http://www.marketingmag.ca/english/news/marketer/article.jsp?content=20100112_165100_9552
Summary
Lululemon Athletica, a brand well-known to teenagers and young adults is continuing to broaden its Olympics-related advertisement by offering free yoga classes throughout the month of February. This particular act of marketing is the second attempt by Lululemon after its clothing line that was created for a "Cool Sporting Event That Takes Place in British Columbia Between 2009 and 2011" was scolded by VANOC. Since VANOC has the exclusive marketing right to only allow official, paying sponsors to bear the brand, Lululemon had no other option but to remove that clothing range. In replacement of removing the clothes, they will provide 1200 free classes of yoga throughout the Games duration with the help of YYoga. While the press release that initiated this event did not mention the Olympics, one can only assume.
Connection
As I skimmed through this article, the first thought that occured to me was that this marketing strategy to attract more customers is an infrequent event. While this event does not generate any profit at the time of the two weeks, it has great potential to earn more revenue in the future. Furthermore, since free workshops are not a significant part of Lululemon's regime, there is not much of a need for any segregated section in the financial statements because this event does not directly bring in profit compared to, for example, a sudden inheritance in land.
Workshops like this have the ability to allow marketing directors at Lululemon to see what customers like and what to produce more of in order to increase their revenue even more in return.
Reflection
I thought this was a relatively creative idea to gain customers because individuals appear to have a natural tendency to attend occasions that are free. Despite the fact that not everyone will go, word of mouth will come into play and people who are willing to spend money on yoga wear will then proceed to Lululemon, especially since it is one of the biggest companies selling yoga apparel. I also applaud their decision to have this gathering during the Olympics where people from all around the globe will be in Canada and once they know of the company, they can choose to order the apparel in the future.
Betty Chan
F. Acc12 D1-P2
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
Sunday, April 5, 2009
Summary Blog
http://ctv2.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20090403.wusjobs0403/business/Business/businessBN/ctv-business
Summary
This article is a perfect example as to how hard hitting the economy is in the United States. Never has the U.S. experienced such a great amount of job losses in the month of March since the year of 1983 and this particular amount of job losses does not even include now part-time workers and discouraged workers. Ever since December 2007, when the recession first began, more than half of the total job losses occured in the last five months. Out of many struggling industries, only education and health care careers have had job gains. Analysts believe that if the recession ends this year, the economy will remain fragil and vulernable. It would be likely be that any side effects of this recession will last and finally dissolve in 2013, leaving a huge number of people out of work.
Connection
As I read the article, several connections to our accounting textbook was made. Companies cut back on employees to reduce their wages expense and not only so, hours are often reduced or in some cases, frozen. As stated in the article, employees are hoping that their payroll deductions will be less than before, which should be the case since a smaller gross pay does not allow as much room for deductions (such as a smaller amount for taxes to be based upon). While being laid off seems to only have a negative effect on the victim, the employer has to go through a series of steps to lay one off. This includes continuing to contribute to the employee's RPP, CPP, etc. A smart move to reduce the amount taken in from loans is to lower its lending rate. This would allow a company to work under a lesser loan and still manage ok. Since only education and health care are doing fine at the moment, other industries that require inventory to be stocked will be under more debt because if people are not making as much money, they will be reluctant to spend on luxury items. In the end the store will not fare well and individuals will not have the ability to purchase desired items. Debt will be amounted in no time, the credit line of a company will be given a bad rep and make money-lending companies hesitant to lend to you.
Reflection
Since so many industries are laying off workers, it really makes one wonder if they would be able to hold onto their job and pertaining to youth coming out of university, would there be positions that allow them to exercise what they have learnt? Individuals who have had their hours cut or wages frozen may look like they are the only ones on the bad receiving end but that is not true. Employers are going through an equally tough time, often questioning their company's ability to ride out of the recession. Although I do not have a job, family and friends do and at the time being, things look extremely grim. Looking at the number of laid off employees in the U.S., I wonder when Canada will go through the same drastic situation. On the otherhand Jim Flaherty, Minister of Finance in Canada states that Canada's recession is in a mild stage, which I think not. Perhaps it is when compared to other countries (ie. United States) that Canada is not in a tough time but the majority of the news, newspaper and everyday chatter reminds us of what we are going through.
