Manifest Destiny Essay - 1119 Words

The United States of America has never been content with stagnation. The landmass of the Thirteen Colonies was enough to rival that of the Mother country from which they separated. The forefathers believed that it was the manifest destiny of this nation to eventually claim the expansion from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean. By 1890, nearly a hundred years following the original claim of Manifest Destiny, the land that was once open, was now under American control. But no sooner was the Great American Frontier closed, than was the door to East Asian expansion opened with the great gold key of American diplomacy. In a world where imperialism was contagious, and cartographers had to work around the clock to keep up with an ever-changing†¦show more content†¦This was the ultimate continuation that can be witnessed in the expansionism of early America and of later dates. Another great catalyst for expansion early on and then again in the late nineteenth century was a heightened sense of nationalism. This was a prevalent idea when the nation was young and a worldwide norm during the era of Taft and Roosevelt. In 1885, Josiah Strong penned the words, which were at the very heart of this sense of American power and intrinsic worth in his work Our Country: Its Possible Future and Potential Crisis. His thoughts concluded that the United States was a people of unequalled majesty and energy. His belief was that the United States was a people destined for nothing short of unsurpassed greatness. Those early expansionist philosophers of the United States would also share this sentiment. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;Though the two periods of expansionism shared some very similar motives, there were undeniable differences, most specifically with regards to the world at the time of these two crusades. Thomas Nast illustrates beautifully the world of Taft and Roosevelt expansionism in â€Å"The World’s Plunders.† Illustrating the pillaging of the eastern hemisphere by the three dominate powers of Germany, Britain and Russia, inferences can be made to the fact that the world was literally being overrun by a healthy appetite for expansion. The United States of America was in the turmoil of Civil WarShow MoreRelatedEssay On Manifest Destiny1709 Words   |  7 Pagesone of many seminal events in the history of the United States. However, it began the debt we are still in today; the Louisiana Purchase gave us the land that began the Manifest Destiny. â€Å"The term Manifest Destiny originated in the 1840’s when John L. O’Sullivan said in an article that it was the American colonist’s Manifest Destiny to spread over the continent and that God had given them the land for the sole purpose of multiplying and free development.† (History.com staff). It was this philosophyRead MoreThe Manifest Destiny Essay1076 Words   |  5 Pagesfull swing by the 1840s. Which evidenced that the continued expansion of the states was an issue and the idea of a Manifest Destiny was of major importance. John L. O’Sullivan once stated, â€Å"Our Manifest Destiny is to overspread the continent allotted by Providence for the free development of our yearly multiplying millions† (America: A Narrative History). The idea of a Manifest Destiny originated in the 1840s by the Anglo-Saxon Colonists to expand their ideal civilization and institutions across NorthRead MoreManifest Destiny : Ideal Or Justification Essay883 Words   |  4 PagesManifest destiny: Ideal or Justification The Louisiana Purchase doubled the size of U.S in 1803. But it is not enough for ambitious Americans, we are not satisfied, we wanted more territory. So western expansion did not end, it actually keep moved. Westward Expansion is a very significant part in U.S history. It operated perfectly based on the ideology called manifest destiny. However, the creation of this theory is on purpose. It was used to push U.S territory to further west. When the idea of manifestRead MoreManifest Destiny Is An American Philosophy Essay2281 Words   |  10 Pages Manifest Destiny is an American philosophy with which it is to justify how that country has understood their place in the world and how to relate to other people. It is a doctrine, phrase or idea that expresses the belief that the United States is destined to spread to the four winds as supports the idea that is, to expand on the territories conquered North America and, in general, on the Western Hemisphere. This doctrine was not free of racism, considering that the American people wereRead MoreManifest Destiny Research Paper :1382 Words   |  6 Pages2014 Manifest Destiny Research Paper: The 1840’S were years of unprecedented growth for United States; in a mere four years, the national domain more than doubled with an additional 1.2 million miles being added to the country. (PBS) This was due to a movement called Manifest Destiny that suggested that the United States was â€Å"destined† to stretch from coast, sea to shining sea, uninterrupted by anything or anyone. (History.com) However, complex and underlying motives guided Manifest Destiny advocatesRead MoreManifest Destiny And Westward Expansion Essay1447 Words   |  6 Pages1) OUTLINE: I. Topic sentence. Manifest destiny and westward expansion was a tremendous key component to the growth of the nation economically because of the impact it had on native americans, women empowerment, and expanding the population of the country. II. Significance of topic. Americans looked towards the western lands as an opportunity for large amounts of free land, for growth of industry, and pursue the manifest destiny. III. List of evidence related to topic. The railwaysRead MoreManifest Destiny: Term or Reality Essay1315 Words   |  6 PagesThe three authors that describe Manifest destiny have very different beliefs but all use one person with vastly different views on Manifest Destiny and his beliefs on the term. The person that first used the term in any form of writing was John O’ Sullivan and is accredited with coining the phrase but much of this time had this strong belief in expanding the territory and states of the United States. Their views on this term were different because some believed that the United States should expandRead MoreExplain The Background, And Repercussions Of Manifest Destiny1956 Words   |  8 PagesExplain the background, and repercussions of, Manifest Destiny. In 1845, John O’Sullivan wrote an Article in the ‘United States Magazine and Democratic Review’ in favor of the annexation of Texas. In this article the term ‘Manifest Destiny’ was created. O’Sullivan wrote â€Å"the fulfilment of our Manifest Destiny to overspread the continent allotted by Providence for the free development of our yearly multiplying millions.† Thus supplying the American people with the idea that it was their God-givenRead MoreManifest Destiny, By John L. Sullivan1491 Words   |  6 PagesIt is hard to read anything about the history of the United States without coming across the term â€Å"Manifest Destiny†. Manifest Destiny is a term, which was first coined by John L. Sullivan in the summer 1845 issue of the Democratic Review. â€Å"Hence it was carried into the debate on the Oregon question in the House of Representatives and proved to be such a convenient summing up of the self-confident nationalist and expansionist sentiment of the time that it passed into the permanent national vocabularyRead MoreInsight about the Mexican War and the Manifest Destiny Essay1046 Words   |  5 Pagesthe Mexican War and how did it begin? or What is Manifest Destiny and who came up with it? Those are all very good questions, so let me take the time to give you some insight about the Mexican war and Manifest Destiny. The Manifest Destiny was the belief that the United States was destined to expand from coast to coast. It was the concept that which heavily influenced American policy in the 1800s. Americans supported the manifest destiny because the Southerners wanted more land and Northerners

Kingdom By the Sea Free Essays

And loving young boy named Harry who Is a very Intelligent person who has to go through different situations and as he does we learn more and more about his character as it unfolds throughout the book. We learn that he can easily adapt to problematic situations and learn new and vital skills quickly and easily for his journey of survival. Harry lost absolutely everything after his house got bombed during World War Two. We will write a custom essay sample on Kingdom By the Sea or any similar topic only for you Order Now Through this we learn more and more about his character. As Harry was lying on the beach, a dog came up to him. Harry looked on the collar and the address read, 12 Lauderdale Terrace and the name read, Don. Lauderdale Terrace had been bombed about three weeks ago; the poor dog was in the same situation as Harry, homeless, nowhere to go. Harry has now got a companion to be with, he Is now no longer lonely. Harry relationship with Don shows us that Harry Is a caring person ready to help and Is not selfish. Harry and Don continued their journey of survival together and became closer and closer through the different situations they went through together. The obstacles that Harry encountered and his relationship with Don vastly affected his personality. As Harry lay on the beach thinking about what he would do for money he embedded his father’s voice, â€Å"Don’t flap around like a wet hen. Think! â€Å". Then he remembers he did have some money, 17 pounds and 10 shillings, in the Trustee Savings Bank. He came across a problem, where was the bankbook? He soon realized that it was In the attach © case he had been carrying around with him. He got the bankbook out of the case and soon felt terribly guilty, he was never allowed to look inside the case. Harry quickly grabbed his bankbook and slammed the case shut. This shows us that Harry respects his Mum and Dad even though they are dead. Harry is a respectful boy. Harry uses his money wisely so it will last him longer. This tells us that Harry is a wise person who is very cautious in making the money last. When Harry and Don spent a night in a farmer’s barn and the farmer attacked Harry in a vicious and inhumane way, Don bit the farmer to help Harry escape. This indicates Don’s undying love for Harry, which means they have developed a strong bond. When the farmer