Coursework Assignment

In this assignment, students will be expected to research thoroughly (using secondary data), critically discuss and evaluate a retail failure. For this essay, students are expected to follow the structure given below and integrate relevant theory from this and other marketing/management courses. Specifically, students are expected to: 

• Select a retail failure in the world and critically discuss and evaluate why it failed (please note it may be a domestic or international retail firm).
• From the identification of the retail failure case, you must then select between 4-5 revealing/insightful quotations from media sources and evaluate those quotations within the context of the failure and theory.

For example,

“We may have assumed that certain elements of the Fresh & Easy brand would do the work for us and we would not have to go down and dirty on price. That may have been a mistake” (Tim Mason, head of Tesco’s US business). 

GUIDELINES FOR THE ESSAY 

The extended essay will have a number of parts. The total word limit for this essay is 2000 words. All parts of the essay should be formatted in 1.5 spacing and Times New Roman. The following structure for the extended essay is required.

1. The Essay
2. References
3. An Appendix 

1.THE ESSAY 

The essay has three main parts (all parts of the essay will be marked equally – 25%/each): 

1^st Part: The retail failure case 

• A short introduction of the topic. Keep background information to a minimum.
• Develop the subject by writing about four to five good solid paragraphs relating directly to the topic. You will be marked on the strength of your arguments and the solidity of your justifications. Developing both sides of the argument is important.
• Select between 4-5 quotations around central themes of the retail failure. These will be identified from media sources and evaluate those quotations. For Example, “We may have assumed that certain elements of the Fresh & Easy brand would do the work for us and we would not have to go down and dirty on price. That may have been a mistake” (Tim Mason, head of Tesco’s US business). Please note that these may be direct quotations from management or a journalist. Either is acceptable so long as it is referenced appropriately. (Explain this quotation from a theoretical point of view – in this example Mason is talking about the corporate identity, brand associations and on a side note pricing)
• The key is to weave your arguments around both theory and practice, using theory to deepen your (counter-) arguments.
• For media sources – such as TV, Internet, popular marketing magazines (take these with a big pinch of salt) – you should critically appraise what is said/shown in light of your own developing theoretical knowledge of management. In the above example you would highlight the wider role of McCarthy’s 4ps – the marketing mix – and the way that management overlooked or ignored the integration aspect of this theory. Here you would bring in studies relating to the (retail) marketing mix to either support or refute management arguments. 

2^nd Part Evaluation of theory (literature review) 

• Find the underlying cause of the failure from the quotes in section one. 
• Decide which theories (max. 3) would explain the failure. 
• Write a literature review for these theories. 
• At another level, students are also expected to evaluate the theory that is integrated into your arguments. These may be from the studies which draw attention to the limitations of that particular theory. 
• You must selectively integrate relevant management theory to help support your arguments. It is expected that students draw upon theory beyond (retail) marketing in the wider management field. Select at least two theoretical arguments you have found through your own research. 

3^rd Application of theories to the Case

• Explain the failure case using the theories you have evaluated (reviewed) in the 2^nd part

2. REFERENCES 

• Make short references to your sources. Please use the Harvard System of referencing. You may do this by supporting a point, which you have made with a direct quote from the author of one or more of your sources. Alternatively you may refer to the views of the author in your own words. 

3.THE APPENDIX

• There is no word limit to this part of the essay; however it will contain almost all of the descriptive material used to support your analytical arguments. Appendices appearing at the end of the text are not included in the word count. 
• Any key statistics and documentation.
• Tables and diagrams.