Students, in a group, are required to construct a report consisting of a brief bio & comparative analysis of 3 businesses.
In my group, we've picked Seafood 'restaurants' as the theme for our report & the 3 businesses are Bali Hai, Bubba Gump & Manhattan Fish Market.
2.
Name of Module: English 2 [ENGL0205]
Report Title: A Tale of Three Businesses – A Comparative Analysis of 3
Businesses of Similar Industry in Different Geographical Locations
Group Members: Haziq Zariful(0314131)
: Syafiq Zariful(0314702)
: Cassandra Wong (0313365)
: Kelvin Ng (0315081)
: Stanley Low (0314883)
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3. Table of Content
Content
Page
Cover page
1
Table of Content
2
Key Summary
3
Brief Bio of Businesses
4-6
Comparative Analysis of the Businesses’ Competitive Traits
7-13
Recommendation
14-15
Appendices
16-59
References
60-62
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4. Key Summary
We were given an assignment to compare the analysis of two businesses of
similar industry in different geographical locations. We chose to compare
businesses in Penang and in Klang Valley on seafood restaurants. The seafood
restaurant we chose in Penang is Bali Hai Seafood Restaurant which is located in
Gurney Drive and in Klang Valley we chose Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. and
Manhattan Fish Market which is located in Sunway Pyramid. After completing and
analysis the report, we found out that Bali Hai would be the more commercially
successful business compared to Bubba Gump and Manhattan. Besides that, the
similarity of the two businesses is that both are having monopolistic competition.
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5. Brief Bio of the Businesses
Bali Hai Seafood Restaurant
i.
The seafood restaurant interviewed in Penang is the ‘Bali Hai Seafood
Restaurant’ strategically located in the famous tourist spot for local food in
all markets, the Gurney Drive. The interviewee is the Group Food &
Beverage Manager of the business, Steve Foong.
ii.
The first outlet opened for the business is at Gurney Drive, the second
outlet is at Penang Times Square, the third outlet is at Sungai Pinang and
it the biggest outlet so far, the fourth one, is located at Batu Feringghi.
iii.
The business currently has four outlets in Penang and is going to open the
fifth outlet at Damansara.
iv.
The product mainly sells fresh seafood in various kinds such as lobsters,
crabs, shrimps, geoducks, cooked in many types of ways such as
steamed, fried, boiled, etc. Popular dishes include: steamed grouper,
curry crabs with rice noodles.
v.
vi.
vii.
The business‘s first outlet opened at Gurney Drive in 6th December 2005.
The business was founded by Mr. Josh Chua; and
It was founded because of his love towards food & desire to try on newer
types of cooking; he got the inspiration to start this business during his
younger years. He worked with his father when he was at a hawker stall
selling grill fish at Sungai Pinang, and then eventually passed the grill fish
business to his niece to open Bali Hai Seafood Restaurant. What inspired
him to call his shop ‘Bali Hai Seafood Restaurant’ was because Mr. Josh
loves Bali, and would love to bring a ‘Bali feel’ to their restaurant where
he uses the sunset view, seaside location, tablecloth and the dry leaf roof
imported all the way from Thailand with the decorations to make
customers feel as if they are in Bali.
viii.
In recent times, the business has used their revenue to add decorations to
add a relaxing family atmosphere & also a Bali feel such as the dry leaf
roofing. The revenue is also used to bring in more sea animals & products
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6. to compete with other competitors. The revenue the business gains
through their development is currently RM1million per month, where they
start the business with a capital of RM600K.
Bubba Gump
i.
The seafood restaurant interviewed in Klang Valley is the ‘Bubba Gump
Shrimp Co.’ strategically located in one of the shopping mall in KL,
Sunway Pyramid. The interviewee is the assistant Sous Chef, Mr. Pravin.
ii.
The first outlet opened in KL is at The Curve Mutiara, Damansara. The
second outlet in Kuala Lumpur is at Sunway Pyramid and the third outlet
is at. Citta Mall, Damansara
iii.
