Case studies

This paper aims to describe the cross-channel challenges experienced by a leading US fashion retailer and illustrates the adaptation to consumer needs as led by a female divisional head and female executive.

The teaching objectives include to understand the assortment planning complexities experienced by merchandise managers; address critical issues surrounding channel strategies; identify the data needs for assortment improvement and cross-channel management; investigate responsive solutions for customer-focused assortment diversification; and explore the challenges associated with continual retail channel adaptation.

The fashion retailer Spirit & Free (S&F) (pseudonym) is a Fortune 500 retailer. As a multi-channel retailer, S&F is proud of the consistency of the brand’s identity across channels. However, recently, S&F has noticed a difference between their mobile (m-commerce, social commerce) and in-store/e-commerce customers. Through this case study, students will follow the Women’s Apparel Divisional Merchandise Manager and explore how the business will maintain a consistent brand identity and capture both sets of customers through assortment planning. Resources will be provided for assortment planning analysis, and students will be asked to consider assortment opportunities regarding category mix and pricing strategy.

The case would be relevant to upper-level undergraduate courses or introductory master's level course in retail, management, fashion merchandising and omni-channel retail.

Teaching notes are available for educators only.

CCS 8: Marketing

The “Anti-Racism in my Pocket” case illustrates how collaborative entrepreneurial leadership can build on personal experiences, expertise and a desire to change the status quo to support racial equity. The case will support students’ critical thinking skills and further heighten their understanding of the contributions of women in leadership, anti-racism and the role of technology. Moreover, the case is motivating for students with aspirations of using business skills and knowledge to contribute to social equity.

After completing this case, students should be able to identify the role of marketing in the development, implementation and evaluation of a behavior change initiative, the Anti-Racism Action Nuggets anti-racism training program; analyze qualitative and quantitative data to assess the impact of the Anti-Racism Action Nuggets Pilot using a logic model; identify marketing opportunities, challenges and strategies to scale the Anti-Racism Action Nuggets series for a broader impact; and discuss the relationship of gender in strategic positioning and marketing leadership to the development of the Anti-Racism Action Nuggets (Optional).

This case charts the development of an anti-racism training series by two friends, Allison Plyer (she/her) and Valerie (Val) Uccellani (she/her), called Anti-Racism Action Nuggets. The two protagonists aimed to change individual behaviors to reduce structural racism through lessons that were delivered in text messages to participants. Once the course is completed, they conduct a test pilot with members of NOW, LOVE, a women’s organization in New Orleans, Louisiana. At the end of the case, students are provided with the qualitative and quantitative pilot data for their analysis to recommend next steps and important marketing considerations for the Anti-Racism Action Nuggets series.

Undergraduate, graduate and executive education

Teaching notes are available for educators only.

CCS 8: Marketing

Israeli entrepreneur and inventor Dov Moran envisioned the creation of a mobile device that was a small, stand-alone, fully functional mobile phone that could be slipped into a variety of enclosures, or “jackets,” that would provide added functionality and better reflect the personalities of its users. As the development of the Modu phone began to take shape, Moran and his team decided that to ensure the success of the new phone's much anticipated launch, Modu would develop and market the accessory jackets itself. The question now was which of the eight jackets to develop and what factors should be considered in making that decision. The case is about how to estimate optimal product-line extensions after accounting for experience curve and cannibalization effects of products that share similar features, cost, and price. This will require quantitative analysis that estimates the effect of the experience curve and cannibalization on cost, revenues, and ultimately, profit. The issue is how to optimize profits by choosing an ideal set of products.

