Growth opportunities in detergent market

Growth opportunities in detergent market The case deals with Unilevers Home Care Cleaning range and is evaluating the growth opportunities in the marketing of detergents to around 48 million low income consumers living in the Northeast region of Brazil. Clearly, the aim of Unilever, like all profit making organizations, is to have a bigger piece of the pie. Its first step forward is to assess whether or not, its target market is lucrative enough. To do so we first understand the buying behaviour of the target users, analyse the current market scenario and Unilevers internal environment. The importance of knowing how people will behave is tantamount to knowing the secret of organisational success. The simplest description of consumer behaviour is the purchase and/or consumption decision of an individual and/or household who buy goods and services for personal consumption. In the case we analyse the behaviour of group of individuals in the Northeast of Brazil and the use of detergent and soap in order to evaluate whats not working for Unilevers growth in that market segment and decide the best positioning strategy to encourage increased consumption. Because we know comparatively little about human behaviour, we as marketers, tend to make some assumptions to know how consumers will react to what we do. The first one being, consumers go through a rational decision process when they buy. We assume the process to start with ignorance of the consumer and moving through awareness, information search, short listing alternatives and so on until the ultimate goal purchase is reached.. A distinction is further made between two types of products purchasing: high involvement and low involvement. Washing detergents are low involvement products where consumers may not go through the entire decision making process and either pick a brand out of compulsion, out of a desire to seek variety or because of their past preferences and experiences, or they may pick a brand due to some constraints such as income and amount allocation to household spending. Consumers put preferences and budgetary constraints together to determine their choices. The No rtheast Brazilian households are low income groups and thus the price of the laundry soap, bleaching liquid and detergent powder is a primary criterion for evaluation of the brand of laundry products. The women in this region of Brazil tend to pick a particular brand based what others in their social group are using (as they often do their washing in a public laundry or by the river with a group of friends) and their own past experience and satisfaction. The second assumption is that consumers are brand loyal either loyal to your own brand or loyal to your rivals brand. A wall street journal (19th October 1989) published that 48% consumers remain loyal to the laundry detergent they are already using. To penetrate and gain additional market share, Unilever will have to offer some extra inducements to get the NE consumers hooked and divert their loyalty towards its brands. The stimulus response model (Exhibit 1), the starting point for understanding consumer behaviour, has been used to understand the Brazilian household behaviour towards washing detergent powders and soaps. The stimuli enter the consumers consciousness and the buyers characteristics and decision processes lead to certain purchase decisions. Our task, as marketers, would be to understand what happens in the consciousness of the north-eastern Brazilians between the arrival of stimuli and the purchase decision. Exhibit 1: Stimulus Response Model Source: Marketing Management, Kotler, 2003, p.184. The women in this region of Brazil tend to pick a particular brand based on the performance of the product on the six attributes cleanliness, whitening, productivity; fragrance and softness; ability to remove stains; ability to dissolve in water; packaging of the product; and the ability to keep colours from running out. Cultural factors Culture, subculture and social class are the fundamental determinants of a persons basic values, perceptions, wants and behaviour. Majority (39.8 million) of the north eastern population of Brazil ranges from grade D to E- of social class. Brazilians are concerned about their position in a social class, because no class interacts with another social class unless it is in a professional way. Since the past many years, the vast income social stature difference has been impressed in the society.  