Summary
This article is a perfect example as to how hard hitting the economy is in the United States. Never has the U.S. experienced such a great amount of job losses in the month of March since the year of 1983 and this particular amount of job losses does not even include now part-time workers and discouraged workers. Ever since December 2007, when the recession first began, more than half of the total job losses occured in the last five months. Out of many struggling industries, only education and health care careers have had job gains. Analysts believe that if the recession ends this year, the economy will remain fragil and vulernable. It would be likely be that any side effects of this recession will last and finally dissolve in 2013, leaving a huge number of people out of work.
Connection
As I read the article, several connections to our accounting textbook was made. Companies cut back on employees to reduce their wages expense and not only so, hours are often reduced or in some cases, frozen. As stated in the article, employees are hoping that their payroll deductions will be less than before, which should be the case since a smaller gross pay does not allow as much room for deductions (such as a smaller amount for taxes to be based upon). While being laid off seems to only have a negative effect on the victim, the employer has to go through a series of steps to lay one off. This includes continuing to contribute to the employee's RPP, CPP, etc. A smart move to reduce the amount taken in from loans is to lower its lending rate. This would allow a company to work under a lesser loan and still manage ok. Since only education and health care are doing fine at the moment, other industries that require inventory to be stocked will be under more debt because if people are not making as much money, they will be reluctant to spend on luxury items. In the end the store will not fare well and individuals will not have the ability to purchase desired items. Debt will be amounted in no time, the credit line of a company will be given a bad rep and make money-lending companies hesitant to lend to you.
Reflection
Since so many industries are laying off workers, it really makes one wonder if they would be able to hold onto their job and pertaining to youth coming out of university, would there be positions that allow them to exercise what they have learnt? Individuals who have had their hours cut or wages frozen may look like they are the only ones on the bad receiving end but that is not true. Employers are going through an equally tough time, often questioning their company's ability to ride out of the recession. Although I do not have a job, family and friends do and at the time being, things look extremely grim. Looking at the number of laid off employees in the U.S., I wonder when Canada will go through the same drastic situation. On the otherhand Jim Flaherty, Minister of Finance in Canada states that Canada's recession is in a mild stage, which I think not. Perhaps it is when compared to other countries (ie. United States) that Canada is not in a tough time but the majority of the news, newspaper and everyday chatter reminds us of what we are going through.
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Chpt 16 Payroll Accounting
http://www.cbc.ca/money/story/2009/03/04/chrysler-layoffs.html
Summary
It seems like nowadays all we hear about is the recession, job loses, financial aid, and so on. This unfortunately applies to Chrysler as well. In Windsor, Ontario, Chrysler's minivan assembly plant is about to lay off 1,200 employees and has plans to close down the plant as well. The layoff of employees is set to take place on June 24th, 2009 and the closing of the plant will further depend on the auto market. If all goes well, the plant stays. If not, it will be swiftly removed no later than in July or August. At the moment, this particular minivan assembly plant employs 4450 hourly workers and to remove 1200 of these workers narrows things down to only 3250 employees. To attempt to save the plant, Chrysler has scaled down over 30% of its capacity and has asked the U.S. and Canadian government to bail them out.
Connection
In this article, it talks about individuals getting laid off and it may seem easy to lay off an employee, but it is not. There are several procedures that companys have to abide by. When one is fired, he or she is put under the Unemployment Insurance Act as well as other procedures that all employees have the right to. This particular Unemployment Insurance Act is a fund where small amounts of the worker's paycheck is deducted and put into this fund in order to aid the struggling recipient. While being laid off, the individual will not have to worry about running out of money and hopefully finds the motivation to seek for a new job.
Reflection
Many people's job positions are in danger right now and with the government busy saving themselves, one can only rely on themselves. Fortunately, with the small deductions from each paycheck received, it is comforting to know that there is a small amount of money saved up to, hopefully, last until a new job has been found. Personally I feel that people should save a portion of their paycheck each and every time in case of emergencies, which would allow for a bit of breathing room and less anxiety. As to the workers being laid off from Chrysler's minivan assembly plant, perhaps a job outside of the car industry would be best, seeing that cars are not doing very well at the moment.
