Business Investigation
INTRODUCTION:
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The company I investigated:
Allders Department Store
Who I interviewed:
Allders store manager: Keith Gillespie
Interview date: Interview Time:
Saturday 8th November 2003 3:00pm
The organisation that I have chosen for my coursework is ALLDERS.
My coursework is about how Allders uses ICT for the four main
functional areas of the company. These four main functional areas are:
Sales, Purchasing, Finance and Operations. I will also be looking at
how ICT helps the company with its sales.
Allders is a well known and well-established departmental store, which
offers exciting ranges of products in every category, from fashion to
household goods, which are all high quality products sold at
affordable prices. It also offers out of town home furnishing, gifts,
toys, electrical goods, kitchenware and men's, women's and children's
fashion and lots more.
Allders can boast over a 100 years of retailing experience. With a
strong commitment to growth, Allders employ more than 7000 people in
over 40 locations, from Portsmouth in the South, to Knaresborough in
the North. Allders Department stores are located primarily in town
centres to maximise their sales distribution.
Allders was founded by Joshua Allders in Croydon who started it out as
a family business in 1862. Allders in the 21st century is something
very different as it provides a various range of state of the art
products. By the 1980's Allders Department stores had expanded to
include eleven department stores and commenced it's successful
expansion into the retail parks with its concept of Allders At Home,
the first At Homes opening was in 1991. Since then, Allders has
expanded and developed much more. As a company Allders now has annual
sales in excess of £500m.
Allders are competing with every other retailer on the high street,
and being one step ahead is vital in this retail business. Allders has
found many successful ways to publicise its company. For example, it's
imaginative marketing such as its links with Great Ormond Street