Still, the north easterners take great pride in how they look and present themselves in the society, despite their poverty and inability to purchase a variety of clothes. It is perceived to be the duty of the lady of the house to maintain cleanliness of clothes of her family, as it is seen as an indication of the dedication of the mother to her family. It is the reason why the north eastern women spend a long and laborious time at doing the laundry. They first scrub the clothes with a soap bar, then bleach those clothes to remove tough stains, and finally wash the clothes with detergent powder to add a pleasant fragrance. This is opposed to women in the south eastern region who just simply mix detergent powder and softener in a washing machine. Social factors Consumers behaviour is also influenced by social factors such as the consumers relation to small groups, family, and social roles. Women from the northeast of Brazil do their laundry at a public laundry or at a nearby river or pond along with their friends. It is the most pleasurable activity as they get to meet and chat in their social network. It is here that these women discuss matters of personal and home cleanliness such as which laundry detergents they use, how their experience has been, and likely word of mouth promotions take place. Personal factors The characteristics of the individual consumer such as his age, economic situation, occupation and lifestyle play an influential role as well in assessing consumer behaviour. Of the 48 million, 25.4 million people of the north eastern region of Brazil have an annual income of less than $1700. In Recife, for example, only 28% households own a washing machine. Thus, having a push strategy for a detergent powder isnt going to be fruitful. Even though the per capita income for the whole Brazil was $4,420, it wasnt quite reflective of the north-eastern region, where the per capita income was $2,250 only. This translates to the fact that even though a product may have the right and required attributes, if not appropriately priced, people of this region would not pick it up from the shelf since they are constrained by their incomes. Also, since the people from the low income group own less clothes, their washing needs are frequent, and hence, a product that would be a success would be one t hat is affordably cheap, available in bigger quantities (for example, saver price or additional 20% pack) and removes dirt well keeping the colour from running. Psychological factors An individuals buying choices are manipulated by four major psychological factors motivation, perception, learning and beliefs and attitudes. The low income consumers of the Northeast have developed six key attributes (Exhibit 2) which would determine their attitude towards the brand of detergent they chose to use for their laundry. For them, the ability of the detergent to clean and whiten the clothes with a small quantity of the product is the most important attribute. The NE women often associate a strong pleasant fragrance with softening power and gentleness to fabric and hands. The ability to remove stains without the use of a soap bar and bleach, and the ability of the detergent to dissolve in water without any residue on the fabric, are equally important attributes. Packaging and the running down of colour are the least important features. Ladies perceive doing their laundry as a leisure activity where they meet and natter with their friends. They discuss and learn from each others experiences of personal and household cleaning habits and products. Main brands / players Competition is important in influencing how successful an organization can be. Merely producing a good product which matches consumer requirements and provides satisfaction should not be the goal. A firm must competitively position itself in the minds of its customers so that its products stand out. Unilever was the first to introduce laundry detergents in Brazil with Omo, followed by Minerva, Campeiro, Skip, Rinso, Drive, Puro and Unox to name a few. Competitive challenges came from Procter Gamble, ASA, and other small Brazilian companies. Market leading brands from PG included Ace, Bold Pop. ASA contested with its Bem-te-vi laundry soap and Invicto detergent powder. Even though PG entered the Brazilian market 59 years after Unilever, it entered the market quiet swiftly by strategically acquiring an existing Brazilian company, Bombril and its three brands Quanto, Odd Fasses Pop. With in-depth RD and investment for manufacturing improvements, PG rebranded Quanto to Ace, and Odd Fases to Bold, which are now key competitors with Minerva and Campeiro. In terms of market share, for the laundry detergent powder segment, Omo is the market leader with a 52% share, Minerva Campeiro collectively account for 23% share, while Ace, Invicto other PG brands take a 22% share jointly and other Brazilian brands take a 3% share. Unilevers 75% market share compared with competitors 25% share in the laundry detergent segment indicates a strong penetrative strategy that gives Unilever the competitive edge. Market share in the laundry soap segment is not so pleasing. Little console is that PG did not manufacture laundry soap. But local Brazilian companies posed enough competition. Even though Minerva had a 19% market share in this segment, smaller Brazilian companies, enjoyed the rest of the 81%. In terms of pricing promotion strategies, Unilevers premium brand Omo was the highest priced (whole sale price) at $3/kg. None of the competitors came in this price range. Because of its strong power to remove stains with low quantity, it became a market pioneer. It used a very simple yet direct advertising message which said removes stains on pockets, cuffs collar, clearly attracting consumers for whom cleanliness was of highest importance. It was meant to target the high income group. Minerva (Unilever), Ace (PG) and Bold (PG) fell in the same price category and probably targeted the upper middle income group; while Campeiro (Unilever), Pop (PG) and Invicto (ASA) targeted the lower middle income group. Minerva attracted consumers for whom the fragrance and softness were of key importance with its advertising campaigns. Pop used a Bundle promotion and Contest Strategy it ran a contest offering 200 washing machines and gave away 2 copies of the Viva! Magazine with its purchase. Table 1 below gives details on the Pricing strategies followed by the main brands in the laundry detergent segment. SWOT Analysis An analysis of Unilevers internal environment (strength weaknesses) and its external environment (opportunities threats) is depicted in Exhibit 3. Exhibit 2 : SWOT Analysis Strategy Suggestion With the above mentioned scenario, Unilever faces the following choices to cater to the low income group of the North eastern region of Brazil : Extending Omo Rebranding Campeiro Launching a new product Customising a product from its international portfolio Brand extensions are only profitable if the existing brands equity is strong and positive and it is likely to transfer its benefits to the new extension. Brand extensions face a serious challenge if not recognised and met with positive action will probably lead to death of existing brands. Before considering extension of Omo, Unilever should be aware of the fact that consumers get puzzled by the variety of identical products and may end up buying a rival brand. Omo already has its niche market with its Price-Quality inference strategy. It enjoys a 52% market share in the detergent powder product line. Even though the low income group of the NE likes Omo, but to target that segment, Unilever would have to reduce the price drastically and lower its profit margins. This would cannibalise its high margin sales with low margin sales in the short term and in the long term Omo would lose its price premium and would create confusion in the minds of people. Radically changing Campeiro and rebranding it does seem like a good option Exhibit 4 details the strategy. But, the perception of its brand value is not strong or positive with consumers of detergent powder. It only has a 6% market share. One of the lucrative options is to launch a new brand. Exhibit 5 evaluates the strategies of introducing a new product altogether. Unilever can introduce a new product to replace /or supplement Minerva Campeiro in its existing markets, and to serve new market the NE region of Brazil. The issues with rebranding Campeiro, repositioning Minerva would also be resolved. But before deciding to establish a new product, Unilever has to layout the profile of the target market, understand the problems they face and group them into segments, evaluate competition, identify core competencies, identify areas where competitor is vulnerable and define a new value proposition for the new target market. Introducing a new brand would be to Unilevers advantage, as its entering a target market which it has not catered earlier in Brazil. Another worthwhile option is to introduce a customised version of an existing and successful brand from Unilevers international portfolio of detergent powder. But the brand would have to be carefully selected one that caters to a similar demographics and similar income group; one that has high success rate with the right marketing mix. For example, Active Wheel Unilevers brand in India targets the low income group, stresses that with this product people will need to put less efforts to do their laundry, promotes the whitening attribute, is the biggest laundry brand with sales revenue of  £21million 2007. The advantages of considering this option are various. The same ingredients and basic formula can be used. Similar pricing strategy. Customisation required only in language on the cardboard boxes. Meaning and content of advertisements can be the same, only changes required would be to fit the ad to local environment. Probability of success is higher, although it is not guarante ed that a brand that works in one region will work in the other too. Even if the rumours of reducing brand portfolio are true, this option would still be lucrative as no new brand is being introduced; alternatively, Unilever could completely drop Campeiro and reposition Minerva, along with introduction of a brand from its international portfolio. The growing size of typical supermarket retailers such as Wal-Mart, Carrefour and Grupo Pà £o de Aà §Ãƒ ºcar in Brazil has produced extra shelf space that has allowed and encouraged such proliferation. The US magazine Business Week publishes an annual survey of the Best New Products. From the 38 noted for the years 1989, 1990 and 1991, there were only 13 brand extensions and 3 genuine product innovations that were titled under the best new products over the 3 years. Ehrenberg (Repeat Buying, 1988) found that most buyers buy several brands over a period of time. They buy some brands more often than others and some not at all, but they mainly buy a large range of acceptable brands. The frequency with which they buy each brand varies from consumer to consumer but, on an average, it matches the brands overall market share. Unilevers forward strategy should not appear to make a distinct product without a real difference and that merely tries to differentiate the brand from competitors.