The business currently has thirty-two Bubba Gump restaurants operated
worldwide. Twenty-two of these locations are in the United States, three
are in Japan, two are located in Mexico, three are in Malaysia, and one
each in the Philippines, Indonesia and Hong Kong.
iv.
The product mainly sells fresh seafood in various kinds such as shrimp,
salmon, fish, lobsters cooked in many types of ways such as steamed,
fried, boiled and more. Popular dishes includes their award winning Dixie
style baby back ribs, traditional shrimp cocktails, stuffed shrimps with crab
meats, shrimp kebab and more.
v.
The businesses opened their first outlet in Malaysia at The Curve Mutiara,
Damansara in 2008.
vi.
The business was founded by Viacom Consumer Products
vii.
Was founded because was inspired by the 1994 film Forrest Gump. The
Bubba Gump restaurant is named after the film's characters Benjamin
Buford "Bubba" Blue and Forrest Gump.
viii.
Their recent development is that they are going to open their 100th outlet
in Malaysia soon.
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7. Manhattan Fish Market
i.
The seafood restaurant interviewed in Klang Valley is the ‘Manhattan Fish
Market’ strategically located in one of the shopping mall in KL, Sunway
Pyramid. The interviewee is the restaurant supervisor, Muhammad
Rohaidi.
ii.
The business currently has twenty branches of Manhattan Fish Market in
Malaysia and 5 offices. Twelve of them are in KL.
iii.
The product mainly sells fresh seafood in various kinds such as calamari,
mussels, fresh salmon, fish and chips, scallops, octopus and many more
cooked in many ways like fried, boiled, steamed and more. Popular dishes
include single garlic herb mussels, grilled glory dory, and Manhattan
flaming prawns.
iv.
The business opened their first outlet in 2003, Sunway Pyramid Shopping
Mall.
v.
The business was founded by Mr. George Ang.
vi.
was founded because of the reputable Flutton Fish Market, which was
once located below the iconic Brooklyn Bridge
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8. Comparative Analysis of Competitive Traits
NUMBER OF COMPETITORS
1) In Penang, in the Seafood Restaurant market, there are at least 49
competitors, specifically in Georgetown; there are approximately 19
competitors in the market.
There is an astoundingly large number of seafood restaurants in Klang Valley,
counting to more than 180 firms. Specifically in Petaling Jaya, there are at
least 50 firms.
MARKET SHARE & TOP COMPETITORS
2) In Penang, Bali Hai’s market share is small & its top competitors in the
market would be Tan Sam Guan Seafood Restaurant, Pinang Taste Seafood,
and Ocean Green Restaurant.
In Klang Valley, Bubba Gumps’ & Manhattan Fish Market’s market share is the
same as the other outlets in Sunway Pyramid & their top competitors would
be Manhattan Fish Market/Fish & Co. (respectively), Pantai Seafood
Restaurant & Restaurant Fatty Crab.
BRIEF BIO OF TOP COMPETITORS
3) Bali Hai:
a) Tan Sam Guan is a seafood restaurant located in Batu Ferringhi founded
by locals Liang & Loon. The restaurant is famous for their friendly service,
atmosphere & their Malaysian Cuisine. They also serve food other than
seafood such as sizzling chicken & fried chicken with honey.
b) Pinang Taste Seafood is located at World Heritage Area Carnarvon Street,
Georgetown. Their motto "Local Taste with Home Sauce Recipe" signifies
that they cook their food such as Nyonya Asam Fish in a local Malaysian
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9. way & that all their sauce are made from traditional home recipe. They
are also famous locally for cheap dishes at an average of RM3.
c) The Ocean Green Seafood is a popular dining place located off Jalan
Sultan Ahmad Shah in the city center. The restaurant also gives an open
view of a popular beach area for couples. The eatery offers famous
seafood freshly caught which are cooked in various ways such as the
Steam Curry Fish, Sweet and Sour Crab & Scallop Soup.
