Case studies

Upon completion of the case study, the students will be able to understand brand differentiation and marketing challenges faced by small businesses in emerging markets; recognize the significance of marketing strategies for a growing business in emerging markets; assimilate paid, owned and earned media to improvise the effectiveness of firm’s communication and digital marketing strategy; analyze the relevance of social media marketing in developing a brand; and create a content marketing strategy.

The case dilemma involved a possible course of action that Fusion Creations faced at the beginning of 2022 about marketing strategies across paid, earned and owned media. “Fusion Creations” was the creation of two sisters who were avid cake bakers since young age. They identified the demand for homemade cakes and the growing number of home bakers in India. It was during the Covid-19 pandemic that they faced challenges in terms of lockdown and scarcity of supply for baking essentials. Moreover, although the pandemic had brought most sections of the society worldwide to a standstill, home bakers were thriving. After the pandemic, these home bakers turned their passion into full-time profession. It was time for the sisters to view this stage as a challenge because of competition from aspiring entrepreneurs and rising home bakers, and convert it into an opportunity. Can Fusion Creation leverage the online social media platforms for their product sales and marketing? With presence established on various social media platforms, were they doing it right, or was there a better way? A few questions lay in front of Chaitali and Kena, owners and bakers of Fusion Creations.

This case is written for use in digital and social media marketing classes for graduation-level courses. The focus of the case aligns well with discussions of digital and social media marketing strategy. The case also has application in discussions regarding implementation of digital marketing strategy. Instructors that choose to emphasize social media strategies could assign this case to explore online marketing and digital communication.

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CSS8: Marketing.

After completion of the case study, the students will be able to understand the calculation of cost of individual sources of funds and cost of capital, examine various tools such as economic value added and cash value added analyses which help determining whether a company has added value to its shareholders or not and explore the application of Benford’s law and the Beneish M-score in detecting manipulation of numbers in financial statements.

Nimmy Jacob, a newly recruited research analyst with an equity research firm, was entrusted with tracking the “auto ancillary industry”, specifically “Minda Corporation Ltd” (MIL). MIL was a leading diversified auto components manufacturing companies in India. The company’s share price meteorically rose during February 2021–2022 (Figure 1). The company’s turnover over the past few years had grown at a compounded annual growth rate of 15% during the three preceding years. The company had in the recent past bought a 15% stake in another competitor, Pricol Ltd, for a consideration of INR 400 crores and previously had used joint ventures and acquisitions to scale up its operations. Jacob, apart from the conventional financial analysis, had to ascertain whether all the strategic decisions were adding value to the shareholders’ investments by exploring the various tools available for the same and also calculate the minimum expected rate of return for MIL. Jacob was apprehensive about the financial statements, although the numbers for the company were good. Jacob was skeptical about a high-growth company having the incentive to manipulate its earnings. Manipulations could be in the form of abnormal increase in accruals, inconsistency in expenses and high days of receivables. Therefore, Jacobs used certain analytics/statistical tools to detect any manipulation of numbers in the financial statements of the company and to ascertain apt findings about the company.

This case study is intended for discussion in corporate finance, financial reporting and analysis and financial analytics at Master of Business Administration/undergraduate level.

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CSS1: Accounting and finance

Upon completion of this case study, students will be able to identify the key changes in the marketing environment affecting the industry, demonstrate the elements of the marketing mix in the fast-food industry, illustrate the crucial elements of customer value-driven marketing strategy, critique relevant marketing strategies that are crucial for business development and formulate effective market expansion strategies for Al-Chef Cafetaria to achieve sustainable competitive advantage in the VUCA world.

