis the modern style, which is very different from the traditional Russian style but is attractive and fresh for the Russian customers because it symbolizes change. An important factor in the market approach was to identify needs that are not fully recognized and to teach customers what IKEA is about. IKEA's retail proposition is based to a large extent on its Swedish roots and history, which is, in turn, very different from Russian traditions. Therefore, learning as much as possible about the local culture and customer needs was considered essential. For example, lKEA made home visits to customers to talk to people, see how they lived and used their homes and to identify potential needs and wants not fully acknowledged by customer themselves. Understanding local family conditions and furnishing traditions then provided a basis for the effective introduction and marketing of the IKEA concept. As exemplified by a store manager, the main priority for Russians is normal living costs; then comes the car and TV; and afterwards maybe a trip abroad. The idea of changing people's priorities by explaining to them that a beautiful home does not have to cost a fortune and they can afford both the wardrobe and a trip abroad is an essential leitmotif of the marketing campaigns in Russia. The importance of aligning the IKEA concept with the desired image was critical from the very beginning. The intention was to build an image with a low price brand that also guaranteed attractive and modern products of good quality. To achieve this, IKEA has faced many challenges such as: high customs fees; the requirement to purchase more from the local producers; difficulties in finding and developing suppliers in Russia; still low buying-power of Russian customers etc. For IKEA, it was critical to associate the low price with the desired significance. An increased capacity and bigger volumes by the Russian suppliers will allow the company to cut costs and reduce prices in Russia as well as to export the Russian made furniture to its other markets. As a matter of fact, IKEA prices are still very high for many ordinary Russians. For example, even in St Petersburg, the second-largest city, shopping power is, according to different estimate, 30 to 50 per cent lower than in Moscow, where an average purchase value equals that in Stockholm. But for Russian customers low price was very strongly related to unattractive products of poor quality, and one challenge has been to overcome this and explain how it is possible to offer good product at low prices. Therefore, it has also been an ambition to provide the Russian market with the best and most attractive IKEA products. Marketing communications became an important tool in creating the right image of IKEA in Russia. The ways to communicate the image were many: the outdoor product ads (price), image ads in the glossy magazine, TV (though IKEA has used this very restrictively due to high cost), and articles in the newspapers (press coverage has become very broad and quite positive towards the IKEA culture and philosophy). Another very important communication means in Russia is the buzz network or word-of mouth communication that works very effectively. In addition, IKEA had an open and friendly approach towards Russian journalists. This was in sharp contrast to most other large organizations. IKEA was completely open to the journalists and introduced them to the IKEA way and values by organizing press trips to Älmhult in Sweden to learn how the range is created. The result was that the press coverage of IKEA in Russia became much more positive. In the spring of 2009 IKEA thus had 11 stores operating in Russia. Most of these locations were mega mall shopping complex operated by IKEA. The shopping complex at the Tyoplyi Stan site in Moscow for example accommodate around 210,000 square meters of retail space and 240 retail outlets. The mega malls were treated as a separate business, and were an addition to IKEA's core concept. Normally, IKEA does not manage or develop shopping centres but this was considered necessary in Russia due to its lack of an existing structure of large branded stores and external as well as central shopping centres of a Western kind. Previously, many Russians have shopped for furniture as well as other products in outdoor markets or at smaller, local stores. From IKEA’s perspective developing a whole mega mall was part of attracting Russian customers to the stores. As a whole, IKEA has made substantial investments in Russia, and turnover is increasing rapidly. However, a major principle has been that monetary returns are needed to back up further expansion: ‘As soon as we make a profit, I can see at least ten years ahead when we will need all the money that is generated in Russia. So, the day when we will start to take out profit from Russia and use it in other countries is perhaps 15 years away'.

Based on Article below,Discuss the promotion mix for IKEA in Russia and its effectiveness. How would you improve it?

(word limit: 300)

