Evolution of Financial Management Essay

The Traditional Phase:This phase has lasted for about four decades. Its finest expression was shown in the scholarly work of Arthur S. Dewing, in his book tilted the Financial Policy of Corporation in 1920s. In this phase the focus of financial management was on four selected aspects. It treats the entire subject of finance from the outsider’s point of view (investment banks, lenders, other) rather than the financial decision maker in the firm. It places much importance of corporation finance and too little on the financing problems of non-corporate enterprises. The sequence of treatment was on certain episodic events like formation, issuance of capital, major expansion, merger, reorganization and liquidation during the life cycle of an enterprise. It laid heavy emphasis on long-term financing, institutions, instruments, procedures used in capital markets and legal aspects of financial events. That is, it lacks emphasis on the problems of working capital management. It was criticized throughout the period of its dominance, but the criticism is based on matters of treatment and emphasis. Traditional phase was only outsiders looking approach, over emphasis on episodic events and lack of importance to day-to-day problems. The Transition Phase: It began in the early 1940’s and continued through the early 1950’s. The nature of financial management in this phase is almost similar to that of the earlier phase, but more emphasis is given to the day-to-day (working capital) problems faced by the finance managers. Capital budgeting techniques were developed in this phase. Much more details of this phase is given in the book titled Essays on Business Finance. The Modem Phase: It began in the mid 1950’s and has shown commendable development with combination of ideas from economic and statistics has led the financial management to be more analytical and quantitative. The main issue of this phase is rational matching of funds to their uses, which leads to the maximization of shareholders’ wealth. This phase witnessed significant developments. The area of advancement was – capital structure. The study says the cost of capital and capital structure is independent in nature. Dividend policy, suggests that there is the effect of dividend policy on the value of the firm. This phase has also seen one of the first applications of linear programming. For estimation of opportunity cost of funds, multiple rates of return-gives way to calculate multiple rates of a project. Investment decision under conditions of uncertainty gives the formula for determination of expected cash inflows and variance of net present value of project and also defined how probabilistic information helps the firm to optimize investment decisions involving risk. Portfolio analysis gives the idea for the allocation of a fixed sum of money among the available investment securities. Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM), suggests that some of the risks in investments can be neutralized by holding a diversified portfolio of securities. Arbitrage Pricing Model (APM), argued that the expected return must be related to risk in such a way, that no single investor could create unlimited wealth through arbitrage. CAPM is still widely used in the real world, but APM is slowly gaining momentum. The Agency theory emphasizes the role of financial contracts in creating and controlling agency problems. Option Pricing Theory (OPT), applied Martingale pricing principle to the pricing of real estates. The cash management of models (working capital management) by Baumol Model, Miller and Orglers, Baumol models helps to determine optimum cash conversion size; Miller model reorder points and upper control points and Orglers model helps to determine optimal cash management strategy by adoption of linear programming application. Further new means of raising finance with the introduction of new capital market instruments, such as Pads, Fads, PSBs and Caps, etc. Financial engineering that involves the design, development and the implementation of innovative financial instruments, and formulation of creative optional solutions to problems in finance. Even though, the above mentioned developed areas of finance is remarkable, but understanding the international dimension of corporate finance formed a very small part of it, which is not sufficient in this era of globalization.