The Al-Chef Cafeteria, established by Ali Arif, one of the partners, became one of the most happening quick service restaurants (QSRs) in Patna. However, the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted the once-thriving fast-food market in the city as the government imposed lockdowns to restrict the onslaught of the pandemic. The relentless waves of the pandemic in the subsequent months severely impacted India and worsened the economic challenges. Consumer behaviour towards outdoor eateries, especially QSRs, became uncertain, which led to the exit of several smaller players in the industry. In June 2021, because of an uncertain future, Arif was forced to contemplate different business trajectories for survival and growth. Arif’s resilience was highlighted, as he endeavoured to revive his dream cafe. To start the café, Arif had quit a stable job in the Middle East. His journey mirrored the broader narrative of businesses navigating uncharted waters as the cafe transformed from a flourishing enterprise to one reeling from adversity and looking forward to undergoing a strategist lens for revival. Against an uncertain business landscape and wavering consumer sentiment, Arif grappled with the question of whether a return to normalcy was possible or if a new-normal system would emerge. This case study highlighted the challenges and uncertainties faced by the Al-Chef Cafeteria post-pandemic and the strategies needed to rewire the previous business model to chart a new growth trajectory.

This case is suitable for postgraduate-level marketing management or sales management (business development) courses in any of the following programmes: MBA programme, PG diploma in marketing management/PG diploma in hospitality and tourism management/PG diploma in sales management/PG diploma in food and beverage service/PG diploma in service management, part-time diploma programmes in management and executive programmes in management.

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CSS 8: Marketing.

On completion of this case study, students will be able to understand collaboration and synergy between farmers and organisations through value creation, like fundraising, based on the comprehension of the resource-based theory; understand the overview and concept of the value chain and supply chain management in the agribusiness to reduce costs of inventories; understand the concept of segmentation and positioning to increase revenue for organisations by leveraging existing resources – human and financial; and understand the branding strategy to create a sustainable competitive advantage for Suguna Foods.

Suguna was started by two brothers, B. Soundararajan and G.B. Sundararajan, to help other farmers. Suguna, with just 200 broilers in 1984, grew to be the number 1 poultry company across India. Soundararajan was a pioneer and innovator who started “contract farming” in India in 1991. This model helped both the farmers and the company to became successful. The farmers always struggled to pay the cost of feed and other materials, as credit was not readily and easily available from financial institutions. Suguna helped farmers by providing feed, medicines, etc., free of cost in return for the good rearing of chickens. Because of the success of this venture, they decided to continue with it. Today, Suguna is a successful company that sells chicken, eggs and processed meat. They modernised the retail chain to supply consumers with fresh, healthy and hygienic meat. Suguna’s vision was to “Energize rural India” by helping farmers succeed. They helped over 40,000 farmers from 15,000+ villages in 18+ Indian states. Although the growth helped both farmers and Suguna, the increased cost of raw materials for Suguna and increased input costs/power costs for farmers had to be tackled on a war footing so that both could have good income despite the increased inflation. Moreover, the retail price of live chicken was more or less stagnant in the past five years, especially after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

This case can be used as the basis for a 90-min class discussion. This case study is suitable for use in an master of business administration course module or in an executive education program on developing an understanding of value creation in the business model in a rural market and also how the supply chain works. This case study can also be used to teach pricing, segmentation in marketing and supply chain perspectives and decision-making skills.

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CSS8: Marketing.

After completion of the case study, the students will be able to appreciate and understand why brands are an essential asset to the company and how they can enhance business value, understand the factors needed to grow brands in the growth stages and evaluate the choices that start-up companies have to grow their brand in competitive and growing markets.

Mamaearth was born as a direct-to-consumer brand in 2016 by a couple who could not find chemical-free, safe products for their child. The company that introduced as a baby-care brand soon consolidated itself to play in the space of personal care category (targeting millennials), and by 2020, it was earning majority of its revenue from skincare. It started by leveraging the power of social media space and online commerce and slowly moved to be a national brand with offline footprint and mass-media communication. In its growth journey, it acquired many brands and launched a few to cater to the specialized needs of its target audience. As the company grew, attracted impressive investors and started clocking profits, it aspired for an initial public offering (IPO). Varun and Ghazal Alagh, the founders of Mamaearth, knew that to refloat an IPO and to grow the company further, they needed to redefine their portfolio and marketing strategy. They had a choice to either invest in building a broader portfolio – organically or inorganically – or expand across geographies. Both were an option, albeit expensive, which could cost Mamaearth its profitability.

This case is intended for discussion in undergraduate and graduate management courses.

