Publications

February 2011
Article

The Underdog Effect: The Marketing of Disadvantage and Determination Through Brand Biography

By: Neeru Paharia, Anat Keinan, Jill Avery and Juliet B. Schor

We introduce the concept of an underdog brand biography (UBB) to describe an emerging trend in branding in which firms author an historical account of their humble origins, lack of resources, and determined struggle against the odds. We identify two essential... View Details

2013
Book

Entrepreneurship and Multinationals: Global Business and the Making of the Modern World

By: Geoffrey Jones

This book examines the history of entrepreneurship and multinationals in the making of the modern world. In recent years economists, historians, and political scientists have written extensively on the history of globalization and patterns of global wealth and poverty,... View Details

20 May 2014
First Look

First Look: May 20

animal testing was a sensitive issue as it contradicted the brand's strong environmentally friendly and ethical positioning. The matter had already arisen during the Pola acquisition as Pola, like all Japanese cosmetics companies,... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

12 Jun 2006
Research & Ideas

The Promise of Channel Stewardship

evolved without guidance and has no inherent logic. So channel management is often cosmetic and rarely affects channel design, even though channel design often contributes to the problems that require managing. Companies need a new... View Details

Keywords: by V. Kasturi Rangan & Marie Bell; Consumer Products

07 Jan 2013
Lessons from the Classroom

Culture Changers: Managing High-Impact Entrepreneurs

Professor Mukti Khaire's challenge to management students is lofty, even by Harvard MBA standards. Don't just change the way people live, change the way they think. Change culture. In her new elective course, Creative High-Impact Ventures: Entrepreneurs Who Changed the... View Details

Keywords: by Sean Silverthorne; Beauty & Cosmetics; Beauty & Cosmetics; Beauty & Cosmetics; Beauty & Cosmetics; Beauty & Cosmetics

01 Dec 2018
News

Alumni and Faculty Books for December 2018

they work to peel away a portion of the consumer decision-making process, the way Birchbox offered women a new way to sample new beauty products from a variety of cosmetics and fragrance companies, without having to go to the Revlon or... View Details

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

SSRN

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Teaching Interest

Overview

The Business of Aesthetics is a new course for second-year students who are considering careers in sectors and companies whose long-term financial value is built on their ability to deliver aesthetic value. Such companies are rewarded not only for eliciting a high... View Details

Keywords: Aesthetics; Luxury Goods; Retail; Consumer Goods; Design; Creativity; Consumer Behavior; Brand Building; Experience Goods; Beauty and Cosmetics Industry; Beauty and Cosmetics Industry; Beauty and Cosmetics Industry; Beauty and Cosmetics Industry; Beauty and Cosmetics Industry; Beauty and Cosmetics Industry

12 Apr 2010
Research & Ideas

One Report: Better Strategy through Integrated Reporting

electronics company Philips; the Danish pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk; the Brazilian cosmetics company Natura; and the U.S.-based technology and aerospace company United Technologies all come to mind. All have done a very good job... View Details

Keywords: by Martha Lagace

September–October 2022
Article

Should Your Company Sell on Amazon?: Reach Comes at a Price

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

Selling on Amazon allows brands to reach millions of consumers—but that exposure comes with costs. They include smaller margins, more competition, the risk of commoditization, and less knowledge about customers. In this article, the authors present a scorecard to... View Details

Register to Read

01 May 2007
First Look

First Look: May 1, 2007

efficiently in the presence of the firm than in its absence. PDF not available. Cases & Course MaterialsAmorePacific Harvard Business School Note 507-070 Describes the dominant firm in the Korean cosmetics market up to the... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

01 Apr 1998
News

World Class Learning

leadership position in the cosmetics industry. "I researched different companies in Baker Library, called HBS alumni to find out about contacts, and finally wrote directly to L'Oreal," he recalls. "The HBS name certainly opened doors."... View Details

Keywords: Eileen K. McCluskey

10 Jan 2005
Research & Ideas

Motivation and the Cross-Sector Alliance

the general pattern described in the previous section, where we analyzed how some organizations made use of cross-sector collaborations for risk management purposes. The second case in this sub-group is that of Natura, a leading cosmetic... View Details

Keywords: by James Austin, Ezequiel Reficco & SEKN research team

June 2022
Case

Zalando: Becoming the Starting Point for Fashion

By: Antonio Moreno, Leela Nageswaran, Emilie Billaud and Federica Gabrieli

Born in 2008 as a small startup selling flip flops, by mid-2021 Zalando had turned into an online fashion company with an assortment of more than 4,500 international brands, 45 million active customers, and a presence in 23 European markets. An essential component in... View Details

Keywords: Transition; Customer Value and Value Chain; Digital Platforms; Distribution; Order Taking and Fulfillment; Infrastructure; Logistics; Service Operations; Strategy; Business Strategy; Beauty and Cosmetics Industry; Beauty and Cosmetics Industry; Beauty and Cosmetics Industry; Beauty and Cosmetics Industry; Beauty and Cosmetics Industry; Beauty and Cosmetics Industry; Beauty and Cosmetics Industry; Beauty and Cosmetics Industry; Europe

Educators

01 Dec 1996
News

An Entrepreneurial Journey

paging capability," predicts the genial Hostetter, who will remain Continental's chairman and CEO. "I look forward to the challenge." « Back Healthy Returns In 1957, when Lloyd E. Cotsen (MBA '57) joined Los Angelesbased Natone, his father-in-law's specialty View Details

21 Feb 2012
First Look

First Look: Feb. 21

Materials"L'Occitane en Provence Bo Becker, Daniela Beyersdorfer, Scott Mayfield, and Mayuka YamazakiHarvard Business School Case 212-051 Cosmetics company L'Occitane en Provence must decide if it is the right time to go public, and,... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

01 Apr 2001
News

New Ventures New Gains

and conducted customer research. “We learned that we needed to provide more than just services,” explains Rhyne, who added prestige cosmetics sales to the mix and wrote a solid business plan that was the only non–Internet-related finalist... View Details

Keywords: Julia Hanna and Susan Young; Martin Dubilier (MBA 1952); Business Schools & Computer & Management Training; Educational Services

2010
Article

The Strategic Use of Brand Biographies

By: Jill Avery, Neeru Paharia, Anat Keinan and Juliet Schor

We introduce the concept of a brand biography to describe an emerging trend in branding in which firms author a dynamic, historical account of the events that have shaped the brand over time. Using a particular type of brand biography, "the underdog," we empirically... View Details