The fast growing yoga retail phenomenon, Lululemon, “[continues to defy its doubters with an almost 50-per-cent jump in quarterly profit to $57.2-million]” (Strauss, 2012).

Christine Day (chief executive of Lululemon) says the company is quickly learning from past mistakes, such as problems of bleeding colour dyes, and the brands’ discontinuing of a popular pair of loose fitting pants. To move forward from these set-backs, the company publicly apologized on Facebook, and announced the bringing back of the “still” loose-fit-pants in a “reinvented” way.

The company manages not only to fix their mistakes, but even profit from the changes it makes to fix them. Lululemon has added to its business model, and is continuing to get better at stocking enough products to keep up with consumer demands. However, at the same time the retailer limits the carrying of merchandise on its e-commerce site, in order
to create a higher demand.

Lululemon is a unique and highly recognized brand, with a highly desirable manifesto; this  is their public policy. They emphasize the importance of putting friends before money, trying new things, and leading a healthy life. What they stand for establishes a strong bond with customers, and therefore leads to successful sales.

By: MARINA STRAUSS -The Globe and Mail

Source: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/globe-investor/lululemon-earnings-jump-on-sales-gains/article4525921/

In Canada today, it is especially common that those graduating with arts degrees are not finding quality jobs. They are “struggling to find meaningful work,” says Lauren Friese (Founder at TalentEgg Inc.), as they choose a degree in arts, as apposed to a more practical program, such as business or engineering. Adelle Farrelly, a graduate with a an MA from U of T, expresses her frustrations: “[No one told me an English degree wasn’t an acceptable prerequisite for even basic grunt positions].” Upon graduating she was working at a coffee shop, just waiting, and in search for that ‘real job,’

Friese expresses her concerns about the way this country prepares its youngsters for the job market. She emphasizes the most distressing part: “the consistent devaluation of education in the arts,”(Friese, 1) a process, she says, that is denying arts graduates the opportunity to be a useful part of the economy.

We must consider whether it is the arts students, or the economy? Will these Students have brighter opportunities in the future, perhaps if the world moves further away from recession? This is useful to consider when discussing the future of grad students, as in today’s world even those in more ‘practical’ programs are struggling. Life is unfair.

Source: Graduate Employment (The Globe and Mail)

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/economy/canada-competes/why-are-we-training-our-arts-grads-to-be-baristas/article4507579/

It seems that the world’s largest mobile and smart phone company, ‘Samsung,’ is facing the dilemma between ethics, and cheap labor. As reported by the New York NGO of the China Labor Watch, the company is guilty of “employees working more than 100 hours of overtime in a month, children under 16 working in factories, with failure to provide safety clothing where appropriate” (BBC, 1).

The Labor Watch investigated workplace conditions at eight different factories in China, concluding that children were knowingly employed, they too working the hundred hours overtime. The investigation revealed the company’s lack of regard for safety measures, as there was no evidence following provision of protective clothing. Samsung is also accused of barring its workers from sitting down during shifts (standing up twelve hours a day), with documented instances of verbal and physical abuse, and with some employees only having one day off a month.

This implants a new image of Samsung in consumers’ heads; Nike isn’t the only brand exploiting workers to gain profit. If we are thinking like economists, we assume that producers are always seeking to increase revenue and profit, however, we must ask ourselves:How much are we willing to let others suffer for our own gain?

Sources:

http://www.bbc.com/news/technology-19504381

http://www.cbc.ca/m/touch/technology/story/2012/09/05/tech-samsung-labour.htm

http://www.canadianbusiness.com/blog/business_ethics/97780–samsung-chinese-workers-and-labour-rights

http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2012/sep/05/samsung-accused-exploiting-workers-china

Welcome to UBC Blogs. This is your first post. Edit or delete it, then start blogging!