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How many bus stops are visible/easy to get to –
There are 4 visible bus stops visible at Heathrow airport.
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What tube/train facilities are nearby – The tube facilities that are nearby and run directly to the airport are the London Underground, The Railor and the Heathrow Express.
Heathrow Airport also has several train links with many of the country’s train services. These include:
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How many vacant shops are in the airport –
As Heathrow airport is sub-divided into 4 terminals at present, I went to each terminal and found some of the vacant shops.
Terminal 1
I have visited London Heathrow Terminal 1 and have found 2 vacant shops one after security check and one before security check. Of the two sites only one is located near one of my main competitors. Please see page below for a picture.
Terminal 2
On my visit to Terminal 2 I found out that there are currently 2 vacant sites near my competitors. Both these sites seem relatively large in size and may be looking for a big organisation to take over. I have chosen to show one of these sites. Please see below.
Terminal 3
When I went on my visit to terminal three via tube I found that there is only 1 shop that is vacant. This shop is very large and will offer great space to customers but the only problem is, is that it surrounds great competitors such as Costa coffee bar and HMV.
Terminal 4
On my final visit to Heathrow airport I found that in terminal 4 there are 2 empty
Premises which lie within 200 yards of each other. I have chosen to show 1 vacant site.
- What competition surrounds these vacant sites –
Heathrow airport in general is home to some of the most well known coffee shops in the world. Some of these include Cafeone and Costa.
In terms of threats to the business, the only real competitor which poses a threat to my business is HMV which is located at Heathrow’s terminal 3 at the south end. The store is extremely popular for its recognised record labels which are well known around the world. They also specialise in DVD’s, computer games and videos.
Costa coffee bar also poses a threat to my business as its trademark product is coffee which my shop also happens to sell. This shop also sells sandwiches, salads and pastries. Another coffee store in the terminal is Cafeone which also sells salads and coffees. The above coffee shops have a core product which is coffee and use various coffee beans from around the world to differentiate themselves. However, my business ventures core product will be to provide cost affective internet access and secondary product will be coffee. So these world famous brands of coffee shops will only provide a limited threat which will be in terms of coffee. Below are pictures of my likely competitors.
- How busy is the airport -
From looking at official sources of data, I can say that Heathrow airport received well over 64 million passengers in 2000/01 making it by far the busiest international airport in the world – taken out of the BAA website. So as you can see the airport receives a bulk of passengers. Terminal 1 receives approximately 24.6 million passengers per year. Terminal 2 is not as busy as terminal 1 but still receives a lot of passengers per year – 8.2 million passengers. Terminal 3 handles the most passengers out of the 4 terminals with having over 25.5 million passengers per year. The last terminal, terminal 4 is home to 41 different airlines and handles 14.2 million passengers per year.
- What age/gender/race mostly visit the area –
Based on my general knowledge and my visit, I can say that people aged between 25 – 44 mostly visit the airport. Furthermore, based on facts from the BAA website females appear to be passing through the most often. As Heathrow is an international airport, all sorts of races pass through each day.
- What shops seem to be the most popular –
The shops that seem to be the most popular in the airport are those in the fast food sector, cafes, and coffee shops.
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What different types of shops are there – The different sectors of shops that are concerned with the airport are restaurants and bars, duty-free shops and many retail outlets such as phone shops, pharmacies, food stores and gift shops and clothes shops.
Q2. A Profile Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted Airport
Socio-economic profile of UK residents who have travelled by Air in 3 of the past 5 years by purpose of travel (%), 2000.
Source: TGI ©2001.
Analysis of Passengers at BAA PLC’s UK Airports by Socio-Economic Class, 2000/ 2001 respectively in terms of (%).
Source: BAA PLC.
Crime/ Miscellaneous at Heathrow Airport
- The Heathrow Lost Property Office receives approximately 200 telephone enquiries per day.
- Approximately 20 mobile telephones are lost and stolen per day at Heathrow.
- Some of the most peculiar items of lost and stolen property found at Heathrow include a glass eye, a suitcase of dead fish, a false leg and the whole front of a Ford Escort car.
- Terminal 1 receives 31 telephone enquiries per day
- Terminal 2 receives 65 telephone enquiries per day
- Terminal 3 receives 86 telephone enquiries per day
- Terminal 4 handles 18 enquiries per day
- Approximately 2 mobile phones are stolen and 4 are lost per day at terminal 1
- Approximately 5 things are stolen and 2 are lost at terminal 2
- 1 item is lost per day and 1 is stolen per day at terminal 3
- There are approximately 2 items lost per day and 3 stolen at terminal 4
Q1 - OBJECTIVE 1 – Gatwick Airport
I have visited Gatwick airport and have obtained the following data about the airport:
- How many bus routes are nearby and run directly to the airport –
There are more than 400 express coach services that run a day from the coach stations at the North and South Terminals of the airport. This terminal which is dedicated to coach services is located at the ground floor of the South Terminal and principle services also call up at the North Terminal. I have also found out that information can be gathered about coach information in the arrivals of both terminals. The local buses that run through are; 142, 128, 987, 765, 54, 87 and N67.
