A-Level Business Management

Is it the beginning of the end for established car manufacturers who've failed to keep up with the demand for modern technologies and develop their own electric cars. 

Volkswagen have reported a 54% decline in pre-tax profits, attributing this to President Trump's tariffs and falling sales in China, but I'd argue that this disguises the fact that VW are no longer market leaders in the fastest growing sector of the market. Without drastic action, this isn't going to change and the prospect of 50,000 job losses by 2030 might only be the tip of the iceberg, should they be able to overcome trade union opposition. 

But where it's going to be enough long-term to save the group and brands such as Audi and the iconic Porsche, is another matter. 

An interesting article looking at the fortunes of Caffe Nero, and the fact that the company is more than just the eponymous brand - 200 Degrees, Coffee#1 and Harris + Hoole - are all part of its empire, although it seems as though Nero are going to pause any further purchases as they restructure in the next year. 

Indeed, the founder and still majority shareholder, Gerry Ford, argues that its current success is attributable to their steady pace of growth, rather than expanding too quickly. 

James Watt has gone public about his regret for some of his business decisions as the founder and one-time CEO of BrewDog, that has ultimately led the company into administration. 

That must be of no solace whatsoever to either the employees made redundant at 15 minutes notice or the Equity for Punks investors who are going to see no return on their investment. Still, he'll have his millions to console him. 

BrewDog's administration and subsequent purchase by US beverage and medicinal cannabis company Tilray means the end for the one time punk darlings, and there's a bit of a dark side to the deal too.

In the first place, 38 of BrewDog's pubs are shutting immediately, albeit not Birmingham, costing jobs - and overall 484 jobs are being lost. However, worse still it's 2009 scheme Equity for Punks, which raised £75m from small investors for international expansion, entitles these investors to nothing - they're "ordinary shareholders" - unlike the US equity group TSG Consumer Partners who bought a 22% stake in the company but were given "preference shares". 

Where has it all gone wrong for Ocado, with the online supermarket announcing 1,000 job cuts, and some of its North American partners closing automated warehouses. In fact, remarkably, since its founding a quarter of century ago, the company has scarcely made a profit. 

So what's changed? Analysts believe that Ocado's scale might be inefficient, and that the market has atomised in as much as local delivery firms such as Deliveroo, Amazon and JustEat, delivering from local stores are actually more efficient at meeting consumer needs. 

A rare mention of organisational culture appears on the BBC website, albeit not in a flattering light, with reports emerging that Tesco is suffering from a 'toxic culture', an unwillingness of senior leaders to listen concerns and worries about the ongoing performance of the business. 

As someone who pops into his local Co-op, it does not surprise me. The business has been shedding market share to the discounters for a while, and it gives the impression of a 'tired' business struggling for relevance in a dynamic market.

And given the latter, it's imperative that they fix it as soon as possible. 

Starbucks has bet big on AI, with further automation to stop the stocking out that has beset some of its stores. The arrival of a new Chief Executive, Brian Niccol, has bet big on technology cutting costs and at the same time has tweaked one or two things at Starbucks. 

However, will it be enough to transform the fortunes of the globally-renowned coffee chain that seemed to have, temporarily at least, lost its way? 

Neither a coup in terms of worker morale or brand image, Amazon has leaked a memo implying job cuts, denied it and then had to confirm that the company is proposing 16,000 job cuts in the months ahead. 

It doesn't look like a great day for either Colleen Aubrey, a senior vice president at Amazon Web Services (AWS) who drafted the e-mail that was subsequently sent out in error. Ooops! Of course, it's also interesting in as much as AWS has been responsible for much of the company's recent growth. 

I wonder how many of you are aware of the fact that Coca-Cola owns Costa Coffee? 

However, those of us who teach the subject know and we're probably also of the view that the decision to acquire the business was a dreadful one. As things stand, Coca Cola is looking to divest itself of the coffee chain, and willing to accept half of the £3.9bn price that it paid for the group. 

You might think about what's caused this - Coca-Cola are of the view that it's to do with the rising costs of coffee and the level of competition in the sector. I'd have thought the former were universally felt and that the latter already existed in 2018. As it is, no-one's willing to stump up £2bn for the business. 

Really nice article about the rare concept of crisis management, with Nestle having to recall batches of baby formula for fear of contamination with toxins inducing sickness in babies. 

You'd have thought that an organization like Nestle would have done some contingency planning and even run some staff training in case of such an eventuality, and this should minimize the potential damage to the brand. It will be fascinating to see how this plays out. 

It's worth noting that BYD is now the world's leading selling electric vehicle seller, having overtaken Tesla. It's facing intense competition within China, but has become increasingly popular elsewhere and is estimated to have sold 2.25m cars in 2025, with an 880% increase in its UK sales illustrative of this rise. 

A quick peak at the new branding for Great British Railways, with a reworking of the Union Flag, and the promise of better things to come. 

The cost of the cyber attack on Jaguar Land Rover is apparent in its latest quarterly figures - revenues down 24% on the same quarter last year and The carmaker posted a £485m loss...compared with a profit of £398m for the same period a year ago."

