Underdog Brand Building - Publications - Faculty & Research

25 Feb 2020
News

Task Force

world following China’s path. “It was an incredibly powerful wave that I wanted to ride—to build a digital business that would help people in emerging markets use their smartphones to connect to markets and improve their quality of life,”... View Details

Keywords: Julia Hanna; gig economy; Retail Trade

17 Jun 2017
Research & Ideas

Amazon, Whole Foods Deal a Big Win for Consumers

Source: 400tmax Editor's Note. Online retailing behemoth Amazon announced June 16 that it would acquire upscale grocery chain Whole Foods Market in a deal valued at more than $13 billion. Though the company has dabbled with the idea of a brick-and-mortar footprint in... View Details

Keywords: by Jose Alvarez and Len Schlesinger; Retail

October 2016
Supplement

24 Hour Fitness (B): Ownership Changes, 2005–2016

By: John R. Wells and Gabriel Ellsworth

In 2016, 24 Hour Fitness was the number-two fitness chain in the United States, generating revenues of $1.4 billion from 441 clubs serving 3.8 million members. Based in San Ramon, California, 24 Hour Fitness operated clubs in 13 states. Having grown rapidly to become... View Details

Keywords: Advertising; Advertising Campaigns; Buildings and Facilities; Acquisition; Business Growth and Maturation; Business Model; Business Organization; For-Profit Firms; Customers; Customer Focus and Relationships; Customer Satisfaction; Age; Training; Private Equity; Financing and Loans; Price; Profit; Revenue; Geographic Location; Geographic Scope; Health; Nutrition; Business History; Human Resources; Employees; Employee Relationship Management; Recruitment; Selection and Staffing; Journals and Magazines; Human Capital; Business or Company Management; Goals and Objectives; Growth and Development Strategy; Management Teams; Marketing; Brands and Branding; Marketing Channels; Marketing Communications; Marketing Strategy; Social Marketing; Demand and Consumers; Market Entry and Exit; Media; Organizational Design; Private Ownership; Problems and Challenges; Groups and Teams; Sales; Salesforce Management; Situation or Environment; Welfare or Wellbeing; Sports; Strategy; Business Strategy; Competition; Competitive Strategy; Competitive Advantage; Corporate Strategy; Expansion; Segmentation; Information Technology; Internet; Mobile Technology; Online Technology; Software; Web Sites; Value; Valuation; Health Industry; Media and Broadcasting Industry; United States; California; San Francisco

Citation

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28 Jun 2022
Book

The Moral Enterprise: How Two Companies Profit with Purpose

How can government and business work together in this fractious political moment, when finding solutions to pressing problems like inequality and climate change are more urgent than ever? Rebecca Henderson, Harvard University’s John and Natty McArthur University... View Details

Keywords: by Avery Forman

February 2017
Supplement

JCDecaux, 2016: Global Leader ... Again

By: John R. Wells and Gabriel Ellsworth

In 2016, JCDecaux was number one in the world in outdoor advertising. This was a far cry from the situation in 2003; at that time, JCDecaux had been unseated by Clear Channel from the number-one spot that it had held for decades, and it was fighting for second place... View Details

Keywords: JCDecaux; Clear Channel Outdoor; OUTFRONT Media; Lamar Advertising Company; Jean-François Decaux; Jean-Charles Decaux; Outdoor Advertising; Street Furniture; Airports; Billboards; Bicycles; Digital Devices; Digital Marketing; Bidding; Advertising; Advertising Campaigns; Acquisition; Mergers and Acquisitions; Business Growth and Maturation; Business Model; Business Organization; Family Business; For-Profit Firms; Joint Ventures; Design; Price; Profit; Revenue; Geographic Location; Geographic Scope; Global Range; Globalization; Global Strategy; Globalized Firms and Management; Multinational Firms and Management; Globalized Markets and Industries; Government Legislation; Business History; Human Resources; Laws and Statutes; Business or Company Management; Goals and Objectives; Growth and Development Strategy; Growth Management; Marketing; Brands and Branding; Marketing Channels; Marketing Strategy; Product Marketing; Demand and Consumers; Supply and Industry; Operations; Distribution; Infrastructure; Logistics; Product; Product Design; Production; Organizational Structure; Property; Public Ownership; Renting or Rental; Problems and Challenges; Business and Community Relations; Business and Government Relations; Family and Family Relationships; Sales; Situation or Environment; Luxury; Strategy; Business Strategy; Commercialization; Competition; Competitive Advantage; Competitive Strategy; Consolidation; Corporate Strategy; Customization and Personalization; Expansion; Segmentation; Mobile Technology; Wireless Technology; Air Transportation; Bicycle Transportation; Rail Transportation; Transportation Networks; Advertising Industry; France; Paris