Molecular Genetics: Catching the Criminal Using Electrophoresis

Introduction A sample of DNA found in a crime scene was provided along with five suspects. Their DNA was then processed using restriction enzymes and Agarose Gel Electrophoresis. The objective of this lab was to match a criminals DNA to a crime scene using restriction enzymes EcoRI and Pstl with Agarose gel electrophoresis. Restriction enzymes cut DNA at a specific base pair site recognized by the enzyme, which then turns one single strand of DNA into many fragmented strands of DNA.EcoRI recognizes and cuts the palindromic base pair sequence GATTC while Pstl recognizes and cuts the palindromic base pair sequence CTGCAG. Agarose gel electrophoreses separates these fragmented DNA by their size. The negatively charged DNA moves through the Agarose gel to the positively charged end of the gel. The smaller fragments move through the gel more quickly allowing a linear view of the fragmented DNA when the process is complete. Since each individuals DNA will be cut into different size fragmen ts when restriction enzymes are applied we can match one of the suspects to the crime scene DNA sample.This process enables an individual’s DNA to be matched, much like a fingerprint, to a sample of unknown DNA. Methods An enzyme mix of EcoRl and Pstl was added 10 microliters at a time to the crime scene sample and suspect samples one through five each containing 20 microliters of DNA. A new pipet was used for each transfer of the enzyme mix to ensure that there was no cross contamination of the suspects. To guarantee the enzyme reacts with the DNA the six samples mixed with enzyme were then centrifuged. You can read also King v CogdonThe samples were incubated at 37  ° C for 45 minutes, after incubation 5 microliters of dye were added to each sample. During this time an Agarose gel was cast using an 8 well comb. The Agarose gel was placed in the electrophoresis chamber with the wells at the cathode end and 275mL of electrophoresis buffer was added. In the first well 10 microliters of Hindlll DNA marker was added. This marker was provided dyed. In the following wells 20 microliters of each sample was added, Table 1 provides the lane information. The volts were set at 120 Volts and the sample was electrophoresed for 30 minutes.After the gel was electrophoresed it was transferred into a container and dyed with Fast Blast DNA stain so the DNA fragments could become visible to the eye. Results Figure 1 below shows the samples once they have been dyed. To the naked eye it would appear that the closest match to Lane 2 (the crime scene) would be Lane 4 (Suspect 2) but to verify this concl usion you need to calculate the size of the bands. To compare the samples the size of each marker band was measured from the well to the band in mm and graphed with the given size of each band as shown in Graph 1.In the first column of Table 2, Hindll size in base pairs was provided, to find the approximate size of the other samples the distance of each band was plugged in as an x-value to the y=-142x+13214 equation found using excel on the best fit line on Graph 1. Comparing the crime scene column to suspects one through five it was found that Suspect 3 was the criminal. His DNA fragments were of similar size and travelled a similar distance through the electrophoresis gel. Discussion- There is a pretty serious error with the calculations of size in base pairs as presented in Table 2.Some of the base pair lengths were found to be negative numbers which does not properly correlate to the proposed size of the bands. This error was most likely to have happened in the graphing of the m arker. In the results it was discussed that Suspect 3 is most likely to be the criminal but this result was found by disregarding the negative values. If the error was corrected and the correct size measurements were found the suspect found to be the criminal may have been different.Since the values for size had an error in them the criminal could not be positively identified. Conclusion- In this lab it was clear that pairing restriction enzymes with gel electrophoresis makes it possible to match a DNA sample to an individual. Applying the restriction enzyme cuts each DNA sequence into a unique size and amounts of fragments for each sample. This unique combination of sequences is what makes it possible to run the fragments through an electrophoresis gel that separates the fragments into a unique â€Å"fingerprint. Although a suspect was not properly identified to the crime scene sample, it is clear how it would be possible to identify a criminal. Table 1- This table lists each lane of the electrophoresis well and what sample was pipeted into it and how much of each sample in microliters. Lane one starts on the left hand of the well. Graph 1- The graph provides a scatter plot of the marker in lane 1, in a log scale, linear fit with a best fit line through it. The equation for slope found was y=-142x+13214.

