And on the back of the previous story, it's a big day for Jaguar Land Rover as the carmaker's engine factory in Wolverhampton is restarting production, good news for suppliers.

That said, some of the smaller suppliers have already had to lay off workers and there's criticism of the government intervention because none of the funds offered have found their way down to the bottom of the supply chain. 

I'll just pop this here - the author of a book entitled "Enshittification Why Everything Suddenly Got Worse and What to Do About It". He argues that Amazon is symptomatic of the modern world, and charts its decline. It's worth a read just to see whether you agree with it or not.

Has Disney lost its lustre? Certainly this Guardian article suggests that the wholesome values that used to be a central feature of the Disney brand are in short supply as the organisation abandons diversity and inclusivity. 

However, is its decline a function of the company and a failure of its culture or is it symptomatic of the wider challenges that face the market, not least because moviemaking simply isn't as profitable as it used to be. 

An excellent opinion piece in the Guardian looking at the decision of Jerry Greenfield to step away from his role with Ben & Jerry's and wondering about whether this signals something about the wider American business environment, namely that business - like everybody else - must kow-tow to the President.

It's a striking title too - is the era of corporate social responsibility over? And what does this mean for brands who purpose goes beyond profit and shareholder value?

This article suggests that one iconic craft brewing brand BrewDog has lost its lustre, with revenues flat. Some attribute this to a change in ownership with private equity taking a stake in the company, factor in reports of a "toxic culture" at the brewer and its brand image has certainly been tarnished .However, is this an almost inevitable consequence of successful, and rapid, growth?

It's a thought provoking article that all Business Management students should read.

Have President Trump's policies adversely affected US brands? I don't know perhaps you should ask Elon Musk.

Good brand never die, they just...I don't know, reappear at a later date. In this case, the Top Shop and Top Man brands dating from the 1960s, but which disappeared from the High Street five years ago, are back, albeit in partnership with John Lewis. Top Shop is going to appear in 32 of the company's 36 stores and the hope is that it has cross-generational appeal. 

On another note, the article highlights the fact that "Last year’s return of the group’s now 100-year-old price promise, never knowingly undersold had gone better than expected". I wonder if that was sacrificed on the altar of the previous Chair, Dame Sharon White, who had no retail experience and yet was installed with a near £1m salary. 

An interesting insight into the consequences of the cyber attack on Marks & Spencer's is the fact that it lost market share to some of its competitors, such as Next, Zara and H&M, according to the latest data. Sales were down by 20% when compared to the previous year - and those sales now account for one-third of all clothing and homeware sales.

Thus, it's clear that cybercrime has very real costs for the modern business, and it will be interesting to see if Marks And Spencer's reputation will see them regain any lost market share.

This is one of the oddest articles that I've ever 'scooped' but the Trump Organisation is diversifying into the mobile phone market, with the launch of the Trump phone. 

They claim that it's built in the US, but there will be many questions about where the components are sourced from. The phone will cost $499, and the monthly network charge will be $47.45, reflecting the number of President that President Trump is. 

Make of it what you will: however, my take is that the Presidency is now being used for two ends - personal enrichment and to keep the President out of prison - rather than advancing American interests.

Clearly price is an important part of the marketing mix but in this case Sports Direct appear to be manipulating consumers by using a Manufacturers Suggested Retail Price to imply that customers are getting a better deal than they really are. 

What's worse, is that the brands being sold in this fashion are part of the Mike Ashley business empire, so it's seemingly part of a coherent attempt to deceive conusmers. Which? have informed the Competition and Markets Authority. 

This Guardian piece asserts that US grocery retailer, Kroger - the country's second largest grocery brand -  is acting unethically, and probably also breaking consumer law by continuing to list sales prices on shelves, only to charge the regular price to customers at the checkout. Research by the paper, in association with its media partners found evidence of this in 14 of 26 stores reviewed. 

Evidence such is this being widely known is likely to damage the company's brand image.  

The issue of cyber security is part of the IB syllabus, albeit a small part. However, I can see that future years examination questions will start to ask about cyber attacks and their potential impact on a business, making this sort of article essential reading.

