The financial and business performance of Ted Baker over years from end of January of 2012--2011, 2011--2010, 2010--2009

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

No words can express my appreciation and gratitude to my research advisor _______ through the course of this research, Professor _____has taught me numerous values that extend well beyond the realm of _________ (Your Subject Name). His emphasis on dedication to work and his valuable and practical insights of life are some of the major highlights of my education at The University _________.



DECLARATION

I [type your full first names and surname here], declare that the contents of this dissertation/thesis represent my own unaided work, and that the dissertation/thesis has not previously been submitted for the academic examination towards any qualification. Furthermore, it represents my own opinions and not necessarily those of the University.

Signed __________________ Date _________________





TABLE OF CONTENTS



ACKNOWLEDGEMENTII

DECLARATIONIII

CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION1

1.1 Project objectives1

1.2 Aims and objectives2

1.3 Overview of the research3

1.3.1 Financial analysis3

1.3.2 Business analysis3

1.4 Overview of Ted Bakers4

CHAPTER 2 INFORMATION GATHERING5

2.1 Sources of information5

2.2 Limitations6

CHAPTER 3 ACCOUNTING AND BUSINESS TECHNIQUES7

3.1 Interpretations of financial statements7

3.2 Limitations on ratio analysis8

3.3 Business strategic analysis9

3.4 Limitations on strategic analysis10

REFERENCES12

CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION

1.1 Project objectives

Financial report is seen as a direct indicator for organization's performance, and they have a aim to help the users making correct investment decisions. However, in the real world, the temptation of rich bonus is often greater than the regulated accounting standards. The collapse of Enron was a symbolic case in modern corporate history; this top 100 organization in U.S. was still seen to be highly profitable on its published reports, fell and filed for bankruptcy all of a sudden. After the Government bodies started to focus on the lack of corporate governance, while the public started to question the validity of financial statements, and to the extent professionalism of accountants and auditors. The scar slanted on investors' confidence, but lessons still have not been learnt; the issue of fraudulent reporting become serious concern for organizations and stakeholders. It is the responsibility of the organization to follow the financial reporting standards in preparing financial statements and disclosures; thus, the information on financial statements should be comparable, consistent, understandable, relevant and reliable. On the other side, shareholders and potential investors shall possess essential knowledge and skills to interpret available figures into comparable information, in order to aid investment decision making. Alongside with analysing financial figures, investors shall also consider the strategic aspects of the organization. Business analysis emphasizes on both internal and external factors, which may affect the organization from achieving its goals. This includes using strategic model to determine market share, analyse rivalry to find out potential opportunities/ threats in the industry, use focus group to identify the target population and customers' needs etc.. Business evaluation creates a more perceptive picture about what strategies the organization adopts in order to achieve its long term goals. Shareholders and investors will always be interested in the organization with sustainable growth; thus, business performance becomes a critical criterion. To sum up, getting clear idea of the ...