Analysis of selected passages from Othello by William Shakespeare Essay

When William Shakespeare made use of the stylist devices he thus tried to paint a multi-dimensional image of his perceptions that he extended in his characters till the limits of reality and belief. And to design variety in this frame of multi-dimensionality Shakespeare not only expressed through the words in the lines which the characters uttered rather the formation of the words and the lines also revealed certain patterns that could be decoded to detect even more subtle reasons and justification behind those expressions. Such flow and expertise of expressing the conceptions cannot be taught easily through the science of writing rather it required the unschooled instinctive ability like Shakespeare’s to play with the words with a unique skill of potency that can metamorphosed the words to survive as the animated version of Shakespeare’s intellect and vision even after being uttered by the characters in the play. In the following excerpts from the play ‘Othello’, there is a variety of Shakespeare’s usage of stylistic devices to arrange words in order to express the difference of thoughts, moods, intensions and beliefs of the protagonist (Othello) and also how the use of such words in a specific style cater in constructing the plot and developing the characters. Theres magic in the web of it. A sybil that had numbered in the world The sun to course two hundred compasses, In her prophetic fury sewed the work; the worms were hallowed that did break the silk, And it was dyed in mummy which the skillful Conserved the maidens hearts. These lines are from the IV scene of the Third Act of the play, and they are uttered on the grounds of misunderstanding that is set by Iago in the mind of Othello. If we observe closely these lines summarize the truth that Othello is ignorant about and the words reveal the irony that Othello has become a victim of. The use of the words like â€Å"magic† and â€Å"web† are justifiable elements of the speech of a contaminated brain and the word â€Å"magic† can be the symbol of Iago’s spell of poisoning Othello’s mind with suspicion and â€Å"web† can be the symbol for the perplexed state of Othello’s mind, which lost the ability to think and trust his own reasons. And the two hundred years old â€Å"sibyl† can be a metaphor for the evil master minded Iago, whose â€Å"prophetic fury† fabricated the whole chaos to take his revenge. The â€Å"silk† can be speculated as a metaphor for the love of Desdemona that came out of her â€Å"hallowed† trust and faith. And the word â€Å"dyed† can be taken as a pun (when analyzing these lines from symbolic references), as the faithful and sacred love of Desdemona ‘dyed’ or â€Å"died† within her â€Å"maiden heart†. The worth and value purposely exaggerated by Othello is a fine example of hyperbolic fantasies that Shakespeare is capable of designing. And thus the handkerchief becomes the symbol of the thin threaded relationship of Othello and Desdemona that was based on superficial beliefs and yet sought the possibility of sustenance of their love. It is the cause, it is the cause, my soul, Let me no name it to you, you chaste stars It is the cause, Yet Ill not shed her blood, Nor scar that whiter skin of hers than snow, And smooth as monumental alabaster, The above mentioned lines are from the Act V Scene II and anaphoric beginning of this passage is Othello’s expression for his exalted emotional dichotomy of disbelief and love for Desdemona. The repetition of the phrase â€Å"it is the cause† are the words that come out of Othello’s weeping brain that has been so badly eclipsed by the poisoning suspicion injected by Iago that it had totally become impotent of thinking on its own. As these lines are uttered during the climax of the play thus it is quite typical of Shakespeare that he lends his protagonist with an ample energy to utter dramatic and highly emotional phrases which let them have catharsis. The desperate utterance of â€Å"my soul† by Othello shows that perhaps the only salvage left for his consolation is to confide in to his soul. Or â€Å"my soul† can also be taken as Othello’s address to Desdemona as it can be observed that Othello still loves her in these lines. And from the ironic aspect the first line also conveys the meaning that it is the â€Å"soul† of Othello that can be taken as the â€Å"cause† of the whole tragedy, because if Othello had really loved Desdemona from his soul he would have had a complete trust in her love and honesty but since he believed more what he listened to and less what was known to him thus he became the victim of suspicion that proved fatal for him and his love. In the proceeding line the address to the â€Å"stars† is made by Othello to mock at Desdemona’s infidelity. â€Å"Stars† have been used as a metaphor for their heavenly status for chastity. It can also be a reference to the Greek tradition of naming the stars by the names of their gods and goddesses. Thus as Othello has completely lost his trust in his wife thus he consider her reference to be an insult for the stars. These lines depict the imbalance of Othello’s power to reason and think and express in coherence with his flow of emotions. In the later lines he reveals his intension to kill Desdemona, but unlike his valiance as a general, he prefers to strangle her because her physical beauty still absorbs his feelings in love and compassion for her. And being a black man himself he admired her fair skin and he refers to her with two different categories of symbols. The use of â€Å"snow† as a simile conveys the softness and coldness of her fair physique which Othello never wanted to distort by killing with a weapon and the metaphor of â€Å"monumental alabaster† can be referred to the stiff and lifeless beauty of Desdemona that laid with no worth for Othello anymore. I have seen the day That with this little arm and this good sword I have made my way through more impediments Than twenty times your stop. But O vain boast! Who can control his fate? Tis not so now. Be not afraid, though you do see me weaponed. Here is my journeys end, here is my butt, And very seamark of my utmost sail. These lines are uttered in the Act V Scene II which is almost the resolution of the play and it is one of Shakespeare’s special characteristics that his tragic heroes lose the intensity and the energy of their rhetoric in the last scenes of the play. It is because of the reason that Shakespeare develops his tragic heroes to attain the status of being larger than life and thus speech loses its value when the characters become paranormal. In the above lines the most important aspect that one can notice is the tone of submission and retreat which is conveyed by the choice and arrangement of words like â€Å"little arm† â€Å"But O vain Boast!† and â€Å"Who can control this fate?† by Othello who was a valiant and unbeatable general but in these lines appears to be the defeated and subjugated one in the hands of fate. These lines though do not consist of any special rhyme scheme that would help in bringing an effective poetic impact whilst delivering these lines on the stage but the second line does show some signs of alliteration as the words â€Å"made my way through more impediments† as well as in the third line where the words â€Å"twenty times† are stressed and can be delivered with some high pitched voice by the character. But after these lines the tone changes as the desperation and despondency appear in the words. The last three lines are symbolically referred by Othello to his death. And despite he is â€Å"weaponed† yet he is incapable to fight as he desires death due to his lamenting guilt and in vain repentance. In the last line the use of the metaphor â€Å"seamark† is an appropriate expression for Othello’s choice of vocabulary as it adequately represents his experiences and knowledge as a sailor and warrior.

