Unit 2: business of your own

Text 1: WOULD YOU LIKE TO START A BUSINESS?

If you want to start a business, you are to know some definite infor­mation about it. We suggest you to see how a company is formed from the very beginning.

A company can be also called a firm or a business. When it is produc­ing goods or trading, we say it is in business. A company which is just start­ing up is going into business and a firm which stops operating goes out of business. If a firm becomes bigger, it expands. The expansion means that a company will produce more goods or sell more products. A manufacturer produces goods. They are its products. When a manufacturing company expands, it means that it increases its production.

A company selling goods in large quantities (in bulk)is called a whole-saler. A person or a company buying in bulk (wholesale) and selling goods in small quantities is a retailer. Many local shops sell goods retail. Two or more companies which sell or manufacture the same product are competi­tors. They are in competition and they compete for customers. To be ahead of its rivals the company must be competitive.

An area where there is a demand for certain goods is called a market. A company selling locally sells its goods in the local market. If a company sells its goods at the same place where they are produced, it uses the home or domestic market. A firm selling abroad is an exporter. It sells on the international or overseas market. The goods it exports are exports. An importer buys goods abroad and imports them into his own country.

 

Vocabulary

to go into business – начинать (открывать) бизнес

to go out of business – прекращать бизнес

goods – товары

to sell – продавать

bulk – крупная партия товара

wholesale – оптовый

wholesaler – оптовый торговец, оптовое предприятие

retailer – розничный торговец

to sell retail – продавать в розницу

competitor – конкурент

competition – конкуренция

to compete – конкурировать

competitive – конкурентоспособный

customer – покупатель

rival – соперник

demand – спрос

local – местный

home/domestic market – внутренний рынок

abroad – за рубежом

international/overseas market – международный/внешний рынок

 

Exercise 1: Choose the right answer.

1. A firm which is just starting up is ______.

a) going into business b) is in business c) going out of business

2. A company which sells goods in large quantities is called ______.

a) a wholesaler b) a retailer c) a wholesale distributor

3. Two or more companies which sell or manufacture the same prod­uct are ____.

a) customers b) retailers c) competitors

4. A company which sells goods abroad is______.

a) an importer b) an exporter c) a rival

5. An area where there is a demand for certain goods is called a ______.
a) business b) market c) importation

 

Exercise 2: Complete the sentences using the Text 1.

1. A wholesaler is a person or a company selling....

2. A retailer is a person or a company selling....

3. A customer is a person....

4. A competitor is a person or a company....

 

Exercise 3: Translate into English a piece of a report of the Minister of Economics.

На внутреннем рынке страны в прошлом году появилось много конкурентов. Причина этого в том, что многие иностранные компании открывают свой бизнес в России сейчас. Несмотря на то, что импортные товары дорогие, из-за их качества они конкурентоспособны. Мы понимаем, что в будущем компании-производители начнут расширять производство своих товаров. Именно поэтому наши оптовые предприятия изучают спрос на внешнем рынке. Мы считаем, что наши товары могут конкурировать со своими соперниками за рубежом и завоюют своих клиентов.

 

Text 2: Now read a text about sole proprietorships and find out advantages and disadvantages of having and operating a business of your own. Discuss them and compare your ideas with those of your group mates

THE SOLE PROPRIETOR

Many businesses are sole proprietorships, firms owned and operated bya single person. When a person decides to open an independent business, that person is then entirely responsible for itssuccess or failure. Any profits go to the owner; any losses are his or her responsibility a well. If the losses prove to be greater than the investment, the individual is responsible for paying them, even if this depletes his personal assets.

One of the advantages of a sole proprietorship is that an owner can make decisions quickly and decisively without having to consult others. And an individual proprietor by law, pays fewer taxes and at a lower rate than a corporation does.

There are disadvantages of this form of business organization, however. A sole proprietorship ends with the incapacity or death of the owner. The assets can be inherited by a person who may then become an operator, but legally the business dies with its owner. Also, since it is dependent upon the amount of money the owner has saved or can borrow, usually it does not develop into a large-scale enterprise.

In spite of its limitations, the sole proprietorship is well adapted tomany kinds of small businesses and suits the temperament of many persons who like to exercise initiative and be their own bosses. Some economic contri­butions of a small business are:

+ A small business is often the starting point for developing a new prod­uct or service. One person tries out an idea. If it is successful, the business grows, or the product may be bought by a larger firm.

+ The small business can give an individual a chance to gain experi­ence, which the person may use later on a large scale.

+ Small businesses are particularly well suited for meeting specialized local needs.

+ Artisans can provide individualized products for customers who have grown weary of mass-produced goods.

+ Small businesses provide a service where knowing one's customers is important.

+ Sole proprietors are reassuring to customers who believe an individual who is accountable will do a good job.