attempted to shoot Don with his shotgun, Harry retaliated and hit the farmer very hard on the back with a fence post. The farmer said â€Å"Christ, kid†¦ I think you’ve broken me back†. The farmer was In excruciating amounts of pain and was asking Harry to help him In a desperate manner. Harry turned his back and said â€Å"Get Lost†. This shows us a completely different aspect of Harry character, in defensive over Don, which indicates that they have formed a very strong relationship with each other. In order to survive Harry has to lie to other people because otherwise he will get caught and most likely be taken to an orphanage of some sort. Lying was not part of Harry character before the war but he had to forfeit some of his strong values to survive in this new world of mayhem. Earlier in the book when Harry was in the chip shop he had to lie to the man at the counter because if he had told him that he was homeless and did not have any parents, the shopkeeper would probably alert the police and Harry would be taken away. When he was in the chip shop he cried as well so he would gain sympathy from people around him. This is shown when a woman in the chip shop says â€Å"Leave the poor brain alone, for God’s sake, what’s he ever done to you, Jim†. This indicates that Harry is aware that anything that he says or does will affect him in a big way. It also shows that Harry plan is working and he’s on the right track. Even though his dad had told him not to cry or lie, tears and lies seemed to be the only things that were effective nowadays. Since the explosion Harry has had to learn independence and to mature quickly, he has applied skills that he had learned in school to look after himself. He used sand to clean his body and used salt to clean his teeth. This shows us that Harry listened in class time because he has been able to apply these simple survival strategies. It also indicates that Harry is aware that he has to keep his hygiene up to date so he will be accepted in the local towns, nobody liked a dirty, scruffy kid. Harry found himself in need if shelter. He was walking along the beach thinking hard when he found himself upon an upturned boat. He walked up to it and realized that it could be his new home for the meanwhile. This shows us that Harry was inventive and resourceful. Harry confidently befriends an adult, named Artier, who is part of the army. Harry and Artier become close friends however Harry still has to lie about his homeless status. Harry becomes popular amongst the beaches soldiers and then becomes the Sergeant’s errand boy. This tells us that Harry has grown in confidence, as he is able to develop bonds with the surrounding adults. The events since the explosion, have shaped Harry character in diverse ways. Harry has been forced to learn many new skills during his Journey of survival. He has developed valuable character traits through his strong bond with Don, he has had to mature quickly and become his own parent. Harry character is developed in various situations and learn new and vital skills for his Journey of survival. Harry is a very intelligent young boy and we find out more and more about him as the novel moves How to cite Kingdom By the Sea, Papers

Global Franchising Operations Management †Myassignmenthelp.Com

Question: Discuss About The Global Franchising Operations Management? Answer: Introduction Guzman Y Gomez is a restaurant chain operating in Australia. The restaurant chain specializes in foods such as nachos, quesadillas, burritos and other traditional dishes. The model of the business is a franchise and it has more than 64 stores operating in Australia. The franchises also operate several outlets in Singapore and some in Japan. The company has an aggressive expansion strategy that has helped the company to expand in Australia over the years and also outside Australia. The first outlet was opened in the year 2006 in Newton, Sydney. Within a year of opening the first restaurant, two more followed closely with Bondi Junction and the Kings Cross branches opening. The first Guzman and Gomez branch in Melbourne was opened in the year 2012.The businesses strategic plan is to expand to all the major urban areas in Australia while at the same time expanding internationally. The local market has a lot of potential for growth and therefore, the company is dedicated to committing it s resources to enable expand. The aim of the expansion plan is to help increase the profit margins while at the same time growing their brand name. The company has five restaurants in Singapore which are performing extremely well. The restaurants are gaining a lot of customers in Singapore due to their specialization in Tex-Mex dishes. The business began with 15 staff in its Newtown and currently, it has more than 100 staff. The initial investment by the company was about $450,000. Currently, the business has annual revenues in excess of $4 million (Perritt, Henry 2016). This case study analyzes the history of the company, the ownership model and the strategies that the business has employed to become successful in the market. The case study report also identifies the Analysis of the literature review of Guzman Y Gomez In its expansion