The Background of DAY

Background of DAY Background Our brand is a renowned international Danish-owned clothing company founded in 1997 by Keld Mikkelsen and Malene Birger, headquartered in Odense and at Kongens Nytorv in Copenhagen. Our profit in 2006 was up to 13 million and has been expanding in recent years. Moreover, we hold two fashion shows in Copenhagen fashion week every year. Products Our brand’s products can be classified into three main lines, which are male, female and home decor. Designet tilhorer hojeste kvalitet med etnisk inspireret broderi og udsmykning. The design of which belongs to the highest quality with a distinct Scandinavian style inspired by the true craftsmanship of Asian tailoring, the meeting of art and craft – embroidery, prints, patterns, edging and trimming. Our unique design includes modern, individual, bohemian and international styles with inspiration from the colonial period in the Far East, vintage flea market treasures and the glamour of the twenties and thirties. Retail format Our brand was originally a local retailer selling private labels but is now expanding into a global multichannel retailer. In less than 15 years of existence, our company has opened around 40 self-named boutiques. In total, 800 retailers in 25 different countries, such as Sweden , England and Germany, are currently selling our collections, out of which 60 can be found in France. Target market The target groups are women and men aged 25-40 with high income. Our new line 2nd DAY, on the other hand, is aimed at a slightly younger target market than the main range. The market segment is mainly Scandinavia, but is now expanding to other parts of Northern Europe. Konceptet bag tojet er, at tilbyde festtoj til hverdagen til den modebevidste kvinde og herre. The concept behind our clothes is to offer evening wear to everyday life for the fashion-conscious women and men. Background of Hong Kong The main focus of our brand is in the Northern Europe, but the fact is that it is also suitable for the Asian market. We think that DAY can do that, by choosing Hong Kong as a starting point. Hong Kong, as a metropolitan, contains elements which fit the attitude and concept of our brand. Hong Kong is a Special Administrative Region of the People’s Republic of China, located on the southern coast of China. This location provides a good connection for the linkage of international companies to China. Besides, Hong Kong is one of the most famous international financial centres of the world with stable economic situation and is a developed city where the citizens can enjoy good quality of lives. These characteristics effectively help our brand to build its image in Asia as a brand new market. Hong Kong was a colony of Britain, and now it becomes the SAR of China. Therefore, the concept of â€Å"East meets West† is rather familiar in Hong Kong. We can find both British architectures and Chinese markets in Wan Chai. We can also enjoy both steak and congee at Cha Chaan Tengs. This kind of fusion matches the concept of our brand, combining local with global, as we create our design by mixing Asian embroideries and Western contemporary cutting together, making pieces of daily couture. We believe that the fusion concept can arouse a pretty large market for Hong Kong people and they can adapt to our brand easily. The location of Hong Kong is also perfect for us to enter a larger market. Through Hong Kong, our products can be sold to China and other Asian cities. This is rather important as the interest of Danish fashion for Chinese companies is now rapidly growing. For instance, the Copenhagen Fashion Week this year attracted 50 Chinese buyers, media and producers like Vogue China, showing that a number of Chinese companies are giving a big recognition to Danish fashion. Now, there are approximately 30 Danish companies and 4000 retail stores operating in China, and the export level of the Danish fashion industry has increased its earnings by 11. 4%. Thus it is no doubt a suitable time for us to enter the Asian market for Danish fashion companie. However, the Chinese may not be able to digest this new style so fast. Hong Kong is a good indicator though. If this style is suitable for Hong Kong people, the products can be promoted to the Mainland more easily. After that, the promotion of our brand in China would be much more effective. More than that, Hong Kong is much more developed than the Mainland in terms of transportation. It would be easier to transport products to various places in Asia through Hong Kong. Apart from that, logistic costs can be minimized. The economic position of Hong Kong is another point which stands out. Hong Kong is a renowned financial and trading city, and the policies of Hong Kong suit these characteristics. Noticing the economic freedom, low tax rates, stabilized currency and complete law of Hong Kong, many companies are willing to have their business there. We could accomplish this as well. In addition, the economic situation fits our target. The annual GNP of Hong Kong is about US$45000, which tells us that Hong Kong citizens are generally rich, with a large purchasing power. Since our target market mainly focuses on high income customers, we believe that our brand can generate a large market in Hong Kong. Apart from that, our brand also matches the taste of Hong Kong citizens. As a metropolitan, the information flow of Hong Kong is rapid, and citizens can receive information directly. As a result, many citizens are familiar with fashion. They know how to mix and match and they notice good foreign brands. This attracts more and more fashion brands to enter Hong Kong. Recently, another Danish top brand Bruuns Bazaar has had their business in Hong Kong because of the market potential of Hong Kong. Currently, a number of citizens know what bohemian style is and they are interested in it. Having so few bohemian boutiques in Hong Kong, this would be a great opportunity for us to be the leader of this style in Hong Kong. Moreover, Hong Kong people generally like dressing casually, and that is why the simple cutting of H&M and Zara satisfies what they want. This can also be accomplished by us. The earth tone we are using is popular in Hong Kong, too. Therefore, we are sure that we can satisfy Hong Kong people’s specialized taste. The last point is related to our founder, Keld Mikkelsen. Before founding DAY, he had studied Asian tailoring and culture for over a decade in Hong Kong. He is familiar with the characteristics of Hong Kong. If our brand is open in Hong Kong, it would be not only meaningful but also useful to develop a large business with Mikkelsen’s knowledge. To develop our brand as a global business, a start in Asia is essential. There are significant cities in Asia like Singapore, Bangkok and Tokyo. However, from the perspectives of economy, physical location and social culture, Hong Kong is the best choice to promote our brand globally. Starting our business in Hong Kong would bring us to a new and more successful chapter of DAY. Mission statement, goals, objectives Mission statement To drive bohemian style into Asia and to be the leader of bohemian style in Asia by providing mass appeal but creative and unique merchandise offering superior value to customer. Through the inspirational key look and iconic design, we are committed to provide our customers with the ultimate creative design. Goals We aim at making Hong Kong citizens become interested in our unique design with bohemian style, bear in mind that DAY is a well known brand name in Hong Kong and make purchase in our shops. In addition, we will introduce our home collection into Hong Kong market within a few years. Objectives Our objective is a 40% increase in traffic in the first half month, following by a 90% increase in transactions from the first month of trading to the sixth. In the first year, we will open a flagship store. It is the first step for our brand to enter Hong Kong market and to make a great profit. Then we will open a branch store each year. With our existing non-transactional brand site already attracting 2000 visitors a day, we are tasked with increasing this number, as well as growing our 14,000 database. We have to ensure that most Hong Kong citizens aged 25-40 will recognize our brand in five years. Outside Hong Kong, we will have our self-named boutiques in ten other Asian cities within five years. SWOT analysis Strengths The first competitive advantage of our company is the experience of opening retail stores in foreign countries. We have got over 40 self-named boutiques all around Europe and 800 retailers in 25 different countries. We also have over 15 years experience of running our stores and maintaining our reputation in the market. Secondly, our unique style, bohemian style, is rarely found in Hong Kong and this is beneficial for us to enter the market. Even if the style is similar, our target customer may be different as we focus on high income customers. This would avoid direct competition with those brands having similar style as ours. For instance, in the recent spring / summer, the sub-brand of i. , b+ab, has opened a line of bohemian style clothing. However, it would not become a great competitor of our brand due to the difference in price range and customer group. b+ab targets at a younger customer group (20+) while our brand targets at a maturer customer group (30+). In addition to that, the casual style would be easier accepted by this group of customer. Furthermore, our popularity in foreign are a has built up a good image to Hong Kong. As the information flow of Hong Kong is rapid, some of the customers may already know our brand even we do not have any stores in Hong Kong. Apart from that, our high-end product strategy has kept the quality assurance of our brand and we hold two fashion shows in Copenhagen fashion week every year in order to increase our publicity. Lastly, the low inventory of each item has led to lower carrying cost and would not tide up the cash flow. The small quantity of each design has also created a sense of scarcity. We can let the customers differentiate themselves from the others with our design. Weaknesses One of the weaknesses of our brand is the location of our production factories. As they are far away from Hong Kong, the running cycle will be slowed down, which is a serious problem for a fast fashion company. Moreover, the far-away-distribution centre will cause longer lead time and high transportation cost. In addition, as the assortment of our business concentrates mainly on one specific type, Bohemian style, if Hong Kong customers do not have interest in this style, possibly there will be no market in Hong Kong. What is more, as our brand is mainly for high class customers, the customer range is narrow, and so opening chain stores in Hong Kong can be quite risky. Unlike those fast fashion brands with medium price range, it is far more difficult for high class customers to have impulse purchasing. As buying high-priced clothes is only a hedonic need, customers may have to think twice before buying the clothes, and their desire to buy the products may be lowered after considering the price and the use of the clothes. Opportunities The opportunities of our brand include the market potential in Hong Kong. Since Hong Kong customers tend to buy new clothes regularly, they are willing to accept and explode new things. Generally, they welcome new brands to enter Hong Kong market. In addition, bohemian style is quite a new style to Hong Kong. Compared with the sporty and normal casual style which has already existed in Hong Kong, it is rare to have such a retailer store selling bohemian style clothing only. The unique style may attract customers to make a visit or even make a purchase in our store. Moreover, we notice that Japanese has recently become interested in bohemian style, and quite a number of Hong Kong customers tend to follow Japanese fashion. Since Hong Kong customers today can get fashion information from different media like newspapers, television, radio, magazines, direct mail, Internet and so forth, with so many Japanese magazines reporting the latest wearing trend in their own country, which can be easily bought in Hong Kong, Hong Kong customers can access Japanese information and follow the trend easily. Threats Talking about the threats we may face, lacking experience would be one of them. As this is our first time to open a store in an Asian country, opening a flagship store in Hong Kong would be rather experimental. Operating a store in Hong Kong may not be the same as operating our own local store. The second threat is the difficulty in finding a location for the flagship store in Hong Kong, which is a crowded place and in which the rent of a store is high. As the main purpose of opening the first store in Hong Kong is to promote our brand to the public and let Hong Kong customers concern about our design, the location of the store ought to have heavy traffic of high class customers, for example, a fashion centre. However, the rent of a store in a fashion centre is always high due to the designated atmosphere and the erfect facilities. Besides, there are too many intertype competitions and so it can be difficult to enter and stay in the market. Although bohemian style is a new style to Hong Kong, there are many other fashion brands with different kinds of style with the same price range and customer group as ours. Economic recession of Hong Kong will be another threat. As the unemployment rate has been quite high, our target group may not accept the price. In 2008, Hong Kong's economy has fallen into recession for the first time in five years, and the territory's gross domestic product has contracted 0. % on a seasonally adjusted basis, after a 1. 4% fall between April and June. In 2009, according to official records, Hong Kong's economy has left a year-long recession, recording a growth of 3. 3% in the second quarter ended in June. The figures, which were seasonally adjusted, were higher than forecast by economists. As a result, the government has increased its growth predictions for 2009. Even though the economy of Hong Kong is improving, concern still exists as the purchasing power of Hong Kong customers has decreased. Retail market strategies Retail format Being a multichannel retailer, we allow customers to make their purchase at our self-named boutique, pop-up store or on the Internet. Later on, in order to let people concern more about our brand, we will also run collection shops in Hong Kong. Besides, we plan to create a Chinese version on our website so as to make Chinese customers’ purchase even more convenient, and the products would be sent to the customers’ homes directly or they can take the products personally from our store. Target market Our main target customers include high income Asian and European women and men who are fond of trendy and casual fashion and are aged 25 to 40. Their expense on clothing would be approximately $5,000 to $10,000 per month. Retail Mix Location For our first specialty store in Hong Kong, we would choose a fashion centre as our store location. Being a newly developed brand in Hong Kong, it is too risky for us to locate our first store in freestanding sites, central business district or main streets, where we are responsible for all the operation and promotion. It is also quite difficult to attract customers for their initial visit as our brand is not widely known by Hong Kong customers. Renting a store in a fashion centre, on the contrary, is much securer. Being controlled by the mall developer, common facilities like outdoor signage, parking area, parking lot light and security are provided in the shopping centre. Advertising and special events to attract consumers are also available, and operating costs can be shared with others. Apart from that, shopping centres can usually draw a large number of customers due to the wide range of product offerings, easy access, lower crime rate, and last but not least the clean and comfortable shopping environment. Our ideal fashion centres include Elements in Kowloon and Landmark in Central. Being composed mainly of upscale apparel shops, boutiques, and gift shops carrying selected fashions or unique merchandise of high quality and price, the two fashion centres successfully attract a wide range of high income and fashion-conscious local customers and tourists. Other upscale apparel shops located there may be our competitors, but we would consider them as complementary shops as we are selling completely different types of clothes. We have our own unique style. For the most significant advantage of these two malls, we would say it is the convenience brought by the public transport as both Elements and Landmark are located very close to the MTR station. In such a small city with such a dense population and so many buildings like Hong Kong, we understand that finding a store can be difficult and each foot of a store in a fashion centre can cost us a lot. Yet, we would keep paying attention to the arrangement and changes of our chosen fashion centres and properly transfer our cash flow and properties to ensure we are well-prepared for renting a store in Hong Kong. Merchandise assortment For our product categories, we aim at providing a deep assortment of simple and basic clothing. In each category, quite a number of styles would be provided in order to satisfy the customers, and there will not be big differences between the products sold in Hong Kong and our original merchandise assortment. In order to meet our customers’ needs, we will provide a wide size range of clothing from XS to XL. A wide variety of colour will be provided, too. On the other hand, only women’s and men’s wear would be sold first. As it is quite rare for Hong Kong people to buy furniture or something else in shops held by a fashion brand, we are afraid that it may be risky if we introduce our home collection at the same time we launch our first store in Hong Kong. As for the decoration of our store, items from our home collection will be used, and we will think about operating the line as well at a later stage if we notice that customers also show their interest in those items. Pricing The price range of our products is now high, and this can be also applied to Hong Kong because of the favourable economic condition of Hong Kong. The economic condition creates a lot of high income consumers to purchase goods of high prices. Therefore the adjustment of pricing will not be large. Besides, the low inventory adds value of the products. As each kind of our products is only available in a limited amount, higher price can even be achieved in Hong Kong. However, the pricing will be set lower in the first two months, about a 10% off sale, in order to attract more consumers, who always love to purchase cheaper goods. Notice that our products in Hong Kong are sold at a lower price than the initial one, they would be pleased to make a purchase and our company can gain positive images. Eventually, our company can earn long-run profits. Generally, big sales will not occur, and this can be explained by our physical location. For example, one of our chosen locations Elements has a lot of specialty stores selling luxurious and expensive products. If we offer large discounts, our products would  be  much cheaper than those of other boutiques and shops for high income consumers, and as a result we will not be favourable in this high price market competition. Another point is that when we have only one flagship store but without any outlet stores or discount stores, steady pricing, instead of offering big sales such as 70% off, which can be offered in Denmark, would be more appropriate. Yet, seasonal discount is still acceptable. We can offer about 25% off sales at the end of the seasons. On the other hand, we offer VIP systems. Inside our VIP room, there are two types of products. One is our normal products sold at a 20% discount. Another is the exclusive and limited products available only in our VIP room and sold at a price about 15% higher than our normal products, aiming at showing the special identity of the VIP members. What is more, a free home decor style reusable bag would be given to each of our VIP members as a gift after his or her purchase. Promotion In order to bring more traffic to our store, we would like promote ourselves in three aspects, which are advertising, sales promotion and public relations. 