Publications

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July 2020
Case

Amanda and Kristen: Mented Cosmetics

By: Steven Rogers, Jeffrey J. Bussgang and Alterrell Mills

The co-founders (Black HBS alumnae) of an e-commerce beauty startup explore the unmet needs within the beauty industry. This case study examines the entrepreneurial opportunities that come from identifying an underserved market, specifically within the Black community... View Details

July 2022 (Revised January 2023)
Case

Vicky Tsai and Tatcha: Confronting Stereotypes

By: Geoffrey Jones and Veronica Tong

Teaching Plan for HBS Case No. 323-007. This case examines the career of Vicky Tsai, the creator of San Francisco-based TATCHA, a Japanese-themed luxury beauty brand launched in 2009. It explores how Tsai developed the concept, assembled management, and successfully... View Details

Keywords: Cosmetics Industry; Japan; Startup; Marketing; Entrepreneurship; Growth and Development; Product Development; Product Marketing; Acquisition; Identity; Brands and Branding; Ethnicity; Gender; Beauty and Cosmetics Industry; United States

29 May 2013
Blog Post

Reflections and learnings

And there it went – 8 weeks at Sephora, 3 weeks at Tatcha – it all just blew by so quickly. And what came of all of it? Amazing beauty products? Sure. Fantastic new friends?... View Details

Keywords: Consumer Products / Retail

February 2001 (Revised February 2002)
Case

Estee Lauder and the Market for Prestige Cosmetics

By: Nancy F. Koehn

Opens with a brief history of the U.S. cosmetics market and its rapid development in the 1920s. Also recounts Lauder's initial involvement in the sector, making skin care products and selling them in Manhattan beauty parlors during the Great Depression. Pays particular... View Details

Keywords: Fluctuation; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Market Entry and Exit; Entrepreneurship; Luxury; Business Strategy; Society; Beauty and Cosmetics Industry; United States

04 Aug 2020
Cold Call Podcast

Glossier Built a Cult-Brand and a Digital Community, but What’s Next?

Keywords: Re: Jill J. Avery; Advertising

September 2019 (Revised June 2021)
Case

Dove and Real Beauty: Building a Brand with Purpose

By: Mark R. Kramer, Myriam Sidibe and Gunjan Veda

Unilever subsidiary Dove soap became a "brand with a purpose" and created shared value when the company decided to launch a Campaign for Real Beauty to combat the artificial media-driven stereotype of female beauty that causes appearance anxiety in women and girls... View Details

Keywords: Stereotype; Body Image; Female; Self-Esteem; Brands and Branding; Mission and Purpose; Advertising Campaigns; Gender; Resource Allocation

06 Nov 2018
First Look

New Research and Ideas, November 6, 2018

Harvard Business School Case 318-093 Amanda and Kristen: Mented Cosmetics Black women, per capita, spend more money annually on beauty products than any other ethnic group. Despite the spend of over $7... View Details

Keywords: Dina Gerdeman

28 Dec 2020
Interview

Psychological Safety and Fearless Organisations

By: Amy C. Edmondson and Vesna Lucca

In This Podcast:
• The ugly and beauty in transformational change
• Why don’t all companies create psychological safety
• Her passion to create a better workplace
• Buckminster Fuller
• The importance of system thinking
• The power... View Details

Keywords: Psychological Safety; Organizational Culture; Transformation

11 Dec 2023
Blog Post

Building Iconic Brands and Brighter Futures: Interview with Glossier CEO, Kyle Leahy

Kyle Leahy (MBA 2011) stepped into the CEO role of Glossier in May 2022 ready to take the brand to new heights. Since its founding in 2014, Glossier had disrupted the beauty industry, created a powerful community-driven brand, View Details

27 Aug 2018
Sharpening Your Skills

Guts, Gall, and Good Luck: What It Takes To Be An Entrepreneur

become staples of our modern country and economy: beauty products, national sales forces, and corporate social responsibility. Who Owns Space? Entrepreneurs like Elon Musk... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne

September 2013 (Revised August 2015)
Background Note

Leadership and Teaming

By: Ethan Bernstein

Small differences in the leadership of teams can have large consequences for the success of their efforts. Many initiatives fail not because of a fatal error in judgment or insufficient ideas, knowledge, motivation, or capabilities to deliver a solution. They fail... View Details

November 2011 (Revised April 2016)
Case

Coco Chanel: Creating Fashion for the Modern Woman (A)

By: Mukti Khaire and Kerry Herman

Chanel, the iconic haute couture house, founded by Gabrielle "Coco" Chanel in 1913, came to embody its founder's philosophy, taste, and style and set a distinctive and influential tone for women's fashion. Coming to prominence during the height of cultural modernity in... View Details

Keywords: Fashion And Creative Industries; Apparel Manufacturing; Business History; Business Growth and Maturation; Management Succession; Entrepreneurship; Business Startups; Brands and Branding; Apparel and Accessories Industry; Apparel and Accessories Industry; North and Central America; Europe

2013
Working Paper

Debating the Responsibility of Capitalism in Historical and Global Perspective

By: Geoffrey Jones

This working paper examines the evolution of concepts of the responsibility of business in a historical and global perspective. It shows that from the nineteenth century American, European, Japanese, Indian and other business leaders discussed the responsibilities of... View Details

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September–October 2024
Article

Why Multibusiness Strategies Fail and How to Make Them Succeed

By: Bharat Anand and David J. Collis

Enterprises that own multiple businesses often have a flawed approach to strategy: They focus too much on the makeup of their portfolios and too little on enhancing the businesses in them.
Strategies for adding value to a corporation’s businesses fall on a... View Details

Keywords: Value Creation; Corporate Strategy; Organizational Structure; Management Systems

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19 Oct 2021
News

A Look into the Ethical Concerns Surrounding the Creation and Consumption of Fast Fashion

22 Aug 2018
Working Paper Summaries

Sustainability and Green Business in Latin America During Globalization Waves

Keywords: by Geoffrey Jones

November 2012
Case

Building a Community at Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation

By: Christopher Marquis, Zucheng Zhou, Mo Chen and Heng Fan

Over the past decade, Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation (SMIC) had developed a unique set of benefits and cultural amenities for its employees, including a beautiful residential campus, known as the Living Quarters (LQ), and an award winning... View Details

Keywords: Culture And Community; Cost vs Benefits; Civil Society or Community; Organizational Culture; Profit; Culture; Compensation and Benefits; Semiconductor Industry