Case studies

Neons Fashion LLP was an entrepreneurial venture of Arthi Ramalingam after completion of her MBA. Arthi had an interest in jewellery since childhood and she decided to focus on design, manufacturing and retailing of fashion and costume jewellery items under the brand name of Eternz through different sales channels like exhibitions, retail stores, own website and as an independent seller on e-commerce marketplaces. She initially started selling on Amazon marketplace through a third party, Cloudtail India Pvt. Ltd., and later sold through other e-commerce marketplace operators like Flipkart, Jabong and FirstCry. As her business grew, Arthi planned to add the kids' shoes category and also decided to participate in Bangalore Fashion Week to build the Eternz brand. However, in November 2016, Cloudtail terminated her contract which played havoc with the sales and profitability of her start-up. Neons Fashion LLP (A) provides details of how independent sellers are at the mercy of marketplace operators and ends with the need to review the choices of sales channels for different categories like fashion garments and fashion accessories, and for the upcoming launch of kids' shoes. Neons Fashion LLP (B) describes the events after the Bangalore Fashion Week that ultimately led to closure of business.

Mr. Sajjan Jindal, MD of JVSL (nos JSW) wanted to bring the latest technology of iron making into India. His project went to several cost overrun and time overrun due to several foreseen and unforessen circumstances. This case discusses the issues new technology introduction in iron making area, problem faced by inexperienced contractor. It shows the need for proper risk management is required. It also shows the criticality of the project does not mean time cost trade off, but many other factors like reliability of the equipment, process and reliability of the equipment and plants.

In 2015, NESTLÉ India underwent a major crisis as the product which contributed to nearly 30% of its sales had to be taken off the shelves. Maggi—the go-to convenience food for all generations (especially kids and young adults)—which had entered the market in 1983, was banned. With a market share of 70-80% before the ban, NESTLÉ, which got the ban lifted in November 2015, had to undergo the task of winning back the lost market. Over a period of 8 months after its relaunch, the brand regained about 60% of its market back, but the question is how could such brand disaster be avoided in future? The case revolves around a major brand recovering from a brand disaster, and whether they did it well enough or could the situation have been managed better. It also enquires as to what road should be taken forward from here. It notes the action taken by the government against the brand and leaves it to the judgment of the readers if the actions taken against the brand were a little too harsh, solely because MNCs are usually considered a soft target in India. The readers must also understand and analyse the different brand relaunch strategies that were adopted by NESTLÉ and the next steps that should be taken by it.

The case describes the structure of Infrastructure Investment Trusts (InvITs) created and launched in Indian markets in 2017. Besides introducing InvITs and their potential role in relaxing the financing constraint created by the lack of an active corporate debt market in India, the case can help in analysing why the market is discounting the IndiGrid unit price relative to its issue price. It also offers an opportunity to value IndiGrid's Patran acquisition.

Aster Retail (AR) is the retail pharmacy division of the Aster Dr Moopen's Healthcare (ADMH) Group. The group delivers healthcare services across the Middle East, India and the Far East, with a portfolio of hospitals, clinics, diagnostic centres and retail pharmacies. AR, under the leadership of Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Jobilal Vavachan, is well known for its people-centric approach, unique culture and innovative human resource (HR) practices. AR has won multiple awards for HR practices, service quality and business performance. In a recent corporate restructuring (2018), “Aster Primary Care” was carved out by combining the group's Clinics and Retail businesses. This case discusses the evolution of AR's HR journey and the challenges associated with integrating culturally diverse businesses without compromising the values of ADMH and its promise, “We'll Treat You Well.”

The case revolves around a marketing/sales executive who works in the Ad Sales wing of a popular search engine. Over the course of the case, the protagonist realizes that their marketing strategy needs to refocus on a different vertical than the one they have been paying the most attention to. He had done the required data analysis and feels the data strongly points to a need for change in their strategy. However, he needs to convincing the higher management by put together a compelling pitch using storytelling elements, so that the message in his data gets across clearly, compelling them to act.

Northern Textiles (NTL) used highly complex derivatives to hedge its currency risk, and these structured products have been profitable in the past. But in 2008, unanticipated movements in exchange rates have led to serious losses. Seth, the Chairman of NTL, has come to know about the losses on a specific deal, but the Treasurer has ensured that he is the only person who understands the derivative book in its entirety. Though Seth is not aware of how grave the problem is, he realizes that he must review NTL's risk management policies and perhaps even replace the CFO.

This short case provides income statements and balance sheets for a recent year for 7 Indian firms from 7 industries in Exhibits 1 and 2. These firms belong to the following industries.1 Airline2. Banking 3. Information Technology Services 4. Liqour Producer 5. Oild Exploration and Development 6. Pharmaceutical 7. Retail. The task before the students is to evaluate the financial statements given in the exhibits and identify the appropriate industry for each firm.

Customers often sign lengthy offer documents, running in several pages, without reading them or understanding their contents. Later, they discover the contract has exclusion clauses or unfavourable terms. Are the terms binding on the person? The case explores the UK High Court judgement in Coys of Kensington Automobiles Limited v Tiziana Pugliese, which is on the theme of the signing of an offer form. The case explores themes frequently encountered in forms, including the following: The font size is small and terms not conspicuous. The form refers to more terms without enclosing them. The applicant is not fully familiar with the language.

Kaleidofin was co-founded in 2017 by Puneet Gupta and Sucharita Mukherjee; former CFO and CEO of IFMR (Institute for Financial Management and Research) Holdings Pvt Ltd. As part of their roles at IFMR, Gupta and Mukherjee focused on designing products and developing technology to push for financial inclusion. In their field interactions, the co-founders had an epiphany of the challenges faced by people while trying to save towards important life goals. They saw an opportunity in the large segment of financially under-served people in India and quit their jobs to start Kaleidofin. Kaleidofin was conceptualised as a digital platform that offers customised financial solutions to help customers meet their life goals. The start-up partnered with mutual fund companies for solutions on one hand and network partners (NGOs, microfinance organizations, cooperative banks) on the other for access to their existing customers.

Kaleidofin grew from 50 customers in January 2018 to 15,000 customers by March 2019. Aiming to grow to 1 million customers in the next 30 months Kaleidofin faces a dilemma about its future course. The start-up could continue to grow by expanding its current target segment which is the low-income households and preserve its vision at the risk of increasing costs. The second option would be to look at other potential target segments, such as, middle-income households and risk diluting their vision. The case study highlights the unique customer-centric model of Kaleidofin and the need for start-ups to understand the value proposition of their products/services.