It talks about the costs of such attacks, their increased frequency and the impact on revenues and brand image for the companies' affected.

More evidence of the importance of cyber security and information management systems, with the news that a cyber attack on Co-op cost the group an estimated £80m in profits last year. The attack gained members' data and damaged supply chain. 

It looks like Amazon's plans for world domination have been put on hold, with the news that it's to close its 19 UK grocery stores, almost all of them in London, albeit that 5 of them are being converted into Whole Foods stores instead. 

I particularly like the comments of the analyst: "I think that grocery everywhere in the world, including the UK is very competitive...It's unlikely that Amazon Fresh has created a differentiated offering and it may not even have ideal locations, so it's probably not been set up well for success from the start." However, even as an outsider, I doubt whether it would have taken me - or most good Business Management students that long to have figured this out. 

I scoop this because the Ben & Jerry's brand is iconic, and what has happened to it since it was bought by Unilever, and subsequently being spun off to the Magnum Ice Cream Company, is a depressingly familiar tale. The social activism that helped give the brand its appeal has been sidelined, and as a result, co-founder Jerry Greenfield, who's been with the company for nearly 50 years has had enough. He's resigned, symbolising the end for the original culture inculcated by one of the most famous iconoclastic brands.  

It's here, it's annual and for afficionados of the iPhone, it will be a must have. Apple have launched a thinner iPhone with a price tag of $999 and also enhanced AirPods and the Apple Watch. Plenty to think about in relation to marketing, brand loyalty and, for the economists who stray here, PED.

Interesting little article looking at the decline of fast fashion brands Asos and Boohoo, suggesting that their product life cycle is exceptionally short, with the former dropping out of the FTSE 250.

But what has caused this? You'll have to read the article to find out - yes, the rise of Shein and Temu have played a part but there are some intriguing demand-side factors at play too,  

A KES-themed Business Management scoop: this time looking at the prospects for Costa Coffee amidst speculation that Coca-Cola are looking to sell the brand, for up to half the $4.9bn they paid Whitbread for it in 2019.

There are many reasons for this given in the article - it's worth a read if you are Business Management student because it highlights how trends change and sometimes major chains aren't nimble enough to react to changing market demand and their marketing mix isn't quite right.

I'll leave this here. No comment required, apart from suggesting it's a little bit lame...

A brilliant example of diversification that also shows how the music industry has changed, with the Guardian reporting that Oasis are opening six merchandise stores across the country to capitalise on their reunion gigs this summer. 

The 41 gig tour is reputed to be earning the Gallagher brothers anywhere between £40 and £400m, depending upon who you believe, and if it's true that the 50% of merchandise sales go to them, you might start thinking it will be nearer the larger of the two figures. 

This excellent Business Insider clip looks at the launch of the Nintendo Switch 2, at a higher price of $450 and with more expensive games, with Mario Kart World costing $80. 

So how are they able to justify this higher price? And what Business Management concepts can you bring to bear in analysing this. 

Is it an example of a firm exploiting its established brand to charge a premium price, or does it represent a more fundamental reset for a sector that's been characterised by nearly a decade of price stability?

You could be forgiven for thinking that I take pleasure in posting that Tesla's UK sales are down by over a third - and you'd be right. However, as well as Elon Musk's willingness to associate with an unpopular President, there's now greater competition from Chinese electric cars who are at a more competitive price point.

As the article makes clear, last month, Tesla sold 2,016 vehicles in the UK in May. BYD? 3.025. And in overall terms, it looks like Volkswagen are on the cusp of becoming the leading brand of electric car in the UK.  

This Nils Pratley piece is a nice summary of how M&S has dealt with the recent cyber-attack and its likely response. He suggests that for all the criticism of the firm, it's actually dealt with the crisis reasonably well, and that it shouldn't derail what appears to be an upturn in trading performance. However, it needs to get things right from this point on if it's to maintain its brand image and, perhaps more importantly, pre-tax profits.