Publications

August 1994 (Revised July 1995)
Case

Astra Sports, Inc. (A)

By: John A. Quelch

Astra executives meet to discuss how to counteract the appearance of Korean-made counterfeit athletic shoes in Europe, Asia, and Latin America. View Details

Keywords: Brands and Branding; Strategy; Crime and Corruption; Apparel and Accessories Industry; Apparel and Accessories Industry; Apparel and Accessories Industry; North Korea; Latin America; South Korea; Asia; Europe

01 Dec 2017
News

A Safer—and Speedier—Way to Name Your Startup

trademark lawsuit, or spending money on a domain name or logo that turns out to be unusable. As head of Master-McNeil, a Berkeley-based naming and branding agency behind names like Ariba, PayPal, Athlon,... View Details

Keywords: Julia Hanna

September 1981 (Revised April 1984)
Case

Great American Knitting Mills: Gold Toe Socks

Gold Toe has an exclusive distribution policy. Its men's socks are sold only through one department store per city. Executives are trying to decide whether, and how, to widen distribution and to determine what impact broader distribution would have on the nature of the... View Details

Keywords: Competitive Strategy; Distribution Channels; Brands and Branding; Apparel and Accessories Industry; Apparel and Accessories Industry; United States

05 Feb 2019
News

The First Five Years: Karan Shah (MBA 2016)

the fact that it is sustainable and eco-friendly, immediately struck a chord with her, and the idea to create a luxury brand was born! After two years of research View Details

December 2008
Case

Taylor Fresh Foods

By: David E. Bell, Natalie Kindred and Mary Louise Shelman

In 13 years, Bruce Taylor had built Taylor Fresh Foods into a $1 billion company and the top supplier of salads to the U.S. food service industry and to supermarket deli departments. In 2008, he was convinced that the time was right to make a big push in the fresh food... View Details

Keywords: Food; Brands and Branding; Demand and Consumers; Supply Chain Management; Competition; Expansion; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; United States

June 2008 (Revised February 2011)
Teaching Note

Maria Sharapova: Marketing a Champion (A) & (B)

By: Anita Elberse

Teaching Note for [507065] and [507066]. View Details

Keywords: Brands and Branding; Sports; Sports Industry

01 Jun 2025
News

Barbie: Reviving a Cultural Icon at Mattel

Like countless others in the summer of 2023, HBS professor Elie Ofek went to the theater to see the blockbuster film Barbie and found himself enveloped by the pink-drenched marketing blitz that had all but taken over the world. To Ofek, who teaches in the Marketing... View Details

Keywords: Christine Speer Lejeune; Illustrations by Miguel Porlan; Educational Services

February 1977 (Revised December 1985)
Case

Deere & Co.: Industrial Equipment Operations

By: Benson P. Shapiro

Describes the pricing of Deere's crawler tractors used in a variety of construction and industrial applications. Includes a strategic, multimillion-dollar move into the large bulldozer market as well as the pricing of tractors, accessories, and parts. View Details

Keywords: Machinery and Machining; Price; Brands and Branding; Market Entry and Exit; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; United States

25 May 2021
Panel Discussion

Understanding the Moment

By: Lynn S. Paine, Walter Robb, H. W. Brands and Suzanne Vautrinot

How can we put recent developments in American history, and recent trends in thinking about the responsibilities of business, into perspective? What is the role of the corporation in supporting democracy and civil society? Our panelists—Lynn S. Paine, Walter Robb, H.... View Details

Keywords: Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Civil Society or Community

24 May 2017
News

Ilene H. Lang, MBA 1973

Return to Alumni Achievement Awards main page TIMELINE 1943 Born, Chicago, Illinois 1965 Earns AB, History and Literature, Radcliffe College 1966 Joins PHI as Technical Editor 1968 Joins Cambridge Computer Associates as Technical Writer... View Details

Keywords: Susan Young

August 1994 (Revised May 1997)
Case

Sony Corporation: The Walkman Line

Explores how Sony manages its Walkman line in both the domestic (Japanese) and Western markets. Describes a simple target costing system, a simple Japanese cost accounting system, and the management of product proliferation. View Details

Keywords: Cost Accounting; Brands and Branding; Consumer Products Industry; Japan

Career Coach

Connie Walsh

team for $5B Staples Brands Group at Staples, Inc. She was responsible for marketing & developing product lines and brands across retail, contract, online View Details

Keywords: Consumer Products; Retail; Social Enterprise; Technology

June 2007 (Revised January 2008)
Case

BBC Worldwide: Global Strategy

By: John A. Quelch and Carin-Isabel Knoop

In January 2007, John Smith, chief executive officer of BBC Worldwide (BBC WW), the commercial arm of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), was preparing to meet with his senior managers to discuss BBC WW's global strategy options. BBC WW exploited and exported... View Details

Keywords: Global Strategy; Brands and Branding; Marketing Channels; Expansion; Internet; Media and Broadcasting Industry; Great Britain

November 2012
Case

New Balance Athletic Shoe, Inc. (Abridged)

By: H. Kent Bowen, Robert S. Huckman, Carin-Isabel Knoop and Matthew Preble

Considers whether New Balance, one of the world's five largest manufacturers of athletic footwear, should respond to Adidas' planned acquisition of Reebok—a transaction that would join the second- and third-largest companies in the industry. Highlights the unique... View Details

Keywords: Production; Competitive Strategy; Supply Chain; Brands and Branding; Apparel and Accessories Industry; Apparel and Accessories Industry; Apparel and Accessories Industry; Asia; United States

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... View Details

May 2017 (Revised September 2017)
Case

Taj Hotels: Leading Change, Driving Profitability

By: Krishna Palepu, Anjali Raina and Rachna Chawla

Rakesh Sarna, MD and CEO of the Indian Hotels Company ltd (IHCL) was faced with the challenge of leading and embedding changes in IHCL to turnaround its trajectory. IHCL and its subsidiaries, headquartered in India, were a venerable hotel chain, collectively known as... View Details

Keywords: Turnaround; Hospitality Industry; Leadership; Brands and Branding; Marketing; Strategy; Globalization; Leading Change; Accommodations Industry; India