1) Advertising We would like to have institutional advertising to promote the reputation of our company by taking a series of promotion photos which can represent the style of our brand. The photos would express the relaxing and leisure feeling of bohemian lifestyle. As Hong Kong people are generally stressful and busy, photos with relaxing and comfortable feeling would be attractive and conspicuous. On the other hand, newspapers, magazines, Internet, transit advertising and outdoor advertising would be our ideal advertising media. We would like to have one to two full page advertisement on newspapers and magazines. We would choose the South China Morning Post to be the first newspaper we have our advertisement on since it is one of the most famous English newspapers in Hong Kong and their target readers are similar to our target customers. As for magazines, Hong Kong fashion magazines like Jessica and Cosmopolitan would be our choices as quite a lot of our target customers would like reading these kinds of magazines. Moreover, we would add a Chinese version to our online shop and our advertising page on Facebook in order to attract and provide convenience to the Asian market. This kind of advertisement would be less expensive but more effective than the others as we have already set up the basic program. Furthermore, transit and outdoor advertising are two effective forms of advertising to attract traffic as most people can read the advertisement when they pass by. Our advertisement would be set up on the wall of the fashion centre where our store locates, and bus-body advertisement would also be our choice as buses would run around the central business district and let people know about our brand. 2) Sales promotion In order to promote our brand, holding special events would be effective, too. For instance, we can have catwalk shows in our shop and exhibitions in different shopping malls. The exhibitions would show our new clothing of the coming season in the display area of the shopping malls, so as to provide opportunities for people to appreciate our products. Moreover, we would like to hold a seasonal discount before the coming of the next season. This can help clear the dead stock in the store effectively. Besides, we would like to set up a pop-up store for a month. The pop-up store would possibly look like a home and would be decorated in the style of our home collection, showing our comfortable and leisure bohemian style. This can let our customers view our products comfortably. One of the most suitable locations for setting up our pop-up store is Festival Walk in Kowloon Tong as the visitors of Festival Walk are quite similar to our target customers. It is also easy to access and has an ideal exhibition area in the middle of the mall. What is more, people who are attracted by our pop-up store can easily travel to our store as Festival Walk and one of our chosen locations Elements are quite nearby. Moreover, we would set up a VIP system. When customers shop for a certain amount of money, they can join our VIP. VIP members of our store can enter our VIP room and make their purchase freely and comfortably with a 10% discount. In addition to that, each of them can get a free home decor style reusable bag as a gift for packing his or her goods. This can please the customers with an exquisite packing and also help us promote our home collection line. Apart from that, letters would be sent to inform the customers of our latest news and products, and well-designed cards would also be sent on their birthdays and at some special festivals, aiming at maintaining the firm connection between our customers and our brand. ) Public relations As for the public relations, we would donate parts of our profits to Red Cross as our company has joined the Red Cross Club. This can help improve our image and more importantly support charitable foundations. For instance, we can donate 5% income of a set of product to Red Cross. We can also hold some events from which benefits would be donated to Red Cross. One exa mple is that when a customer donates his or her old pair of jeans, he or she can get a 15% off discount when he or she buys a new pair of jeans from our store, and the old jeans collected would be donate to Red Cross. Customer service In order to increase the brand loyalty of our currently existing customers and to encourage them to make their next visit, customer service is an integral part to operate our brand. As customers’ trust can be destroyed at once by a major service problem, we would like to avoid this by providing return policies, pre-order service, delivery service, and more importantly, strengthening our personal service. 1) Personal service We believe in the friendly face of retailing. Our highly professional, responsible and trustworthy staff would warmly greet our customers with courtesy. They are good at answering queries and solving problems, too. Besides, they are able to offer reassurance whenever it is needed, turn complainants into brand champions, and more importantly, actively offer assistance in selecting fashion merchandise. For example, they cross-sell related products, follow up abandoned carts, track order progress, keep a trained eye out for suspicious activities, and provide weekly activity reports. We perform promises to customers and the degree of trendy  apparels with different colors for mix and match. 2) Return policies We offer product exchange and return policies and money back guarantees. Refunds or gift cards would also be given to customers if they change their mind in respect of their purchase, as long as the items are returned within 2 days of purchase with the original receipt, original tags and original bags attached. Gift cards, sale items and samples are excluded from this policy. Customers may choose the refund by exchange to bonus point for next time purchase. 3) Pre-order Apart from return policies, pre-order service is also provided. Before making purchase, customers can take notice on our leaflet showing detailed information of each product. As they may not be able to find a suitable size of clothing for themselves, they can pre-order a specific size of clothing. Pre-order items will be arrived within two to three weeks, and customers are welcome to settle the payment within one day after placing an order. We will arrange the reservation for our customers as soon as possible, and inform customers by email before shipping and once the pre-order has been arrived at Hong Kong. 4) Delivery In order to encourage customers to buy and to provide them with convenience, free delivery service is offered on orders $5000 or over. The delivery will be made the next day after the customers settle the payment. Store design and display Similar to our local store in Denmark, simple and warm tone with yellow lighting would be the main layout of our flagship store in Hong Kong in order to provide customers with warm feeling. The display window would be plain in colour and our latest design would be shown there. In order to provide customers with home feeling, clothes racks instead of dummies would be used. For instance, a whole set of clothing can be displayed with a big whiteboard card as the background, and with the model’s face being drawn on the card. Inside our store, a VIP room exclusive for our VIP members would be built. We plan to set up the room on the second floor of the store and there would be luxurious and comfortable sofas for customer. Furniture from our home collection will possibly used to decorate the room, aiming at promoting our home collection products. Relaxing and slow background music will be used in our store. As for the wallpaper of our store, unobvious floral print will be chosen as it is widely used in home decoration. In short, we will follow the general style of Europe’s housing as our store layout. Roberto Cavalli – our existing competitor Type of products clothes, accessories, eyewear, shoes, jewels, perfumes, watches, underwear, bags Target Market high income group middle age -25-40 years old Style The main color is the series of earth tone color, blue, black and white. The exaggerate pattern are always used in their design. l  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Retailer distribution cha nnels Boutiques (2067-2069,IFC Mall, Central[+852 22347621]) online store Mission| To provide women with timelessly dramatic pieces that flatter the female form. | Types of products| Mainly clothes, accessories, eyewear, shoes, jewels, perfumes, watches, underwear and bags are sold. Style| The main color of the series is earth tone color, blue, black and white, and exaggerate patterns are always used in their design. | Retailer format| Both boutiques and online shops are available. | Target market| High income customers aged 25 to 40 are their main target group. | Pricing| Most products are sold at a high price and VIP is offered. VIP can enjoy special discounts, fashion shows and parties organized by Roberto Cavalli. | Store Display| The store display of Roberto Cavalli is clean, modern and simple. White is usually used in the store color, while the lighting is direct and white. With mannequins standing behind the window, the layout is no different from many boutiques. | Promotion| As a worldwide famous brand, Roberto Cavalli puts a large amount of effort on promotion. Each season, campaigns are shot and put in large billboards outside specialty centers. These campaigns are also posted on famous fashion magazines like Elle and Vogue. Besides, under publicity, Elle often reports news of Roberto Cavalli. The target customers of Roberto Cavalli are powerful women, therefore they often organize big shows and welcoming celebrities stand on red carpets, and generate promotion with publicity. What is more, Roberto Cavalli had a crossover with H;M to organize campaigns in 2007. | Customer Service| Generally, the service approach of Roberto Cavalli is expressive. The staff care about customers' choice of clothing. They also offer the best size of clothing for the customers. Besides, Roberto Cavalli provides customers with care service, allowing customers to ask questions about their shopping experience by e-mail. | Type of products clothes, accessories, eyewear, shoes, jewels, perfumes, watches, underwear, bags Target Market high income group middle age -25-40 years old Style The main color is the series of earth tone color, blue, black and white. The exaggerate pattern are always used in their design. l  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Retailer distribution channels Boutiques (2067-2069,IFC Mall, Central[+852 22347621]) online store (http://store. robertocavalli. com/navigation. asp? tskay Comparison with Roberto Cavalli The style between DAY and Roberto Cavalli is slightly different. However, as both are high-end fashion brands, some strategies are similar. For example, pricing, location and customer service strategies are relatively standard aiming at attracting the same kind of customers. Yet, our emphasis is mainly n merchandise assortment, promotion and store display to create sustainable differential advantages. In terms of the style of merchandise, DAY is presenting its specific style. As the wild, sexy style is quite common in the Hong Kong market, Roberto Cavalli can hardly provide a unique image for customers. On the contrary, the bohemian s tyle of DAY cannot be easily found in Hong Kong, especially the high-end bohemian fashion items. Therefore, it is quite hard to copy the style of DAY, and this can definitely attract a certain amount of customers. In addition, DAY’s products are more suitable for the Hong Kong citizens. Although Roberto Cavalli is also selling expensive clothing with earth tone colour, the style is more dramatic and exaggerated. The dramatic style had once been fashionable in Hong Kong in the 80s, but this trend is now fading. Hong Kong people are going back to basic, simple and relaxing clothing style. As DAY is doing the mixing of Western and Eastern styles, our products do not contrast a lot, but instead have a harmonic look. The style DAY runs is the style Hong Kong people currently want and it would last for a period of time. This creates an advantage in selling the appropriate products to the right market. As for the promotion strategy, Roberto Cavalli is very good at promoting its brand, but we have a different approach that can create a specific image of DAY. The campaigns of Roberto Cavalli are international, sexy and passionate. Yet, to develop in Asia countries, a mild advertising package would be more approachable to the customers. Considering the stressful lifestyle of Hong Kong people, the promotional photos of DAY Hong Kong express leisure bohemian lifestyle to comfort the customers. What is more, Day offers a Chinese version online shop, facilitating more Chinese consumers and Asian tourists to purchase our products. Although DAY’s target market is high income consumers, using the close and considerate promotion strategy can help us create a different image of our high-end products, and differentiate from other high-end brands like Roberto Cavalli. Talking about the store display, DAY can have a more appealing store display. Roberto Cavalli’s store display is just too simple, just like many other specialty stores. However, Day is presenting a home feeling store display. Using warm lighting and floral-printed wallpaper to comfort our customers, the environment we provide is more attractive than Roberto Cavalli does. In fact, DAY is not simply selling fashion merchandises, it is selling lifestyle. The store display and the promotion strategy are to create relaxing bohemian lifestyle to the customers. However, Roberto Cavalli is just presenting luxurious clothing and does not give a strong impact to the customers. As a matter of fact, all kinds of lifestyle are related to fashion as trend does affect lifestyle. To conclude, it is more appropriate to say that DAY is a high-end brand with our own personality, but not only a luxurious brand. Future prospects We can foresee that DAY can achieve a great success in Hong Kong. Noticing that Scandinavian fashion has been introduced to Hong Kong in recent years, and many Hong Kong citizens are quite fond of this kind of fashion, we believe that Hong Kong has a large market potential for DAY, and this potential can last for a long time. While H&M is currently the leader of Scandinavian fashion for the general public, we trust that DAY can be the leader for the high income group. In the future, we would have the following goals and objectives, in an attempt to further consolidate our business in Hong Kong. Our first goal is to introduce DAY’s lifestyle to Hong Kong citizens. Consumers purchase products only if the brand is highly recognized. To achieve this, the lifestyle of DAY should be introduced further. The simplistic lifestyle we present is what Hong Kong people are looking for. Being busy and stressful all the time, they do need a city escape. The campaigns we are currently doing can show what city escape is about. Therefore, promoting this point can advance the sales of DAY. Moreover, we would like to introduce our home collection to the customers within a few years so as to earn more profits and complete the image of DAY as a brand. To facilitate the development of our home collection, our store would mainly be plain in colour and decorated with products from our home collection. Home decor style gifts would also be given in order to provide customers with a comfortable and relaxing home feeling of DAY. Another goal is to enlarge our business by opening more shops. Our plan is to open a branch store in Hong Kong each year. Another objective of this goal is to develop our business into Asian countries. As globalization continues and imitation happens globally, we cannot focus on one location only. Being one of the fashion centres in Asia, we believe that Hong Kong can influence other Asian cities. From the starting point Hong Kong, the leader of DAY Asia, we will have our retail shops in ten other Asian cities within five years, to achieve DAY as a global brand. We hope that DAY can create bigger and bigger business. As a result, we propose that DAY should have its business Hong Kong. We hope the proposal can help continue the DAY story. Reference www. day. dk/ http://us. fashionmag. com/ http://www. tifdb. com/ www. wikepedia. org/ http://www. modeshanghai. net/ Fourthly, our high-end product strategy has kept the quality assurance of our brand. Fifthly, we have organized fashion shows regularly in order to increase our publicity. We hold two fashion shows in Copenhagen fashion week every year, spring/summer and fall winter. Sixthly, the low inventory of each item has led to lower carrying cost and would not tide up cash flow. The small quantity of each design has created a sense of scarcity. We can let the customers to differentiate themselves from the others with our design. Our aim is to carry out everyday contemporary glamor_____ Weakness One of the weaknesses of our brand is the location of our production factories. As it is far away from Hong Kong, the place we shot, it will slow down the running cycle, which is a serious problem of fast fashion industry. Moreover, the far-away-distribution centre will cause longer lead time. Secondly, as the assortment of our business has concentrated in one specific type(i. e Bohemian style), if Hong Kong customers do not have interest in this style, there will be no market in Hong Kong. Thirdly, as the brand is for high class customers, the customer range is narrow, so there will be risks on opening chain stores. Unlike the fast fashion brand which has medium price range, it is far more difficult for high-class customer to have impulse purchasing. As buying high priced clothes is only a hedonic need, customers will have to think twice before buying the clothes. The customer will be less desire to buy the product after considering the price and the need of the clothes. * Factories set in foreign countries * -> far away in Hong Kong, shipment and transportation cost is high * -> Slow down the running cycle (fast fashion) * ->Long lead time (distribution centre) assortment concentrate in one specific type * -> if Hong Kong customers do not accept/ favor on this style, there will be no market in Hong Kong. * As the brand is for high class customers, the customer range is narrow, so there will be risks on opening chain store. * Opportunities The opportunities of the brand included the market potential in Hong Kong, as Hong Kong customers tends to buy new clothes regularly, they are willing to acce pt and explode new things. They welcome new brand to enter Hong Kong market. Secondly, Bohemian style is a new style to Hong Kong. Compared with the sporty and normal casual style which have already existed in Hong Kong, there is rare to have such a retailer store selling Bohemian style clothing only. The unique style will interest the customers to make a visit or even a purchase in our store. Thirdly, as Japanese started the interest in Bohemian style recently, Hong Kong customers tends to follow the Japanese style. Nowadays Hong Kong customers can get the fashion information from different media like newspaper, television, radio, magazines, direct mail and Internet, etc. There are many Japanese magazine reporting the latest wearing trend in their own country, and these magazine can be easily bought in Hong Kong. In other words, Hong Kong can easily access the Japanese information and follow the trend. Threats Talking about the threats which would be faced, lacking experience will be one of them. This is our first time to open a store in Asian country so the flat ship store in Hong Kong would be rather experimental. The method and operation of a store may have slightly different compared with our own local store. The second threat is the difficulties in finding a location for the flat ship store in Hong Kong. Hong Kong is a crowded place and the rent of a store is high. As the main purpose of opening the first store in Hong Kong is to promote our brand to the public and let Hong Kong customers concern about our design, the location of the store ought to have a heavy traffic of high-class customers, for example, fashion centre. However, the rent of fashion centre is always high due to the designated atmosphere and the perfect facilities. Thirdly, there are too many intertype competitions so it is difficult to enter and stay in the market. Though Bohemian style is a new style to Hong Kong, there are still different style of the brand appear in Hong Kong, In short, there are many fashion brand with many kinds of style according to the same price range and customer group. Economic recession of Hong Kong will be another threat, as the unemployment rate is high, our target group may not accept the price. In 2008, Hong Kong's economy has fallen into recession for the first time in five years amid a global economic slowdown the third quarter, the territory's gross domestic product contracted 0. 5% on a seasonally adjusted basis, after a 1. 4% fall between April and June. The government's economist, Helen Chan, said domestic demand faltered significantly in October, while exports fell to the lowest level since 2002. What;s more, in 2009, according to official records, Hong Kong's economy has left a year-long recession, recording a growth of 3. 3% in the second quarter ended in June. The figures, which were seasonally adjusted, were higher than forecast by economists. As a result, the government has increased its growth predictions for 2009. Though there's improvement in the economy of Hong Kong, concern is still existed as the purchasing power of Hong Kong customers is decreased.