Saturday, February 28, 2009
Chpt 15 Analyzing Financial Statements
http://www.cbc.ca/money/story/2009/02/27/canwest-deadline.html
Summary
The current economic recession has finally affected several broadcast stations and in this particular article, the media Canwest Global Communications Corp. Canwests' lenders have agreed to, under such circumstances, extend a debt repayment by nearly 2 weeks from this Friday and to discontinue its credit line to $112 million dollars from a previous amount of $300 million. With this surplus of time, Canwest will be able to resume work normally and is currently in the process of negotiating for a longer deadline. Not only will Canwests' bankers negiotiate with its lenders, it will begin to cut back on operating costs (also known as expenses). Although cutting back on operating costs is a step in the right direction of avoiding bankrupcy, debt left due to the purchase of Alliance Entertainment company and former Southam newspaper has begun to take a toll on their ability to meet the minimum repayment figure of $100 million. In order to ease some of the debt that has accumluated, Canwest has put five of its E! television stations for sale but none has been sold yet. The ultimate price? Bankrupcy.
Connection
The content of this article relates to the content of Chapter 15 by allowing us to see what bankers look for when the company they have lent to is in a position of not being able to repay its loans. Bankers, an outsider of companies, may then not lend money to Canwest in the future due to its inability to meet deadlines. With the closest deadline being 12 days after February 27, 2009, the decision to sell its assets to gain some profit is a smart move. Another factor Canwest and businesses in general should have kept in mind when it purchased other companies would to question its profitability and whether or not they are indeed beneficial to yourself. If the answer was 'no', then it would be somewhat a warning that it may be a burden.
Reflection
It is unfortunate to hear that Canwest may go bankrupt, but I believe that before buying other businesses, one should consider if it is worth it or not. Questions should be asked and careful examination of finanacial statements need to be taken into account. On a brighter note, it is great to see companies have the ability to purchase another for it shows that money is not an issue and management decisions made are in the right direction to continue to grow. Hopefully, Canwest will be able to pay off part of its debt and make decisions based upon its comparative financial statements.
Summary
The current economic recession has finally affected several broadcast stations and in this particular article, the media Canwest Global Communications Corp. Canwests' lenders have agreed to, under such circumstances, extend a debt repayment by nearly 2 weeks from this Friday and to discontinue its credit line to $112 million dollars from a previous amount of $300 million. With this surplus of time, Canwest will be able to resume work normally and is currently in the process of negotiating for a longer deadline. Not only will Canwests' bankers negiotiate with its lenders, it will begin to cut back on operating costs (also known as expenses). Although cutting back on operating costs is a step in the right direction of avoiding bankrupcy, debt left due to the purchase of Alliance Entertainment company and former Southam newspaper has begun to take a toll on their ability to meet the minimum repayment figure of $100 million. In order to ease some of the debt that has accumluated, Canwest has put five of its E! television stations for sale but none has been sold yet. The ultimate price? Bankrupcy.
Connection
The content of this article relates to the content of Chapter 15 by allowing us to see what bankers look for when the company they have lent to is in a position of not being able to repay its loans. Bankers, an outsider of companies, may then not lend money to Canwest in the future due to its inability to meet deadlines. With the closest deadline being 12 days after February 27, 2009, the decision to sell its assets to gain some profit is a smart move. Another factor Canwest and businesses in general should have kept in mind when it purchased other companies would to question its profitability and whether or not they are indeed beneficial to yourself. If the answer was 'no', then it would be somewhat a warning that it may be a burden.
Reflection
It is unfortunate to hear that Canwest may go bankrupt, but I believe that before buying other businesses, one should consider if it is worth it or not. Questions should be asked and careful examination of finanacial statements need to be taken into account. On a brighter note, it is great to see companies have the ability to purchase another for it shows that money is not an issue and management decisions made are in the right direction to continue to grow. Hopefully, Canwest will be able to pay off part of its debt and make decisions based upon its comparative financial statements.
Friday, November 21, 2008
Chpt 14: Cash Control and Banking
http://www.cbc.ca/news/background/personalfinance/creditcards.html
Summary
The usage of credit cards by Canadians over the last few years have been steadily increasing and have now reached the point where over 50 million Visa and MasterCards exists within our wallets. Not only so, 24 million retail credit cards have also found its way into consumer's pockets by means of enticing offers of discounts when you apply for their card. With most stores accepting the source of payment by means of a plastic card, there are drawbacks to extensively using them. Credit cards most oftenly come hand in hand with interest and not paying on time simply increases that interest rate.Not only so, the option of paying the minimum amount only increases the debt. So why do Canadian have so many credit cards? Simple, they are easy to apply for and are a great way to pay off debt at a later date, especially when your paycheck has not yet arrived.
