Impact of Covid-19 and Brexit on UK's Supply Chain and Business Operations

INTRODUCTION TO
BUSINESS

Table of Contents
TASK-1............................................................................................................................................3
TASK-2............................................................................................................................................4
Question-1....................................................................................................................................4
Question-2....................................................................................................................................4
TASK-3............................................................................................................................................5
TASK-4............................................................................................................................................6
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................8

TASK-1
The recent Covid-19 crisis is one of the most influential events for the companies,
investors and the market players in UK. The negative impact of the pandemic has affected every
service oriented sectors in the country. The disruptions in the supply chains due to the
natural calamities in the country. It has affected the supply chain and resulted in shortage of food
and consumer products in the market due to the crisis. The various business activities and supply
chains was delayed and suspended due to the restriction of demand and supply and closing of the
food production in the factories (Nezamova, and Olentsova, , 2020). The restrictions resulted
into delay and shortage of the consumer products. The lockdown in the country have restricted or
delayed the supply chain in the country of the food and consumer products in the market. The
emergence of the crisis have forced the consumer to shift to healthy eating habits but the major
issue faced that many consumers preferred to buy food items which sometimes get delayed due
to the strict guidelines of the government (Brunori,and et.al, 2020). The government took
various measures in order to deliver the food and other necessary consumer products on time and
also balance the impact of crisis in the country.
The country was affected after the Post-Brexit as there was delay in the food imports and
agricultural products and resulted into disruption in the supply chain in UK. The term Brexit
refers to the withdrawal process of United Kingdom from the European Union. The economy of
the country was slowed down as compared to the economy before Brexit (Lai, and Pan, , 2021).
It was observed that EU was the UK's largest market and after Brexit, UK faced major issues
related to the supply chains which resulted in the shortage and delayed in the consumer products
which forced the company to shift to the local suppliers which charged higher prices for the
products as there was no other option. It was predicted that many businesses have to face and
suffer damage and delays due to import checks and product labelling. Apart from the Brexit
issues, the economy of the country was badly affected by the emergence of the Covid-19 wave
which forced the owners to shut down there stores due to heavy losses suffered by the company
(Simionescu, 2018). The country suffered various restriction imposed by the government in order
to reduce the spread of the infection which was challenging for the company to overcome their
losses. Both Brexit and pandemic has forced the company to shift to local suppliers which
resulted into increase in their operational costs.

TASK-2
Question-1
ALDI, German supermarket that is a discount groceries chain founded in 1946 is one of the
leasing supermarket because of its successful operational management. The company is currently
having 10,000 stores in 17 countries across Europe, Australia, United States and China. The
company is planning to expand its business operations in Germany. No, the business model used
by the company various from industry to industry (Schmid, and et.al, 2018). Every business
model is framed after considering the various factors in order to sustain and increases the
customer base. The company involve in the efficient inventory management that helps in
forecasting for the products on small scale rather than on large scale which reduces the wastage
of the products and chances of stock outs of the company. The business model used by ALDI
may not be successful in other industries as the requirement of every sector is different. The
company also operates in small area as it is easier to accommodate in smaller area and also as per
the comfort of the customers. But this business model cannot work when the company wants to
expand its business in various countries (Stanton, 2018). The company main purpose is not to
operate in large space but in limited space it aims at fulfilling the requirements of the customers
which helps the company to invite the customers and communicate in order to know the needs
and supply the products in the market. The company business model is based on selling products
at cheap rate and does not focus on competition. The company sells limited number of products
and this type of business model may not be successful in other industries. The demand and
preferences of the customers keep on changing and ALDI offers limited numbers of products
which can be a challenge for the company as the companies operating in same sector offers
variety of products.
Question-2
Customer sacrifice means the gap between the products and services offered by the
company and what the customers want. The customer wants the products and services which are
of reasonable value that they can afford and of good quality. ALDI company is the known as the
discount grocery store which offers the quality products at discount as compared to other
supermarkets in the country (ones, and Comfort, 2019). Aldi is running shorter opening hours
than its competitors, which has helped in optimizing store operating costs. The company is not
located in top locations and does not have customized stores as the space is limited. The