plan. The business needs to put into consideration the various factors that could have an impact on the business. The first idea is the changing in the form of business to make it a franchise. The factors such as the effect on the ownership forms and the financing method need to be discussed before making important financing decisions. Currently, Guzman and Gomez have been the fastest growing brand in Australia for the past one year. The restaurant serves Mexican food and it has an eye for good customer relationship and service. The literature review evaluates the mission and vision of Guzman and Gomez. The mission of the company is to become a global leading restaurant chain specializing in Mexican dishes. The vision of GYG is to expand and reach customers both locally and abroad while fulfilling the needs of consumers and giving customers value for their money. The literature review also signifies the importance of specialization in the growth of Guzman. The compan ys specialization in the Mexican dishes has helped GYG to cut a niche for itself in the competitive restaurant chain. The case study mainly focuses on the companies` expansion plans. The study analyzes the core factors that are important for the company to expand successfully. These factors are the potential of the new market, the marketing mix of the company, communication plan, promotion strategies and the resources available to finance the expansion. The management of the company intends to expand the company because of the increased demand it has witnessed from customers. The ability of the company to meet the needs of the customers has endeared it to many customers in different locations in Australia. The standards of service at the Guzman Y Gomez also make it an attractive restaurant for many customers who love Mexican dishes. Due to this demand, the ownership of the company saw it fit to adopt the franchise model in order to help reach the unexploited market. Failure to exploit this market may lead to competitors taking advantage of the gap and hence the company will lose an important investm ent opportunity. The franchisee model will allow a new strategic investor to inject capital into the business in exchange for a share of the company. The new capital will be used to open new branches for the company and hence reaching more customers and making the brand more popular. The management of the restaurant believes that there are two kinds of customers. The first type of customer is the one who prefers fresh guacamole and the second one is wrong (Ritzer, 2011). The restaurant aims at offering customers fresh food and of the best quality without compromising anything. This has been important in retaining existing customers and in attracting new customers. The literature review also explains the benefits of expanding the Guzman and Gomez. The main purpose of franchising the business is to help expand the geographical coverage of the company. The franchising is meant to help the company open many more branches in various locations locally and abroad. The expansion will also help the company to hire new personnel and hire more facilities to open up new branches. The other importance of expanding the business is that the business to increase its customer base. The increase in the number of customers will help the company to increase its sales volumes. This, in turn, will help to increase profits for the company. The expansion of Guzman and Gomez will help the company to expand its brand to other countries and the brand value of hence the company will become more valuable. The literature review also explains that the transformation of the business will give the company a solid financial base. This is important in ensuring the business impr oves standards and maintains a good liquidity position. The financial muscle will be useful in helping the company to take advantage of new opportunities that may arise (Plunkett, 2017). The relocation of the business to foreign countries will help the company to tap into the markets especially in South East Asia where the Mexican dishes may be popular. The literature review does not adequately address the costs that the expansion will incur to the business. The literature review in this section only discusses the positives that will come as a result of this expansion and fails to explain the disadvantages that may come as a result of the franchise. Guzman and Gomez need to analyze and weigh the decision to expand the business using franchising model. In order to evaluate this decision, it is important to use the business expansion strategies. These strategies aid in assessing the impact of each of the factors that may have an impact on the business. The strategies will help Guzman Y Gomez to access the risks that exist in this business. The strategies also help to identify the trends in this industry. In addition to these, the expansion strategies will aid the company in assessing the policies and legislation that are significant for this business to open new branches in other countries (Plunkett, 2007). Franchise agreements need to be carefully analyzed in order to help the owners get the best deal out of negotiations. Expansion of