Energy and society Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 2

Energy and society - Essay Example Large-scale federal regulation was then enacted which allowed individuals to construct generators and encouraged the power pools into independent system operators whose supply schedule was determined through auction, a move which further complicated the grid system, though no direct regulation of individual operators was put into place. However, following erroneous actions resulting in catastrophic far-flung blackouts in 2003, the Federal Energy Regulation Commission was empowered to impose new rules and regulations on grid management by way of the North American Electric Reliability Corporation which refined the qualification requirements and licenses needed for human operators (Wald, n.p.). b) Though Professionals in energy management are highly paid, complying with federal regulations requires a refined skill set including technical engineering knowledge as well as participation in ongoing education and training while maintaining valid licensing. The strict requirement for grid management work limits the scope of recruitment and there are only currently 6,000 (approx.) qualified professional in the United States. Besides the technical knowledge and skill required, certain personality traits encourage better performance in this work. The ability to function harmoniously with a group and maintain disciplined adherence to alternating 12 hour shifts and training while performing adequately in power distribution. These personality qualities are the same as those present in people who have previous experience in military settings, as they have these attributes innately and/or have already been familiarized with regimented scheduling and team skills (Wald, n.p.). a) Technical advancements coupled with environmental concerns have led to a new area of energy consumption which electricity distribution managers have had to compensate for in the fluctuating

Storm Chasing Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Storm Chasing - Assignment Example Prior to the beginning of a tornado, forecasters are concerned about the potential of a tornado outbreak. These are called the ingredients of a tornado outbreak or the classical elements of a tornado production. Among of which includes a very warm and humid air near the surface with colder air aloft, strong variations of winds with height (vertical wind shear), an upper-level storm system plowing into the Southeast, and a cold front (Henson, 2011, n.p.). Tornadoes developed in a condition that spawns atmospheric setting for severe thunderstorm. The warm, humid air is overlain by a cooler, drier air aloft that leads to atmospheric instability and when a low level jet and polar jet stream provide strong vertical wind shear, the surface air is forced upward and large super cells thunderstorms spawning tornadoes may form. Most tornado outbreaks occur in Tornado Alley (from West Texas northeast through the western and central portions of Oklahoma and Kansas and across most of Nebraska) an d during the spring and summer due to the presence of warm surface air ground (Rafferty, 2011, 170). Mortalities and case fatalities from tornado outbreaks are extremely high. ... Please make a list of your recommendations and provide justification for each. After the disaster brought by the typhoon Katrina, a number of structural defects and personnel failures were noted. These have made the city of New Orleans at risk for the aftermath of another Katrina-like disaster. The structural defect being pointed out is the design, foundation, and composition of the New Orleans and Gulf Coast communities’ protection against raging storms (Fischetti, 2005, n.p.) while personnel failures include neglect of duties, insufficient actions or poor decisions, systems failure, and lack of effective leadership (Collins et al., 2006, 2). Instead of redesigning a single levee which can compromise the safety of New Orleans residents, the author recommends the construction of floodwalls which require less land than a levee and can stand on earthen foundations. In addition, constructing flood walls are much better because levees starved the wetlands south and east of the cit y of the sediment, nutrients and freshwater they need to thrive, cut off sediment flow that builds barrier islands ringing the delta, and impact economy because of rebuilding costs and food price hike due to food shortage. Meanwhile, recommendations to address personnel failures include: development of an effective response emergency/disaster preparedness headed by the chief executive to centralize and coordinate emergency actions; initiating a planning exercise or drill from federal, state, local officials, media, and citizens featuring a storm-like scenario to determine and address faults in the system and inform the public of things to do in case of a disaster; devotion of sufficient

