BUSINESS MANAGEMENT 1: MAKEUP TEST
DUE DATE: Monday July 12th at 11am.
Instruction:
- Cover page MUST include all members and their student numbers
- In order to write this test you Must already have a mark between 1% and 49%
- ANSWER ALL QUESTIONS – READ THE CASE STUDY AND RELATE YOUR ANSWERS ACCORDINGLY.
Case Study
Q&A Cosmetics
Q&A Cosmetics is famously for producing quality, affordable cosmetics. Its cosmetics filled the shelves of popular retail outlets, with customers flooding in to buy Q&A brands. Q&A produced a wide range of cosmetics, including foundations, mascaras, eye shadows, lipsticks, make-up brushes, eyeliners, etc. However, recently, competition in the cosmetic business has become intense and is characterised by different emerging brands and various celebrities launching their own cosmetics. The influence of celebrity lines has had a huge impact on the market share of various cosmetic brands, including Q&A’s. Usually, the fans of the celebrities tend to purchase the brands of their favorite celebrities, not because they are the best brands but because they are fans of the celebrity. Q&A has realised that it needs to be proactive in order to grow its profit margin or even maintain its market share. The marketing team and the research and development team of Q&A were assigned the task of brainstorming ways in which the business can achieve its new objective. The research and development team decided that to achieve its new objective, the business needs to adopt a totally new approach towards producing its cosmetics. They suggested that Q&A needs to produce cosmetic products that are environmentally friendly and can offer more value to the customers such as cosmetics that last for longer hours, are waterproof, and do not leave stains. They also illustrated some samples of the proposed product to management and emphasised that with the current issue of climate change, producing strictly environmentally friendly products will attract new customers, especially those who only purchase environmentally friendly products. The marketing department on the other hand suggested that the business should not change its existing products as it already had a very large market share, which indicated that customers already preferred its products. They suggested that it would be preferable for Q&A to collaborate with major celebrities to launch some cosmetic products under the name of those celebrities. In addition, they also suggested that Q&A should expand its presence into other geographical areas through various major retailers in those areas. They explained that expanding into new geographical areas would make the products available to a wider group of customers and customers who often requested shipment of Q&A’s products.
QUESTIONS
- Outline ten factors and critically analyse the business environment of Q&A Cosmetics company as suggested by research and development as well as marketing teams. Use relevant examples from the case study to support your answers. (20 marks)
- Critically discuss the leadership aspects at Q&A Cosmetics company. Refer to the following in your discussion: contemporary approaches to leadership, power, responsibility, and motivation. (20 marks)
40 Marks