Is lobbying a legitimate practice - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 9 Words: 2837 Downloads: 8 Date added: 2017/06/26 Category Law Essay Type Argumentative essay Did you like this example? 3. Is lobbying a legitimate practice? Discuss, using examples Introduction The objective of this essay is to discuss the legitimacy of lobbying. I will start off by giving a brief overview of lobbying and its features. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "Is lobbying a legitimate practice?" essay for you Create order Next, I will use popular lobby cases: Cigars being threatened with regulations, Royal Dutch Shell Niger Delta case and Wal-Mart in India to show that lobbying are being practiced, but not accepted by all. Lobbying, originated from the term à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"lobbyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ as a physical location. The term is often associated with public affairs management, interests and political activities. Lobbying is firmly rooted in the Anglo-Saxon political world and is regarded as suspicious in other languages and cultures (Wagner, 2011). The primary point of the activity is to make oneà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s voice heard and known, hence to influence the targeted public administration. Oregon Government (1998) states that à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“lobbying is defined as influencing, or attempting to influence, legislative action through oral or written communication with legislative officials, solicitation of others to influence or attempt to influence legislative action or attempting to obtain the g ood will of legislative officialsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ . Why do firms lobby? Lobbying is the exchange of information and communication and the exchange on in-depth knowledge and competencies, which provide a firm with the opportunity to benefit from the communication at the policy level (Suder, 2011). The formulation and implementation of public policy affects consumerà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s welfare and is typically controlled by the government. Hence it is important to maintain a strong network with the necessary government bodies and institutions. A political opportunity structure can be defined as the degree to which people or groups are able to gain access to power and to manipulate the political system (Suder, 2011 cited in McAdam, 1996). Secondly, business interests are at stake. The term business interests received lots of attention by state side respondents, which includes the impact of legislation towards business operations and hence the desire to influence the legislation t o protect business. Thirdly, business would want to see predictability and fairness in government policies, reducing uncertainty to benefit their business. Likewise, the planning purposes and the creation of an equal playing field were brought up by all sides of the societal triangle but more to the market side. Fourthly, firms would more than likely to lobby for the interest if their business is at stake. Defensive motivators in this context means to avoid, weaken or postponing the legislation to prevent the worst from happening. Lastly, although positive motivators played a less significant role for the state and market side respondents, it is still slightly more emphasized by the market side. Who lobbies? Who is lobbied? Most often pressure groups that lobbies can be classified into many categories. Businesses like small and medium sized enterprise (SMEs) and multinational enterprise (MNEs), trade unions, professions, public representatives, ad hoc coalitions, sing le issue groups and the lobbying consultancy firms. Even though pressure groups started very early, its awareness of the importance of lobbying only really started in the 1970s (Suder, 2011). In the case of European Union (EU), interest groups starts to come in slowly as the European integration occurs. Interest groups starts to invest resources to lobbying activities after it became widespread that the EU-wide regulations influenced a large range of business and societal interests either in the general environment or specific cases. Lobbying for different levels of policy making means that lobbyist has to target the appropriate authorities to be effective. In United States, lobbyist are concentrated in Washington for the specific legislation in decision-making bodies like the United States Congress. Where EU lobbying are concerned, it is often concentrated in Brussels at the European Commission (EC) and the European Parliament (EP) for committee meetings and additional sessions, EP in Strasbourg for monthly conference, at the administrative office in Luxembourg where Member of the European Parliament (MEPs) are located (Schreuder, 2011). Are lobbying widely accepted? In general, democratic society deemed lobbying as a legal activity and it is to be governed by federal and provincial acts. The lobbying process actually meant to encourage and foster open access to the government. It allows the public to provide information and input to the government, especially when the legislation affects every individuals. It does not has an official term, but what lobbyist are doing are engaging, communicating and sharing information to those that ask, so they can make up their mind and make informed decisions. After all, final