Entrepreneur Blog – Simon Cowell

Simon Cowell is one of the most renowned men in the world, earning around 54 million a year. Starting off in the mail room in EMI Records, he worked his way up to eventually be the A&R consultant for Sony BMG putting himself in a very powerful position in terms of business within the entertainment industry. He then went on to create his production company Syco, responsible for the televising and creation of the massively successful programs X Factor and Britain’s Got Talent and representing the artists that the shows produce. Syco apparently now accounts for 70% of the profit generated from Sony Music UK.

For these reasons I admire Simon Cowell, as he has worked his way up a company to go on to start his own businesses, almost all of which have been very successful. He is the creator of most likely the world’s most successful television show as a franchise being shown in around 30 countries worldwide; the X Factor. Whilst I admire him for what he did as a business-man and entrepreneur, I do not admire what the actual programs he created stand for and produce, as in my opinion yes, they create opportunities for ‘normal people’ to become stars, but at the same time take over the charts and push out artists that have written their own songs and have what I see as the true package; being able to write as well as record songs. Although this is what I believe and aside from what it does to the music industry, it does increase the income into Simon Cowell’s business Syco, and whilst I do not commend what this does to the industry I do admire the original methodology and idea.

However even though I am not a fan of X Factor myself I do appreciate how the show is put together as a production. A huge amount of the British and other populations are fans, which therefore means the show generates a massive amount of profit from its viewers and their calls. Another part of the televising and production of the show that I admire is the way in which he has delegated advertising space. Due to the amount of viewers, both X Factor and Britain’s Got Talent are brilliant shows to advertise in between breaks. There are around 7 breaks per show, meaning that the advertisement space bought by companies generates huge amounts of profit and can be sold at large prices. In my opinion this is very cleverly done by Cowell, as the show itself therefore does not need to advertise but can still make a lot of profit from it without the infringement of any of ITV’s laws.

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Resources Used: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Simon_Cowell

                            http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Syco#The_X_Factor

Dance Company Improvement

Candoco Dance Company is a contemporary dance company based in London that mixes disabled and non-disabled dancers in order to produce shows and performances that tour all around the country. They also act as a school, aiming to train again both disabled and non-disabled people to go into some sort of professional dance career. The company only focuses on those with a physical disability such as wheel chair users and people with prosthetic limbs.

The social issue that this company tackles is very obvious; making sure disabled individuals still have the same chance at a professional dance career as any other person. However, one way in which they could branch out would be to include people with mental disabilities as well as physical. This of course would be appropriate for the company as Candoco Dance Company is a charity and looks to help others. This would probably involve teaching and working with the mentally disabled to produce a show up to the standards of the company’s tour. An activity such as this can be looked at both positively and negatively.

The positive side to introducing a new scheme for mentally challenged dancers would be that it is very fitting with the company’s image as it is a charitable organisation for helping the disabled. Not only would it help the business, but it also would encourage people with mental illness to express themselves in ways that they may not have had the chance to do in the past, it gives them a chance to interact with others in a different environment promoting better social skills and physical activity, and lastly it may give carers and families a break from looking after them.

There are however some negative points. Candoco Dance Company, whilst promoting the image of a charity is mainly a professional touring dance company, therefore the teaching that is applied to the physically challenged and non-disabled dancers could not be used on the mentally disabled as this may be impossible for them. This would then mean that the company would have train its staff in the special skills required for dealing with the students or get in professionals to teach them separately from the other members of the dance troupe. This would most likely be expensive and actually does not maintain the image the company is going for because Candoco Dance Company is all about producing shows that combine disabled and non-disabled dancers.

Overall I think it would be in Candoco’s interest to introduce a scheme to train the mentally challenged to dance as they are a charity. However, it may just be a burden to the company as it would cost money and it may not be what the company is looking to become, as in my opinion this could be slightly too extreme because they seem to want to be a professional dance academy to train and produce professional dancers. Saying that however I do not actually know how capable mentally disabled people are as they could learn and digest the knowledge of dance just as well as people with no mental disability.

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Websites used: http://www.candoco.co.uk/

Harry Potter Premiere - Operational Elements

The new film Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows premiered in

Leicester Square

at the Odeon on the 11^th of November 2010. Many operational practices of course had to be taken into account and used for an event such as this, seeing as it is one of the most successful film series ever.