the business regionally poses a big challenge to the management since it requires a lot of dedication and traveling to ensure that the new branches are keeping up with the standards set by the compa ny (Allen Albala, 2007) The understanding of foreign markets may need Guzman Y Gomez to reach an agreement with partners who will help to make the operations of the company in the foreign countries. The policies and industry trends for Thailand, for instance, are not the same as those of Australia. It is therefore crucially important for Guzman Y Gomez to understand the complexities and the trends in the new country it is starting operations. This has to start with the company authorizing a market research to be carried out. The market research shall focus on the food and restaurant industry in general. This is important to help the company gain insight on the entire industry and understand know the competitors. Another study should be initiated with the aim of understanding the needs, tastes, and preferences of consumers. The consumers are becoming more and more complicated and therefore before venturing into the new market, it is important for the business to understand the consumer. The new markets may not be so much into Mexican dishes and therefore, It is very important for the business to understand what the consumer in the new market prefers. This will help the restaurant chain to offer services and products that are suitable for this market. To understand the legal requirements and handles in expanding to new countries, the restaurant chain needs to identify a legal company to help it in acquiring the right documentation to help start the business (Mcmurray clendon, 2011). In its expansion efforts, Guzman Y Gomez needs to identify ensure that they have ample supply of raw materials. The restaurant needs to identify potential suppliers who will supply them with the materials that are needed to start the business. For the sake of quality and standards, it is very crucial for the company to contract farmers who will be able to farm to and sell to the company at an agreed. The contracted farmer's agreement can be very helpful for the Guzman Y Gomez since it will help the company to ensure a constant supply of raw materials and hence assuring a constant supply of meals to the customer. Lacking reliable suppliers for the hotel industry can be very disastrous since it will result in a situation where the supply is less than the demand.(Chan Zakkour, 2014 )At the end of the day, customers will go back home dissatisfied and disappointed since they will not have fulfilled their needs. When this continues for a while, customers will run away and buy from other re staurants. The loss of customer loyalty leads to loss of revenue for the company and reduction of sales. This will also hurt the image and brand name of the company. The absence of a proper agreement with the suppliers who in this case are the farmers of farm produce required to prepare this meals may lead to a decline in the standards set by Guzman Y Gomez. The quality of the farm produce supplied may be poor and this may scare away customers and therefore the company will end up losing a lot of revenue. The literature review also discusses the benefits and reasons why Guzman Y Gomez is choosing the franchising model over other models that would have helped the company achieve its expansion plans. The author argues that the franchising model is the safest of all the options available. He argues that the model is free from any potential risks. Franchising model has benefits to both sellers and to the buyers of the franchise. The franchiser mainly benefits by getting financial assistance from another person, the franchise. Through this funding, the franchiser is able to expand his/her business and therefore increase their returns. The franchise model will also enable the company to initiate new training and employee development scheme. This will help to improve customer service and efficiency of employees. The selling power of Guzman Y Gomez will also be enhanced through the franchising agreement. The agreement will help to provide extra funds which can be used to market the brand name of the restaurant and the business. This, in turn, results in increased customers hence increase in sales. Some of the most successful franchising enterprises include McDonald`s and Panera Bread.(Alon,2012) Both of these companies operate in the fast food and restaurant industry. Despite the many benefits indicated on the franchising enterprise, there are many disadvantages of the franchising model. One of the disadvantages of the models is that it requires the company to use colors of the company it has entered into an agreement with. This means that the Independence of the brand will be interfered with and this may confuse customers. The franchising model will interfere with the profit and loss sharing margins. Even thou the franchise will help to grow the franchiser's business, the franchise needs to recover the invested money and this can only happen by them gaining a substantial portion of the profits generated over the years(Gagnon Gagnon, 2011). Another major shortcoming that is associated with the