Speed link coach services operate from desired bases at the North and South terminals. All other bus and coach services such as the X70 stop at the airport’s coach station which is on the ground floor.
The main express coaches which run in the local area are:
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Speedlink – dedicated to speedlink points within both Terminals.
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Gatwick Flyer – offers direct service to the South Terminal
Other bus services which run indirectly to the airport are; the Oxford Express bus which provides a link to the airport from Oxford and Jetlink which run to the airport from the Midlands.
- How many bus stops are visible/easy to get to –
There are 6 bus stops which are visible and easy to get to. These are located outside the airport and inside the airport facility. The main bus which runs from outside the airport is the X70.
- What tube/train facilities are nearby –
There are no tube facilities which are nearby to the airport. However, on my visit I found out that Gatwick has its own railway station at the South Terminal. This railway receives well over 900 services daily to and from all parts of the U.K. The railway station itself is linked to Gatwick’s South terminal and is just a few minutes away from the North terminal via train link.
The main train link is the Gatwick Express which is a non-stop service to Victoria station London, which just takes around 30 minutes to arrive at the airport.
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How many vacant shops are in the airport –
Once again as before, this airport like Heathrow airport is broken down into two sides. These two sides are the North and South Terminals. As a result of this, I visited both these terminals and found out the following things about the number of vacant shops in each terminal:
- In the South Terminal there are currently no vacant shops.
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In the North Terminal there are 2 vacant sites. Please see next page for the collection of vacant shops.
- What competition surrounds these vacant sites in the airport –
As my business’s primary source of income will come from internet accessibility its main threats will be those who are in the internet café. Based on research and a visit to the airport I have found out that there are no internet cafes near the vacant sites, which is excellent to my business if it were to set up there. It also means that my main rival is out of the way. However, as Ve – Store also specialises in dealing with magazines, DVD’s and videos, books, music, sandwiches, coffee and pastries I will also have competition in these areas too. The competition that surrounds these vacant sites are very well known brand names such as:
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Costa – specialises in freshly roasted and ground coffee, hot drinks
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WH Smith – sell magazines, books, newspapers, snacks etc.
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Whistlestop – offer fresh salads, sandwiches, pastries, confectionary, drinks and snacks
- How busy is the airport –
Looking at my main findings from BAA.com the amount of passengers that pass through the airport is extremely high. In fact, Gatwick is the busiest single runway airport in the world and is the sixth busiest airport in the world.
Its development strategy for the future focuses on the airport’s expansion as a single runway, two terminal airport, as it continues to grow in handling more and more passengers (40 million per year). So as you can see the airport is very busy.
- What age/gender/race pass through the most –
Like Heathrow, Gatwick airport is an international airport, so therefore it will receive a large amount of different raced people. Figuratively speaking, from looking at a socio stratification class table which looks at what age group passes through the most, it shows that the age category of 25 – 44 years olds seem to be the most often to pass through the airport. This may be because this age group is normally associated with business people and these are the people who are most likely to have the most disposable income to spend.
- What shops seem to be the most popular -
The shops that seem to be the most popular are those which involve fast food and coffee . Shops. This is because customers have become brand loyal to these organisations over the
Years. Also, coffee is an everyday drink for most of the people.
- What different types of shops are there –
The shops that Gatwick offer are those which are some of the most famous and most recognisable in the world. The airport is unique in the sense of its shopping environment as it offers a stunning range of stores to choose from which promise to offer exceptional value for money. Some of the different types of companies which operate there come under the clothing industry. The airport also has many industries in footwear, food and drink and in gift shops.
A Profile of Heathrow, GATWICK and Stansted Airport - Q2.
Socio-economic profile of UK residents who have travelled by Air in 3 of the past 5 years by purpose of travel (%), 2000.
Source: TGI ©2001.
Analysis of Passengers at BAA PLC’s UK Airports by Socio-Economic Class, 1999/ 2000 respectively in terms of (%).
Source: BAA PLC.
Crime/Miscellaneous at Gatwick Airport
- Approximately 5 items are lost and stolen per day in the North terminal
- Approximately in total 12 items of valuables are misplaced and stolen per day
Q1 - OBJECTIVE 1 – Stansted Airport
I have visited Stansted airport and have carried out detailed research and have made notes/ observations on the following things:
- How many bus routes run through the area –
I have visited my proposed business site 3 and have found out that Stansted has access to 8 different bus routes. These include the 54, 67, 876, 189, 35, 56, 125, and the N12 which runs direct to the airport from Baker street which is local. This is good for my business as it has a variety of buses in which for consumers to get on.
- How many bus stops are visible/easy to get to –
There are 8 bus stops which are visible and have easy access. This is also gives consumers a wide range of alternatives to choose from if one bus is not operating or is held up in traffic congestion.
- What tube/train facilities are nearby –
Like Gatwick, Stansted does not have a tube service running to them. However they offer:
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The Stansted Express which runs every 15 minutes from 0800 to 1700 on weekdays. The journey time is reasonable – 41 minutes coming from London, Liverpool Street.
The service also serves Tottenham Hale which links with the London Underground for the
West end route.