There was an article on BBC news about the stars and fans being soaked by rain at the London premiere (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/8139765.stm).

Shelter and contingency planning is key to event organisation; it should be a certain fact that stars of the film do not get wet whilst giving autographs and interviews.

However the fans who had been camping out before the event should expect any sort of weather conditions and it is not the responsibility of the event itself to plan for their discomfort. Measures could have been taken to avoid the problem of bad weather conditions such as a large marquee connected to the barriers; so that fans and cameras could still see and interact with the celebrities. However it is possible that bodyguards did follow the actors around with umbrellas for the entirety of their walk down the red carpet preventing the problem all together.

Security is also a massive issue for a premiere, especially because fans are allowed so close to the celebrities. Not only did the Odeon put security around the red carpet to stop anything happening to the stars, but there has to be a large amount of security at the entrance to the cinema itself to check bags for recording equipment. According to one article (http://www.beehivecity.com/film/film-review-harry-potter-and-the-deathly-hallows-part-one0957524/) ‘this was done with such efficiency that I barely have to break stride’, clearly showing that the organisation of this operational element was particularly thorough and very well put in place.

Another factor relating to operations has to be the waste management in and around the Odeon. It is most likely that the waste produced by the viewers during the film will be cleared up by cinema employees, however there is no mention of how rubbish left by fans who had been camping outside would be cleared. One way in which a build up of litter in Leicester Square could be reduced is by strategically placing large waste bins by the areas where fans had set up camp, however local police would probably patrol the area during the days leading up to the premiere and the actual cleaning is likely to be undertaken by the local street cleaning service.

Despite an input from other organisations, most of the operational elements used in the premiere of Harry Potter would mainly be covered and supplied by the cinema and its regulations, such as health and safety, food and drink and licensing. All of the above should be pre-existing in the Odeon, therefore it would not be necessary to add more when the cinema offers it already.

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Macroeconomics' relevance to the Falmouth Oyster Festival

Macroeconomics is the section of economics that looks at the overall economy of a country. Factors such as the inflow and outflow of money, unemployment, gross domestic product, tax and inflation all determine what stage in the business cycle a country is in, ranging from prosperity, to recession, to trough and then lastly recovery.

Macroeconomics plays a large role in any business and would affect the Falmouth Oyster Festival. At the moment we are in a recession, meaning there is a rise in unemployment and a decline in the GDP and trade in and out of the country. The recession affects consumers in particular, and so consequently due to oysters being seen as a luxury item people may not want to buy them and spend money on something that may be seen as unnecessary. Also, going to the festival itself is not quite a luxury but it’s definitely not a necessity, therefore people may not attend in an attempt to save money. The recession may also affect local businesses that are looking to sponsor the festival as they may be less willing to give money because of the economic climate. However this was not the case for the Falmouth Oyster Festival as St. Michael’s Hotel and Spa did eventually become the leading sponsor.

Another way in which large scale economics may affect the Falmouth Oyster Festival is a rise or fall in the world’s supply or demand. Due to demand for fish and shellfish rising globally there is an increasing number of factory ships partaking in unsustainable large scale fishing, for example the Athena fish factory ship that caught fire just off the coast of Falmouth. This is depleting stocks for local fisherman resulting in an increase of prices in food such as oysters, therefore making it more expensive to produce the main ingredient of the Falmouth Oyster Festival.

A rise in unemployment may also be relevant to the festival, both in positive and negative ways. The positive of there being more people unemployed is that there may be more people to work on the set up of the oyster festival. However a negative might be there may not be as many people willing to volunteer due to more people in need of money and a sustainable form of income.

Taking all these factors in to account however, the festival was still the most successful in its fourteen year life-time, showing that despite the recession people still came and still paid enough for it to be a success. Global economics potentially may harm an event such as the Falmouth Oyster Festival; however it seems if there is the right amount of marketing and local resources on hand then it will still overcome the economic difficulties presented at the time.

Resources: www.falmouthoysterfestival.co.uk

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Three Events

Heritage

What - Bath Heritage Open Week

When - 23^rd to the 31^st of October

Why - Having started 20 years ago, the Heritage Open Week arose to promote the local traditions and heritage of Bath and northern Somerset. This year the theme that will be celebrated is food.

