Small Business
Virgin Australia on the verge of being sold – what does this mean for you?
The coronavirus pandemic precipitated The Great Shutdown, which has had detrimental impacts on the global economy. Large corporations have struggled to survive, and the Virgin Group is one of the most publicised. Virgin Australia went into voluntary administration in April 2020 and have been searching for a financial lifeline in the process. It now appears that this lifeline may have emerged in the form of two private American companies – Bain Capital and Cyrus Capital.
What does this mean for you?
If Virgin is bailed out by both/either companies, the airline will likely remain operational in Australia. However, there are a few conditions, and it certainly won’t be the same airline as before. The average consumer can expect Virgin Australia to likely strip the airline back and re-brand the entity as a mid-market offering. In the past, Virgin had competed directly with Qantas and have struggled significantly, having incurred a horrendous amount of debt before the pandemic had even begun (around $7 billion).
In other words, if Virgin is given a second chance, you can expect it to become a more low-budget airline. Cyrus Capital has links to the Virgin Group, while Bain Capital has a reported $149 billion AUD in assets, meaning they could put down several hundred million for a significant stake in the company. While this is hopeful news for Virgin Group workers, tourists and travellers shouldn’t be getting ahead of themselves. With the restructuring of the company, there’s a good chance that flight paths and coverage will be scaled back massively, which could hurt a lot of regional areas.
Small Business
Business lessons to get from Jeff Bezos
Jeff Bezos is the richest businessperson in the world and for a good reason. As the founder of Amazon, they have had massive success due to the simple tactics they employed. Jeff Bezos is someone that should be admired by anyone seeking to start any kind of business.
Learning important business lessons is essential for getting a good start no matter what industry you happen to be in. If you are trying to get into an industry, you want to come equipped with the best knowledge possible so that you can avoid the mistakes that others have made when they take their first steps.
The following will list some of the best lessons to get from Amazon founder Jeff Bezos about small business.
You can start from anywhere
Many people think you need to do a lot of preparation to start a business, but Jeff Bezos started Amazon out of his parent’s garage. He knew that as long as he could get the business running from bare scraps that he could start optimising it. By starting with this humble setup, he was able to keep costs low and expand as needed, keeping overheads to a minimum.
Focusing on the core values of the consumer base
Amazon is successful because it focuses on the core things that the consumers want from a business like it. It focuses on fast delivery and low prices, and always strives to meet those ends. By consistently doing this is has not allowed competitors to overtake it. This is one of the best tactics Jeff Bezos has employed for making Amazon great.
Always improve
Jeff Bezos has never been complacent with the running of Amazon and always seems switched on. This makes the company superior to competitors in a number of ways.
Small Business
What small business owners can learn from Steve Jobs
Those starting their own business need to start small, and they need all the help they can get. Since most businesses end up failing, you want to be sure that you have the best advice possible on your side.
Having this knowledge is essential in order to get the best results. Knowing important lessons before diving into a business can help you avoid serious and costly mistakes that could sink your entire enterprise.
This is naturally something you want to avoid at all costs so that you don’t wise your time and money on a failed business. Even the best business ideas can fail if the leaders don’t pay heed to the important lessons that business masters like the late Steve Jobs can teach.
Here are a few of the lessons that those who are starting a small business can learn from the late founder of Apple Steve Jobs.
Understand the power of creating a brand
Too many small businesses just want to get into the race and don’t think about the long term appeal of their brand. Without a solid foundation to the brand then there will be nothing that makes the business stand out and this would obviously not be an ideal situation to be in.
Believe in your product or service
Steve Jobs famously gave keynote presentations about the launch of new Apple products and you can see his sincere passion and interest in what he was doing. Anyone starting a small business needs to have that same fire passion about what they are doing, no matter what industry they happen to be in.
Use marketing to its full effect
Apple is known for its flashy marketing campaigns, and small business owners need to understand the power of leveraging marketing as an asset.
Small Business
The small business run by Steve Carell
While Steve Carell is a famous celebrity actor who is best known for his character of Michael Scott in ‘The Office’, he is also a small business owner. Steve opened his own small shop ‘The Marshfield Hills General Store’ in 2009 and is like a quaint little hobby for him.
Steve took the chance to buy the historic general store when it was up for sale. The sister of his wife Nancy told the couple about the store being up for sale and Steve leapt at the opportunity, finalising the sale in 2009.
Now, the store is most famous for its famous owner. The store is as much a tourist attraction as it is a shop, and many people visit it simply because it is owned by Steve Carrel.
The shop is a perfect destination for those who are seeking to buy some old-fashion candy or pick up a housewarming present for someone they care about. The store even has its own café serving tea and coffee to those who are interested in it.
The store is a key part in the heart of the local community and is really a nice distraction form the mega-stores that are so common in the Untied States. For small business owners, the shop shows that there is a lot to be enjoyed about keeping this small and leaning into the marketing benefits of being an actually small business.
In this sense, size matters where it comes to sincerity in business. People like the idea of shopping at a small business like this that feel like it has real history behind it and is not an overly-optimised construction designed to maximise profits.
The rustic and old-fashion design is nostalgic for many people and is a key part of the stores’ popularity.
-
Food & Cooking5 days ago3 big reasons people love McDonald’s
-
Leadership6 days agoWas Arnold Schwarzenegger a good Governor?
-
Billionaires18 hours agoReasons to admire Jeff Bezos
-
Food & Cooking5 days agoWhy Gordon Ramsay became so popular
-
Politics5 days agoThe story of Clive Palmer and his run in Australian politics
-
Lifestyle2 days agoLife lessons from Keanu Reeves
-
Leadership6 days agoUnderstanding the leadership style of George W. Bush
-
Politics2 days agoWhy is Scott Morrison called ‘ScoMo’?