- How many vacant shops are in the airport –
In the North Gate of the airport there are no vacant sites. This shows that competition is fierce and is rivalry. In the South gate there is only one vacant site. This site is large in size and can come in full usage to customers as there can be a larger stock room.
- What competition surrounds these vacant sites-
I have found out that there are two competitors that surround this vacant site. These two competitors are Metro Café and Uppercrust which specialise in selling sandwiches, pastries and coffee. This shows that there might be a gap in the market and might need an internet café/cyber store.
- How busy is the airport –
From looking at data through the usage of BAA.com I have collected information on how busy the airport is. Stansted receives over 36 million passengers per year on average and also the airport is the eighth busiest international airport in the world. This shows that it receives a lot of passengers which means that there is a larger audience to target.
- What age/gender/race mostly pass through –
As mentioned earlier this airport is also international which means that the number of different aged, raced, and sexes of people will be limited depending on the flight capacity of each plane.
- What shops seem to be the most popular –
Based on observations, the shops that seem to be doing very well are those related with food and drink and everyday essentials such as coffee and newspapers.
- What different types of shops are there –
The different types of shops based on observation are restaurants and bars, clothing firms, entertainment shops, food and drink and gift shops.
Q2 - A Profile of Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted Airport
I have obtained a profile which compares the household income of residents that pass through, the social grades of people who pass through, the region as to where they came from, their sexes and ages and the crime/ miscellaneous rates.
Socio-economic profile of UK residents who have travelled by Air in 3 of the past 5 years by purpose of travel (%), 2000.
Source: TGI ©2001.
Analysis of Passengers at BAA PLC’s UK Airports by Socio-Economic Class, 1999/ 2000 respectively in terms of (%).
Source: BAA PLC.
Crimes/ Miscellaneous at Stansted Airport
- Approximately 13 mobile phones are lost per day
- On average, seven hand luggage’s are misplaced and stolen per week.
Q1 – OBJECTIVE 2
I have compared my three proposed business locations and have decided to situate my business at London Heathrow’s terminal 3. The reason being as to why I have chosen this particular area over the other two is because this airport in terms of populations is huge. The airport itself receives well over 64 million passengers per year which means that there is a perfect business opportunity for me because I have a large market surrounding me in terms of consumers. Furthermore, I have chosen to locate my business in terminal 3 and not the other terminals because this terminal is home to 41 airlines in comparison with terminal 1 which has 13 airlines, terminal 2 which has 28 airlines and terminal 4 which has 6 airlines. This means that there is a larger consumer market available to me and also means that I will have more potential customers. Moreover, terminal 3 has the best crime rate in relation with the other terminals and airports. The terminal also has 2 items stolen and lost per day which in relation with the other terminals and airports is better off. The availability of transport is also excellent at this airport and terminal as it has more transport links – the London underground and the airport has frequent connection with over 100 buses per day. The competitors that surround my chosen location is also lower than any of the other terminals and airports. This means that I will have to put up with low competition which also means me bringing in more capital and profit.
Market Research
Market research is the collection of information about existing and potential markets. Information may be collected by a firm:
- From its own records
- From general market information
- By observing its competitors
- From its consumers
The information collected may be:
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Primary Data – new original material and information
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Secondary Data – material that has already been published.
The different methods of market research available are desk research and field research.
Field Research (primary research)
Usually some form of surveying will be carried out, either using a questionnaire or a more-in-depth interview such as face-to-face, postal, and telephone surveys.
Desk Research (secondary research)
Much of this will involve collecting secondary data, with sources including the following:
- A firm’s past sales records, and its profit and loss accounts.
- Published accounts and annual reports of rival public limited companies.
- General market reports by specialist research companies
- Official government data and information from its own records and surveys, e.g. census
An advantage of this data is that the data will be very reliable, e.g. a firm’s own records, but other data might be very general or quite complex.
The primary research that I will be carrying out will be a face-to-face questionnaire. A face-to-face interview will be used by myself to ask a wide range of different people and will also allow me to speak to people and see what they think of my proposed business idea. I have decided to survey 10 people and keep the questions short in the questionnaires because business people and people will have flights to catch and so do not want to miss a flight.
I will also be carrying out quantitative and qualitative research. I will be using quantitative research to examine on a given amount of time – 60 minutes to observe how many consumers visit my main competitors. This type of research collects numbers. I will do the observation right outside HMV and Costa Coffee bar at 1pm on a Saturday and 3pm on Saturday too. In total I will carry out for different observations. In such numeric form it will be easy for me to display this data and analyse it on a computer using graphs and tally charts. The qualitative research that I will be carrying out will things related to do with opinions. This will help me see the demand for my business idea. I can display this data on a pie chart to show how many people agree that my idea of the shop opening up is wanted.
The secondary research that I will be carrying out will be that of information which has already been published. The secondary data that I will use will be that of social trends – disposable income, and upmystreet.com. I will look at information which has already been published to look at the demand for that particular business, in my case a cyber store.
I have carried out questionnaires and have interviewed 10 people; 5 men and 5 women. I have also carried out other relevant research methods to:
- Assess the level in demand for my new business idea
- Find out if there are enough people to buy my goods and services.
