Cambridge International as and a level Economics Ebook

SELF-ASSESSMENT TASK 
7.10
Bradford, Curry Capital of Britain, 2013
Bradford in West Yorkshire has once again been voted 
Britain’s Curry Capital. In a hard-fought competition, 
this city of half a million people beat its long-term rival 
Glasgow, with Wolverhampton in third place.
Bradford has an eclectic mixture of hundreds of Asian 
eateries. These range from some top end fine dining 
restaurants to a multitude of local cafés and take-aways. 
Virtually all are small businesses, operated and managed 
by their Pakistani, Indian and Bangladeshi owners.
To the outsider, a curry might be just a curry. In 
Bradford, this is most certainly not the case. Each 
establishment tends to have its own take on rogan 
josh, biryani, vindaloo and that British staple, chicken 
tikka masala, a very mild curry dish. Variations in the 
product are usually indicative of the region where 
the owners or their families lived before coming to 
Bradford.
The business is competitive, although prices 
tend not to vary within particular market segments. 
Quality is essential for owners to remain in business. 
Most outlets do not openly advertise but rely heavily 
on word of mouth and strong repeat business to earn 
a living.
Read the feature below and then answer the questions that follow.
1 
What evidence is there to suggest that the market is 
monopolistically competitive?
2 
What additional evidence
 
might you need to be 
more certain?
3 
Why is the market for curry establishments in 
Bradford not perfectly competitive?
Natural monopoly: 
where a single supplier has substantial 
cost advantages such that competing producers would raise 
costs and where duplication will produce an ineff icient use 
of resources.
KEY TERM