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The BODY SHOP: Female entrepreneur

Advanced Level:

• Grammar: Should versus would

• Functional Vocabulary: Growth metaphors used in business

• Listening Exercises: The Body Shop - origins and future

• Cultural Awareness Point: Women at work

• Pronunciation: /p/ and /b/

• Reading: Female entrepreneur – Anita Roddick

• Business Metaphors: Plant growth

• Role Play: A memorial for the founder

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Introduction: Discuss these questions: • What do you know about The Body Shop? • Do ethics have a role to play in the corporate world? • Do big corporations care about ethics?

LISTENING EXERCISE 1:

Listen to a report on Anita Roddick and answer the questions below. NOTE: The questions are not in chronological order

PRONUNCIATION PRACTICE: /p/ or /b/ or nothing

Practice saying these words and sentences with your tutor.

pack – back – debt – receipt – bomb – pneumatic – big – pig – buy – pie – lamb –

limb - climb – cupboard – probation – comb – bump – plumber – pub - pneumonia

• The police probed the man about debt

• There is a black comb in the cupboard

• The lamb is back on the menu, and the pub is called the Plumber’s Arms

• I need a receipt for the climbing frame

"Business is not a financial science, it's about trading … buying and selling.” Anita Roddick, founder of The Body Shop

1. What is the problem with the L’Oreal takeover?

2. How much did Anita and Gordon Roddick earn from the sale?

3. What inspired the Roddicks to open The Body Shop?

4. Who designed the logo?

5. What was The Body Shop’s market value in 2001?

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EXERCISE: Use the correct form of should or would to fill the gaps below. 1. If they had not reinvested in new technology they have gone under.

2. They like to arrange a meeting but keep changing their minds.

3. You always confirm the agreement in writing.

4. You try it. you like a free sample?

5. Okay, and when we’ve finished you send the results to head office.

6. The product manager insists we get rid of the peanut shampoo.

7. When the first shop opened in 1976 they often run out of stock.

Supplement this exercise with appropriate tasks from a good grammar book.

GRAMMAR PRACTICE: should or would What is the difference in meaning of these two sentences? a. Should you wish to use a basket, they are near the door b. If you would like to use a basket they are near the door

Should is used in a variety of ways: 1. To make a recommendation or to say something is a good idea.

You should always confirm the agreement in writing. I think you should change your marketing strategy before it is too late.

2. To indicate that something is right - often an implied criticism. If they want to generate more sales they should lower their prices.

3. After verbs such as: recommend, suggest, insist (formal sense) He insisted (that) I should take the job. The sales man recommended that I should try a different model.

4. Formal use for instructions and rules (meaning is close to MUST) Any changes in the procedure should be reported to the directors

5. To criticise a past action (with have + past participle) They shouldn’t have bought it they should’ve waited.

6. As a replacement for ‘if’ in a formal style. Should you wish to make an appointment please do so with his PA

Would is used:

1. To express a desire or offer (polite equivalent of want). I would like to speak to the manager. Would you like a free sample?

2. To talk about a past habit When we lived in Paris we would often visit the factory.

3. To make a polite request. Would you send the data to head office when you have a moment?

4. To express refusal to do something He was late for the meeting because his car wouldn’t start

5. For imaginary situations. They wouldn’t have been so successful without Anita Roddick

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Introductory Questions: Do you shop at The Body Shop? What is the brand’s appeal?

READING: Read the article, explain the underlined words and expressions and choose the correct word to fill the gaps.