franchising model is that the franchise has the power to make decisions and is involved in the management of the business. In a case where the visions and ideas of the franchiser and the franchisee are not in line, the company may be mismanaged and this may lead to failure of the business. It is therefore very important for both parties to be in agreement to understand the goal s and objectives of one another in order to prevent failure of the business. There exist various different models of franchises for restaurant chains. These models include the fast casual, fast food and full service. The fast food model is also known as quick service restaurants which do not specialize in table service. Fast-casual is considered to be on between the full restaurant and the fast food restaurant and it may include cafes` and take-away hotels. The third model is the full service. These usually offer a complete selection of menus and also offer table service. The Guzman Y Gomez is under the full-service model where customers have to make choices on the dishes and also have table service. The expansion of Guzman Y Gomez will also be very appropriate through the franchise model since the model will give the franchiser to focus on products and research on the market and hence help to meet the needs of the customers better. The ownership of the restaurant chain does not change and therefore, the franchiser will remain motivated to become successful and to increase the profit margins. It is advantageous for Guzman Y Gomez to seek a franchise since the franchisees will help the business to expand at a fast rate. The fast expansion of the business leads to an increased customer base and increased revenues (Perritt Henry, 2016). In a case where the company decides to expand on its own effort, it may take very many years for the company to expand beyond the boundaries and this leads to loss of opportunities and revenue. Since there is a lot of competition in the market, it is very necessary for the company to adopt an expansion strategy to help the company become the market leader before the competitors take over the market. Market leadership in this niche market will help Guzman Y Gomez to have a competitive advantage over its rivals, the competitive advantage may be in form of financial resources or human resources as well as experience in the market. The financial resource advantage can be helpful to the company to help it begin differentiated products and services which the competitors are not able to finance. The company can also attract and recruit highly qualified and experienced staff who will contribute significantly to the growth of the company. The literature review on Guzman Y Gomez does not clearly explain the marketing plans that the company has in order to ensure that the expansion is met with enthusiasm from customers. The review also fails to identify Analysis of competitors Guzman Y Gomez (GYG) is a fast food chain of restaurants specializing in Australian dishes. The restaurant chain has taken Australia by storm and everyone is excited about the products of the company as well as the services it offers. The company is about to become one of the most popular takeaway outlets in Australia. The company is operating in an industry where there are many competitors. The competitors include direct and indirect competitors. The main competitors of GYG are the popular fast food joints such as MacDonald`s, Pizza Hut Australia, Subway and Yum restaurants Australia (Jou, 2017). Thou MacDonald`s does in not specialize in Mexican dishes, it is seen as the main competitors to GYG since they are both in the fast food industry and the products offered to customers are almost similar. This section will, therefore, analyze MacDonald`s as the main competitor of GYG. The section analyzes the products that the competitors offer and how these products relate with those of GY G. It also evaluates the strengths and weaknesses of the competitor in order to identify their competitive advantage. This also helps to understand the weaknesses of the competitors which can be taken advantage of by GYG and exploited to become good business opportunities for the company (Pilcher,2014). This section also identifies the trends in this industry as well as the industry drivers in the fast food industry in Australia. History of the company MacDonald`s is a fast food company which was formed in the USA in the year 1940. It was operated by Richard and Maurice McDonald in California. The company grew in the USA and later expanded to other countries such as Australia. Currently, MacDonald`s Australia is the market leader in the fast food market in Australia. The company has grown over the years to the point of almost dominating the fast food market in Australia. Over the past few years, competition has been increasing from companies such as GYG, subway, and Dominos Products offered by McDonald`s MacDonald`s has a wide range of products and brands. Some of these brands include; Hamburgers, chicken, French fries, soft drinks, salads, desserts, coffee, breakfast, and milkshakes. The company has a wide product portfolio which helps to increase its revenue. MacDonald`s has received a