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CSS 8: Marketing.

Upon completion of this case study, students are expected to be able to reflect on strategic industry sectors and the formulation of long-view public policies; understand some of the main biases that affect making decisions in environments of high uncertainty; and build and apply judgment models to support decision-making processes.

Motivated by recent international events responsible for causing supply shock and great volatility in the price of imported fertilizers, Brazil, which in 2022 was responsible for producing only 15% of all the fertilizer consumed by its agribusiness, ran against time by launching a new national fertilizer plan (PNF). The plan proposed to boost Brazil’s national fertilizer industry to fulfil a long-term vision of reducing the country’s external dependence by 2050. While awaiting the first results of the PNF, this case study casts the student participants in the role of Breno Castelães, chief advisor of the special secretariat for strategic affairs of the presidency of the republic, whose role is to recommend the country’s position in the face of external pressures to adopt international embargoes of Russian fertilizers because of its war with Ukraine.

This case study is suitable for undergraduate and graduate students of business administration and public management courses who want to deal with topics such as public policy, judgment and decision-making.

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CSS 10: Public sector management.

After reading and analyzing the case study, the students would be able to understand the critical role of the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS)-compliant accounting principles in facilitating strategic alliances between publicly traded international corporations and emerging companies in informal business environments, design the company’s accounting system to ensure the application of the accounting standards contained in IFRS and understand the accounting process for properly recording a company’s transactions.

This case study deals with Giulia’s decision to take on the proposal of a conglomerate to acquire a 45% stake in her travel agency, Know Cuba First Travel Agency (KCF). Giulia was an Italian entrepreneur based in Havana, Cuba. She has dealt with informal business practices in the Cuban tourism industry. However, Foreign Investments Ltd., a publicly listed company, needs formal accounting if investing in the venture. If Giulia agrees with the proposal, an accounting information system would have to be implemented to comply with the investor’s requirements.

This case study is suitable for financial accounting undergraduate courses.

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CSS 1: Accounting and finance.

On completion of the case study, students will understand the following learning objectives: the characteristics of quantitative easing (QE) and when it may be appropriate to implement QE; how QE differs from a conventional bond purchasing programme; the impact of direct financing of the fiscus by the central bank on its independence; how the macro-economic and political environments affect and influence national economic policy; the difference between traditional and unconventional monetary policies and potential implications for an economy like South Africa. The learnings from this case study can be used in other global economic environments, particularly in emerging markets. This case study provides valuable insights into decision-making, institutional independence, policy coordination, deficit financing, causes and consequences of price inflation, risks relating to monetary instability and the correct application of monetary policy.

After the announcement of the COVID-19-related lockdown in March 2020 and the subsequent slow-down of economic activity in South Africa, the South African Reserve Bank (SARB) had to consider appropriate macro-economic tools to ensure both price and financial stability in South Africa. The macro-economic policy tools had to be considered in light of the South African economic context, which included acknowledgement of South Africa’s debt crisis and slow economic growth. The central bank responded by introducing the following measures: reducing interest rates to a record low of 3.5% to give consumers financial relief and to promote spending in the economy; purchasing government bonds in the secondary markets to stabilise financial markets; facilitating the loan guarantee scheme that was aimed at providing financial relief to small- and medium-sized enterprises; relaxing the capital and liquidity adequacy requirements that commercial banks are required to meet; and ensuring availability of liquidity to banks through facilities such as the weekly repo auctions. However, despite introducing these interventions, the SARB faced calls from politicians, analysts and academics to do more. Various commentators argued that the SARB could introduce QE and directly finance government spending by purchasing government bonds. Some commentators argued that the reluctance of the SARB to pursue these suggestions was a result of the close alignment and relationship between the SARB and National Treasury. The dilemma faced by Governor Lesetja Kganyago of the SARB was threefold, namely, whether it was appropriate for the central bank to pursue the initiatives and, if so, whether the bank could pursue them without compromising its independence, and if the introduction of those initiatives would not adversely affect the ability of the central bank to fulfil its mandate of price stability and financial stability. In this regard, the governor and his executive team were required to consider the long-term implications of introducing the initiatives on consumer price inflation, independence of the SARB and the appropriate use of monetary policy tools to fulfil the central bank’s mandate. But the question was: What policies should the governor favour?