Female entrepreneur Anita Roddick The founder of the Body Shop Anita Roddick opened the first Body Shop in 1976 despite having almost no business experience. 1. Would/should this have stopped her? Not at all, she said, and she was right. The business took off and in 1984 the company went public, and was valued at $1.5 billion. The Body Shop was sold in 2006 to L’Oreal, and although the sale raised concerns about its ethical image Body Shop continues to be profitable, with over 2,000 stores around the world. So why did she start The Body Shop? Did she see a niche in the market? While on a trip to San Francisco in 1970 with her husband Gordon, they discovered a small outlet selling natural soaps and cosmetics and got the inspiration to start their own Body Shop on their return to the UK. ‘It was really about what you 2. would/should/wouldn’t/shouldn’t put on your body, and selling it to people,’ she said. The original logo and product labels were designed by a local art student called Jeff Harris, who was paid $40. The first store store’s location was next to an undertaker, who said she 3. would/should/wouldn’t/shouldn’t be allowed to use The Body Shop name next to his business. ‘Of course I 4. shouldn’t/wouldn’t/should/would have survived, there were only 20 products in a tiny shop, but it had amazing creativity, and all because we had no money. If I had the money I 5. would/should have done everything wrong – marketing, focus groups, and all that sort of stuff. Nobody talks of entrepreneurship as survival,’ she says, ‘but that's exactly what it is and that helps creative thinking.’ For example, because she could only afford 20 different products in the shop, she 6. should/would make it look like more by selling them in five different sizes. Anita soon discovered that business was not a financial science, it was about trading: buying and selling, and it is as simple as that. If you are in business then you need to create a product or service that is so good that people will pay for it. Roddick managed to do that, and wanted to expand, but with no track record it was impossible to get a loan from the bank. She realised she 7. would/should have to look for other ways to grow the business. Roddick decided that the quickest and simplest way was to franchise. ‘A lot of women saw what I was doing, and what could be done, and they said, “I can do that.” So we trained them in the products, told them what they 8. should/would and 9. shouldn’t/wouldn’t promote … and they opened little units in other towns, all called the Body Shop, and it just grew from there.’

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INTRODUCTORY QUESTION: What is a measure of success in business?

LISTENING EXERCISE 2:

Listen to a report on Anita Roddick and answer the questions below. NOTE: The questions are not in chronological order

1. What is Anita Roddick’s greatest legacy?

2. What was her business plan in the beginning?

3. What would have been her definition of success ten years ago?

4. What is the measure of success now? 5. Any definition of success should be personal because …?

CULTURAL AWARENESS POINT: WOMEN at WORK

In Britain, more and women are career-oriented and are ambitious to progress in their chosen profession. However, women still make up a fraction of the management level and accusations of a ‘glass ceiling’ (invisible restriction to the top jobs) are common. SPEAKING PRACTICE: • Explain how your nationality/culture treats women at work.

• Do you think women should have different priorities in their lives?

• Do you think women have to try harder to succeed in business?

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SPECIALIST VOCABULARY: Business Metaphors

A common metaphor in business is that of farming and plant growth. Here are some words normally associated with cultivation. Discuss their meaning and put them in their correct form in the spaces below. Note: One is not needed. 1. Companies a high profit from ethical products.

2. Cosmetic companies suddenly all over the Amazon.

3. You have to the seeds for future success and that means investment.

4. With publicity and good customer service the company .

5. The Body Shop in the UK and then spread across the world.

6. Low performers were when the company was taken over by L’Oreal.

7. We most of the profits into Research and Development.

ROLE-PLAY

sprout up - weed out - plough back - branch out - sow – reap – flourish – take root

THE MEETING: Anita Roddick died in 2007. L’Oreal has to decide how to celebrate her achievements. Split into groups and decide which is the best way to remember the founder of The Body Shop. Think about a statue, a charity in her name, her words on the product labels etc. Discuss the options. Try to come up with a solution. Students should practice using the grammar of Some, Any, None, and the Un/Countable Nouns in this unit. Students should practice using the grammar of should and would, and the growth metaphors learnt in this unit.

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THE BODY SHOP – ADVANCED Audio-script 1 - Body Shop - Adv Entrepreneur Anita Roddick created the iconic store The Body Shop in 1976, after borrowing £3,000 from a friend. At the time of her death in 2007 there were 2,400 stores in over 60 countries. In 1970, Anita Roddick and her husband, Gordon Roddick, visited San Francisco, and discovered a small shop based on an ethical business model, selling natural shampoos, lotions and body creams. Inspired by this concept, Anita and Gordon created "The Body Shop" in Brighton, England. "The Body Shop", publicized environmental concerns, and promoted pure and natural products. The original logo and product labels were designed by a local art student, who was paid around $30. The Body Shop experienced rapid growth, expanding at a rate of 50 percent annually. By 2001 the company's market value stood at $2 billion. In 2006 Anita Roddick was accused of selling out when she agreed to sell The Body Shop to the global giant L'Oreal for $1 billion, L’Oreal is a company that tests on animals, and has been accused of worker exploitation. In her defense Anita said that her aim was to work closely with L’Oreal and guide them towards more ethical business practices. Anita and Gordon Roddick earned around $250 million from the sale. Anita died suddenly aged 64. Audio-script 2 – Body Shop - Adv Like all genuine entrepreneurs Anita Roddick took a huge risk when in 1976 The Body Shop was born. The family needed money to live but she had no experience of running a company. Anita said that the initial objective was weekly sales of $600, and that was her only business plan. She proved that you can build a business if you have the right idea, energy and the belief, even if you do not have any experience, or money, and you are a woman, and everybody tells you it wouldn’t work. I believed it would and it did. This is her legacy. In an interview she said: " Any definition of success should be personal because it's about shaping your own destiny," she said. "Twenty years ago my definition of success would have been to have earned enough money to keep my children in food and clothes. "Ten years ago, it would have been to see how far the idea of The Body Shop could go. I how many people I employed, how many stores were open, and could I open more stores? "Now I would say that a measure of my success is that, in some way, I have managed to change the nature and function of business, to ensure that it becomes kinder, and to understand that business is more powerful than governments, and the huge responsibility that comes with that.”