decisions are made by the officials and what lobbyist are advocating may or may not have an impact on the verdict. The term lobbying are often correlated with bribery. It is a matter of fine line where lobbying becomes bribery. A bribery occurs when the person offers or gives something of value for the purpose of influencing the action of an official to his advantage. Bribery are considered illegal, while lobbying are not. As is it legal, lobbyists in the US that are paid to perform their duty are required to register with the secretary of the Senate and the Clerk of the House (Sahajwani, 2012). Lobbying are kept transparent as compared to bribery. For example, actions made by lobbyist in Canada can be searched by the public in the federal and Albertaà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s registry (Canadian Energy Pipeline Association, 2012). On the other hand, bribery will transform the established social order and its hierarchy, by which the values and principles are twisted. Bribery gives an unfair advantage to the bribe giver. However if bribery are rampant and persists over a long time, the economic foundation of the country will only erode and hurt the most vulnerable members of the society (Sahajwani, 2012). Till date lob bying may not be widespread accepted as it is always complicated with moral and ethics issues. To a certain extent, it is true that powerful organizations are using lobbying to influence political opinion to suit their organization interest at all costs. Bribery on the contrary has no morally redeeming features at all, it is a direct sale of power for individual gain (Sahajwani, 2012). Cigars threatened with regulations The United States Food and Drug Regulations (FDA) started to regulate cigar products for the first time in 2013. FDA had said that in its regulatory agenda in 2013 that it would propose rules in April to expand the federal oversight of tobacco products under the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act. This had caused an uproar towards the Cigar makers and businesses, more than a dozen of small companies in the cigar industry had come together to stub out the proposed tobacco regulations and taxes in Washington D.C. The attempt to expand the 2009 t obacco control act to include cigars had concerned many business as their profits are at stake. Cigar companies had said that the move would hurt cigar sales as the regulation disallows them from keeping the cigar from display shelves where customers will be able to check out the products. Executive director of Cigar Rights of America had condemn the FDAà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s move as à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“a classic case of going beyond congressional intentà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚  (Bogardus Hattem, 2013). The latter had further mentioned that when the congress passed the original Tobacco act, it was to address two issues, youth access to tobacco and chemical addiction. Likewise, this brings to the next point where premium cigar does not meet that criteria. Industry leaders had also argued that cigars does not pose the same danger as tobacco products, since they are generally only sold in stores that requires entrants to be at least 18 years or older. Furthermore, Bill Spann, CEO of the International Premium Cigar Pipe Retailers Association had also criticize that the FDA meddling could have a devastating impact on cigar shops (Bogardus Hattem, 2013). The fight against FDA rules had drew attention from overseas. Letters from ambassadors of tobacco-growing nations have written letters to show their displeasure towards the FDA and warns that the new regulation would threatens thousands of jobs and have political and economic consequences (Bogardus Hattem, 2013). Hence the businesses had form the Small Business Cigar Coalition, an informal association of 15 makers of cigars and related product. The latter had enlisted Alston Bird to lobby for them on tax and U.S FDA matters concerning cigars as they filed with congress on 22 November 2013 (Ramonas, 2013). Following the rather successful lobbying by the Small Business Cigar Coalition, the FDA had proposed two options for the scope of the rule. The new deeming regulations are seen as potential exemption for premium cigars. On the contrary, leading health groups which consist of 24 groups and 560,000 healthcare and public professionals and millions of volunteers urges FDA to finalize the rule regulating all tobacco products by April 2015 and renounce the exemption for premium cigars (American Lung Association, 2013). Shell Niger Delta Case The Royal Dutch Shell Oil Company were certainly not new to the term corporate lobbying. As of 2014, Shell Co had 36 lobbyists representing the firm for many issues like energy nuclear power, fuel, gas, natural resources, clean air water, taxes and many others. Shell Company had spent $6.85 million on lobbying reportedly, for the year. The Niger Delta case had been brought against the Oil giant company by four farmers from the Niger Delta, who accused the Oil giant company of polluting the environment and having their livelihoods destroyed by the oil spills (Smith, 2012). The four farmers are backed by lobby group, Friends of the Earth, and had filed t he case first in 2008 (The Sydney Morning Herald, 2013). Dutch court had found in favor of one plaintiff that, Shell Nigeria had