lot of criticism from consumers and other stakeholders due to the unhealthy nature of its products (Walker, 2008). This criticism resulted in a change in McDonald`s strategy and the company introduced new products such as fish, salads and fruits. Business model Most of McDonald`s restaurants are operated by a franchisee. The company owns all the land on which the restaurants are located. Most of the companys revenue in Australia comes from rental payments from franchisees. The company also has a few outlets that are operated and directly managed by the company itself. Strengths and weaknesses of MacDonald`s Australia Just like every company, MacDonald`s has many strengths and weaknesses. The strengths of the company are the factors that have given the company a competitive advantage hence helping the company to become competitive over all those years. The weaknesses are the challenges that the business is facing or the loopholes which can be corrected to make the company competitive. One of the biggest strength of MacDonald`s is that it is the second biggest chain of fast food restaurants in the world. The company operates more than 36,000 restaurants globally including franchised outlets. The company operates in more than 120 countries globally (Hayes Laudan, 2009). This helps to give the company a competitive advantage over the competitors. This is because the company is able to obtain revenue from different streams and in case one of the outlets s not performing well, this can be offset by the good performance of the other restaurants. The location of the restaurants across many locations helps McDonald`s to spread risk and to reach a higher number of customers. McDonald`s records the highest yearly sales. In the 2017 financial records, the company announced sales revenue of US$24.622 billion. Due to the huge size of the business, McDonald`s is able to enjoy economies of scale. When this is compared to the size of GYG, McDonald is a very big giant in the industry. The fixed costs of the company are shared across all the branches that it operates hence helping to minimize costs for the company. Another strength of McDonald`s is that the company has operated since 1940 and hence has over 70 years of experience in this industry. GYG has been in operation for barely 11 years now. The long stay in the industry helps the company to understand the industry trends and tricks and hence be able to manage risks better and to design more effective strategies (Best, 2017). McDonald`s has a capacity to attract more skilled and highly qualified employees compared to its rivals such as GYG. This is because the companies` brand is more attractive and recognized and they have better remuneration terms than many other competitors in the industry. MacDonald`s can also use its market power over suppliers to influence them to reduce price which helps the company to reduce the costs of production. This can be transferred to the final consumer and the companys products are cheaper and affordable to the customer hence attracting more customers. Another strength that McDonald`s possesses that makes it enjoy a competitive advantage over rivals is that the company is the most recognizable brand internationally. In the year 2015, McDonald`s was ranked as the 9th most valuable brand globally by Forbes magazine (Best, 2017). The brand awareness helps in the introduction of new products to existing and new customers. Despite the many strengths indicated of the business, there are also various weaknesses of McDonald`s. The biggest weakness is that the companys products are viewed mostly as unhealthy and therefore customers are being cautious on what they consume. The increasing health concern for customers has brought about a decline in companies` sales. The market share of McDonald`s has been declining in the recent past. This has been mainly due to their unhealthy products or due to increased competition from companies such as KFC GYG and Subway (Dempster, 2010). This stiff competition has eaten into the market share of McDonald`s. There has been a challenge of disgruntled franchisees. The challenge has been brought about due to the tough restrictions and conditions put by the company while negotiating the deals. The franchisees are dissatisfied because they are not able to gain the profit share they targeted. The new product development has been very slow in McDonald`s. The company has introduced very few new products with products like salads being introduced just recently due to pressure from various stakeholders. This has really affected the standing of the company in the industry which is becoming ever competitive by the day. McDonald`s has an opportunity to expand even further and exploit new emerging markets such as China and India. The company also has an opportunity to enter into Joint Venture with retailers like supermarkets. This would help in distribution of the companies` products. There is the need and opportunity for the company to respond to social change through innovation. The company should focus on developing products that are healthier and change the positioning of the company in the industry. There is an opportunity for the company to use CRM