Overall Verdict

The January 2025 series represents a fair but challenging set of papers that strictly reward students who move past rote memorisation and demonstrate deep contextual application. While the AS papers (Unit 1 and 2) assess foundational concepts like the marketing mix, sole trader ownership, and basic break-even formulas, the A-Level papers (Unit 3 and 4) push into demanding strategic calculations (ROCE, payback, gearing, and dividend yield) and high-level evaluations of internationalisation and capital intensity.

Where the Marks are Won or Lost

A significant portion of the marks resides in the Section B (9 marks) and Section C (12 marks) extended-response questions. In these questions, examiners heavily penalise generic answers. High-scoring scripts are characterised by logical chains of reasoning (AO3) that trace a business decision (such as reshoring or shifting to performance-related pay) directly to its impact on cash flow, brand reputation, or operational efficiency. In calculation questions, students routinely lose marks by omitting intermediate steps, which prevents them from accessing Own Figure Rule (OFR) marks if they commit a final arithmetic error.

Examiner Pitfalls

  • Lack of Contextualisation: Discussing the benefits of niche marketing or workforce diversity in an abstract, theoretical way without applying it to the specific constraints of the small restaurant or Saka plc.
  • Weak Evaluation: In the 12-mark questions, many students simply summarise their previous arguments rather than providing a balanced, justified final recommendation that explicitly weighs the short-term costs against the long-term strategic benefits.
  • Formatting Calculation Answers: Failing to convert final decimal calculations into percentage forms where requested (e.g., dividend yield).

Preparation & Exam Strategy

To excel, students should practice planning their essays with a clear structure: arguments for, arguments against, and a concluding judgement. For calculations, memorize formulas thoroughly; do not rely on having them provided. Ensure that every point in an essay directly references facts from the case study, such as the specific geographic location, market structure, or financial objectives of the business.