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Starbucks, Howard Schultz, and the Trump Effect
W. Glenn Rowe; Ken MarkCase IVEY-9B19M117-EStrategyAfter the former chief executive officer (CEO) of U.S.-based Starbucks started to voice his political opinions in September 2016, both Starbucks and the CEO faced backlash. As the CEO and former chairman of a large company, he may have felt entitled to voStarting at €8.20
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Snap Inc.: Becoming a “Camera Company”
Neil Bendle; Ken MarkCase IVEY-9B19A023-EEntrepreneurship, MarketingIn March 2018, Snap Inc. (Snap), based in Venice, California, and commonly known as Snapchat for its application that allowed users to send photos that disappeared, was looking for ways to grow its user base in the competitive social media platform industry and to differentiate itself from the other major platforms. To do this, it was trying to position itself as a “camera” company and to become relevant to a larger target market: adults aged 25 ...Starting at €8.20
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Daily Bread Food Bank: The Adoption of Social Missions
Neil Bendle; Wendy WangCase IVEY-9B20A052-EMarketingIn February 2019, the chief executive officer (CEO) of the Daily Bread Food Bank (Daily Bread) in Toronto, Ontario reflected on the charity’s strong performance in the past year. Despite Daily Bread’s success, the CEO felt there were opportunities to do more. Toronto’s food insecurity rate had been rising in recent years, and food banks across the city had been struggling to meet demand. The CEO had several potential ideas for contributing to the...Starting at €8.20
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Impossible Foods, Beyond Burgers, and Plant-Based Meat
Neil BendleCase IVEY-9B20A044-EMarketingIn 2019, a small investor was reviewing her portfolio mix, which included quick-service restaurants. During her research, she learned of new-product launches by two companies: Impossible Foods and Beyond Meat. Both companies produced plant-based productsStarting at €8.20
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Analyzing the Success of “Retailers”
Neil Bendle; Xin (Shane) WangExercise IVEY-9B15A045-EMarketingKelsey, a newly minted MBA hired by a firm that provides analysis of companies, has been given a task to present an assessment of six very different firms described by her manager as “retailers.” She has been given the performance details of these companies and is expected to quickly analyze the metrics related to the firms’ performance, such as return on assets, inventory turns and staff productivity. Her manager also wants her to assess and com...Starting at €8.20
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Goodwill Industries of Greater Grand Rapids
W. Glenn Rowe; Tony FrancoliniCase IVEY-9B10M081-EEntrepreneurship, StrategyThe president and chief executive officer (CEO) of Goodwill Industries of Greater Grand Rapids Inc. (Goodwill) was analyzing a staff proposal to begin selling donated books online. Her initial response to the proposal had been to approve the idea without any reservation; however, some pointed questions raised during discussion at a recent board meeting caused her to revisit her support for the project. The CEO determined that to make a thoughtful...Starting at €8.20
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Hillberg & Berk: Aiming to Sparkle in the Designer Jewellery Business
W. Glenn Rowe; Selena Shannon PritchardCase IVEY-9B17M040-EEntrepreneurship, StrategyFounded by an entrepreneur in 2007, Hillberg & Berk was a successful Canadian company in the affordable designer jewellery industry. After being funded through the Dragons’ Den television show in 2009, the entrepreneur and her team grew the company to achieving more than $10 million in annual sales. The company had focused its growth in its home province of Saskatchewan and into the neighbouring province of Alberta, but in late 2016, it faced a t...Starting at €8.20
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Deregulating the Sale of Alcohol in Ontario
Neil Bendle; Ken MarkCase IVEY-9B17A018-EMarketingFollowing a report by the Premier’s Advisory Council on Government Assets in 2015, the sale of beverage alcohol products in Ontario was deregulated: in 2016, 60 grocery stores were licensed to sell beer and cider to consumers. The intention was for up to 450 grocery stores to eventually sell beer and cider products, and for 300 of these stores to also sell wine. The move to deregulate the industry was contentious; the province generated substanti...Starting at €8.20
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BEworks: Experimentation in Business
Neil Bendle; Katie ChenCase IVEY-9B17A053-EMarketingIn 2016, a luxury cosmetic company approached BEworks Inc. (BEworks), a management consulting firm based in Toronto, Ontario, to gain a better understanding of its customers in an effort to develop better-tailored communications. BEworks was the world’s first management consulting firm to specialize in solutions for real-world challenges by applying behavioural economics—an emerging field that sought to understand human behaviour in the context o...Starting at €8.20
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Unhaggle: Putting Customers in the Driver's Seat
Neil Bendle; Sarah Chiu; Justin LeungCase IVEY-9B12A014-EEntrepreneurship, MarketingUnhaggle is a business model that uses a website to link up consumers with automobile dealers. The consumer describes the sort of vehicle they are looking for and the dealers compete to serve the consumer at the lowest possible price. The case illustrates how power in a negotiation comes from supply and demand. By bringing dealers to the consumer, Unhaggle helps drive down the cost of the vehicle to the consumer while reducing the dealer’s market...Starting at €8.20