LESSON PLAN – THE BODY SHOP - ADVANCED

INTRODUCTION: Start by asking students what they know about The Body Shop. And what they think of ethics in business. Teacher (T) - Students (SS) 5 mins LISTENING EXERCISE 1: Next tell students they are going to hear a consultant talking about the sale of The Body Shop to L’Oreal. They need to answer the questions at the end. Play the Listening Exercise and ask students the questions. (T) - (SS) 10 mins PRONUNCIATION POINT: Ask students to read through the words and drill if necessary. (T) - (SS) 5 mins GRAMMAR: Ask the question (difference between the two sentences: One represents ‘IF’ and the other represents ‘WANT’). Go through the examples and do the exercises that follow. Ask students to read the questions and answers out loud. (S) – (T) 5 mins READING: Find out if any of the students know what The Body Shop’s origins are? Go through the reading exercise and ask students to read out loud and fill in the gaps with either Should or Would and explain the underlined phrases and words. (S) – (T) 10 mins LISTENING EXERCISE 2: Ask the questions about what reasons can be given for the sale of The Body Shop, apart from the money e.g. influence corporations, being able to reach more people with your message. Tell students they are going to hear the 2nd part of the Listening Exercise about this issue. They need to answer the questions at the end. Play the Listening Exercise (SS) – (T) 10 mins CULTURAL AWARENESS POINT: Ask a student to read the short script on Women at Work and discuss the questions that follow. (T) - (SS) 10 mins BUSINESS METAPHORS: Write down on the whiteboard ‘Plough back’ and ‘Sow’ and ask if anyone knows what they mean. Go to the exercise (T) - (SS) 10 mins ROLE PLAY: Split students into groups and get them to read their role cards and prepare to discuss the situation. Make sure they practice the grammar and vocabulary learnt in the lesson and to try and use the case study material in their argument. (SS) - (SS) 10 mins

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EXERCISE ANSWERS – THE BODY SHOP - ADVANCED LISTENING EXERCISE 1: 1. L’Oreal is a company that tests on animals, and has been accused of worker

exploitation. 2. Around $250 million 3. They discovered a small shop in San Francisco based on an ethical business

model, selling natural shampoos, lotions and body creams 4. A local art student, who was paid around $30. 5. $2 billion. GRAMMAR EXERCISE: 1. If they had not reinvested in new technology they would have gone under. 2. They would like to arrange a meeting but keep changing their minds. 3. You should always confirm the agreement in writing. 4. You should try them. Would you like a free moisturiser sample? 5. Okay, and when we’ve finished you should send the results to head office. 6. The shareholders are insisting we should get rid of Anita Roddick. 7. When the first shop opened in 1976 they would often run out of stock. READING: 1 Should 2 Should 3 Shouldn’t 4 Shouldn’t 5 Would 6 Would 7 Would 8 Should 9 Shouldn’t LISTENING EXERCISE 2: 1. She proved that you can build a business if you have the right idea, energy and

the belief, even if you do not have any experience, or money, and you are a woman, and everybody tells you it wouldn’t work. I believed it would and it did.

2. Weekly sales of $600 3. How far the idea of The Body Shop could go. I how many people I employed,

how many stores were open, and could I open more stores? 4. I have managed to change the nature and function of business, to ensure that it

becomes kinder, and to understand that business is more powerful than governments, and the huge responsibility that comes with that.”

5. … it's about shaping your own destiny BUSINESS METAPHORS 1 Companies reap a high profit from ethical products. 2 Cosmetic companies suddenly sprouted up all over the Amazon. 3 You have to sow the seeds for future success and that means investment. 4 With publicity and good customer service the company flourished. 5 The Body Shop took root in the UK and then spread across the world. 6 Low performers were weeded out when the company was taken over by L’Oreal. 7 We ploughed back most of the profits into Research and Development.

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