Resolute Forest Products Inc Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Resolute Forest Products Inc - Research Paper Example Where there is competition, there is always the need to devise a competitive strategy that can guarantee competitive advantage for the company. It is in line with this that a comprehensive company analysis is necessary to identifying the current market position of the company, understanding ways in which the company has responded to the competitions that it is faced with, what the weaknesses and strengths of the company has been in its quest to be competitive, corporate strategies that can work best for the company, and a comprehensive financial assessment for the company. Presently, Resolute Forest Product Inc can be said to be at a position where the company has failed to maximise its potential on the global economic competition. As a result, even though the company continues to record increases in revenue and operating incomes, these have not been translated into net income, total assets, and total equity. 2.0 Organization Overview Resolute Forest Product Inc is the outcome of a m erger between Bowater and Abitibi-Consolidated, which took place in January 2007. The company is mainly into the manufacturing of pulp and paper and is headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Noting the importance of supply chain management to the company and the devastating consequence that can be associated with shortages in supply of raw materials, the company has as part of its major corporate strategies to operate and manage its own forest base that is responsible for supplying the company with its raw materials (Kanter, 2012). In line with this, the company boasts of owning an approximate value of 14.9 million hectares of forestland in North America as at the end of 2011 (Kim, 2011). This has generally being a workable strategy that has made the company to become recognized with efficiency in meeting demand from consumers. With growing concerns on global warming and the need to reduce the emission of greenhouse gases, Resolute Forest Product Inc pledged its commitment to th is call in November 2011 when it became a member of the World Wildlife Fund’s Climate Saver’s Program (Chen, 2012). Together with other stakeholders and members therefore, the company is in a joint course to helping reduce greenhouse gas emission by 65% by 2015. The operations of the company have not been free from lawsuits to and from the company. For example in May 2013, The Star (2013) reported of a $7,000,000 defamation lawsuit filed against Greenpeace Canada and some of its employees for alleged interference with economic relations with their customers (Aulakh, 2013). Greenpeace Canada has however seen the lawsuit as a mere attempt to for Resolute to launch a Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation (SLAPP). 3.0 SWOT Analysis Strength Weaknesses 1. The company has a very reliable raw material base that makes the dependence on suppliers very limited. 2. Reduced dependence on suppliers means the company has sufficient savings on external spending that minimize d the cost of doing business 3. The company commands very high annual revenue and operating income that makes it have very strong competitive urge over its competitors, knowing that diversification and other means of raising funds for the company with

Herzberg Theory of Motivation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Herzberg Theory of Motivation - Essay Example The term 'Job Satisfaction' refers to one of the extent to which an individual likes his or her job. As defined by Schermerhorn, Hunt and Osborn, "Job satisfaction is the degree to which individuals feel positively or negatively about their jobs. It is an attitude or emotional response to one's tasks as well as to the physical and social conditions of the workplace." (Schermerhorn, Hunt and Osborn, 2002) Feedback is the objective information about individual and collective performance. Subjective information like 'you are doing well' does not qualify the criteria of the objectivity and thus can not be called an ideal feedback. (Miner, 1988) .Feedback serves two functions; that is instructional and motivational. Besides providing the instructions for further improvement, feedback should also be aimed to motivate the employees rather than condemn them. (Tosi, Rizzo and Mero, 2000) Being so important for the organizational culture, organizational behavior researchers have laid a great stress in determining the factors which influence the employee satisfaction. As a result, a number of theories regarding the issue have been evolved. Herzberg theory of motivation is one of them. ... As a result, a number of theories regarding the issue have been evolved. Herzberg theory of motivation is one of them. (Szilagyi and Wallace, 1983) The Herzberg theory of motivation is based on the fact that the satisfaction level of an employee is deeply affected by two broad categories; hygiene factor and the motivation factor. Herzberg asked the employees to report the times they felt very satisfied with their jobs and the times they felt discontented. He noted all the factors which led to increase the job satisfaction of the employees and same for the dissatisfaction. On the basis of this study he gave this theory, which is also known as motivator-hygiene theory, which identifies different factors as foremost causes of job satisfaction or dissatisfaction. (Philip and Duncan, 1982) According to this theory, hygiene factors are those factors which cause job dissatisfaction. He noticed that these tasks are more related to the work environment, rather than the nature of work itself. Some of the common hygiene factors are as follows: Organizational policies Quality of supervision Working conditions Base wage or salary Relationships with peers Relationships with subordinates Security (Luthans, 2006) Herzberg asserts that these factors are though responsible for job dissatisfaction, yet their presence does not guarantee the job satisfaction. Lets take the example of salary, if the employees are under paid, their satisfaction towards their work will be lesser. However, if they are appropriately paid, even then this will not bring the job satisfaction. Job satisfaction is achieved through a number of other factors like: Achievement Recognition Responsibility Advancement Growth (Luthans, 2006) The factors which

Answer my questions that i will attached Assignment - 1

Answer my questions that i will attached - Assignment Example This position of control is not a productive one – it â€Å"guarantees the owner a part in the process of production† (Marglin, 1974: 62) and ensures that the owner can accumulate wealth. Secondly, the factory system, Landes summarizes Marglin, was a disciplinary system only geared toward discipline, control and supervision of workers. Marglin goes further to argue that this was the primary focus of the factory: to ensure the power of the capitalist, rather than to maximize the economic or technological efficiency of the production process (Marglin, 1974: 84). To some degree, the arguments Marglin presents do present an approach diametrically opposed to those of Landes, and indeed seem to be largely ideological in their aim. He claims, for example, that factory work is necessarily alienating, because the producer must take orders from the capitalist in the factory system (ibid. at: 61). This alienation of the producer form his work also fits into the traditional social hierarchies of society, ensuring that only a â€Å"very few at the top of the pyramid† (ibid. at: 60) are able to attain self-expression in their work. Additionally, Marglin equates the wage-advance system to a kind of diabolical plan. The capitalist binds the worker legally to his â€Å"master† (ibid. ... He quotes particularly the work of Adam Smith, â€Å"The Wealth of Nations† in his argument to support reasons contrasting those of Marglin to explain the development of division of labor through specialization and the development of the factory system. Specialization may have been a necessity to ensure that the worker increased dexterity and efficiency in the execution of the job. Time was saved, as the producer would not have to set up the process, or re-set up the new task. With simplified tasks, the worker’s techniques could improve, to increase the efficiency of production (Landes, 1986: 587, 591). This argument is extended to explain the surge in new industrial invention: the repetitive tasks workers were completing suggested the invention of machines able to perform the same tasks. In factory setups, cheaper labor could be hired to perform more menial tasks, machines could supplement output and perform repetitive task, and the capitalist would benefit because the specialized worker’s output would consequently be greater (ibid. at: 604). The advantage for producers was that they would not have the energy, materials, space, tools and machinery or security and environmental costs related to industrial production (ibid. at: 604). The producer was also able to focus time and energy on the product manufacture only (ibid. at: 597, 598, and 604). It is evident, hence, that Landes proposes that the capitalist is integral to the process of production, not just an accumulative figure unrelated to the production process (ibid. at: 585). The employer organizes the process toward the production of a marketable product, ensures the sale and distribution of that product, and provides conditions – factory space,

Explain how you will conduct an effective reference check Essay

Explain how you will conduct an effective reference check - Essay Example shall try to first build my own opinion about the employee by reviewing his/her profiles, activities, memberships, and social circles on social media and social networking websites and then get the opinion of the referee on these subjects. I shall subsequently compare my own opinion to that of the referee to find out if his/her opinion supports or contradicts mine. I may or may not need to reach out to more referees depending upon the outcome of the comparison. I shall also carry out research at my own level about the referee from whom I am getting opinion about the employee. Using my resources and social media, I shall try to assess whether the referee actually serves in the position and location as suggested by the employee or not. I shall not only share with the referee my name, position, place, and organization, but also the roles and responsibilities attached to the position I am considering the candidate for while seeking referee’s opinion about the

Direct and Interactive Marketing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Direct and Interactive Marketing - Essay Example The following is a discussion of strategic approaches in relation to the strengths and opportunities that the management seeks to accrue from the business environment. The details further establish the salient use of the variables in rebuilding the supermarkets’ strategic framework. Analyses for Morrisons’ supermarkets Situation analysis in Morrisons Morrisons has competently claimed its position in the U.Ks retail market through the lead in the delivery of quality food and groceries. The supermarket chain has grown tremendously after merging with Safeways Company. Morrisons invested in a total of 32 million pounds for online marketing to ensure prompt approaches to the clientele groups. This investment approach targeted to acquire the stipulated clientele given that the consumer groups were deviating from point-of-sale purchases to placing orders and expecting home deliveries (Vickers, 2013:3). The threat of competition is overwhelming in the UK’s retail market, factors articulated to Morrisons dwindling rate of profitability despite the struggle to retaliate accordingly by offering the best retail services in the UK market ahead of their fellow competitors. In 2011, the month of November, the company’s management evaluated that profitability rates were dwindling along various quarters, and their market leadership was falling under a continued rate of threat. The current forecasts implement that Morrisons’ supermarkets have competitively engaged in a recovery program to recuperate and yield profitability (British grocery market, 2012:4). The company shall possibly achieve the desired market edge through the expected success of the M-Local initiative. Direct marketing in determining market size and trends The strengths and weaknesses, opportunities and threats determine the rate of profitability in the market segments. Through the analytical approach, Morrisons’ management must determine of the approaches that seem most appropriate to reaching the desired market share. As the company currently holds 10% of the total market share, perceptions are that the management may ensure precise research and development study to ensure that all factors of the product mix favor the outlined specifications of prompt delivery of value and satisfaction at a profitable rate to the clientele community of the UK. As Morrisons competes with Tesco, Marks and Spencer, Asda, Sainbury, and Waitrose among others (Vickers, 2013:4). Morrisons held a worrying 10% market share as at November 2012 and situation reflected to the company’s diversification of investments through big stalls and shopping centers while competitors gradually adjusted to direct marketing approaches. The retail stores accrued importance through the purchase of online channels of communication (Dahle?n, and Lange, 2008:144). As rival competitors such as Tesco and Asda lose their market share -43% and due to the discovery that the beef sold in the market contained horsemeat up to 50%, the companies lost accordingly while Morrisons acquired over 20 small-sized stalls. SWOT analysis As the company evaluates of the probabilities of success to prosper and compete with others effectively, the management realized that the reinvestment rate of Asda and Tesco posed considerable threats to competition and success. The competing firms remained threatened by the rate of

