Main menu For students For teachers Explore our subjects Student events & courses

Teaching Economics

Blog

Race to the Market - Jacko Tribute Books

Geoff Riley

13th July 2009

Share this content:

Here is a superb example of how profit seeking businesses react immediately to a market opportunity.Barely had the dust settled on the untimely passing of the King of Pop when publishers around the world sprung into action to deliver tribute books - but speed is absolutely of the essence for the publishing trade as the ‘market space’ for Jacko memorabilia is likely to fill up almost as quickly as the O2 arena when his tickets went on sale.

This BBC video is superb at capturing the rapidity of the response from Harper Collins who have started shipping over 100,000 copies from the printers to the bookshops and supermarkets. It would be a great video to show when teaching elasticity of supply and in identifying the different elements of the supply chain that have to come together to bring something to the market at remarkable speed. I might also use it when covering economies of scale with my AS micro students.

Share this content:

Geoff Riley

Geoff Riley FRSA has been teaching Economics for nearly forty years. He has over twenty years experience as Head of Economics at leading schools. He writes extensively and is a contributor and presenter on CPD and Revision conferences in the UK and overseas.