This case study is based on various macro-economic theories. Therefore, it would be useful to teach this case study in macro-economic courses in the following programmes: master’s in business administration, bachelor of commerce, bachelor of economic sciences and business science studies, as well as on executive education programmes, which consider macro-economic policy. In general, students who undertake economics, business and general management, finance, legal, commerce and banking studies could learn from this case study.

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CSS 3: Entrepreneurship.

This case is designed to facilitate students to comprehend the challenges an e-commerce firm faces when it attempts to monetize data network effects. The challenges faced by Zomato are ideal for in-class debate and discussion. The following learning objectives can be fulfilled through this case: understanding the promises and issues raised by data network effects; comprehending the problems an e-commerce firm faces in re-configuration; illustrating the responsibility of an established e-commerce firm towards its stakeholders; and discussing how a firm should navigate its relationship with its stakeholders.

Zomato.com, the largest Indian food aggregator and delivery platform, was contemplating the launch of Zomato Instant, a 10-min food delivery. Currently, the company’s delivery model pivoted around delivering food within 30 min. Recently, Zomato acquired Blinkit, an online grocery shopping app that was positioned to deliver groceries in 10 min. Deepinder Goyal of Zomato felt that customers would soon be more discriminant in demanding quicker services, as they might not be comfortable with 30-min deliveries. Hence, Zomato’s business model must also be re-configured to provide 10-min deliveries. Armed with access to customer data, Goyal predicted items that could be prepared and delivered within 10 min from its dark stores and automated kitchens. Although the model seemed promising and the company was upbeat about it, Zomato Instant faced challenges on several fronts. From the human angle, the decision was criticized on social media, mainly around the violation of road regulations, road safety issues and pressure on the delivery personnel to perform. Many delivery personnel had fled this gig work to join their pre-COVID jobs. Even the Competition Commission of India had established an inquiry into Zomato’s anti-competitive practices using customer data.

This case is best taught as part of a curriculum in management programmes at the post-graduate level, in courses such as e-commerce, e-retailing, business models for electronic commerce and online entrepreneurship/new age entrepreneurship. In terms of the positioning in the course, this case could be used to demonstrate the challenges of re-configuration of an online platform.

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CSS 3: Entrepreneurship.

The learning outcomes after reading and analysing this case study are dealing with the challenges of family business; learning the importance of succession planning; accepting the next generation and the role of the first generation; and understanding the decision-making skills and roles of the generations in family business.

Khushboo Pouch and Packaging was the first-generation initiative of Mr Bhavesh Udeshi. Mitesh Udeshi, son of Bhavesh Udeshi and the business’s sole successor, joined the firm in 2019 after graduating with a Master of Business Administration degree. Mitesh had desired to join his family firm since he was a teenager and aid the business with emerging business ideas. As a fresher, he applied his newly acquired theories to the company’s operations. He initiated several changes in the company; however, his actions were ineffective. He introduced modifications to the business premises, production units, marketing tactics, accounting department and product line extension for two years. Mitesh had intended to restructure his traditional firm in rational and innovative ways, but none of his plans had come to fruition. He failed because the firm’s change management was confronted with denial, rage, bargaining and melancholy from both his father and the employees. Amidst non-acceptance and inconsistency, he found himself in a quandary. He had two options: remain in the family firm and persevere in making his ambitions a reality or resign, find a job and embark on a new path. Unfortunately, leaving would indicate surrendering defeat after a two-year struggle.

Programmes: Master of Business Administration (MBA), Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) programmes, MBA in Entrepreneurship and small businesses, and Post graduate diploma in management (PGDM).

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CSS 3: Entrepreneurship

Upon completion of this case study, students will be able to analyze the interplay between small business growth and innovation in sustainable entrepreneurial success; evaluate factors influencing the adoption of technological innovations within startups; and decide on the optimal technological innovation for achieving sustainable growth in a startup.