Financial Schemes Essay Example for Free

Financial Schemes Essay When the question of developing a new project at Puerto Penasco, Mexico has arrived, we would suggest that rather than going for traditional time share or new mixed use hotels, we should generate the energies towards developing a Condominium. The most important fact for advocating a Condominium is because this concept is already very popular in beach areas of Mexico. Tourists from across the world come here to take the experience of beach village which is rather not possible in mixed use hotels. Financial Advantages of a Condominium over other forms: Limited capital investment initially: First of all, the amount of capital invested in a Condominium is lesser than that of other traditional hotel forms. Hotels usually are occupied by the tourists at peak months only. Apart from that time, they always face lack of tourists which ultimately result in loss of revenue. Renting the property at non peak months: The Condominium could be rented to students and other people apart from the tourists during the non peak months and hence it in a sense gives guarantee to the owners for a uniform cash flow across the year. Disadvantages to the other schemes: It could be very well noted here that at times Condominium could lose the advantages to classic hotels in terms of hospitality and luxury. The tourists often feel that the Condominium could not provide the room service and the luxury that the time share hotels could provide. This is true to an extent that the Condominium does not beat the traditional hotels in terms of luxury. The reason why we have chosen a Condominium over other forms of hotels is because least risk involved in this project. As the amount of capital invested is least, the chances of losing money are less. Apart from that, we are also ensuring smooth and uniform revenues across the year. References: Puerto Penasco: Retrieved on 4th August, 2010 from website: http://www. puerto-penasco. com/

Communication Plays An Important Role Education Essay

Communication Plays An Important Role Education Essay Reading, writing, speaking, listening, viewing, and visually representing comprise the language arts and literacy processes. According to Gunning (2010), these elements start developing at an early age and progressively become more refined as a child amasses a foundation of oral language, written language, and life experiences. Task: A.   Write an essay (suggested length of 2-4 pages) in which you discuss each of the following in the context of language arts development in elementary-aged children: 1.   Reading 2.   Writing 3.   Speaking 4.   Listening 5.   Viewing 6.   Visually representing The ability to communicate plays an important role both in intellectual development and in the growth of personality. Children at each grade level have their characteristic needs for growth as well as their characteristic methods of reaction and response. As teachers learn to fit the language arts program to these needs and to these ways of responding, as they set realistic goals, and as they work through rather than against childrens normal patterns of development, satisfactory growth in language will result. For the language arts program is both an end and means. It develops skills in all forms of communication through language, giving children increasing insight into the structure and effective use of their mother tongue and developing their ability to read and listen as well as to use reading and listening for worth-wile purposes in life. At the same time, language is the means by which children aquire knowledge and understanding in all areas of education and in first-hand experi ence in life. Reading is an important element of the literacy process for an elementary student. Reading can open the door to various new experiences and thoroughly expand a students horizon for learning. Books are important to help children understand the development of them selves as well as others. Children love to probe motives and discover answers to their own problems through reading. Reading is the interpretation of written language. Children learn their first words by simply being told what they are. The process by which he or she keeps in mind the visual image, the pronunciation, and the meaning is not all together clear, but he uses such sight words exclusively in the early stages of reading. Elementary children learn at the Elementary level through a combination of matching and differentiating visual images and by memorizing the position of certain words. Configuration, or shape and length of words are natural cues for most beginners. Children are usually unconscious to the fact that th ey are leaning these skills, until they become thrilled about the fact that they can read by themselves. Children also develop reading skills by connecting words with pictures and associating the two. Writing is committing a persons thoughts or ideas to paper. Once the writing is encoded then the reading can be decoded. Listening to the teacher read stories and poetry about their own experience or related to it helps children to sense the power of words and the ways in which they are fitted into sentences. The two elements go hand in hand together. Children can grow and develop into mature writers through motivation that stems from their own interest. Direct teaching and conscious learning are needed to meet the various needs involved in the development of writing. Children first learn to write their names in order to identify their work. The process develops slowly in the first year and then rapidly increases in the second year of school. By the end of third grade an Elementary student is usually writing with a great deal of skill and independence. As the child gains in ability, he or she is encouraged to write independently, turning to the teacher for any help needed with placem ent on paper, handwriting, or spelling of words. As the student develops independence in writing and spelling, the child also grows in interest in using writing for various personal and practical purposes and in satisfaction in the power he is achieving. Speaking is the one activity that most Elementary children can all participate in no matter the age or grade level. Speaking can be defined as communicating vocally. Under favorable circumstances the normal child speaks freely and fearlessly when he or she enters school. The student uses words to express his wishes and his or her feelings, and may even employ phrases such as, thank you, please, and excuse me. From the first day of school, the child continues to add to his or her abilites in speaking. As the student has new experiences, he or she aquires new words with wich to talk about. As the student adds to his vocabulary, he or she learns new ways to put words together to convey what he or she thinks. Every new experience gives him more words or clearer understanding of ones already known; every new interest makes the student eager to find better ways to vocally express there selves. The students successful contacts with reading and writing, although they depend in part on his ab ility in oral language, will also serve that ability. As the student progresses in school he or she will become more adapt at articulation. Listening can be defined as giving attention with the ear. The development of children in listening is continuously interrelated with their growth in speaking, and after the early years of childhood, with their reading and writing as well. Listening is a forerunner of speaking and continues to bear a reciprocal relationship to it. For every speaker, there must be a listener; the listener, in turn, becomes a better speaker for having listened well to the speech of others. Elementary aged children have the ability to assume responsibility to the speaker, asking questions about what they do not understand, listening and carrying out simple directions, and following sequences of events in simple stories. As children set goals for themselves in intelligent listening, their progress will be accelerated. Listening is an important language arts element regarding the fact that children use it to conversate, discuss, story reading, poetry, assemblies, and many many activities in Elementary sch ool. Viewing could be defined as seeing, watching, or visually inspecting visual items. These could include: pictures, books, maps, videos, and various others. Theatrical experiences could also be viewed, as well as classroom lectures. Children today are bombarded with images and visual media of all types to persuade them to believe certain things, or feel a certain way. Viewing is an important element in the Language Arts for Elementary students because it is there way to development academic skills, as well as social skills. Children are viewing every day in our schools diagrams, dvds and many other visual aids for learning development. Viewing development entails giving attentionto facts, relationships, inferences, and to critical analysis. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ © Visually representing refers to communicating through visual images. These images include photographs, drawings, graphs, maps, and diagrams, as well as video presentations, dioramas, models, and dramatizations. This form of communication requires the student to collect and organize information, decide on the best way to convey it to others, and produce a visual product to accomplish this communication, often incorporating print and sound with the visual images, if the student is trying to convey information or sway opinion. It requires organizing and representing an event or sequence of events for the pleasure or diversion of an audience, if the purpose of the representation is to entertain.

I Corinthians 6:12-13 :: Christianity Christian Biblical Essays

I Corinthians 6:12-13 "Everything is permissible for me" — but not everything is beneficial. "Everything is permissible for me" — but I will not be mastered by anything. "Food for the stomach and the stomach for the food" — but God will destroy them both. The body is not meant for sexual immorality, but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body (NIV). The broadest of freedom is being able to do what you want, when you want to do it, and wherever and however you want to do it. Freedom is being able to control our lives to do what pleases us, or what we think is going to give us the highest amount of pleasure. It is the freedom to choose anything, without any restrictions, and it is what every single person wants. But there is a more narrow form of freedom, the freedom to choose, not just anything, but the right thing. I believe this was the case in the church in Corinth concerning this passage. The church in Corinth was a young church that Paul established when he was there and was having problems with their new-found freedom. The Corinthian Christians were not sure which laws, if any, applied to them because of the freedom from the law they have in Jesus. The letter was written to the church to advise them on how to handle the problems. Some problems were spiritual arrogance, wrong-doings against other believers, sexual immorality, and misunderstanding on Christian beliefs. In these two verses, 1 Corinthians 6:12-13, Paul is addressing the immorality of their sexual practices. The city of Corinth is a sex-crazed society, where sex outside marriage is lawful, but not in God's law. Mathew Henry comments, "the maxim of lawful liberty to countenance the sin of fornication, though it might be allowed by the Corinthian laws, was a trespass upon the law of nature, and utterly unbecoming a Christian" (page #). Their freedom is under a new standard of law. Our bodies are the only thing we have 100 per cent control of when it comes to what we do with our bodies, not even God has control of it. In this passage Paul is saying that I can choose to do whatever I want, regardless, but not everything I choose is good for me. I have control over all my choices, but I won't allow my choices to control me. Paul makes an analogy of the food and its relationship to the