IKEA is a leading home furnishing company with around 340 stores in 40 countries, selling a range of some 10’000 articles and having more than 150’000 employees. The company was founded in 1943 by Ingvar Kamprad in Småland, a province in Southern Sweden where people are renowned for working hard, being thrifty and innovative, and achieving big results with small means. Today, the IKEA group is controlled by a private foundation and the company is thus not on the stock market. Ingvar Komprad’s innovative idea was to offer home furnishing products of good function and design at prices much lower than competitors by using simple cost-cutting solutions that did not affect the quality of products. This is a prominent philosophy at IKEA, which is now realizing its ambitious plans in Russia. IKEA opened its first store in Moscow, Khimki, in March 2000, followed by one more in Moscow in 2001, one in St Petersburg in 2003, and one in Kazan in March 2004. In 2012, IKEA had 14 stores in Russia and some of them in distant places such as Novosibirsk (2007) and the newest ones in Ufa (2011) and Samara (2012). All Russian operations are controlled as fully owned ventures by the IKEA group. IKEA is characterized by a strong brand based on its vision to create a better everyday life for many people. A set of explicit values is linked to the vision and plays a guiding principle in the strategy development. The values are the foundation of a culture called internally the ‘IKEA Way’, which is an expression of lKEA's history, the product range, the distribution system, the management style, the human resource idea, etc. Brand and cultural values coincide and affect the strategy, organizational processes product development and customer relationship. Thus the key value of cost-consciousness that lies at the heart of IKEA's flat-package concept dictates the necessity of global sourcing, define the customer relationship where 'IKEA does a half and customers do a half' and guides the product design, choice of material and logistics. The value of simplicity is reflected in the fast planning process, behaviours and routine governed by common sense, straightforward relationships with suppliers and customer as well as in the product development process. By linking vision and values, IKEA thus create a firm platform for entering a new market. In each new market lKEA enters it must recreate its company culture from scratch. In Moscow that included the replication of the store design and layout in accordance with the latest version of the existing store and extensive cultural education that was implemented by the team of experienced IKEA people. It was the overall company vision that guided the desire to establish business in Russia; most particularly, the impression that few companies in Russia focused on solving the needs of the many people by offering attractive products at reasonable prices. However, knowledge of the Russian market when IKEA initially decided to open its first store in Moscow was very scarce. No special market research was carried out before setting up the store. IKEA’s basic strategy is to neither adjust the style of products to local needs nor follow the competitors’ products development was central as the cornerstone in preserving the IKEA concept and image: ‘The range is supposed to be IKEA – unique and typical IKEA’. All products are divided into four major categories or styles – Scandinavian, Country, Modern, and Young Swede – which are clearly distinguished in all business areas across the store. One of the reasons why IKEA was successful with its standard product ranges in Russia was the fact that several of these IKEA ranges emphasis the modern style, which is very different from the traditional Russian style but is attractive and fresh for the Russian customers because it symbolizes change. An important factor in the market approach was to identify needs that are not fully recognized and to teach customers what IKEA is about. IKEA's retail proposition is based to a large extent on its Swedish roots and history, which is, in turn, very different from Russian traditions. Therefore, learning as much as possible about the local culture and customer needs was considered essential. For example, IKEA made home visits to customers to talk to people, see how they lived and used their homes and to identify potential needs and wants not fully acknowledged by customer themselves. Understanding local family conditions and furnishing traditions then provided a basis for the effective introduction and marketing of the IKEA concept. As exemplified by a store manager, the main priority for Russians is normal living costs; then comes the car and TV; and afterwards maybe a trip abroad. The idea of changing people's priorities by explaining to them that a beautiful home does not have to cost a fortune and they can afford both the wardrobe and a trip abroad is an essential leitmotif of the marketing campaigns in Russia. The importance of aligning the IKEA concept with the desired image was critical from the very beginning. The intention was to build an image with a low price brand that also guaranteed attractive and modern products of good quality. To achieve this, IKEA has faced many challenges such as: high customs fees; the requirement to purchase more from the local producers; difficulties in finding and developing suppliers in Russia; still low buying-power of Russian customers etc. For IKEA, it was critical to associate the low price with the desired significance. An increased capacity and bigger volumes by the Russian suppliers will allow the company to cut costs and reduce prices in Russia as well as to export the Russian made furniture to its other markets. As a matter of fact, IKEA prices are still very high for many ordinary Russians. For example, even in St Petersburg, the second-largest city, shopping power is, according to different estimate, 30 to 50 per cent lower than in Moscow, where an average purchase value equals that in Stockholm. But for Russian customers low price was very strongly related to unattractive products of poor quality, and one challenge has been to overcome this and explain how it is possible to offer good product at low prices. Therefore, it has also been an ambition to provide the Russian market with the best and most attractive IKEA products. Marketing communications became an important tool in creating the right image of IKEA in Russia. The ways to communicate the image were many: the outdoor product ads (price), image ads in the glossy magazine, TV (though IKEA has used this very restrictively due to high cost), and articles in the newspapers (press coverage has become very broad and quite positive towards the IKEA culture and philosophy). Another very important communication means in Russia is the buzz network or word-of mouth communication that works very effectively. In addition, IKEA had an open and friendly approach towards Russian journalists. This was in sharp contrast to most other large organizations. IKEA was completely open to the journalists and introduced them to the IKEA way and values by organizing press trips to Älmhult in Sweden to learn how the range is created. The result was that the press coverage of IKEA in Russia became much more positive. In the spring of 2009 IKEA thus had 11 stores operating in Russia. Most of these locations were mega mall shopping complex operated by IKEA. The shopping complex at the Tyoplyi Stan site in Moscow for example accommodate around 210,000 square meters of retail space and 240 retail outlets. The mega malls were treated as a separate business, and were an addition to IKEA's core concept. Normally, IKEA does not manage or develop shopping centres but this was considered necessary in Russia due to its lack of an existing structure of large branded stores and external as well as central shopping centres of a Western kind. Previously, many Russians have shopped for furniture as well as other products in outdoor markets or at smaller, local stores. From IKEA’s perspective developing a whole mega mall was part of attracting Russian customers to the stores. As a whole, IKEA has made substantial investments in Russia, and turnover is increasing rapidly. However, a major principle has been that monetary returns are needed to back up further expansion: ‘As soon as we make a profit, I can see at least ten years ahead when we will need all the money that is generated in Russia. So, the day when we will start to take out profit from Russia and use it in other countries is perhaps 15 years away'.