• Understand the importance of quantitative analysis in launching product-line extensions while taking into account demand and cost side interactions

• Combine both qualitative and quantitative data in choosing a targeted segment

• Reflect on the strategic and financial considerations in choosing a segment for a new technology product

• Evaluate the implications of experience curve and cannibalization when introducing product-line extensions and their impact on the decision under consideration

Understand the importance of quantitative analysis in launching product-line extensions while taking into account demand and cost side interactions

Combine both qualitative and quantitative data in choosing a targeted segment

Reflect on the strategic and financial considerations in choosing a segment for a new technology product

Evaluate the implications of experience curve and cannibalization when introducing product-line extensions and their impact on the decision under consideration

This case is used in Darden’s “Digital Marketing” course elective. It explores the experience of a niche search firm whose founder attributed her ability to open her recruiting firm to LinkedIn and the new model of recruiting it created. LinkedIn Corporation had been one of the most successful companies in the digital media space, with more than 4,000 employees and a market capitalization of over $25.5 billion in August 2013. But few people knew how LinkedIn had grown and how it had become profitable. LinkedIn had multiple unique aspects to explore: its focus on professional--not simply personal--social interaction, the company’s B2B components, and also its marketing positioning from user experience to targeting and growth strategy.

This case is intended to be part of a first-year MBA marketing course or a second-year elective in advertising, integrated marketing communications, market research, or marketing analytics. It provides students with two real advertising experiments and the challenges involved in executing them. It allows for discussion of the need for advertising experiments, and, at a more general level, the need to measure the return on marketing. Biases surrounding the field experiments provide an opportunity for discussion about the problems with establishing a causal relationship between advertising and sales.

Examines the launch of Xigris, a breakthrough new pharmaceutical product for the treatment of sepsis. The newly appointed head of marketing for Xigris is reviewing the launch plan.

Julie Smith, brand manager for dog food manufacturer Pedigree, has to determine how best to jump-start growth in the slumping business. The (A) case centers on the debate over which type of strategy to pursue, brand building versus in-store activity, while the (B) case focuses on the concept of cause marketing as a growth strategy.

The case examines the common challenge of building a very well-established business, and can be used to teach established business growth strategy, advertising, and cause marketing.

Route 11 Chips, a regional potato chip company, is struggling with whether to reduce the number of flavors it markets. Additional flavors add operational cost, but management believes that some of the flavors are important to Route 11's brand image and that trimming the line might damage the brand. Route 11 has also taken a price increase recently and management is interested in finding out if there is additional room to raise prices. To analyze these issues in the case, students have access to five years of data on sales by flavor and package size as well as actual price and margin information (in a supplemental Excel spreadsheet).

In July 2007, Mark-Hans Richer became Harley-Davidson's first chief marketing officer. Its riders were aging, which the company saw as an existential threat. Although Harley-Davidson had a record sales year in 2006 and had maintained a commanding share of the heavyweight motorcycle market for the previous decade, it needed to take new action to sustain its growth.

Richer needed to deliver a new generation of riders and a more diverse customer base, all without losing current Harley-Davidson customers. He also knew that he could not relax: the average tenure of a CMO in 2007 was only 27 months and a complete new product development cycle would take a minimum of four years.

After analyzing the case, students should be able to:

• Recommend marketing decisions for a brand with extremely high loyalty in light of various consumer behavior indicators gleaned from market research

• Understand the power of leveraging existing assets as opposed to innovating new products

• Understand the psychological basis of customer loyalty, including drivers and metrics of loyalty

Recommend marketing decisions for a brand with extremely high loyalty in light of various consumer behavior indicators gleaned from market research

Understand the power of leveraging existing assets as opposed to innovating new products

Understand the psychological basis of customer loyalty, including drivers and metrics of loyalty

This exercise is one in a series intended to help students learn how to perform financial calculations in marketing contexts.

Helmut Schmidt, product manager for Hohner Musikinstrumente GmbH & Co. KG, the world's foremost manufacturer of harmonicas, accordions, melodicas, and ukuleles, was sitting at his desk reviewing his first assignment from the company's senior executive team. Schmidt had been asked to calculate the break-even point for the company's flagship product, the Marine Band harmonica, under a number of different scenarios.

After completing the exercise, students should be able to:

• Calculate unit contribution and margin

• Calculate break-even units and market share

Calculate unit contribution and margin

Calculate break-even units and market share