This case study is about Liliana, a young Colombian entrepreneur. She had to decide how to innovate in her process of providing regulatory compliance and due diligence consulting services. According to Law 1778 of 2016, compliance and due diligence services became mandatory for companies with international operations in Colombia. Lemaître, Liliana’s venture, provided this service in an artisanal way. However, her market required the incorporation of technologies. Liliana must choose what to automate in her process and what to keep traditional. Not innovating meant Lemaître would be unable to grow, causing the sustainability of the business would to be at risk.

This case study is suitable for use for master of business administration students and in executive education short courses.

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CSS 3: Entrepreneurship.

After reading and analysing the case study, the students would be able to understand the various challenges in terms of credit expansion for a rural co-operative bank, discuss the role of an apex co-operative bank within the three-tier credit structure, understand the co-operative banks’ product offerings in the agribusiness space and understand the various styles of leadership and change management models within a rural bank.

This case study exemplified the enabling role played by a co-operative credit institution, Andhra Pradesh State Co-Operative Bank (APCOB). It discussed the issues and challenges APCOB faced in mainstreaming an unconventional lending process through its lower tiers. Although the three-tier credit structure played a significant role in the disbursal of short-term loan to farmers, the managing director strongly felt the need to reach out to farmer institutions like farmer producers organization through suitable product offering and right processes.

This case study could serve as an introduction to rural credit co-operatives in MBA courses such as bank management, agricultural finance and rural credit and organizational behaviour. The case study could also be administered as a part of training programmes for state co-operative banks, district central co-operative banks and urban co-operative bank that are involved in planning and execution of development strategies in the area of co-operative banking and agribusiness development.

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CSS: 1: Accounting and Finance.

After reading and analyzing the case study, the students would be able to identify the main stakeholders and decision-makers and their importance and influence on the environment for a product, evaluate the value chain of the product and critical decision-makers, evaluate the various ways to avoid falling into the trap of greenwashing and examine the marketing strategy to market an environmentally friendly product.

LIKO-S is a Czech manufacturing and construction company. The company has been designing and creating intelligent solutions, such as green facades or vertical greenery systems, to save energy in building heating and cooling systems. The company launched green facades in the Czech market. However, the main obstacle was the need for supporting data to showcase the positive environmental impact of green facades. Under these circumstances, Libor Musil’s main objective was to overcome prevalent misconceptions about green facades and find a suitable market segment. The situation worried the company, as LIKO-S had heavily invested in developing and marketing the green walls. The management had to tackle this challenge as soon as possible to recover the substantial research and development and marketing investments. Furthermore, owing to lack of information, even genuinely sustainable products were seen as greenwashing. In addition, bad or wrong customer perceptions of these walls might spill over to other products, tarnishing the company’s image and threatening its survival in the domestic market. Under these circumstances, competitors might enter the Czech market, jeopardizing the company’s overall profits. Consequently, Libor was in a great dilemma about managing the financial and reputational risk of the company. Should Libor close the green walls unit, explore different markets/uses or help increase awareness among the general population about green walls by finding a suitable marketing strategy?

The case study was designed for graduate-level students in the strategic management (CSR and innovation module) courses. However, the case could also be an excellent addition to marketing courses dealing with customers’ perceptions of innovative products and strategies to improve the adoption of the product.

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CSS 3: Entrepreneurship

The learning outcomes of this case study are as follows: Students will be able to comprehend and visualize the initial hiccups and operational hurdles faced by digital start-ups in an emerging market. Students will be able to evaluate the importance of digital marketing for promoting start-ups dealing with sustainable products in the service industry, thereby helping them to develop digital marketing strategies to organically promote a service. Students will be able to perform strategic positioning of a start-up based on perceptual mapping methodology. Students will be able to identify the various aspects for identifying and creating a viable business model. Students will be able to use Osterwalder’s business model canvas for identifying the important operational aspects of the start-up. Students will be able to visualize the entrepreneurial challenges in an emerging market.

