The political & legal environment of business

Consumer law requires manufacturers to produce goods which are:

A ethical

B popular

C profitable

D safe

Text 2 C & J Clark International Ltd (Clarks)

Clarks is a successful UK footwear brand with ranges for children, women, and men. Their market is very competitive. Clarks employs specialist designers who create new shoe styles in response to fast-changing fashion trends. The designers interpret quantitative data carefully when planning new shoe styles.

The designers work closely with employees from other functional areas of the business, such as marketing, finance, and retail, to ensure that the new shoe styles meet customers’ needs profitably.

Clarks works hard to retain its team of designers, as they are central to its success. However, Clarks sometimes needs to recruit new designers and uses several selection methods to help find the best person available to fill the vacancy.

State two aspects of employment law that may affect a business.

Analyse one advantage for Clarks of interpreting quantitative data when designing new products.

Explain three reasons why employee retention is important for Clarks.

Analyse one advantage for Clarks of using interviews to select new designers.

Analyse one advantage for Clarks of using references to select new designers.

Recommend whether using interviews or references is likely to be more effective for selecting new designers. Give a reason for your answer.

Text 3

Primark Ltd

Primark Ltd is a fashion retailer that sells clothing and homeware at prices lower than most other retailers. The company is aware of the importance of consumer law and of having low-cost suppliers.

Primark Ltd started to sell its products online in 2022. After changes in buying habits and pressure from customers, in 2022 Primark Ltd launched an online click and collect service for shoppers.

Primark Ltd is very aware of the need to have ethical suppliers. The following ethical factors are among those important to Primark Ltd:

• giving clothes a longer life by using material from sustainable sources

• encouraging its supply chain to pay a living wage and look after the health and well-being of their workers.

Identify one factor which can affect the quality of a business’ products.

Analyse one impact of consumer law on Primark Ltd.

Analyse one benefit for Primark Ltd of having low-cost suppliers.

Analyse one advantage and one disadvantage to Primark Ltd of offering an online click and collect service for shoppers.

Recommend whether Primark Ltd should continue to offer an online click and collect service for shoppers.

(e*) Evaluate whether Primark Ltd’s use of ethical suppliers comes into conflict with its shareholders’ objectives.

A company makes wooden jigsaw puzzles.

By law, the company must:

A buy its wood from local suppliers

B deliver the jigsaw puzzles in electric vans

C replace any pieces that customers lose

D use paint that is non-toxic and safe

A contract of employment is:

A a diagram showing the formal lines of authority in a business

B a formal document outlining the objectives of a business

C a law that makes discrimination in the workplace illegal

D a legal agreement between an employer and an employee

A customer has bought a laptop from a computer shop.

By law, the computer shop must:

A match the price charged by a local competitor

B offer to upgrade the laptop for no extra charge

C provide virus protection to keep the customer’s files safe

D supply a laptop of satisfactory quality

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Text 2

Greggs

Greggs is a modern ‘food-on-the-go’ retail brand. It specialises in selling sandwiches, cakes, pastries and pies. Most of these are made by Greggs, using raw materials such as flour, meat and yeast. The company opened its first bakery 80 years ago and has since grown significantly. It currently has 20 000 employees. Greggs’ aim is to become the customer’s favourite for ‘food-on-the-go’ in the UK. This sector is growing quickly and is forecast to be worth £23.4 billion by 2024 (up from £18.5 billion in 2019).

According to The Vegan Society, the number of people in the UK choosing a vegan diet has increased during recent years (see Fig. 1).

The number of vegans in the UK

Using the market data, Greggs responded to this change by launching vegan sausage rolls in January 2019. The publicity generated helped Greggs’ total sales to increase by 9.6% in its next seven weeks of trading. Following this success the business launched other products, including vegan doughnuts and vegan steak bakes, based on consumer demand.

Managers at Greggs constantly monitor changes in consumer tastes. Similarly, they keep up-to-date with changes in employment law. Greggs’ managers also take pride in the business being named one of the happiest places to work in the UK. Greggs offers many ways of working, including part-time roles.

Explain one way that employment law may affect Greggs’ employment of workers.

Other than the government, explain one external stakeholder’s influence on Greggs.

Explain the purpose of planning business activity for Greggs’ managers.

Part-time is one way of working.

State two other ways of working.

Analyse one benefit for Greggs of using market data to create new products.

The managers of Greggs are considering two options for business growth.

Analyse one benefit for Greggs of business growth using each of the following methods.

Merger with a flour producer

Takeover of a rival ‘food-on-the-go’ retail brand

Recommend which of the two methods of business growth Greggs should use. Give reasons for your answer.

Text 3 Pukka Pies Ltd

Pukka Pies Ltd is a family-owned business with approximately 360 employees. It makes a range of high-quality savoury pies, including steak, chicken and mushroom, and chicken balti, in batches at its factory in Leicester, England. Pukka Pies are sold in more than 4000 food stores nationwide as well as in sports stadiums, fish and chip shops and cafés across the country.

Three of Pukka Pies Ltd’s key values are recruiting people who are ambitious, delighting customers with quality pies, and building trust with suppliers through food safety. Each of these values helps the business meet the requirements of consumer law.

The success of Pukka Pies Ltd is affected by many factors, including its logistical and supply chain decisions. Pukka Pies Ltd procures the ingredients for its pies from businesses across the UK and overseas; consequently its supply chain is long. Nevertheless, all of these ingredients need to arrive in good condition and, therefore, its logistics are time-critical. Unemployment levels also have a significant impact on Pukka Pies Ltd.

Pukka Pies Ltd considers its environmental impact across all aspects of business activity. It has already replaced some of the non-recyclable plastics used in its packaging with alternatives that can be recycled. In addition, none of the company’s waste goes to landfill.

Identify one way consumer law protects consumers.

Analyse the benefits to Pukka Pies Ltd of using a batch production process.

Analyse one way falling unemployment might influence recruitment at Pukka Pies Ltd.

Analyse the impact of each of the following on Pukka Pies Ltd:

the length of its supply chain........

the time-critical nature of its logistics........

Recommend whether the length of its supply chain or the time critical nature of its logistics has the greater impact on Pukka Pies Ltd’s success.

* Evaluate how Pukka Pies Ltd’s environmental considerations might influence its marketing

mix.