Bubba Gump/Manhattan Fish Market:
a) [Bubba Gump] The Manhattan Fish Market would be the largest
competitor; one of the major reasons is that it is also strategically placed
in Sunway Pyramid Megamall like Bubba Gump. Another cause is how a
globally successful company owns the restaurant; hence, they would have
a larger capital, larger suppliers & different types of recipes such as Fiery
Cherry Snapper & Manhattan Flaming Prawns. Pricewise, customers would
ideally dine in this restaurant than Bubba Gump.
[Manhattan Fish Market] The Fish & Co. Outlet is also strategically
placed in a Megamall, The Paradigm Mall in Petaling Jaya, where there
would be many types of customers such as students, workers or tourists.
The restaurant is famous for it’s café atmosphere & cooks many different
styles of Fish n’ Chips ranging from a western New York style to a local
Malaysian style. The menu also constantly grows according to recurring
customers. Fish & Co. is also a global company hence they have a large
amount of investment for them to advertise & attract more customers.
b) Pantai Seafood is situated around wooden houses & light industrials;
however, the interior has a spacious relaxing family atmosphere. There
are cascading tanks with a wide array of seafood to choose from for a
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10. freshly cooked meal. Signature Dishes include Pak Cheok Har (Poached
Fresh Prawns) & Siong Tong LaLa (Steamed Clams in Superior Soup).
c) Restoran Fatty Crab had been well established and known to many
people. A Hot spot for Malaysians including Malays as it had been certified
as a Halal restaurant. The business can obviously be identified as a local
business since it resembles a typical local restaurant, with fans, outdoor
tables, local cuisine & stalls where they cook satay and Chicken wings.
Other Dishes include Sweet and Sour Sauce Crabs & Steamed Fish.
STRATEGIES TO COMPETE
4) Bali Hai:
-‐
The management team would go around the area & eat food from other
restaurants not just in their market to spark ideas on ways to cook their
food.
-‐
The manager also encourages employees to spend time with their
customers & receive negative/positive comments for the management to
reflect on.
-‐
The manager would also discuss with chefs & suppliers every 2 weeks to
create a new seafood dish. After discussing, the business would then
promote their new product to their customers.
-‐
Other strategies include the marketing department running programs to
promote the restaurant such as partnering with Tourism Malaysia, which
sponsors the business through brochures.
Bubba Gump:
-‐
The restaurant has dancers perform Spanish dancing with the music in the
restaurant as a way to make the restaurant more unique.
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11. -‐
As a restaurant self-labeled as a family restaurant, the management
allows kids under the age of 12 to eat their products for free. This would
attract more families, as they would not want to spend a lot.
-‐
New products are introduced annually in November/December.
-‐
In the marketing department, Bubba Gump promotes themselves by
selling merchandise near their shop, also promoting retro brands such as
Guinness & Tiger.
Manhattan Fish Market
-‐
The restaurant promotes new products, price decrease & combo meals
especially for events such as Chinese New Year or Christmas.
-‐
The price range is low compared to seafood restaurants in the area. For
example, the Fish n’ Chips would be RM21 while Bubba Gump’s Fish n’
Chips is worth RM30-40.
-‐
The company encourages all employees to prioritize in their friendly
service & view it as an important component to compete with others
DIFFICULTY & OBSTACLES WHEN ENTERING THE MARKET
5) To enter the seafood restaurant market according to both managers is
currently easy as long as there is enough money to start the business, only a
small capital would be needed, eg. Bali Hai only needed RM600k from their
capital. One of the few obstacles faced in the market pointed out by Bali Hai
manager, Steve Foong, is that businesses need to partner with a supplier &
to compete with others; a supplier who can supply a large variety of seafood
would be needed, however, local fishermen can also provide their services to
local businesses, which would be cheaper. The chefs must also have the
knowledge to cook seafood & furthermore, to compete against competitors,
they need to be innovative on cooking new products to attract customers.