The mood music surrounding the labour market doesn't seem very encouraging, with a number of sources reporting relatively little hiring going on and a general sense of caution. Think about what this means for other economic variables, notably economic growth. 

This makes for an interesting read: a long BBC piece on the rise and subsequent fall of BrewDog, noting how the business inevitably changed over time and what it thinks was the catalyst for its ultimate failure. 

The fatal decision seems to be the sale of 20% of the company to US private equity group, TSG, and the conditions of that sale. It made the founders of BrewDog rich, but at the same time it seems that the private equity group exacted a pretty heavy toll having "inserted an incredibly punishing rate of return (18% annual compound interest) to protect their investment". This means that any returns up to 18% went to TSG, thereafter the small investors in the Equity for Punks scheme would get any returns.

The reality is that they haven't - and if you read the article, that's exactly who you'll feel sorry for: investing at unfavourable terms with, in hindsight, no chance of making a profit. Messrs Watt and Dickie on the other hand...?

An example of the product life cycle model in action? Are there only so many sausage rolls that an economy can eat?

Either way, Greggs is reporting a slowing of sales and with it a slump in profits. Analysts, though, are split on the future direction of travel, with some suggesting that Gregg's has adapted it's strategies to be more responsive to consumer tastes, with regard to both its menu and its opening hours. 

AI isn't coming; it's here. It's being reported that Burger King is rolling out AI to track employee interactions with customers and check whether or not they are saying certain phrases - "Welcome", "Please" and "Thank You".

The BK Assistant, known as Patty, is going to be rolled out in the US by the end of 2026, and the company has gone all corporate-speak in its defence: “BK Assistant is a coaching and operational support tool built to help our restaurant teams manage complexity and stay focused on delivering a great guest experience,” the spokesperson added. “It’s not about scoring individuals or enforcing scripts. It’s about reinforcing great hospitality and giving managers helpful, real-time insights so they can recognize their teams more effectively.” 

I would have thought good quality recruitment and training would have gone a long way towards ensuring that Burger King's stores exhibit these characteristics.

Interesting news from north of the border, in that one-time media darlings, Brewdog have been put up to sale. The official line is that the company are operating in a tough environment, and are looking to operate in a more sustainable longer-term fashion.

The company has had more mixed reviews recently, in large part in response to well-documented concerns about the organisational culture. 

Interesting stateside business snippet: Walmart has become the first retailer to reach a $1 trillion stock market valuation. However, it's worth reading on to see what's propelled it here - Walmart is increasingly embracing technology - its online retail arm is seeing dramatic growth - and it's even relisted itself on the NASDAQ index to emphasise its technology credentials. 

Really nice article for Business Management students, looking at why Asda is losing market share in the cut-throat grocery retail market. 

It's a study in how not to run a grocery retailer, and also illustrates that going 'back to the future' doesn't always work, with the appointment of Allan Leighton and the restoration of the Asda Rollback campaign reducing prices. 

Given that there's an Asda close to me, and I only use it to shop for certain items and to buy things on sale and do most of my shopping with the discounters, Lidl and Aldi, I can tell you why it's failing. Low quality, and poorly maintained stores. You don't need to be a market analyst or supermarket executive to discern this. 

There is no such thing as bad publicity, according to some, and Michael O'Leary, CEO of Ryanair is probably one of those people. 

He's recently become embroiled in an ongoing spat with Elon Musk that has seen them trade insults, and he's come out smiling, noting that the net result has a 2 to 3% increase in Ryanair's sales. He's also offered Musk a free Ryanair flight to thank him. 

Just great marketing. 

Oh dear! 

Elon Musk's dalliance with social media doesn't seem to be bearing fruit, with the news that UK revenues from the platform have fallen by 60% over the past year. I can't see them recovering any time soon, what with the brand image being generated both by Elon Musk and the use of Grok to create sexually explicit imagery.  

This article highlights a company that, for a long time, has been one of the nation's darlings, Greggs. However, the proposed expansion of Greggs, with investment in two new factories and the stated intention to add another 800 stores to their portfolio, has received a mixed reception.

For some, given falling sales in 2025, it smacks of desperation, although you might argue that poor macroeconomic performance has affected sales more than anything intrinsic to the company itself. However, think about what Business Management concepts you might be able to apply - the product life cycle? What about the marketing mix? Or the implications of income elasticity of demand which may, or may not, be part of your syllabus but which is certainly a concept that you should become aware of. 

I rather like the comment of analyst, Dan Coatsworth: “Greggs is at a massive strategic turning point and the bosses need to do something,” he said. “Banging the drum saying nothing is wrong is not cutting the mustard. What’s wrong with doing what you do now and doing it really well?” 

I've put this here - it could equally be Microeconomics - but it seems as though Elon Musk's ill-advised foray into politics and his continuous sniping on social media have damaged the Tesla brand to the extent that EU sales for November are down by around a third. 

Oh dear, what a pity!

Asda's had a tough time, what with IT-related issues and the stagnant economy, and the complaint about the higher costs of business and fragile consumer confidence will resonate with many businesses. 

However, you'd also have to point out that the simple fact of the matter is that they are out-competed at either end of the market. Discounters undercut them, other stores are perceived as being of greater quality. Both are issues that Asda itself needs to tackle.