This case study highlights the dilemma the protagonist, Prerna Prasad, faced in her travel start-up venture, Ecoplore. Ecoplore is an aggregator platform that onboards only eco-hotels. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, Ecoplore is India’s only platform that promotes and onboards only those hotels made up of mud, wood, bamboo, stone or any local architecture and that maintain at least 30% green space on their premises. Ecoplore has been recognized by the United Nations Environment Program for fulfilling Sustainable Development Goal 12 and has also been bestowed with the Gold Award by Indian Responsible Tourism Awards 2019. Prasad had already identified her target market. Prasad took conscious steps towards reaching her target audience, and her first step towards that was designing Ecoplore’s website. Being aware of the importance of content marketing, Ecoplore’s content was curated with fresh and quality write-ups, pictures, blog posts, etc. Ecoplore’s website was also optimized for mobile and desktop versions to deliver a great user experience. Features like easy navigation and the website's speed were also taken care of. Being active on social media platforms, Prasad made sure that the pages of Ecoplore across various social media platforms were well connected with her website. Despite doing so much, it was found that the number of visitors was few after a span of two years. Conversion on the website was low, which ultimately affected the return on investment. Prasad was befuddled as to why the conversions were low despite having a great website that was considered a window to the organization. She faced the challenge of reaching her target audience despite being present online. Upon detailed analysis, Prasad found that Ecoplore was showing up in the search engine research pages (SERP) in only a few keywords, meaning the keyword density was low. Also, the website lacked backlinks, which would eventually help them to rank high on search engine optimization (SEO). This means that Ecoplore will need to revisit its SEO strategy if Prasad wants to promote her organization organically. Now, to increase visibility and ranking on SERP, Prasad had two options before her; first, she could do it organically via SEO or through search engine marketing. She was keen to build the traffic organically, knowing its long-term benefits. As a marketer, what should be Prasad’s strategy? This case study can be used for class discussion purposes for the students pursuing the courses on digital marketing, SEO and digital marketing optimization.

This case study is suitable for students learning the fundamentals of digital marketing (basic and advanced) course, marketing management students and digital marketing workshops. The level of difficulty is medium. The knowledge pre-requirement is marketing management.

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CSS 8: Marketing.

The learning outcomes of this study are to estimate the complexities associated with the management of a novel business idea in the context of emerging markets; to demonstrate an understanding of entrepreneurial action and strategic adaptation under various challenges of the business world; to apply the principles of design thinking and innovation to analyze the sustainability of a social enterprise; and to evaluate the pros and cons of different strategic options and provide viable recommendations for future development.

Many riverine communities in Nigeria battled water hyacinth spread for decades, until Achenyo Idachaba-Obaro contributed her time, creativity and innovation to resolve the issue. She sacrificed her successful computer science career in the USA to launch her social enterprise, MitiMeth. The startup aimed to resolve the unaddressed environmental problems of her home country and to provide a decent living to the vulnerable community of indigenous artisans. This case study discusses Idachaba-Obaro’s efforts in researching the alternative usages of the water hyacinth weed under the condition of a limited availability of resources. Considering Nigeria’s creative arts culture and dismal socioeconomic conditions, she chose to weave the weed into handmade artifacts by educating herself and training local artisans to manufacture and sell handicrafts in the market. To receive financial support and attract environmentally conscious customers, Idachaba-Obaro had to participate in funding competitions, regularly attend exhibitions and partner with private entities, nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) and government authorities. This case study further elaborates on multiple hindrances associated with female entrepreneurial activities in a conservative Nigerian society characterized by marginalization, social stigma and gender-based stereotypes. Despite many challenges ensuing from a limited market access in rural areas, high unemployment rates and low levels of disposable incomes in the country, MitiMeth ambitioned to maintain its culture of creativity and innovation. The team regularly studied materials used and conducted brainstorming sessions with artisans to launch new items, improve existing products and incorporate needed alterations based on customer feedback and special demands. MitiMeth made its notable contribution toward the achievement of several sustainable development goals, while striving to continuously increase remittances to working artisans. Recently, the company was challenged by the vertiginous technological advancements of the digital era, as many businesses around the globe used machines to upscale their operations. Idachaba-Obaro pondered whether she should use technology in product manufacturing processes or focus on her commitment to provide a livelihood to local artisans and preserve the authentic look-and-feel of handmade crafts.