Small businesses often grow into large ones, adding to the economic vitality of the nation. Small business advocates contend that 55 percent of American technical innovations come from small — and medium-size businesses. Certainly, many of the creative innovators in the American computer industry, including those who built successful companies in what is now known as Silicon Valley, California, started out as outsiders working on hand-assembled machines in their garages. They have become part of American business lore. By any measurement, small businesses are an important part of the creativity, and the competition that provides new strength to the American economy.

Of course, it is true that small businesses often fail. But in the United States "failure" of a small business venture does not carry with it the social stigma or opprobrium for the failed entrepreneur — that it does in some countries. Often, failure of a small business venture turns out to be a valuable learning experience for the entrepreneur, who may be more successful the second or the third time. Unsuccessful attempts to start a business become part of the larger process of sorting out the market and making it more efficient, according to small business experts,

 

Vocabulary

sole proprietor – собственник, владелец, частный предприниматель

sole proprietorship – собственность, частное предпринимательство

to own – владеть

to operate – работать, действовать, управлять

failure – провал, неудача

to be responsible for – быть ответственным за

profit – прибыль

losses – убытки

to deplete – истощать, исчерпывать

personal assets – личный капитал

to make decisions – принимать решения

to pay taxes – платить налоги

incapacity – неспособность

to inherit – наследовать

legally – законно, легально

to save money – копить/собирать деньги

to borrow money – занимать/одалживать деньги

enterprise – предприятие

to adapt – приспосабливать(ся), адаптировать(ся)

to exercise initiative – проявлять инициативу

to be one's own boss – быть самому себе хозяином/начальником

to meet needs – удовлетворять потребностям

artisan – ремесленник, мастеровой

weary – уставший, потерявший терпение

accountable – ответственный, подотчетный

to contend – утверждать, заявлять

valuable learning experience – ценный обучающий опыт

entrepreneur – предприниматель

to sort out – сортировать, разбирать, классифицировать

stigma – позор

opprobrium – позор, посрамление

 

Exercise 4: Write T (for True) and F (for False) next to the sentences below.

1. A sole proprietor is entirely responsible for his success or failure.

2. Even if the losses are greater than the investment, a sole proprietor will not deplete his personal assets.

3. Sole proprietorships pay more taxes than a corporation does.

4. Legally the business dies with the sole proprietor.

5. Small businesses are particularly well suited for meeting specialized local needs.

6. Small businesses do not often grow into large ones.

7. In the United States "failure" of a small business venture does not carry with it social stigma or opprobrium for the failed entrepreneur.

8. The people who like to exercise initiative and be their own bosses choose sole proprietorships.

 

Exercise 5: Complete the following sentences.

1. Sole proprietorships are firms....

2. The advantages of sole proprietorships are....

3. The disadvantages of sole proprietorships are....

4. Some economic contributions of small businesses are....

5. Often, failure of a small business venture turns out to be....

 

Exercise 6: Next to the sentences below write a word or a phrase from the Text 2 which you can use instead of the word or words in italics.

1. If the losses are greater than the investment, the individual is respon­sible for paying them, even if this depletes his own capital.

2. He doesn't have a boss. He works for himself.

3. He had many losses last year, and he asked a bigger company to give him money.

4. An individual businessman can make decisions quickly without hav­ing to consult others.

5. Sole proprietorships can provide individualized products for custom­ers who have become tired of mass-produced goods.

6. To have your own enterprise is a very difficult and responsible business.

 

Exercise 7: In the text find the synonyms to the following words and phrases. Use them in the sentences of your own.

+ entrepreneur

+ income

+ misfortune

+ a business of one's own

+ personal capital

+ according to the law

 

Exercise 8: Translate into English a story of one sole proprietor. Say what would you do, if you were him in this situation.

Когда мне исполнился 21 год, я унаследовал частный бизнес моего отца. Отец всегда говорил мне, чтобы владеть и управлять компанией, я должен быть очень ответственным человеком. Я только что закончил экономический факультет университета и думал, что знаю и умею все. Я понимал, что работа на малом предприятии может стать ценным опытом для меня как предпринимателя. Я был сам себе хозяином, принимал решения, радовался прибыли и сожалел об убытках.

Однажды один из моих друзей попросил меня принять его на работу. Я согласился, потому что Питер был тогда безработным. Он быстро приспособился, часто проявлял инициативу. Но однажды Питер сказал, что работать законно не всегда значит платить налоги. Не знаю почему, но я послушался его.

Два месяца назад налоговая инспекция обнаружила, что я скрываю свои доходы. Так как я владелец компании, я полностью ответственен за все. Я заплатил штраф и исчерпал весь мой личный капитал.

Что касается Питера, то он смог скопить денег на новую квартиру и машину и покинул город.

 

UNIT 3: MARKETING

Text 1: MARKETING AND PROMOTION

Usually a great fortune and success in business come not only be­cause of luck and happy circumstances in somebody's life, but due to thinking ahead, to the knowledge of people's psychology and market.