breached its duty of care in that case by failing to take appropriate actions to prevent third parties from tampering the well and causing oil spills (Gaughran, 2013).However, Shellsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ public relation had argued that spills are highly caused by sabotage and potential theft cases (Donovan, 2014). Even though the Dutch court had condemn the Shell Company for its action and pointed out that they could no longer point to sabotage as the company itself has no responsibility for the problem (Africa Journalism, 2013). Despite all that, all of the 4 plaintiffs are not able to prove their case. Whether it is really due to operation failure from Shells or sabotage, the farmers could not do much but to rely on Shellà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s own oil spill investigation reports. While this creates an obvious conflict of interest, there is really nothing mu ch the farmers or community could do except to accept the companies assessment. Community members may be part of the investigation process, but in reality, if they do disagree with Shell company assessment, the latter would just overwrite them (Gaughran, 2013). The Nigerian communities are helpless in the sense that they have no access to independent assessments of the real cause of the oil spill or the associated environmental damage. Moreover, United Kingdom (UK) government had backed the oil giant Shell in the US supreme court after being lobbied for support. According to Frankental (2014) in Amnesty International UK à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“In these David versus Goliath encounters, the UK has effectively shielded the interest of the powerful companies at the expense of their alleged victims.à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚  Lastly, it is said that in the past Shell had successfully lobbied both the UK and US governments to increase military aid to Nigeria to secure its oilfields (Arts Activism Educatio n Reasearch, 2013).This case had shown that environmental NGO Friends of the Earth and UK government had been lobbied for support on their respective side. Wal-Mart in India Global giant retail Wal-Mart had been waiting for years to enter the highly lucrative Indian market, the latter had since then lobbying with US lawmakers to facilitate its entry. Wal-Mart revealed it had spent more than $25 million since it started in 2008 to lobby for à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“better market access for investment in Indiaà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚  (Ramanna Muthuram, 2013). Wal-Mart lobbied for its case with the US senate, US House of representatives, US trade Representatives (USTR), and US Department of State (The Times of India, 2013). The lobbying had caused a huge political outcry in India after the Indian government made a controversial decision to allow FDI in the countryà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s multi-brand sector. The sensation was because lobbying is illegal in India, and is a dirty word and the opposition are probing who got the money, even though the disclosure filing only referred to lobbying activities in the US (Hindustan Times, 2013). The notion of Wal-Mart entering India had always been denied by the political opposition. However it was not until parliament motion against the decision was defeated in both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha. Corresponding to the crucial parliament backing that won the retail decision, lawmaker from the opposition party Ravi Shankar Prasad also argued that à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Lobbying is nothing more than a benign form of briberyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚  (Lakshimi, 2012). It was then, September 2012 that the India government opened up the retail market and allows FDI to own as much as 51% of the local ventures that has multi-brand. It is highly speculated that the India government had received bribes, hence probing investigations from the political parties. Wal-Mart had lost several senior executives and went through an internal bribery investigation. Indiaà ¢Ã¢ ‚ ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s Congress-led government has also give in to the opposition pressure and appointed a retired judge to thoroughly investigate the lobbying activities of Wal-Mart, before they enter the India market (Kazmin, 2012). However, it is prominent that it is not possible to conclude as there is no material evidence to show that Wal-Mart had indulged in any lobbying bribery. Conclusion In conclusion, it can be seen that lobbying are far more accepted in places that is democratic. The above cases are able to give a clear picture of lobbying and shows the importance of it and how it can be applied. Interest groups like NGOs or coalitions will lobby for their personal interests. It is further shown in the Wal-Mart in India case that large business tend to have the advantage as lobbying tend to be costly and can go up to millions per year. Lastly, MNEs are able to lobby for help when their business interests is at stake, they would minimize through defensive motivatorà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ â„ ¢s means as shown in Niger Delta scenario. References Africa Journalism, 2013. Dutch Court Indicts Shell Nigeria Over Oil Spills. 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