Connection
As many of us know, a visit to the bank to deposit money or withdraw money, the bank charges certain fees for helping you accomplish such a task. With credit cards, it is the same. Cardholders are charged transaction fees and annual fees and most importantly, interest on overdue payments. Interest rates vary from store to store and sometimes bank to bank but this is what takes a toll on the consumers, especially for people who do not take note of their bills when they arrive but when the stack of mail blocks out the light. It is often too late at that point to pay off their balances without interest and as a result, hefty interest rates. If this does not stop, it only becomes a cycle. On an even darker note, not paying your fees on time leads to bad credit history and may eventually be the reason for credit card companies to disallow you from applying for their card.
Reflection
I understand why individuals prefer to not pay in cash for cash is easy to lose and unconveinent to carry in large amounts. On the other hand, it's conveinent for small grocery shopping payments and if we were to live in a world where there is no cash, we will still encounter scams, losses, and so on just like we do today. Currently, microchips are being installed into credit cards to decrease the number of frauds, but technology can be fickle. Once an individual figures out how to access these new cards, they will spread the news and consumers will be back to base one. I don't think cash should be completely eliminated from means of payment, but what I do think is people should consider when to use a credit card and when to use cash.
Summary
The usage of credit cards by Canadians over the last few years have been steadily increasing and have now reached the point where over 50 million Visa and MasterCards exists within our wallets. Not only so, 24 million retail credit cards have also found its way into consumer's pockets by means of enticing offers of discounts when you apply for their card. With most stores accepting the source of payment by means of a plastic card, there are drawbacks to extensively using them. Credit cards most oftenly come hand in hand with interest and not paying on time simply increases that interest rate.Not only so, the option of paying the minimum amount only increases the debt. So why do Canadian have so many credit cards? Simple, they are easy to apply for and are a great way to pay off debt at a later date, especially when your paycheck has not yet arrived.
Connection
As many of us know, a visit to the bank to deposit money or withdraw money, the bank charges certain fees for helping you accomplish such a task. With credit cards, it is the same. Cardholders are charged transaction fees and annual fees and most importantly, interest on overdue payments. Interest rates vary from store to store and sometimes bank to bank but this is what takes a toll on the consumers, especially for people who do not take note of their bills when they arrive but when the stack of mail blocks out the light. It is often too late at that point to pay off their balances without interest and as a result, hefty interest rates. If this does not stop, it only becomes a cycle. On an even darker note, not paying your fees on time leads to bad credit history and may eventually be the reason for credit card companies to disallow you from applying for their card.
Reflection
I understand why individuals prefer to not pay in cash for cash is easy to lose and unconveinent to carry in large amounts. On the other hand, it's conveinent for small grocery shopping payments and if we were to live in a world where there is no cash, we will still encounter scams, losses, and so on just like we do today. Currently, microchips are being installed into credit cards to decrease the number of frauds, but technology can be fickle. Once an individual figures out how to access these new cards, they will spread the news and consumers will be back to base one. I don't think cash should be completely eliminated from means of payment, but what I do think is people should consider when to use a credit card and when to use cash.
Sunday, October 26, 2008
Chpt 12 Specialized Journals
http://www.cbc.ca/consumer/story/2008/10/23/f-cautiousconsumer.html
Summary
As of last week, the Canadian dollar had fallen to $0.79 U.S. dollars, meaning the Canadian dollar is no longer worth as much as it previously was. With Christmas being only 2 months away, the decreasing value of the dollar is of bad timing. On the other hand, many retail stores will not increase their prices for stocks have already been pre-ordered and have a locked price. Not only so, some retailers may even drop their prices even more by the use of discounts due to the lack of consumer confidence. If the Canadian dollar continues to drop, consumers will be able to take advantage of the reduced prices longer, but even if the value of the dollar does climb back up, prices will not immediately increase.
Connection
When prices soar, discounts are often given out to ease the financial difficulties some individuals face. With this chapter focusing on specialized journals, discounts are recorded in the Discounts Earned account (for the customer) and/or the Discounts Allowed account (for the retailer). While most discounts found in clothing stores or local supermarkets just cut back on the price of the item, there are discounts given when payments are made before its due date. Such discounts have terms that must be met before the discount is in affect. An example would be a discount of 1% when the payment is made within 15 days of the invoice.
Reflection
Giving customers the advantage of using discounts is a great idea and it is also a win-win situation. The customer can save money and the retailers can still gain a fair amount of profit at the same time. When the use of discounts is available, fewer individuals will travel over to the United States to shop and as a result, this could provide some cushioning in the economic recession Canada seems to be falling into. Ovetime, I believe the value of our dollar will increase back to a higher amount and prices will increase as well. How much and when, no one knows but hopefully not too much. No one likes to pay a higher price for the same item.