This case study is for an upper-level undergraduate audience.

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CCS 3: Entrepreneurship.

The learning outcome of this study is to bring to the table of a wider intellectual audience, a unique model of community-based entrepreneurship, which is working wonders with its unique selling points (USPs) in promoting sustainability and conserving the ethos of villages and, at the same time, generating livelihoods through traditional farming techniques adopted by the rural population residing in the Himalayan region of India.The proposed case study can be used as a replicable model in other parts of rural India and other emerging economies to start and scale up a similar “integrated rural development model” through effective policy advocacy and public–private partnerships and to develop sustainable farmlands and livelihoods for rural India. It has a definite potential to be used as a pedagogical tool in postgraduate programmes offering courses in microfinance, financial inclusion, social and community entrepreneurship, sustainability, entrepreneurship, community development finance and rural immersions and public policy.

This case study is set in the backdrop of 2023 having been declared by the UN as the International Year of Millets and India being the homeland for millet cultivation. The objective of the case study is to bring to the table of a wider intellectual audience, a unique model of community-based entrepreneurship operating in the Himalayan region of rural India. The community-based entrepreneurship model works on the USP of promoting sustainability and conserving the ethos of villages and generating livelihoods through traditional farming techniques. This case study traces the journey of Roopesh Rai (protagonist and the founder of Bakrichhap), the community-based entrepreneur and his challenges in setting up the enterprise. The narrative is built in the light of a series of interviews with Rai, the main protagonist and the founder of Bakrichhap, as well as the people of Goat village by Komal, a post-doctoral fellow in the area of community-based enterprises (CBEs). Through this narrative, the case writers’ endeavour was to understand how CBEs such as Bakrichhap were providing a means of integrated rural development in the hilly region of Uttarakhand, India. Also, how such enterprises were thereby curbing distress migration, unemployment and a large-scale erosion of the cultural heritage and traditional and indigenous farming techniques of the land. In the first seven years of the operations of this uniquely curated CBE, Rai endeavoured to iron out many bottlenecks. This case study also highlights the gamut of challenges faced by community-based entrepreneurs like Rai in designing strategy for growth and expansion. What strategy should Bakrichhap follow for expansion to the other regions of the country? Should all the three existing verticals of the enterprise be scaled up parallelly or should each individual vertical be expanded one after the other in a phased manner? Stemming out from the main dilemma of strategic expansion were the related issues of funding (finance) and the formation of an effective team (HR).

This case study can be used in undergraduate, graduate and executive programmes offering courses in microfinance, financial inclusion, social and community entrepreneurship, sustainability, entrepreneurship, community development finance and rural immersions and public policy.

This comprehensive case study is written by using the triangulation of data collected through a series of personal interviews, website information, news articles, personal observation and field visits. The research design used is single case (holistic; Yin, 2003, 3rd edition). The timeline of this case study is 2021 to 2022 and place is Nag Tibba, Uttarakhand, a Himalayan state in North India.

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CSS 3: Entrepreneurship.

This case study will allow students to learn about effective segmentation and how to choose an appropriate segment, analyse the attractiveness of the target market by using five-forces analysis and explore business growth alternatives by using Ansoff’s growth matrix.

The Left-Out Store was an online shop that sold products exclusively for left-handers. Maitri Wadher, the proprietor of the store, being a left-handed person and driven by her childhood experiences, started the store to help left-handed people find products for their use. She started the online-only store in September 2018, and in October 2022, she found that, despite the COVID-19 pandemic having abated, her store had not grown as expected. How, then, should she push for growth? Was the niche segment substantial enough? Was her target market attractive? Should she penetrate the market or go for market development? What should she do?

PG level (MBA/PGDM).

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CSS 8: Marketing.

The learning outcomes of this case study are as follows: It presents an opportunity for the instructors to introduce the concept of decision-making on matters involving risk (like scaling the business) using in-depth market research techniques. The case’s central idea is to make the students understand the growth of the online service delivery model, with a specific example of home-cooked food that also improves social welfare. It is expected to provide the participants with an opportunity to understand the decision-making by the leaders in newly established companies. It enables future managers to analyze a venture’s pros and cons before deciding to expand.

