Aug, 1998

Limit: The first 10 students who sign up may do the Assignment.
Cost: 20 generic points

 __________________ FIELD ASSIGNMENT 
     NAME             

Reference: Reading #4 by Howard Sherman             25 Quality Pts
Monopoly, Prices and Profits                        	 Possible

Some small businesses are virtual slaves to large corporations;
large firms set the prices and conditions of sale of such items
as automobiles, gasoline, pharmaceuticals, tires and other such
commodities.  Local stores have to give so much shelf space to
softdrink or beer companies in order to get special sale pricings.

Franchise owners are even more under the economic hegemony of large
companies: MacDonald's, Arby's, Taco Bell, and coffee shops are
required to sell at given prices and to buy a lot of packaging and
advertizement.

Check your local outlet to see what's going on in the 'free market.'

Check out a small business and see if they have to buy from
big corporations which set their prices or whether they can
negotiate with them.

     1.   Ask why they don't buy elsewhere.  See if advertizing
          by big firms is a reason why small business buys from
          them (e.g., Coke and Pepsi).  See Sherman, (p. 58).

     2.   Ask if a big business in town (K-mart or Sears) has
          hurt their business.

     3.   Ask if their suppliers restrict supply as Sherman says
          (p.59)   (It is said that Pepsi and Coke gang up on RC
          Cola.  They offer the supermarket better deals if they
          keep shelve space down for Pepsi.  Check it out.  Could
          they shift their business to Korea or Mexico?

     4.   See if any of the products sold are designed to wear
          out soon to force people to buy new ones more often.
          (Sherman, p. 58)

     5.   Find out what their profit rate is (see p. 63); is it
          more or less than Sherman says.  

DO A GOOD JOB--ONE PERSON IN EACH ATTRACTOR WILL BE INVITED BY
YOUR MENTOR TO A MINI-DEBATE FOR 25 MORE POINTS.  DUE 1 OCT 1992 .