Content - There are a large array of activities and learning oppurtunites within the seven days. They vary from bun tasting in the museum, discovering what the monks of the Bath Monastary ate and what rationing would be like during World War 1 and 2, and devising new food ideas for the future meal of 2050. Mainly targeted at families and children in particular, the open week includes Halloween related events such as the Half-term Halloween Trail through Prior Park Landscape Gardens. All of the events that take place are free entry so long as you are able to present a residents discovery card, which is also obtainable for free.

How - The open week is organised by the Bath and the Northeast Somerset Council. Due to all the activities available being situated all over town, it is financed by the businesses that host those activities.

Visual Arts

What - The Diver and the Little Giantess in Rotterdam by the Royal de Luxe.

When - Dates unconfirmed but definitely due to happen within the next 3 months.

Why - Started by Jean-Luc Courcoult in 1979, the Royal de Luxe company was set up to show the world his creations and a new form of theatre, in the way that all of them have included comic affects, surrealism and poetry combined.

Content - Having shown past events all over the globe, for example the Sultans Elephant in London, Royal de Luxe bring a parade through the streets of cities using a massive machine intricately operated by a large team of performers to interact with passers by and its surroundings. Every year the company has presented a different machine, this years being a giant diver and young girl. The last performance was through Antwerp on August the 20^th, having already been through Chile and other main cities its next stop is in Rotterdam.

How - It will all mainly be run by the city itself. I cannot at this time find any information about the financing of the event at Rotterdam. However in London when the Sutlans Elephant came it was funded by Arts Council England and the Mayor of London, with Partnerships from all police organisations within London and other county councils.

Entertainment

What - The Relentless Freeze Festival

When - 29^th to the 31^st of October

Why - Beginning in 2008 the Freeze Festival was introduced at Battersea PowerStation in London to show a range of music and winter sports. The reason for its creation was because it filled a gap in that market and is one of a kind in the UK.

Content - In terms of music there are two stages showing a wide variety of bands and Djs. The Main stage hosts artists such as Chase and Status, Orbital and Pendulum last year and this year Mark Ronson, Scratch Perverts and Shy FX. There is also the Relentless Energy stage, new to the Freeze with performances from Natty, Bedouin Soundclash and DJ Yoda.
There are of course also 3 snow sport events that take place on the large ramp at the centre of the festival. There is the LG snowboard FIS World Cup where snowboarders from around the globe fight it out in a big air competition, the International Freestyle Ski another highly regarded competition with a range of competitors again from all over the world, and lastly the Battle of Britain where only Uk riders get a chance to qualify into the other two competitions. Alongside the events on the ramp are some BMX contests and many shops selling ski-wear.

How - The festival is sponsored by LG, Relentless energy drinks, International Ski Federation (FIS), Whitelines Snowboard Magazine, Snowboard Club UK, Ski Union and Oneil. It also received a lot of advertisement from Channel 4 and Kiss 100 radio.

Three events I want to work for and why.

Cannes Film Festival - Because of my love of film I would love to work on possibly the most important film festival in the world, and as I said before my friend talked about it recently. This idea also sparked from the oppurtunity to work on the Cornwall Film Festival which I'm sure would be a good place to start.

Nibbs Events - This is a company which runs most of the film premiers in London. I am relatively sure that I want to work in the city after I leave uni, so I researched this company and it sort of ticked all the boxes of what I want to do. I think that I would want to get involved in this more than I would a festival as I am more interested in working on a smaller scale in a city.

Glastonbury - At Glastonbury I worked for the main Market and Stalls Director, who was put in charge of setting up all of the stands in the main market area of Glastonbury. Although not directly what I want to do, this did give me a taste of what organising Glastonbury as an event would be like rather than the standard job of just checking tickets. Personally I would rather be doing something closer to the performance side of things but that experience, having gone to a few festivals before, did make me think that I would want to do that sort of work.

I don't really know what a blog is...

I'm not sure really what to write about, but the one creative events related thought I have had recently is when a friend called me to catch up and told me how she would be working at the next Cannes Film Festival. She is actually in fashion so I'm not really too certain what she is doing there, but either way I am extremely jealous as I'm sure that is something along the lines of what I would like to be involved with in the future.