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12. TYPE OF MARKET & JUSTIFICATION
6) The seafood restaurant market for the restaurants in the region of Penang &
Petaling Jaya has Monopolistic Competition. In a market with Monopolistic
Competition, there are many firms, relatively easy to enter, somewhat
different products, some price difference & advertisement is important to
compete against competitors. Proofs of such characteristics found in Penang
& Petaling Jaya:
i) In Penang, there are approximately at least 49 firms while there are at
least 50 firms in Petaling Jaya, this proves there are many firms in the
geographical market & that it is easy to enter.
ii) The market also sells different types of dishes, in order to compete
against competitors, firms like Bali Hai think of a new product to sell in
a mere 2 weeks whereas the products of seafood restaurant also
varies by their supplier, Bali Hai has approximately more than 25
different types of seafood in different types of ways to cook them.
iii) There are also different price differences, local businesses might hire
local fishermen or fish for their supply, which, compared to large
businesses who hires suppliers providing various types of seafood,
would be much cheaper, hence, their price would also be cheaper.
Even global companies such as Manhattan Fish Market have lower
prices as a strategy to attract customers.
iv) Lastly, large businesses such as Bubba Gump, Bali Hai & Manhattan
Fish Market can be seen in Question 4 (strategies to compete) to have
advertisement as a way to attract more customers & not lose to their
competitors.
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13. 7) COMPARITIVE ANALYSIS SYMMARY TABLE
Competitive
Traits
1. Number of
Competitors
Bali Hai Seafood
Restaurant (PenangBased)
Bubba Gump (Klang
Valley-Based)
Manhattan
Fish
Market
(Klang
Valley-‐Based
45-60 firms
180-200 firms
180-200 firms
2. Barrier to
Entry
Weak, has high
Strong, has low
capital, located at
capital, needs to
Sunway Pyramid,
gradually upgrade
where there are many
firm through revenue
people, strong
advertisements
3. Differentiated
or Standardized
Products.
Differentiated, eg.
Alaskan King Crab in
Salted Egg Yolk,
Cheese and Crab
Meat Whole Scallop
Standardized, very
few differentiated
products
Differentiated,
eg.
Grilled
Glory
Dory,
Small
Flame
(A
variety
of
flamed
prawns,
dory
fillet
&
side
dishes)
4. Pricing Power
Price Maker - sells
various types of
seafood that are not
locally found, such
as Australian Spider
Crab & Geoduck.
Price Taker - few
differentiated
products, some can
be cooked at home.
Price
Maker
-‐
few
types
of
sea
animals,
but
many
types
of
cooked
ways
such
as
grilled,
flamed,
wrapped,
etc.
No close product
substitutes around
the area, mutual
dependence,
inconstant
advertising
Many Close product
substitutes found
nearby, constant
advertising in &
around firm
Not
many
close
product
substitutes,
advertising
&
promotion
only
during
special
events
Monopolistic
Competition
Monopolistic
Competition
Monopolistic
Competition
5. Other
Characteristics
6. Verdict
Weak, has high
capital, located at
Sunway Pyramid,
where there are
many people, strong
advertisements
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14. CONCLUSION
8) Based on our analysis, Bali Hai would be the more commercially successful
business. One of the reasons is that there are too many competitors in Klang
Valley than Penang & because of this, their advertisements, while little, are
effective. Other than advertisements, the large number of competitors can
cause a lot of customers in Klang Valley to have different choices in where to
eat or might substitute restaurants such as Bubba Gump & Manhattan Fish
Market to other seafood restaurants, probably a cheaper one. Another reason
is that Bubba Gump doesn’t give too many unique recipes for their products &
takes a whole year on creating a new product while Bali Hai only takes 2
weeks & have different types of seafood not just sticking to prawns, shrimp &
fish like Bubba Gump. One of the reasons why Manhattan Fish Market isn’t as
successful as Bali Hai is how Bali Hai has many other types of sea animals to
cook, which shows that they have a bigger supplier compared to Manhattan
Fish Market. While they have fewer types of sea animals, the restaurant make
up for it in their cooking, however, Bali Hai also cooks their seafood in various
ways, hence why Bali Hai is considered more commercially successful.
