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Reviews selected literature on international retail activity and suggests new directions for research.

International franchising has proved a valuable strategic option in the overseas expansion of British mixed retailing businesses. It offers the opportunity to gain access to overseas markets with minimal investment and high returns. For Marks & Spencer, one of the UK′s leading retailers, the franchising group acts in a pioneering role.

The Marks & Spencer case is concerned with the development of the UK’s leading retailer of food and fashion in international markets. Key issues in the process are: (1) the question of the choice of market entry strategies, what strategic routes are available to retail organizations in entering new markets and the extent of strategic fit between acquired companies and the UK business; (2) the development of a retailer brand as an international brand. Significant differences exist between the development of a retailer brand and that of the development of a manufacturer brand in international markets.

Outlines the origin and development of factory outlet shopping centres in the UK and explores some of the tensions and relationships between developers, planners and retail operators, as a means of helping to understand the development and property management process.

This case study examines the use of celebrity endorsement in the formation of the retail image of leading European grocery distribution group J. Sainsbury, in particular, the process of transference of celebrity images to the product’s image. The incorporation of Jamie Oliver (well known as television celebrity The Naked Chef) into the promotions of one of Britain’s leading grocery chains involves a high profile campaign that has been adopted in order to imbue the company’s products with an image of quality. The success of the campaign has been replicated in New Zealand by another grocery retail “giant”, Foodstuffs, who have also adopted The Naked Chef to endorse their products. The case draws on field research with consumers and key informant interviews with advertising agency personnel who identified the criterion for the choice of Jamie Oliver. The extent to which the market place recognises and consumers associate themselves with the image Jamie projects as a celebrity endorser for J. Sainsbury is explored.

The second annual conference of the Research Alliance of Fashion and Textiles (RAFT), hosted by the Department of Clothing Design and Technology of Manchester Metropolitan University (MMU), took place in Manchester in June.

The UK “buy to let” property market is significant with over 1,024,300 “buy to let” mortgages outstanding between 1996 and 2007. This paper investigates whether the factors that encourage male and female individuals to invest in the “buy to let” property market are similar or different.

The research is conducted through a quantitative study which examines whether the advantages outweigh the disadvantages for landlords investing in the “buy to let” housing market and if these issues are perceived to be the same by male and female landlords. Through a literature review the research author critically evaluates books, papers and legislation to establish the current background information which exists on the “buy to let” market. The primary research contained within this paper is conducted through a survey questionnaire distributed to 100 landlords attending private sector landlord forums.

This paper recognises that overall male and female landlords have differing approaches to their investment decisions within the “buy to let” sector.

This paper establishes new learning relating to gender expectations regarding “buy to let” investments.

President Bill Clinton has had many opponents and enemies, most of whom come from the political right wing. Clinton supporters contend that these opponents, throughout the Clinton presidency, systematically have sought to undermine this president with the goal of bringing down his presidency and running him out of office; and that they have sought non‐electoral means to remove him from office, including Travelgate, the death of Deputy White House Counsel Vincent Foster, the Filegate controversy, and the Monica Lewinsky matter. This bibliography identifies these and other means by presenting citations about these individuals and organizations that have opposed Clinton. The bibliography is divided into five sections: General; “The conspiracy stream of conspiracy commerce”, a White House‐produced “report” presenting its view of a right‐wing conspiracy against the Clinton presidency; Funding; Conservative organizations; and Publishing/media. Many of the annotations note the links among these key players.

In recent years, there has been considerable interest within education policy in collaborative professional enquiry/inquiry methodologies, both as an alternative to top-down implementation of change and for the purpose of fostering educational improvement. However, researchers have been critical of this approach, pointing to various concerns: these include the risk of reducing a developmental methodology to an instrumental means for delivering policy, as well as issues around sustainability of practices. The purpose of this paper is to describe a Scottish university/local authority partnership, which developed an approach entitled Critical Collaborative Professional Enquiry, designed to address some of these concerns. The paper also reports on empirical outcomes related to the partnership project.

This interpretivist study generated qualitative data from multiple sources, utilising a range of methods including semi-structured interviews with teachers and school leaders, evaluation surveys and analysis of artefacts developed during the inquiry phases of the project.

This programme exerted a powerful effect on the teachers who participated. The research suggests that teachers developed better understandings of the curriculum, and of curriculum development processes. There is evidence of innovation in pedagogy, some sustained and radical in nature, and further evidence of changes to the cultures of the participating schools, for example, a shift towards more democratic ways of working.

This paper reports upon an original approach to curriculum development, with considerable potential to transform the ways in which schools approach innovation.

This paper examines the housing and support needs of older homeless people when they are resettled. Evidence is from a longitudinal study of the resettlement of 64 older homeless people, which monitored their progress for two years after they were rehoused. The subjects were rehoused in various types of accommodation: independent and sheltered flats, shared houses and residential care homes. At the end of 24 months, 31% had either abandoned their accommodation or been evicted. Several housing factors had an impact on settledness and tenancy sustainment: the condition of the tenancies, problems with co‐tenants and the responses of housing workers to the clients' problems and needs. A review of supported housing for older homeless people is required, including the role of residential homes for people with mental health and alcohol problems.