Chef Junction is an online food delivery platform that allows customers to order hygienic home-cooked food prepared by handpicked home chefs in Bhubaneswar. This city in eastern India is one of the fastest-growing metros, is regarded as a study hub, and provides ample employment opportunities making it one of the sought-after destinations for the migrant youth population. The idea behind Chef Junction is to cater to the healthy food needs of the young by utilizing the culinary productivity of the home cooks, empowering the latter by opening up an extra source of income. These chefs prepare delicious healthy food, usually not listed for sale with online food delivery apps. Chef Junction earned revenues by adding an order-dependent commission on the price quoted by chefs and accepting a flat delivery charge from the customers. This offer was very lucrative for home chefs who could join the platform with zero investment and flexible working hours. The customer’s pockets were also handled when several offers and discounts were rolled out through an attractive pricing strategy. Chef Junction expected to improve its patrons’ health quotient by ensuring the nutrition of the home-cooked food, thus contributing to social welfare. With food being delivered from home to home amalgamated with social welfare and empowerment of home chefs, especially women, this case study is an apt example of a sustainable work-from-home model that has proved effective in crisis times. The pertinent question is: “How feasibly can CJ’s business model grow towards an expansion as the demand increases?”

This case study has been prepared keeping in mind the teaching pedagogy for graduate and postgraduate management programs in strategic management, operations research, entrepreneurship and marketing management. It is also expected to be useful for training courses such as management development programs, faculty development programs and executive programs, in discussing service operations in general and online delivery logistics, in particular for working executives and industry practitioners.

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CSS 3: Entrepreneurship.

This case study will allow students to understand and analyse the process for conducting equity valuation by building a three-statement financial model, to understand and apply the workings of discounted cash flow (DCF) valuation methodology and its components, to apply the concepts related to the calculation of the weighted average cost of capital in the determination of discounting rate, to understand the terminal value calculation and assumptions thereof and to analyse the intrinsic valuation for the target company using the traditional multi-stage DCF model for investment decision-making.

In July 2019, Kapil Agarwal, an equity analyst operating out of Mumbai, India, was carefully looking over the financials of Asian Paints, a leading paints company in India. As an equity analyst, Kapil was constantly on the lookout for fundamentally strong but undervalued companies that could create long-term wealth for his equity fund. To decide upon the right valuation of Asian Paints, Kapil conducted fundamental analysis using the DCF method on the basis of available financial information. This case study puts students in an investment analyst role wherein they forecast financial statements and conduct DCF valuation for Asian Paints to discover potentially undervalued stocks for investment decision-making.

This case study is designed for use in an undergraduate or postgraduate programme in business management, particularly in a course on business valuation or investment management or security analysis.

Teaching notes are available for educators only.

CSS 1: Accounting and Finance.

After working through the case and assignment questions, the learning outcomes of this study are to understand the dividend policy of a company; compare different types of dividends that a company may give; assess the impact of stock splits and the issue of bonus shares (stock dividends); compare cash dividend and buy-backs as methods of cash distribution to shareholders; evaluate the methods of cash distribution that may be appropriate for the company; and assess the trade-off between long-term value creation and shareholder expectations.

This case study presents the dilemma faced by Partha DeSarkar, the executive director and global CEO of Hinduja Global Solutions (HGS) Limited, a leading business process management (BPM) company. The company would have surplus cash of about US$1.2bn from the selling of its health-care service businesses. The company planned to invest a part of this cashflow into the company’s future growth, with some of it distributed among its shareholders. This case study provides an excellent opportunity for students to determine the best method for rewarding the shareholders. It allows students to compare various cash distribution methods. Students can examine in detail the process involved, the quantum of distribution, tax implications, financial implications, fundraising flexibility and valuation impact of available options.

This case study is best suited for senior undergraduate- and graduate-level business school students in courses focusing on corporate finance, financial management, strategic management and investment banking.

Teaching notes are available for educators only.

CSS: 1 Accounting and Finance