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15. BUBBA GUMP
Recommendation
- The products sold in the firm are too common & can even be cooked at home
or at least can be found in other restaurants in a cheaper price such as tempura
shrimp or fish and chips. There are very few differentiated products exclusively
for the restaurant and also, the dishes focus too much on shrimp & prawn there
are only 4 types of dishes for fish. Our recommendation is for the company to
issue new products monthly or every 2 weeks, instead of the current
annual time.
- The price is a major reason why customers are driven away from the firm,
since there are many competitors who sell substitute products for a cheaper
price. For example, Bubba Gump’s Fish & chips are for RM25.90, whereas in
Manhattan Fish Market, their Fish & chips range from RM12.50 to RM19. Aside
from food, drinks are only too pricey ranging from RM12 to RM25. Our
recommendation is to sell products almost equal to competitors where demand
can be equal.
BALI HAI SEAFOOD RESTAURANT
-The restaurant is located just by the roadside, which makes it unhygienic due to
the carbon monoxide from vehicles which can affect the customers eating the
food. Besides that, the noise from the motorcycles that pass through can also
disturb the customers who are having family dinners. Our recommendation is
that they cover part of the restaurant up to maintain the cleanliness and the
ambience of the restaurant.
-The limited parking spaces are also one of the major reasons why customers
are driven away from the restaurant. There isn’t much parking lots based on
what we see when we are there. The reason is because it is by the roadside and
there is moving traffic which makes customers cannot park by the side. Our
recommendation is to provide parking spaces for the ‘Bali Hai Seafood
Restaurant’ customers.
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16. MANHATTAN FISH MARKET
-
Based on unbiased customer reviews, most complaints point out the bad
services the outlet has displayed towards them, typically from the waiters.
One of the examples they gave was how a waitress gave wrong receipts
twice, which, if unnoticed, would’ve charged unnecessary amounts
towards either parties. Other complaints include asking cutlery repeatedly,
slow response to calls towards waiters & ill-mannered attitudes from staff.
Other than bad service, the communication skills from the staff are also
poor, as we ourselves have experienced. One of the waiters who wait our
tables can’t speak English while another waitress spoke softly & that we
cannot hear her. For a restaurant whose strategy to compete is to
prioritize service, they simply can’t do so if this keeps up. Hence, we
recommend for the recruitment staff of the business to thoroughly
consider the workers’ traits, personality & attitude. They must hear out
their communication skill & observe their service towards customers
during working hours.
-
When we interviewed the business, finding a table for two was too
difficult when moving around. The seats for families & groups were
arranged properly, however the seats for a private 1-2 people seating
were unorganized & compact, moreover the paths in between the tables
were zigzag shaped, which makes it inconvenient for customers to move
around. We recommend a reorganization of the seating & since we’ve
observed that a full house is rare, some tables and chairs would be
unnecessary, thus can be removed for customer convenience purposes.
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58. Soup
of
The
Day
Iced
Peach
Tea
and
Coke
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59. Official
Websites
&
Pages
The
Manhattan
Fish
Market
Facebook
Page
The
Manhattan
Fish
Market
Official
Website
Home
Page
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60. References
Gomakan.com. (2014). Bubba gump shrimp co. @ sunway pyramid | gomakan.
[online] Retrieved from:http://gomakan.com/go/bubba-gump-shrimp-co-atsunway-pyramid[Accessed: 13 Jan 2014].
Biz.yellowpages.com.my. (2013). Bali hai seafood restaurant. [online] Retrieved
from:http://biz.yellowpages.com.my/balihaiseafood/ [Accessed: 13 Jan 2014].
Balihaiseafood.com. (2012). Bali hai seafood market official website. [online]
Retrieved from: http://balihaiseafood.com[Accessed: 17 Nov 2013].