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27 Feb 2017
Research & Ideas

Reputation is Vital to Survival in Turbulent Markets

Emerging Markets series at HBS. We asked Jones and Khanna to discuss the importance of reputation and resilience in building long-term business success. Sean Silverthorne: How do you define “reputation” in the context of the paper? Tarun... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne

Web

Faculty - Race, Gender & Equity

Educator in the marketing unit at Harvard Business School. She is a respected authority on branding and brand management, customer... Julie Battilana Joseph C. Wilson Professor of Business Administration... View Details

05 Feb 2019
News

The First Five Years: Karan Shah (MBA 2016)

I cherish and enjoy! My job involves bringing in new customers, retaining and growing business with current customers, leading new projects, developing new products, spearheading new technology drives, meeting investors and stakeholders, View Details

10 Nov 2003
Research & Ideas

Globalization: The Strategy of Differences

acquisitions to build up scale because, for the leading global competitors, an R&D-to-sales ratio of at least 8 percent represented a significant source of scale economies. But he also implemented a production strategy that was... View Details

Keywords: by Pankaj Ghemawat

Web

2022 Reunion Presentations - Alumni

strategies they can employ to build organizations where top talent of any gender can thrive. Slides The Digital Mindset: What It Really Takes to Thrive in the Age of Data, Algorithms, and AI Professor Tsedal Neeley + More Info – Less Info... View Details

Profile

Wombi Rose

these, it was just, what can we make?" Turning inspiration into a fully realized plan Wombi and John returned home with a number of pop-up cards; their instant popularity convinced them to go into business—with their own products. "You can't View Details

Keywords: Consulting; Manufacturing/Energy; Retail/Hospitality

22 Feb 2022
News

Breaking News

for—titles and papers, revenue mix, staff strength, audience strength, and brand strengths—to be able to identify promising opportunities. “And at the intersection between the two—impact and investment—our aspiration is to View Details

Keywords: Jen McFarland Flint; illustration by Dana Smith; News, Library, Internet, and Other Services; Information

06 Feb 2023
Blog Post

African American Student Union Spotlight on HBCUs

Before HBS, I worked in tech as a Product Marketing Manager on the YouTube Ads Marketing and Google for Startup teams. I also interned as a summer Investment Analyst at Obvious Ventures, an early-stage venture firm, where I focused on consumer View Details

04 Feb 2022
Blog Post

Learning from the Entrepreneurs-in-Residence as a Harvard MS/MBA Student

positioned to tackle the challenges that come with building a company. During my conversation with Stacey Boyd I learned about the importance of storytelling. Olivela is a luxury brand that embodies... View Details

Web

In the News - Creating Emerging Markets

transcended the boundaries of her industry in terms of her social impact” by using – and in doing so risking – her status as an actress in order to fight for change. Working Knowledge A Dedication to Creation: India's Ad Man Ranjan Kapur How do you View Details

27 Nov 2000
Research & Ideas

The Dynamics of Standing Still: Firestone Tire & Rubber and the Radial Revolution

convert existing factories, but that this "quick fix" would prove insufficient in the long term and that Firestone would need to build a dedicated radial factory. The Committee, according to the minutes, "instructed Mr.... View Details

Keywords: by Donald N. Sull; Manufacturing; Transportation

30 Aug 2011
First Look

First Look: August 30

competition with perennial rival P&G increasing its focus on the oral care and emerging markets where Colgate had traditionally been untouchable. To defend its lead Colgate attempted to cover all fronts, leveraging brand equity,... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

25 Oct 2022
Research & Ideas

Is Baseball Ready to Compete for the Next Generation of Fans?

Richard P. Chapman Professor of Business Administration, Emeritus, at Harvard Business School, studies brand marketing and communications. Greyser pioneered the academic study of the business of sports, and helped develop the first sports... View Details

Keywords: by Christina Pazzanese, Harvard Gazette; Media & Broadcasting; Sports

11 Mar 2021
News

Leading with Heart

Subscribe on iTunes Subscribe on Spotify More Skydeck episodes Niren Chaudhary (AMP 191, 2016) has spent most of his career in restaurants, working in leadership positions at Yum! Brands and Krispy Kreme Doughnuts before becoming the CEO... View Details

01 Dec 2022
News

Full Court Press

On May 28, 2022, the Basketball Africa League (BAL) held the championship game of its second season, pitting the club team Petro de Luanda, from Angola, against US Monastir, from Tunisia. Traffic snarls outside the stadium, congestion tightened by temporary road... View Details

Keywords: Dan Morrell

Publications