Publications

June 2013 (Revised August 2013)
Case

AVA.ph: Growing a Filipino E-Commerce Company

By: William R. Kerr and Henry Motte-Munoz

AVA is a three-year old e-commerce company in the Philippines. From its early start mimicking the Gilt Groupe concept of online flash sales, the company has grown into a broader e-commerce platform for local fashion commerce. Oliver Segovia needs to evaluate where AVA... View Details

Keywords: Digital Platforms; Business Growth and Maturation; Internet and the Web; Entrepreneurship; Growth and Development Strategy; Fashion Industry; Fashion Industry; Philippines

July–August 2014
Article

How 'Brand Tourists' Can Grow Sales

By: Silvia Bellezza and Anat Keinan

The article discusses how exclusive brands can increase their sales by moving "downmarket" without diminishing their prestige or alienating existing customers. The authors suggest various ways to cater to new, non-core customers in a way that differentiates the... View Details

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Read Now

06 Nov 2014
News

Smartwatches: Wave of future or slave to past?

05 Oct 2020
News

Rebecca Henderson Brings Urgent Outside Voice to Sourcing Journal Summit

29 Apr 2016
News

Style by degrees: Harvard Business School

21 May 2020
News

How To Build An Inclusive Virtual Culture With These 4 Effective Strategies

2017
Book

HBR Guide to Buying a Small Business: Think Big, Buy Small, Own Your Own Company

By: Richard S. Ruback and Royce Yudkoff

Find, acquire, and run your own business. Are you looking for an alternative to a career path at a big firm? Does founding your own start-up seem too risky? There is a radical third path open to you: you can buy a small business and run it as CEO. Purchasing a small... View Details

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March 2022
Teaching Note

Farfetch: Digital Transformation for Luxury Brands

By: Jill Avery and Sunil Gupta

Teaching Note for HBS Case No. 522-051. Farfetch, a global luxury technology platform and digital marketplace had been surfing the wave of digital transformation in the luxury fashion industry since 2008. While the company’s stock price and market valuation had... View Details

Keywords: Brand Management; Retailing; Two Sided Markets; SaaS; Online Marketing; Marketing; Marketing Channels; Brands and Branding; Luxury; Digital Transformation; E-commerce; Digital Marketing; Fashion Industry; Fashion Industry; London; United Kingdom; Portugal

02 Mar 2009
News

Gender-Bending Brands an Easy Way to Increase Product Reach

July 2022
Case

boAt Lifestyle

By: Rajiv Lal and Kairavi Dey

boAt began as a lifestyle brand in the consumer electronics category in 2016 with the aim of bringing affordable, durable, and fashionable audio products and accessories to millennials and Gen-Z customers in India. Born in 2016 with Amazon India as its only sales... View Details

Keywords: Marketing; Brands and Branding; Initial Public Offering; Digital Marketing; Product Development; Product Marketing; Business or Company Management; Electronics Industry; Consumer Products Industry; Web Services Industry; Asia; India

01 Aug 2019
News

With local connections and quirkiness, indie bookstores thrive

07 Aug 2018
News

A Harvard professor says rebellion is a talent we can all learn

December 2010 (Revised March 2011)
Background Note

Strategic Marketing in Creative Industries

By: Anita Elberse

A note for educators describing an elective course for second-year MBA Students at Harvard Business School, "Strategic Marketing in Creative Industries." which focuses on strategic marketing challenges for firms in the creative industries, defined as industries that... View Details

Keywords: Marketing Strategy

August 2018 (Revised August 2018)
Case

The De Beers Group: Launching Lightbox Jewelry for Lab-Grown Diamonds

By: Benjamin C. Esty

In May 2018, the De Beers Group shocked the diamond industry when it announced it was launching a new fashion jewelry brand of laboratory-grown (synthetic) diamonds. The reaction was swift as people sought to understand the company’s motivations: was it a “huge gamble”... View Details

September 2017 (Revised August 2018)
Supplement

The Ready-Made Garment Industry: A Bangladeshi Perspective (D)

By: Nien-hê Hsieh and Saloni Chaturvedi

This supplements the (A) case by summarizing key developments in the Bangladesh ready-made garment industry after the fire at Tazreen Fashions factory, including formation of the Bangladesh Fire and Building Safety Accord (“Accord”) and the Alliance for Bangladesh... View Details

Keywords: Apparel; Bangladesh; Corporate Responsibility; Human Rights; Supply Chains; Labor; Working Conditions; Supply Chain; Safety; Rights; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Apparel and Accessories Industry; Bangladesh

January 2005 (Revised July 2005)
Case

Gretta Enterprises

Describes Gretchen ("Gretta") Monahan's founding and management of Gretta Enterprises, which has grown to five outlets--salons, day spas, and fashion boutiques--and $10 million in annual revenue in 10 years. Monahan's role as a television host on TLC's A Makeover Story... View Details

Keywords: Growth Management; Entrepreneurship; Leadership Style; Fashion Industry; Fashion Industry

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21 May 2009
Working Paper Summaries

Do Friends Influence Purchases in a Social Network?

Keywords: by Raghuram Iyengar, Sangman Han & Sunil Gupta; Technology

June 2011
Background Note

It's a Social World

By: Stephen P. Bradley and Nancy Bartlett

Social media had fashioned the lives of individuals and communities by 2010, providing an opportunity and a challenge for companies of all sizes. This note provides background on various social media (e.g. social networks, forums, games and communication services) and... View Details

Keywords: Customer Relationship Management; Brands and Branding; Marketing Strategy; Media; Service Operations; Sales; Opportunities; Corporate Strategy; Web

September 2004 (Revised January 2006)
Tutorial

Introduction to Cost Accounting Systems

By: David F. Hawkins, V.G. Narayanan, Jacob Cohen and Michele Jurgens

Covers the basics of cost system design, demonstrating in a clear, step-by-step fashion how costs are assigned to cost objects. Key concepts include direct and indirect costs, two-stage allocation, cost pools, and cost drivers. Also provides a brief review of several... View Details

Keywords: Cost Accounting; Cost; System