and database marketing in order to market more accurately to the desired target group. This will help the company to reduce the costs of marketing. There is a threat of the industry becoming mature soon rather than later. This, therefore, means that the declining stage is about to begin and it will be characterized by decreasing sales and declining profit margins. The threat of competition is also very huge and real. Smaller companies` have become even more competitive in the recent past. They have been on the mission of developing new products and expanding rapidly to various countries globally. Such companies include the GYG which specializes in Mexican dishes and Subway as well as KFC. This company threatens to eat into the market share of the McDonald`s. The changing demographics mean that the consumer tastes and preferences have changed and hence there is need to understand what the consumers want. The emergence of more health-conscious customers has become a threat to most of the companies in this industry since most of the products are viewed as contributing to being overweight and other health complications. The global combined revenues of the companies in the fast food industry are over $570 billion. In the United States alone, the revenues were estimated to be slightly above $200 billion in the year 2015. This is a huge growth from the 1970s overall revenues of about $6 billion. The global fast food industry is expected to grow at a rate of 2.5% per year for the next five years. The consumers in this industry mainly focus on tastes, prices, and quality of products being offered. Customers also focus on the quality of service, consistency of customer experience, affordability as well as speed. Fast food restaurants and fast casuals make up a significant portion of the industries` market share. The restaurants have a reputation for consistency, simplicity, good feel and music. Customers order and pay at the counter and then take the food out or grab a tray to sit and enjoy the meal. There is no table service in this model. The Mexican food has been slowly eating into the market share of hamburgers which were the most popular fast food in the restaurant. This has contributed to the growth of outlets such as the Guzman Y Gomez. Challenges facing the industry There are a variety of challenges facing the global fast food industry. These challenges include: Perceptions of unhealthy menus. The fast foods have a reputation for being unhealthy and this has been challenged since the tastes of the customer are shifting more to healthy food. The other challenge is that of poor working relations and low wages. The workers in the fast-food restaurant are paid so poorly and this affects their morale. A study conducted in the United States in the recent past indicates that the workers are paid so poorly that more than half of them depend on public assistance programs. The industry has also suffered cultural degradation with the introduction of Taco Bell which is not real Mexican food. Trends in the industry and responses to the challenges There has been a trend where consumers are so concerned about their health and what they eat. To deal with this challenge, many companies in this industry have introduced healthier foods such as salads and fruits. Mexican dishes are also becoming increasingly popular. The consumer is also very considerate of the prices. This has prompted many of the industry players to come up with ways in which they can minimize costs in order to offer more competitive pricing. New micro franchising cuisines are becoming increasingly popular. This includes chicken and burger franchises as well as the Mexican and Chinese dishes franchises. The location of the restaurants is also changing. Drive-thru and stand-alone stores are becoming unpopular with counter service becoming more accepted. Conclusion This case study has been able to thoroughly review the literature review conducted on Guzman Y Gomez. It contains a detailed critical analysis of the Guzman Y Gomez expansion plan through franchising. The paper identifies and discusses the advantages and disadvantages of franchising to both the franchiser and the franchisee. In addition to this, the review helps to identify the important trends and factors that the company needs to understand when expanding to new countries. This paper also contains an in-depth analysis of McDonald`s Australia which is one of the biggest competitors of Guzman Y Gomez. The final section of the paper is an analysis of the industry to identify the new trends and the challenges facing this industry. References Alon, i. (2012). Global franchising operations management: Cases in international and emerging markets operations. Upper saddle river, n.j., ft press/pearson. Allen, g., albala, k. (2007). The business of food: Encyclopedia of the food and drink industries. Westport, conn, greenwood press. Best, a. L. (2017). Fast food kids: French fries, lunch lines, and social ties. Chan, s., zakkour, m. (2014). China's super consumers: What 1 billion customers want and how to sell it to them. Dempster, l. (2010). The australian veg food guide 2010/2011. 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