Shah, S. ( 2013,11th April 2013). Best local restaurants in penang. BEST LOCAL
RESTAURANTS IN PENANG, [web log] Retrieved
from: http://www.mygola.com/best-local-restaurants-inpenang/q25083 [Accessed: 9 Jan 2014].
Tripadvisor.com.my. (n.d.). Bali hai seafood market, penang island - restaurant
reviews - tripadvisor. [online] Retrieved
from: http://www.tripadvisor.com.my/Restaurant_Review-g660694-d1889010Reviews-Bali_Hai_Seafood_Market-Penang_Island_Penang.html [Accessed: 13
Jan 2014].
Tripadvisor.com.my. (2012). Pinang taste seafood restaurant, georgetown restaurant reviews - tripadvisor. [online] Retrieved
from: http://www.tripadvisor.com.my/Restaurant_Review-g298303-d5615461Reviews-Pinang_Taste_Seafood_RestaurantGeorgetown_Penang_Island_Penang.html [Accessed: 11 Jan 2014].
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61. Sumptuos ( 2012,21st January 2012). Pantai seafood restaurant (水上人家) @
kg. sg. kayu ara, petaling jaya. Sumptuous®, [web log] Retrieved
from:http://sumptuousblog.wordpress.com/2012/01/21/pantai-seafoodrestaurant-水上人家-kg-sg-kayu-ara-petaling-jaya/ [Accessed: 11 Jan 2014].
Lam, C. ( 2010,23rd March 2010). Fresh & delicious seafood at ocean green
seafood restaurant, penang. What2See : Best of Penang Food!, [web log]
Retrieved from:http://www.what2seeonline.com/2010/03/fresh-deliciousseafood-at-ocean-green-seafood-restaurant-penang/ [Accessed: 11 Jan 2014].
goPenang. (2013). Tan sam guan seafood - gopenang. [online] Retrieved
from: http://www.gopenang.my/tan-sam-guan-seafood/ [Accessed: 11 Jan
2014].
Chin, W. Z. ( 2014,22nd February 2009). Pantai seafood restaurant @ kg sg kayu
ara, petaling jaya. KAMPUNGBOYCITYGAL, [web log] Retrieved
from:http://kampungboycitygal.com/2009/02/pantai-seafood-restaurant-kg-sgkayu-ara-petaling-jaya/ [Accessed: 11 Jan 2014].
Kim, S. ( 2013,14th January 2013). Restaurant fatty crab@ taman megah,pj.
Yours Truly Saimnicy, [web log] Retrieved
from: http://saimnicy.blogspot.com/2013/01/restaurant-fatty-crab-tamanmegahpj.html [Accessed: 11 Jan 2014].
Characteristics of Market Structure. (2013). [e-book] California: California Council
On Economic Education. p. 1. Available through:
econworks.org http://econworks.org/wpcontent/uploads/2013/01/Characteristics-of-Market-Structure.pdf[Accessed: 11
Jan 2014].
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62. Manhattanfishmarket.com. n.d. The Manhattan FISH MARKET | Malaysia.
[online] Available at: http://www.manhattanfishmarket.com/malaysia.html
[Accessed: 12 Feb 2014].
Tripadvisor.ie. n.d. The Manhattan Fish Market, Kuala Lumpur - TripAdvisor.
[online] Available at: http://www.tripadvisor.ie/LocationPhotoDirectLinkg298570-d1124759-i50768913-The_Manhattan_Fish_MarketKuala_Lumpur_Wilayah_Persekutuan.html [Accessed: 12 Feb 2014].
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![Name of Module: English 2 [ENGL0205]
Report Title: A Tale of Three Businesses – A Comparative Analysis of 3
Businesses of Similar Industry in Different Geographical Locations
Group Members: Haziq Zariful(0314131)
: Syafiq Zariful(0314702)
: Cassandra Wong (0313365)
: Kelvin Ng (0315081)
: Stanley Low (0314883)
2
|
P a g e](data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7)