-Betty Chan
Summary
As of last week, the Canadian dollar had fallen to $0.79 U.S. dollars, meaning the Canadian dollar is no longer worth as much as it previously was. With Christmas being only 2 months away, the decreasing value of the dollar is of bad timing. On the other hand, many retail stores will not increase their prices for stocks have already been pre-ordered and have a locked price. Not only so, some retailers may even drop their prices even more by the use of discounts due to the lack of consumer confidence. If the Canadian dollar continues to drop, consumers will be able to take advantage of the reduced prices longer, but even if the value of the dollar does climb back up, prices will not immediately increase.
Connection
When prices soar, discounts are often given out to ease the financial difficulties some individuals face. With this chapter focusing on specialized journals, discounts are recorded in the Discounts Earned account (for the customer) and/or the Discounts Allowed account (for the retailer). While most discounts found in clothing stores or local supermarkets just cut back on the price of the item, there are discounts given when payments are made before its due date. Such discounts have terms that must be met before the discount is in affect. An example would be a discount of 1% when the payment is made within 15 days of the invoice.
Reflection
Giving customers the advantage of using discounts is a great idea and it is also a win-win situation. The customer can save money and the retailers can still gain a fair amount of profit at the same time. When the use of discounts is available, fewer individuals will travel over to the United States to shop and as a result, this could provide some cushioning in the economic recession Canada seems to be falling into. Ovetime, I believe the value of our dollar will increase back to a higher amount and prices will increase as well. How much and when, no one knows but hopefully not too much. No one likes to pay a higher price for the same item.
-Betty Chan
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
Ch.11: Accounting for a Merchandising Business
Summary
http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/news/business/story.html?id=32ee0fc9-50e9-49ef-883b-1fdffd36ff63&p=1
Connection
As debt builds up, not only do individuals involved in the stock market crash suffer, but so do individuals like us and businessmen as well. Prices will gradually but consistently increase and customers will have to pay more for the same items and business owners would have to increase the salary they pay to their workers for the price of living will have skyrocketed. Owners of trade companies will endure one of the worst sufferings since Canada has strong trade routes going to the U.S. and no longer will they be able to purchase our items. As it is expensive to store products for a long period of time, the value of the items will not be worth its original price and therefore cost the proprietor. In some cases, proprietors would lose even more money because when business is not up to where it should be, money is spent on advertising expenses to sell the product to gain more customers. In the end, revenue (particularly COGS) will not increase whereas expenses will, something any business or accountant should hope not to encounter.
http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/news/business/story.html?id=32ee0fc9-50e9-49ef-883b-1fdffd36ff63&p=1
Everywhere we go we hear about the United States' economic crisis and how it affects Canadians. As Canada gets nearer and nearer to falling into a recession, this has a huge effect on our economy. In fact, it seems to be that we are already in a recession. The number of jobs that presently exists will decrease because money will be even harder to come by, especially jobs that relate to the export of products from Canada. Since this crisis is a global issue, many European countries as suffering as well. Luckily, experts expect this recession to end by early 2009, but this can have devasting effects on the global scale.
Connection
As debt builds up, not only do individuals involved in the stock market crash suffer, but so do individuals like us and businessmen as well. Prices will gradually but consistently increase and customers will have to pay more for the same items and business owners would have to increase the salary they pay to their workers for the price of living will have skyrocketed. Owners of trade companies will endure one of the worst sufferings since Canada has strong trade routes going to the U.S. and no longer will they be able to purchase our items. As it is expensive to store products for a long period of time, the value of the items will not be worth its original price and therefore cost the proprietor. In some cases, proprietors would lose even more money because when business is not up to where it should be, money is spent on advertising expenses to sell the product to gain more customers. In the end, revenue (particularly COGS) will not increase whereas expenses will, something any business or accountant should hope not to encounter.
Reflection
With such a global disaster surfacing, I cannot help but wonder why the Americans did not have a backup plan of any sort for a sufficient government should have limits on how much money is spent on certain aspects of a country. At the present moment, our Canadian government has ensured Canadians that we will not fall as deeply as our American neighbours but in some cases, we are even worse. On the other hand, without the U.S. using as much money to finance their operations, countries around the world could possibly benefit from this issue. Only time can tell what will become of this situation and whether companies will make it through this time of little revenue.
Betty Chan
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