[MUSIC] In this lesson,

you're going to learn how to describe and ask questions about a company. Then
you'll listen and read about one
company's history and learn vocabulary so that you can talk about important
events in a company's history and describe how a company has changed. At the end of
this lesson, you'll be able
to describe a company to someone else. Now let's watch someone
else describing a company. Watch the video and answer the questions. >> Caffe Ladro
is the name of my company. It started in 1994. We are a coffee retailer as well
as a wholesaler and a bakery. So we have three different divisions,
basically, the retail cafes and
then a bakery that supports those cafes. And then a wholesale roasting
side which we roast for all our own cafes and
then a lot of other clients as well. We started with one cafe up
on top of Queen Anne Hill. The first cafe was right next
door to a Starbucks, and everybody thought we were a little bit
crazy to open next to Starbucks, so our name became The Coffee Thief,
Caffe Ladro. [LAUGH] We just, last week,
opened our 15th location, been adding one or so a year for
the last decade or so. [LAUGH] In Seattle,
the coffee market is very sophisticated, and Starbucks is sort of more looked like,
a little bit more like
McDonald's of coffee in Seattle. They're very consistent at what they do,
but they're not the premium product. We are more of a coffee house. Basically it's
a seating area and
in the coffee bar, more conducive to studying and having
business meetings and things like that. Our retail is all just in Seattle,
greater Seattle area. Our online business is
throughout the country. We probably sell coffee to every
state via online ordering. The logo's, he's the coffee thief. When we first
started,
we were looking for in particular, a logo that was distinctive and
looked good on a coffee cup. Two parts of our brand are really Ladro,
the name, the guy, but then also the color. This is a big part of our brand. So
when people are walking around, just like Starbucks, the green cup
is very important for their brand. But this is our color. We like to say,
if you're walking with this cup, we can recognize you from 100 yards. So this has
been a really good vehicle for
us and our brand. But the guy himself, he's the thief,
he's the coffee thief, so he's the mysterious, tall figure and
you can use your own imagination. [LAUGH]
>> Now, let's start talking about companies. Do you recognize any of these logos?
You'll hear a question. What kind of company is it? Answer the question by reading
this
sentence with the name of the company. You'll hear the answer after you speak.
Number 1, what kind of company is it? Amazon is an online store. What kind of
company is it? Toyota is a car company. What kind of company is it? Starbucks is a
coffee company. What kind of company is it? Nike is a shoe and apparel company.
What kind of company is it? Apple is a technology company. Here are ways we
describe
company location. Sometimes we use the plural pronoun
they to talk about a company. It's based in Seattle. The manufacturing plant
is located in Mexico. Their headquarters are in Chicago. They have subsidiaries in
Latin America. Now, let's work on the vocabulary you
need to describe what companies do. There are many words that describe
the activities of companies, but the most common word is make. Manufacture means to
build
something in a factory. Distribute means to arrange for
products to be sold in different places. For example, Toyota makes cars. Lego
manufactures and
distributes toy building blocks. Don't forget the s ending on
third person singular verbs. Assemble refers to the activity of putting
parts together to make the final product. We can also use build. For example,
Boeing assembles planes in a huge factory. They build planes at Boeing. We often
use words like develop and
design to talk about the creative process. For example, Apple designs and
develops apps for its phones. Here are some other common verbs,
some of which you already know. Be sure to use the correct
prepositions with these verbs. Starbucks buys a lot of coffee
beans from Central America. Walmart imports a lot of
merchandise from China. Boeing sells airplanes
to airline companies. Ford exports cars to many countries. Starbucks competes with
McDonald's. Companies in the service industry
don't manufacture anything. We say that they provide or
offer services. Fidelity provides financial
services to large companies. Google offers cloud storage. Many online stores offer
free shipping. Before we go,
take this short vocabulary quiz. Predict the verb that
completes the sentence. The first is letter is given for you. Don't forget the s
ending on third
person singular verbs, then listen for the answer. Number 1,
Amazon sells many different items. Number 2,
Amazon customers buy products online. Number 3, Mercedes builds cars in Germany
and exports them to other countries. Number 4, Apple designs or
develops operating systems for computers. Number 5,
Boeing imports parts from other countries. Then they assemble the planes
in their US factories. Now predict the prepositions. We didn't give you
a first letter this time. Number 6. McDonald's competes with KFC and
other fast food restaurants. Number 7. A middleman buys merchandise from one
person and sells it to another person. Number 8. Starbucks imports coffee beans
from many different countries. Number 9. India exports cotton to China. We showed
you vocabulary connected to
design and manufacturing companies. Now, let's look at vocabulary
related to retail. Retail means selling to the public,
to individual customers, not to other businesses. Merchandise is a general word to
describe
things that people buy and sell. An e-tailer is a store that sells online. The e
stands for electronic. For example, Amazon is an e-tailer. Apparel means clothing.
For example, Nike sells both
athletic shoes and apparel. High-end means that something is higher
quality and higher price than others. Expensive refers mostly to cost. For example,
Nordstrom is a high-end department store. Its merchandise is usually
high quality but expensive. We use inexpensive to talk about cost,
also. The word cheap is similar to inexpensive,
but it can also have a negative sense
of poorly made or low quality. Walmart sells inexpensive merchandise. It's known
for low prices. The clothes are cheap. Added discount means that you can buy
something at lower than normal cost. Costco is know as a warehouse store. It sells
high quality
merchandise at a discount. Some companies offer a combination
of services and products. For example,
technology companies like Apple and Microsoft offer computers and
mobile devices. But they also design applications,
or apps, for these products. Complete the company descriptions with the
vocabulary you've studied in this lesson. Predict the answer,
then listen to see if you were right. Number 1. Luis Vuitton is a high-end company
that
sells expensive leather bags and luggage. Number 2. Sam's Club competes with
Costco. It's a warehouse store that sells high
quality merchandise at a discount. Number 3. Walmart sells inexpensive merchandise.
It's well known for low prices. Number 4. Tablets and
cell phones are mobile devices. People download applications,
also called apps, to use on them. [MUSIC]