Electric Cars and Air Pollution Essay -- Environment Environmental Tec

The goal of electric vehicles is to reduce air emissions associated with typical internal combustion vehicles (ICVs), thereby decreasing the emission of environmentally damaging products such as carbon dioxide and nitrogen oxides. Since electric vehicles run on electricity generated from batteries and do not emit air pollutants, these vehicles are termed zero emission vehicles (ZEV). CARB mandated that ZEVs be 2% of the total automotive sales by 1998 and 10% by 2003. The push for ZEVs raises serious concerns about the environmental impacts of ZEVs due to their production and use. Is CARB’s push for ZEVs premature given the present state of battery technology? Will the production of ZEVs lead to unforeseen environmental destruction? Or are ZEVs the answer to our air pollution woes? This paper analyzes the feasibility of electric cars and the impacts of their production on the environment. The components of air pollution have been attributed to a number of serious health and environmental consequences. For example, air pollution can lead to eye, nose and throat irritation, as well as complications in breathing. Some chemicals in air pollution, such as benzene, cause cancer while other chemicals may cause birth defects, brain and nerve damage and long-term injury to the lungs and breathing passages. Not only does air pollution create distinct medical problems, it also creates environmental problems as well. Carbon dioxide, sulfur dioxide, and nitrogen oxide are three examples of gases released into the atmosphere each year as a result of the combustion processes. Billions of pounds of pollutants are released each year from power plants and motor vehicles. These pollutants are causing serious problems for the environment. Motor... ...):10-15 Rahman, S.; de Castro, Arnulfo. 1995. Environmental Impacts of Electricity Generation: A Global Perspective. IEEE Transaction on Energy Conversion. 10(2): 307-312 Renner, R. 1996. Life-cycle analysis stirs continued debate on impact of electric cars. Environmental Science and Technology. 30(1):17A-18A Roque, J. A. 1995. Electric vehicle manufacturing in Southern California: local versus regional environmental hazards. Environment and Planning A. 27(6): 907-932 Savage, J. A. 1994. The Road Warriors: Utilities and Automakers Square Off on Alternative Fuel Vehicles. Business and Society Review. 88:6-8 Tucker, M. 1995. The Shocking State of Electric Car Technology. Business and Society Review. 93:44-47 http://www.epa.gov/oar/oaqps/peg_caa/pegcaa04.html http://www.epa.gov/OMSWWW/11-vehs.htm http://www.epa.gov/oar/caa/contents.html

Georgia and albert :: essays research papers

The gallery, as most are, was sparsely furnished with only a few benches. It was dominated by three huge paintings and peppered with many smaller works. In front of one, stood two sorority girls who were in heated debate. Rodney, seeing an opening to impress them, sauntered over to look at the painting and await the question he knew would come. He was right. One of the girls turned and asked "Can you tell if this is a man's or a woman's painting?" Not the question he'd expected. "Well," He said earnestly, examining the huge canvas with its large bold strokes of deep blue on a background of fantastic yellow patches. "It looks very strong. The paint is applied with a wild vitality. I'd say it's a man's work." "I told you so." said the first girl who's name was Amy. At least that's what her sweater said. "Well the label says Stacy Conover. That's a girls name." Complained the second girl. "Jan, it can be a guy's name too." This sort of argument occurs at almost every gallery. It isn't easy to settle either. Art done by men does not always look masculine nor does art by women always look feminine. The question that is posed is: Can you tell the difference between a mans art and a woman's art? I personally thought it through and decided I didn't have enough information. After digging through the library's encyclopedias, art history books, biographies and folios, it was clear that the original question was too broad. It just is not possible to give an answer on this much subject matter. With this in mind I set parameters and singled out two artists to be my subjects. Ideally the artist should have similar backgrounds as far as family and schooling. Also they need to have lived during the same period. Similar subjects and related media are best. Also they should have worked in the same locale at least for part of their careers. Hunting down and ferreting out a pair of artists to fit this description was not easy. I finally settled on two of the most important artists of the American Avant Garde, Georgia O'Keeffe and Alfred Stieglitz. As strange as it may seem this husband and wife shared many aspects. Enough to fit my parameters anyway. Georgia and Alfred were both born into large, wealthy, immigrant families. Georgia, the oldest O'Keefe daughter and Alfred the oldest son of the Stieglitz.

