Publications

April 2007 (Revised June 2008)
Background Note

AmorePacific

By: Elie Ofek and Kerry Herman

Describes the dominant firm in the Korean cosmetics market up to the mid-2000s. Gives background on AmorePacific's historical evolution, its current brands, and the competition it faces from local and international players. Also provides information on the market... View Details

Keywords: History; Competition; Distribution Channels; Brands and Branding; Beauty and Cosmetics Industry; South Korea

March 2007 (Revised March 2007)
Case

Burt's Bees: Leaving the Hive

Rapid growth is pushing Burt's Bees' natural personal care products into mass distribution channels, with products and brand elements that are less quirky, more commercial than they used to be. Indeed, CEO John Replogle believes that by focusing on efficacious,... View Details

Keywords: Growth Management; Consumer Behavior; Asset Pricing; Entrepreneurship; Distribution Channels; Product Development; Brands and Branding; Beauty and Cosmetics Industry; United States

October 2004 (Revised July 2013)
Case

Making China Beautiful: Shiseido and the China Market

By: Geoffrey G. Jones, Akiko Kanno and Masako Egawa

Describes the multinational growth of Shiseido, the world's fourth-largest cosmetics company, with a focus on its strategy in China since 1981. Explores the challenges facing firms in the globalization of a culturally specific industry such as cosmetics. The Japanese... View Details

Keywords: Cross-Cultural and Cross-Border Issues; Globalized Firms and Management; Growth and Development Strategy; Resource Allocation; Competition; Beauty and Cosmetics Industry; China; Japan

August 1984 (Revised October 1994)
Case

Suave

By: Mark S. Albion

Promotes discussion on advertising budgeting and media mix decisions in the shampoo market for low-priced, high-volume Suave. Provides various types of market research into consumer behavior and the competition context. The importance of retailers and shelf space is... View Details

Keywords: Consumer Behavior; Product Marketing; Beauty and Cosmetics Industry

December 1978 (Revised December 1985)
Case

Clairol Skin Machine (C)

By: Walter J. Salmon and Steven R. Palesy

Keywords: Beauty and Cosmetics Industry

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December 1993 (Revised June 1994)
Case

Gloria Hilliard Mayfield at Mary Kay Cosmetics, Inc.

By: John P. Kotter and Andrew P. Burtis

Keywords: Beauty and Cosmetics Industry

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13 Apr 2016
Research Event

What Does 'Diversity' Really Mean?

a beauty feature on the needs of women with different types of skin, showcasing a range of actresses of different backgrounds with large close-up shots. Holmes began to throw out some names, including Eva Mendes, Lucy Liu, and Alfre... View Details

Keywords: by Dina Gerdeman

24 Jun 2013
Research & Ideas

Is Your iPhone Turning You Into a Wimp?

the front desk." Rather than returning in five minutes, though, the researcher waited a maximum of ten minutes, recording whether and/or when the participant had come out to the front desk. A Beautiful Effect The experiments showed no... View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel; Technology; Consumer Products

August 2002
Teaching Note

Sa Sa Cosmetics, TN

By: David E. Bell

Teaching Note for (9-502-085). View Details

Keywords: Beauty and Cosmetics Industry; Beauty and Cosmetics Industry

February 22, 2023
Article

How to Seed Organic Marketing in a Video-First World

By: Ayelet Israeli, Leonard A. Schlesinger and Matt Higgins

Early direct-to-consumer (DTC) companies relied on plentiful capital and low-cost digital marketing to power growth. But as this sector has matured, capital is more constrained, social media is more cluttered, and customer acquisition costs are rising. DTC companies... View Details

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2017
Book

Profits and Sustainability: A History of Green Entrepreneurship

By: Geoffrey Jones

This book explores whether profits and environmental sustainability are compatible through the lens of a global history of green entrepreneurship between the nineteenth century and today. It tells the story of the extraordinary and often eccentric men and women who... View Details

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29 Oct 2007
HBS Case

Marketing Maria: Managing the Athlete Endorsement

the products they are trying to sell, be it apparel, cars, or beauty products. By conducting field research, I wanted to better grasp what has now become a key marketing instrument for many companies, and understand how and why they make... View Details

Keywords: by Sarah Jane Gilbert; Sports

24 Feb 2014
Research & Ideas

Busting Six Myths About Customer Loyalty Programs

and Noble in books, Best Buy in electronics—offer similar rewards. Boots, the UK-based pharmacy and beauty supply retailer, offers a substantial reward of 4 percent, but that rate is more exception than rule. This type of reward is... View Details

Keywords: by Marcel Corstjens & Rajiv Lal; Retail; Consumer Products

04 Jun 2007
Research & Ideas

Is Health Care Making You Better—or Dead?

that big is beautiful and will result in lower costs. Very poor idea, but in a way I'm the most sympathetic to this group. Suddenly human resource managers are asked to look into the bowels of this $2 trillion system and figure out how to... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne; Health

Teaching Interest

Overview

By: Geoffrey G. Jones

I currently teach the history of global entrepreneurship over the last 200 years. The 28-session course called Entrepreneurship and Global Capitalism has become one of the most popular second year electives in the MBA program at the Harvard Business School. The cases,... View Details

July 2015
Case

Vita: Cosmetics in the Nordics

By: Das Narayandas, Krishna Palepu and Kerry Herman

Vita is a Norwegian cosmetics retailer owned by FSN Capital, a Scandinavian private equity company. The company has a strong market position in Norway. The case focuses on two strategic issues: how to develop an e-commerce strategy to supplement the company's... View Details

Keywords: E-Commerce Strategy; Norway; Cosmetics; Managing Under Private Equity Ownership; Strategy; Private Equity; Internet and the Web; Growth and Development Strategy; E-commerce; Beauty and Cosmetics Industry; Beauty and Cosmetics Industry; Norway