Strategic Managemnt - Old World wine producers Essay

Strategic Managemnt - Old World wine producers - Essay Example Wineries in some of these countries are curbed by several rules relating to production, labelling and so on. These wineries are also fragmented and treat each other as competitors. The NW countries are Chile, South Africa, Australia, New Zealand (NZ), and North America. Wines from these countries compared with the best in the world during blind tests (New World Wine 2007). Exports from these countries grew by 25.5% in the last 20 years. Since 1990 export revenues for the three countries Australia, the United States and Chile increased five fold in revenue and three fold in volume. (Wine 101 2002) Of these three countries Australia is leading the surge. Australia's success has been attributed to its ability to develop high quality products using innovative techniques, to address various price points and its capacity to be cost effective in a complex market (Wine 101 2002). That is impressive performance considering that formal commercial manufacture was started only in 1960s. The most widely grown vines are: Chardonnay, Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon, Semillon, Colombard and Merlot. (The New World Grape Varieties n.d). In South Africa red wines have replaced much of the white wines and the industry has improved its marketing arm to cope with the changed market. The most widely planted quality black grape variety is Cabernet Sauvignon (The New World Grape Varieties n.d). ... The vintners of America grow every vine ever heard of. NW wineries were successful for a variety of reasons. They make great wine and their labelling is simple. Their climates seem to be more suited than the climates of the OW (Echikson et al. 2001). Their production techniques are modern. They are better able to adapt to market dynamics. All this translated to an 'aggressive approach to entering new markets, and their branding' (Cazin 2004). NW wineries leveraged their greater financial strength to allocate higher marketing budgets with the primary aim of winning larger market share. In the process these wineries built recognizable brands. When there is a concern in the economy, people are afraid to buy Chteau No Name and they come back to the names and the brands they can trust says R. Michael Mondavi (Schaefer 2006). The NZ Wine Industry Although wine-making dates back to colonial times, it was only in the 1970s that viticulture was given any sort of significance. During the 1970s Montana in Marlborough began 3 production of wines which were labelled based on vintage and varietals, the same way the Australian wines were being labelled. The first NZ wines were so successful that large tracts of land were brought under vines. This resulted in a glut. Often the over-production was of the wrong variety. Then in 1984 the government paid growers to pull vines. This setback was only temporary. The last three decades have seen rapid growth in the NZ wine industry. The primary reason for this growth has been the increasing demand for high quality wines. Leading NZ's bouquet was Sauvignon Blanc. The Sauvignon Blanc from the Marlborough region was touted as the best in the world. Marlborough was just one of the ten grape growing

The Africaness of Ancient Egyptian Art Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The Africaness of Ancient Egyptian Art - Essay Example Egypt and the African civilizations surrounding came into closer contact largely through political domination and trade. Egypt built some of its strongest ties with Nubia, located in what is now Southern Egypt and Northern Sudan. Nubia was home to one of the earliest black civilizations, dating back to 3100 b.c. It was also rich in gold, ebony and ivory and would contribute greatly to Egyptian wealth. Egypt's relations with Nubia from 1950 b.c to 1100 b.c. have been noted as being one largely of domination. During this time period Nubia adopted many aspects of Egyptian culture, such as the hieroglyphic writing system and the worship of Egyptian gods, although in many respects they adapted them to their own practices and rituals. In recent years the discovery near Thebes of a tomb dating back to 1575 b.c has led to renewed interest on the nature of relations between the two nations. The finding consists of 22 lines of hieroglyphics, which describe the invasion of the Sudanese Kingdom of Kush in Egypt. Mamdouh El-Damadi, the director general of the Egyptian Museum in Cairo emphasized the importance of the inscription in understanding Kushite ambitions in Egypt (El-Ahram, p. 10). Some eight hundred years later the Kushites would be called upon to save Thebes from Northern invasion, an alliance that would result in the rule of Egypt and Nubia of Kushite kings. While historians have often portrayed Egypt's relationship with the African continent as that of dominator and dominated an examination of Egyptian artwork shows us that, indeed, it is far more complex. Ancient Egyptian artwork was dominated by a strict set of rules, or a code, if you like. This code was called Frontalism and its most noticeable features were the human figure shown rigid with its head and legs turned to the side, but with its eyes and body forward facing. Despite the severity of the figure's stance their facial features are described as serene. Another aspect of Ancient Egyptian art is its continuity over a three thousand year old time span. Lisa Kremen notes that one of the most noticeable aspects of Egyptian culture was its "ability to preserve the past and prevail with relatively little change" (www.bergen.org). As far back as early life in the Sahara we can see influences that would later be present in Egyptian Art. The Tassili cave paintings provide us with information about early life in the Sahara, before the desert began to dry and populations moved towards the Nile. Abimbola Asojo claims, "contemporary historians have stressed the influences of Saharan art and engravings on Ancient Egyptian art. Some of these scholars believe Ancient Egyptian art borrowed heavily from Sahara art which preceded and ran parallel to the Egyptian form (p. 129)." Many of the figures in the paintings show aspects of Frontalism, with the figures rigid in posture and the heads and legs in profile (see image 1). Of additional interest is the similarity between the depiction of human figures at Tassili and those of the Amarna period (see image 2). Differentiating from previous periods in Ancient Egyptian art Amarna art "resides in the physical appearance of Akhenaton, his wife and his daughters. Their elongate craniums, drooping features, long necks, pot bellies, large hips and