Really BIG business
17 April 2007 | Paul Snell
When they’re up, knock them down. As much as the maxim applies to British sports teams or individuals, it can also apply to British businesses.
Tesco’s announcement of giant profits this morning has opened the door to another round of criticism from people believing biggest doesn’t always mean best.But shouldn’t we be celebrating the success of this British brand? After all, it began as a one-man business who began selling groceries in the East End. Even though it is the third largest retailer in the world, it doesn’t seem to command the same respect in its home country that British Airways or Marks & Spencer do.
But is it the big profits that get in the way of embracing the brand, or is it something else?
![[Bloglines]](http://blog.supplymanagement.com/wp-content/plugins/bookmarkify/bloglines.png)
![[del.icio.us]](http://blog.supplymanagement.com/wp-content/plugins/bookmarkify/delicious.png)
![[Digg]](http://blog.supplymanagement.com/wp-content/plugins/bookmarkify/digg.png)
![[Facebook]](http://blog.supplymanagement.com/wp-content/plugins/bookmarkify/facebook.png)
![[Google]](http://blog.supplymanagement.com/wp-content/plugins/bookmarkify/google.png)
![[LinkedIn]](http://blog.supplymanagement.com/wp-content/plugins/bookmarkify/linkedin.png)
![[Twitter]](http://blog.supplymanagement.com/wp-content/plugins/bookmarkify/twitter.png)
Tesco is a success story and should be congratulated as such.
They are largely successful because we all go into their premises and make purchases and any business is only as good as it’s customer thinks. Ultimately they are selling a reasonable quality product and a low price and that’s what the majority of consumers are looking for. Those that cry about anti-competitiveness are probably those that have not been able to match their impressive growth, i.e. competitors. Just because Tesco are forward thinking and have aggressive expansion plans does not mean they should be criticised.
The test will come when Tesco get to a certain size that they feel they are able to start increasing prices and not lose custom. At current growth rate this will surely happen but I suspect they might be stopped by legislation first.
As Milton Friedman put it “Businesses are in the business of business”; this is the paradigm in which we work.
So then are organisations such as Tesco are merely being opportunistic? We often make harsh, yet ethical decisions throughout the course of business, one of the reasons we struggle with some of Tescos decisions is through confusing personal and business ethics.
Should we be treating our suppliers with the same ethics and values as that of our friends and families?