Pashbury is a small inland town. It has a range of shops, a fast food restaurant, a small industrial area with factories and warehousing, a bank which opens twice a week, a post office, and a bus service to neighbouring towns but no railway.

Mark scheme

Marking points from the official mark scheme (May/June 2015). The mark or mark type is shown in brackets.

1. Level 2 (4-6 marks) Has discussed whether or not Pashbury is concerned with Commerce and has given a reasoned opinion.
2. Commerce may be defined as trade and aids to trade. As regards trade, Pashbury has a range of shops, so it must be involved in the retail trade. There is warehousing in the industrial area and this implies that there might be a wholesaler there, again part of trade. The warehousing, however, might be purely a storage facility for a manufacturer but wholesaling functions such as breaking bulk and packaging will be performed there. There is no indication that Pashbury is involved in any kind of foreign trade.
3. As regards aids to trade or commercial services, Pashbury has a bank so financial services are offered to residents. It has a post office so some communication services are offered. There will be roads because there is a bus service but no railway. Some transport services operate in the town but not a full range. The shops are likely to advertise, probably locally and storage is provided in the warehousing. Businesses and many private householders are likely to be insured so the residents are making use of insurance services.
4. It can, therefore, be shown that Pashbury is concerned with Commerce. Some commercial services such as banking services are definitely there. People living there make use of trade and other commercial services.
5. Level 1 (1-3 marks) Has commented on Pashbury in relation to Commerce with/without an opinion.
6. Commerce consists of trade and aids to trade. Pashbury has some trade. It has a range of shops. Pashbury has a bank and a post office and roads for a bus service. It has commercial services such as finance and transport. It is concerned with Commerce.
7. A straight list is usually Level 1
8. A one-sided argument can be Level 2 but only 4
9. [3] (b)(i) Any two points × 1 mark each and 1 mark for an example
10. the creation of utility
11. the provision of goods and/or services
12. to satisfy needs and wants
13. such as primary production, secondary production, tertiary production
14. raw materials into finished goods
15. examples such as cotton goods manufacturer or car industry
16. any other relevant point
17. [1] (b)(ii) Any example of a warehouse × 1 mark – general, cash and carry, cold storage, regional distribution centre, wholesaler's warehouse, manufacturer's warehouse, food warehouse description of warehouse.
18. N.B. 0 marks for bonded warehouse
19. [2] (c)(i) Any two points × 1 mark each and 2 marks for a well-developed point
20. an agreement made between a well-known company (franchisor) and individuals (franchisee) to sell a product or service in a particular area
21. [4] (c)(ii) Any two advantages explained × 2 marks each
22. provides access to a ready-made market with a well-known product/service
23. assistance from the parent company especially at the start of the franchise
24. reduces risk of failure as the parent company will not wish to franchise to fail
25. some of the initial costs are paid for by the parent company e.g. advertising
26. supplies provided by the parent company so the franchisee does not have to look for suppliers
27. assistance such as set up costs of a site/training offered by franchisor
28. advice and support in operating the franchise
29. may be easier to obtain finance from a bank than being a sole trader
30. less need for advertising as parent well known and may provide corporate advertising
31. any other relevant point
32. N.B. If the restaurant is a franchisor then zero
33. [4] (c)(iii) Any two reasons explained × 2 marks or 4 points × 1 mark each
34. to provide a record of the transactions between a buyer and seller e.g. statement
35. to enable trade to be conducted on credit so that payment is made monthly
36. to enquire about goods and terms of trade from many suppliers
37. to compare prices and terms using quotations from several suppliers
38. to check transactions so that mistakes can be avoided
39. for accounting purposes – to calculate sales/profit
40. to provide proof of ownership – invoices
41. to provide proof of payment e.g. receipt
42. to calculate tax - sales documents
43. catalogue or pricelist
44. any other relevant reason
45. N.B. a candidate may name a document and describe its purpose - please allow this