Swimming: Summer Olympic Games and Swimmers

The sport of swimming has been recorded since prehistoric times; the earliest recording of swimming dates back to Stone Age paintings from around 7,000 years ago. Written references date from 2000 BC. Some of the earliest references to swimming include the Gilgamesh, the Iliad, the Odyssey, the Bible, Beowulf, Quran and other sagas. In 1778, Nikolaus Wynmann, a German professor of languages, wrote the first swimming book, The Swimmer or A Dialogue on the Art of Swimming (Der Schwimmer oder ein Zweigesprà ¤ch à ¼ber die Schwimmkunst).Competitive swimming as we know it today started in the United States started around 1800, mostly using breaststroke. Many Americans often used swimming competitions to settle differences in the frontier, such as property rights. In 1873, John Arthur Trudgen introduced the trudgen to Western swimming competitions, after copying the front crawl used by Native Americans. Due to a British dislike of splashing, Trudgen employed a scissor kick instead of the front crawl's flutter kick. Swimming was part of the first modern Olympic Games in 1896 in Athens.In 1902 Richmond Cavill introduced the front crawl to the Western world. In 1908, the world swimming association, Fà ©dà ©ration Internationale de Natation (FINA), was formed. Butterfly was developed in the 1930s and was at first a variant of breaststroke, until it was accepted as a separate style in 1952. [edit]Competition Competitive swimming became popular in the nineteenth century. The goal of competitive swimming is to constantly improve upon one's time(s), or to beat the competitors in any given event.However, some professional swimmers who do not hold a national or world ranking are considered the best in regard to their technical skills. Typically, an athlete goes through a cycle of training in which the body is overloaded with work in the beginning and middle segments of the cycle, and then the workload is decreased in the final stage as the swimmer approaches the competitio n in which he or she is to compete in. This final stage is often referred to as â€Å"shave and taper†; the swimmer tapering down his or her workload to be able to perform at their optimal level.At the very end of this stage, before competition, the swimmer shaves off all exposed hair for the sake of reducing drag and having a sleeker and more hydrodynamic feel in the water. [1] World record holder and Olympic gold medalist Michael Phelps in the 400 IM. Swimming is an event at the Summer Olympic Games, where male and female athletes compete in 16 of the recognized events each. Olympic events are held in a 50-meter pool, called a long course pool. There are forty officially recognized individual swimming events in the pool; however the International Olympic Committee only recognizes 32 of them.The international governing body for competitive swimming is the Fà ©dà ©ration Internationale de Natation (â€Å"International Swimming Federation†), better known as FINA. [edi t]Open water In open water swimming, where the events are swum in a body of open water (lake or sea), there are also 5 km, 10 km and 25 km events for men and women. However, only the 10 km event is included in the Olympic schedule, again for both men and women. Open-water competitions are typically separate to other swimming competitions with the exception of the World Championships and the Olympics. [edit]Swim stylesIn competitive swimming, four major styles have been established. These have been relatively stable over the last 30–40 years with minor improvements. The four main strokes in swimming are: Freestyle(free) Breaststroke(breast) Backstroke(back) Butterfly(fly) Events in competition could have only one of these styles or they could contain all four. The individual medley is an event that where swimmers start the race with butterfly, then move to backstroke, breastroke, and then freestyle. [2] There are two possible distances of this event, both swum in each of the t wo competition pools.In the short course pool, there are 200-yard and 400-yard individual medleys and in the long course pool, there are 200-meter and 400-meter individual medleys. For younger swimmers involved in club swimming, there is also a 100-yard individual medley option in the short course pool, but this event is not often competed by swimmers over the age of 14. [edit]Dolphin kick In the past two decades, the most drastic change in swimming has been the addition of the underwater dolphin kick. This is used to maximize the speed at the start and after the turns.The first successful use of it was by David Berkoff at the 1988 Olympics, where he swam most of the 100 m backstroke race underwater and broke the world record on the distance during the preliminaries. Another swimmer to use the technique was Denis Pankratov at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta, where he completed almost half of the 100 m butterfly underwater to win the gold medal. In the past few years,[when? ] American c ompetitive swimmers have shown the most use of the underwater dolphin kick to gain advantage, most notably Olympic and World medal winners Michael Phelps and Ryan Lochte.While the dolphin kick is mostly seen in middle-distance freestyle events and in all distances of backstroke and butterfly, it is not usually used to the same effect in freestyle sprinting. That changed with the addition of the so-called sharkskin suits around the European Short Course Championships in Rijeka, Croatia in December 2008. There, Amaury Leveaux set new world records of 44. 94 seconds in the 100 m freestyle, 20. 48 seconds in the 50 m freestyle and 22. 18 in the 50 m butterfly. Unlike the rest of the competitors in these events, he spent at least half of each race submerged using the dolphin kick. 3] While underwater dolphin kicking is allowed in freestyle, backstroke and butterfly, its use is not permitted in the same way in the breaststroke. In 2005, a new rule was formed stating that an optional downw ard dolphin kick may be used off the start and each turn, and it must occur during the breaststroke pullout. Any other dolphin kick will result in disqualification. New rules were established to curtail excessive use of underwater dolphin kicks in freestyle, backstroke and butterfly.Currently, performing the dolphin kick past 15 meters results in a disqualification. [edit]Competition pools Most swimming sport events are held in special competition swimming pools, which are either long course pools such as those used in the Olympic Games (50 m) or short course pools such as those used in the FINA World Swimming Championships (25 yards or 25 m but generally 25m). Competition pools have starting blocks from which the competitor can dive in, and possibly also touch-sensitive pads to electronically record the swimming time of each competitor. edit]Seasons Club swimming in the US has two major seasons. During the short-course season, swimmers swim in 25-yard pools. This season lasts from September to the end of March. The long-course season takes place in 50-meter pools and lasts from April to the end of August. The longer freestyle events vary in lengths in each season. In the short course season, the 500 yard, 1000 yard, and 1650-yard freestyle events are swum, while during the long course season the 400 meter, 800 meter, and 1500-meter freestyle events are swum instead.However, this difference in distance holds true for all meter pools, i. e. short course meter pools also swim the 400 meter, 800 meter, and 1500 meter freestyle events instead of their yard counterparts. Training in both short course and long course has become more of an American Standard. Internationally, long course meters is the standard, as seen in the Olympics. This standard of two separate seasons in America may be because it is so much easier for new swimmers to learn to compete in a smaller pool during the short course season.Smaller pools allow for shorter distance races, so for example in short course season if a younger swimmer wanted to compete in a stroke they had just learned, a 25 yard 8 years old and under race is available to them, opposed to the long course season when they would need to be able to swim at least 50 meters of that new stroke in order to compete. [edit]Officials There are several types of officials,[4] which are needed to manage the competition. [5] Referee: The referee has full control and authority over all officials.The referee will enforce all rules and decisions of FINA and shall decide all questions relating to the actual conduct of the meet, and event or the competition, the final settlement of which is not otherwise covered by the rules. The referee takes overall responsibility for running the race and makes the final decisions as to who wins the competition. Referees call swimmers to the blocks with short blasts of his or her whistle. This is the signal for the swimmers to stand next to their blocks. Starters call missing swimmers if necessary.Then the referee will blow a long whistle that will tell the swimmers to step on the block. For backstroke otherwise known as backcrawl events, the long whistle is the signal for the swimmers to step in the water. The referee will then blow another long whistle, signaling the swimmers to grab the gutter or the provided block handle (for backstoke/backcrawl events only). The referee will then hand over control to the starter. Starter: The starter has full control of the swimmers from the time the referee turns the swimmers over to him/her until the race commences.A starter sends the swimmers off the blocks and may call a false start if a swimmer leaves the block before the starter sends them. Clerk of course: The clerk of course assembles swimmers prior to each event, and is responsible for organizing (â€Å"seeding†) swimmers into heats based on their times. Heats are generally seeded from slowest to fastest, where swimmers with no previous time for an event are ass umed to be the slowest. Timekeepers: There are three timekeepers for each lane. Each timekeeper takes the time of the swimmers in the lane assigned to him/her.Unless a video backup system is used, it may be necessary to use the full complement of timekeepers even when automatic officiating equipment is used. A chief timekeeper assigns the seating positions for all timekeepers and the lanes for which they are responsible. The chief timekeeper collects from the timekeepers in each lane a card showing the times recorded and, if necessary, inspect their watches. One timer will be timing with a stopwatch, another recording it down, and one making sure everything is valid.Inspectors of turns: One inspector of turns is assigned to each lane at each end of the pool. Each inspector of turns ensures that swimmers comply with the relevant rules for turning as well as the relevant rules for start and finish of the race. Inspectors of turns shall report any violation on disqualification reports detailing the event, lane number, and the infringement delivered to the chief inspector of turns who will immediately convey the report to the referee. Judges of Stroke: Judges of stroke are located on each side of the pool.They ensure that the rules related to the style of swimming designated for the event are being observed, and observe the turns and the finishes to assist the inspectors of turns. Finish judges Finish judges determine the order of finish and make sure the swimmers finish in accordance with the rules (two hands simultaneously for breaststroke and butterfly, on the back for backstroke, etc. ) If an official catches a swimmer breaking a rule concerning the stroke he or she is swimming, that swimmer is said to be disqualified (commonly referred to as a â€Å"DQ†) and the swim is not considered valid.The referee can disqualify any swimmer for any violation of the rules that he personally observes. The referee may also disqualify any swimmer for any violation rep orted to him by other authorised officials. All disqualifications are subject to the decision of the referee. [edit]Swimwear Main articles: Competitive swimwear and Swimsuit Giovanni Franceschi in Rome, 1983 Swimsuit The suit covers the skin for modesty. Competitive swimwear seeks to improve upon bare human skin for a speed advantage.For extra speed, a swimmer wears a body suit, which has rubber or plastic bumps that break up the water close to the body and provides a small amount of thrust—just barely enough to help a swimmer swim faster. However, competitive swimming rules may limit the type of suit a swimmer can wear. Swim cap A swim cap (a. k. a. cap) keeps the swimmer's hair out of the way to reduce drag. Caps may be made of latex, silicone, spandex or lycra. Goggles Goggles keep water and chlorine out of swimmers' eyes. Goggles may be tinted to counteract glare at outdoor pools.Prescription goggles may be used by swimmers who wear corrective lenses. Swim Fins Rubber fin s are used to help kick faster. They also improve technique by keeping the feet in the proper position while kicking. Drag suit Swimmers use drag suits to make weight to pull them back, to increase resistance. Paddles Swimmers use these plastic devices to build arm and shoulder strength and refine pulling technique. Hand paddles attach to the hand with rubber tubing or elastic material. They come in many different shapes and sizes.Kickboard A kickboard is a foam board that swimmers use to support the weight of the pper body while they focus on kicking; helps build leg muscles. Pull buoy Often used at the same time as hand paddles, pull buoys support swimmers' legs (and prevents them from kicking) while they focus on pulling. Pull buoys are made of foam so they float in the water. Swimmers hold them in between the thighs. Ankle bands Improving balance will minimize the need for this kick to provide an upward, instead of a forward vector, and in some cases completely corrects the kick . Using an ankle band will have the immediate effect of turning off your kick, which then forces you to make efforts to correct your balance.If you are successful in discovering these, then the ankle band has done part of its job. [6] Snorkel A snorkel is a plastic device that helps swimmers breathe while swimming. This piece of equipment helps the swimmer practice keeping his or her head in one position. [edit]Regular practice and competition swimwear [edit]Men Men's most used practice swimwear include briefs and jammers. Males generally swim barechested. There has been much controversy after the Beijing Olympic Games in 2008, when many Olympic swimmers broke records an unprecedented number of times using revolutionary swimsuits.To highlight the issue, note that it is rare to break world records, but in 2008, 70 world records were broken in one year, and 66 Olympic records were broken in one Olympic Games (there were races in Beijing where the first five finishers were swimming fas ter than the old world record). Despite many of his records having been won in these suits, Michael Phelps stated that he might boycott the competition after his record was beaten by another swimmer with a more advanced suit. As of New Year's Day 2010, men are only allowed to wear suits from the waist to above the knees. 7]They are also only permitted to wear one piece of swimwear; they cannot wear speedos underneath jammers. This rule was enacted after the controversy in the Beijing Olympics and Rome World Championships. [edit]Women Paralympic swimming at the 2008 Summer Paralympics. Women wear one-piece suits with different backs for competition, though there are two-piece suits that can be worn to compete as well. Backs vary mainly in strap thickness and geometric design. Most common styles include: racerback, axel back, corset, diamondback, and butterfly-back/Fly-Back.There are also different style lengths: three-quarter length (reaches the knees), regular length (shoulders to h ips), and bikini style (two-piece). Also as of New Year's 2010, in competition, women are only allowed to wear suits that do not go past the knees or shoulders. [edit]Use of drag Drag suits, used by women, are used for increasing the resistance against the swimmer in order to help adjust the swimmer to drag. This way, when swimmers switch back to normal practice suits they swim faster as a result of feeling less resistance.They are not worn during competitions. Drag shorts, mainly used by men, like drag suits are worn in training and are also used to increase drag so that when taken off in racing it feels easier and the swimmer feels less resistance. Other forms of drag wear include nylons, old suits, and T-shirts; the point is to increase friction in the water to build strength during training, and increase speed once drag items are removed for competition. Swimmers also shave areas of exposed skin before end-of-season competitions to reduce friction in the water.It is especially c ommon for women to stop the traditional removal of leg hair at least a month before end-of-season competitions. This can be viewed as an additional form of drag because drag is most importantly about mental training and how one feels in the water. Freshly shaven skin feels much smoother and less resistant in comparison when in the water. The presence of leg and arm hair will make very little difference physically in a swimmer’s overall performance, but mentally it has been known to have a very large effect.The mental aspect of wearing drag is critical because the goal is to feel your best in the water on race day. Drag makes a swimmer feel slower and more resistant during training with the added friction. Then on the day of the competition, a shaven swimmer wearing only a fast competition suit will feel a drastic and noticeable improvement in how fast and smooth they feel in the water. As in every other sport, mental training is just as important as physical training. [edit]C ollegiate Swimming Young swimmers compete on club teams and may wish to continue their careers through college.Recruiting for collegiate swimming often starts on July 1 following the athlete's junior year of high school. That date marks the day that college coaches can contact athletes via phone to discuss possibly swimming for their team. College swimmers compete starting in the fall until their conference meet in the early spring. From there, the swimmers with the fastest times in each event will be invited to compete in the NCAA championships after the regular season is over. All college meets are competed in short course pools. [edit]Open-water swimming Main article: Open water swimmingOpen water swimming is swimming outside of a regular pool, usually in a lake, or sometimes ocean. Popularity of the sport has grown in recent years, particularly since the 10 km open water event was added as an Olympic event in 2005, contested for the first time in the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijin g. New recent technology has developed much faster swimsuits. Full body suits have been banned, but swimmers at the very top levels still wear suits that have been lasered together because stitching creates drag. The downfall of these suits: they are sometimes uncomfortable and tight. [edit]Changes to the sportSwimming times have dropped over the years due to better training techniques and to new developments. The first four Olympics competitions were not held in pools, but in open water (1896 – The Mediterranean, 1900 – The Seine River, 1904 – an artificial lake, 1906 – The Mediterranean). The 1904 Olympics' freestyle race was the only one ever measured at 100 yards, instead of the usual 100 meters. A 100-meter pool was built for the 1908 Olympics and sat in the center of the main stadium's track and field oval. The 1912 Olympics, held in the Stockholm harbor, marked the beginning of electronic timing. clarification needed] Male swimmers wore full-body s uits until the 1940s, which caused more drag in the water than their modern swimwear counterparts did.Competition suits now include engineered fabric and designs to reduce swimmers' drag in the water and prevent athlete fatigue. In addition, over the years, pool designs have lessened the drag. Some design considerations allow for the reduction of swimming resistance, making the pool faster. Namely, proper pool depth, elimination of currents, increased lane width, energy absorbing racing lane lines and gutters, and the use of other innovative hydraulic, acoustic, and illumination designs.