Maxwell Wessel gives some insightful thoughts for new start-ups in his blog post. Wessel emphasizes on three important questions new entrepreneurs need to focus on when deciding on a start-up location including the city’s advantage, how their business can be set apart, and the possibilities to get exposure there. If entrepreneurs start outside a super hub, it would be more difficult to find customers, employees, and funding. It would be vital for these companies to develop an edge. It could be the culture or type of partnership but what it comes down to is exposure. Exposure facilitates the relationships between the company, its customers, incumbents, and competitors.

This post was quite thought provoking because I never realized how important location is for a start-up business. I would have thought that it is beneficial to begin a unique company in a remote area where it would be possible take advantage of having the market power to set prices and standards. For example, would it be more profitable to start up a lemonade stand in a small rural community with no competitors or to run a café in a competitive city? But perhaps, the criteria for one industry over another is different.

The tobacco industry’s pushed aside as popularity arises for e-cigarettes. These devices contain nicotine without the harmful toxins from burning tobacco and Europe has approximately 7 million users. Studies show they’re far safer in comparison to tobacco, similar to nicotine patches and gum. However, there are hundreds of suppliers and there’s no consistency with quality or labelling and with no restrictions, three worries come about in this emerging market. Young people are more likely to get lured into a nicotine addiction, tobacco quitters are prone to transitioning into this new product, and smoking is very likely to be re-glamorized.

Some are fighting to increase product standards and reinforce the rules to reduce the number of smokers as it will cause variety to fall and prices to rise. Those currently in the tobacco industry are hoping to avoid another Kodak mistake. Philip Morris International, British American Tobacco, and other companies alike plan to market other less toxic substitutes by 2017, such as nicotine inhalers and a device that will heat rather than burn tobacco. The government’s view on e-cigarettes will be determined on October 8, as the European Parliament votes on a proposal to regulate e-cigarettes as medical products.

Article: http://www.economist.com/news/business/21586867-regulators-wrestle-e-smokes-tobacco-industry-changing-fast-kodak-moment

Price and product differentiation is extremely important in the rivalrous vehicle industry. The number two U.S. automaker, Ford Motor Co., announced their most recent plan to build one-third more vehicles globally by 2017. Their blueprint includes adding more plants in developing markets, advancing into a more unified manufacturing strategy, and running its factories for longer hours. This year alone, Ford aims to build around 2 million more cars and trucks. This opportunity of furthering global expansion with 14 new factories will help maximize capacity and thus cut costs and boost outputs. The automaker hopes to maintain a capacity level equal to the market’s demand which would allow the company to respond quicker to changing consumer tastes.

Ford Motor is one example of a company that falls under the category of cost leadership strategy in Porter’s Generic Strategies. This fifth largest automaker in the world uses the cost leadership strategy to gain competitive advantage in the market. With exploited scales of production and advanced techniques like its new 3D prototype printer, Ford is able to increase its manufacturing efficiency by 98% and lower prices to attract more consumers.

Article: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/international-business/us-business/ford-aims-to-make-its-factories-more-flexible-efficient/article14725318/

The production of clothing, textiles, and footwear are labour cost intensive and is the reason why manufacturers are always searching for the next best place to set up factories. That’s why it’s striking that Merchant Housing International Ltd., the Hong Kong based company who primarily manufactures footwear for Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and Sears Holdings Corp., will open its first U.S. plant in Tennessee early next year. What’s more, over half of U.S. executives at manufacturers with sales over $1 billion are also making the preparations to re-shore. Bringing manufacturing back to the U.S. increases proximity to consumers and product quality, and lowers transportation costs and competitive wage rates. Making these key activity changes at Merchant Housing will ultimately improve Wal-Mart and Sears’ value propositions. This manufacturing renaissance is bypassing Canada though. Canada has been facing sharp declines in competitiveness since the Great Recession. Thousands of companies have disappeared, most noticeable are exporting manufacturers. The increasing value of the Canadian dollar, the slow productivity growth, and the lack of research and development is pulling Canada down in the share of global trade. Canada needs to invest in technology and equipment in order to be more globally competitive.Article: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/economy/why-the-rebirth-of-manufacturing-is-bypassing-canada/article14717261/