Publications

June 2017
Case

Harmonie Water: Refreshing the World Naturally

By: John A. Quelch and John L. Teopaco

The marketing director of Harmonie Mineral Water—the second-best selling bottled water in the world—is using findings from two project studies to assess how to establish a global brand identity for Harmonie via television advertising. He must decide what product... View Details

Keywords: Brands and Branding; Advertising; Marketing Communications; Global Strategy; Food and Beverage Industry

February 2016
Supplement

The Maggi Noodle Safety Crisis in India (C)

By: Karthik Ramanna and Radhika Kak

The local government in Delhi has ordered a ban on Nestlé's flagship product in India—Maggi Noodles, citing excessive lead content per government lab tests. Nestlé disputes the government tests, noting that internal and third-party tests show the product to be safe.... View Details

Keywords: Multinationals; Globalization; Regulation; Customer Relations; Business And Government; Safety; Leadership; Food; Multinational Firms and Management; Governance Compliance; Crisis Management; Customer Focus and Relationships; Business and Government Relations; Food and Beverage Industry; Delhi

April 2014
Teaching Note

Jiangxi Agribusiness: (TN)

By: David F. Hawkins

[TN for 114-039] Emily Wang, an analyst with Future Securities, a Shanghai-based investment firm, is given the task of making stock purchase recommendations to her supervisor from a number of Chinese common stocks. One stock in particular, Jiangxi Agribusiness... View Details

Keywords: Financial Analysis; Ratio Analysis

July 2009 (Revised October 2011)
Case

VeeV on the Rocks?

By: Joshua D. Margolis, Christopher Marquis and Laura Winig

Three pressing challenges (equity split, extent of commitment to social responsibility, and product discoloration) confront VeeV, the world's first alcoholic beverage infused with acai berries. Brothers Courtney and Carter Reum founded VeeV in 2007 and the firm has... View Details

Keywords: Quality; Food; Business Growth and Maturation; Ethics; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Entrepreneurship; Business Startups; Equity; Food and Beverage Industry

July 2022 (Revised August 2022)
Case

Athletic Brewing Company: Crafting the U.S. Non-Alcoholic Beer Category

By: Ayelet Israeli and Anne V. Wilson

Athletic Brewing Company (“Athletic,” for short) was founded by Bill Shufelt and John Walker in 2017. In creating Athletic, Shufelt and Walker opened the first U.S. brewery and taproom fully devoted to the production of non-alcoholic (NA) craft beer. By 2021, Athletic... View Details

Keywords: Advertising; Brands and Branding; Product Development; Product Marketing; Product Positioning; Product Launch; Product Design; Product; Competition; Marketing; Entrepreneurship; Growth Management; Cultural Entrepreneurship; Culture; Food and Beverage Industry; United States

2013
Article

Optimizing the Amount of Entertainment in Advertising: What's So Funny about Tracking Reactions to Humor?

By: Thales S. Teixeira and Horst Stipp

Humor and other entertaining content, as opposed to demonstrations of product features and "selling," are increasingly used in advertising, such as TV commercials, to attract and keep consumers' attention. This study uses facial tracking to explore how marketers can... View Details

Keywords: Advertising Content; Entertainment; Face Perception; Advertising; Digital Marketing; Television Entertainment; Consumer Products Industry; Consumer Products Industry

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May 2005 (Revised September 2005)
Case

Gallardo's Goes to Mexico

By: Clayton M. Christensen

The theories of market segmentation and brand building in Chapter 3, What Products Will Customers Want to Buy? in The Innovator's Solution by Clayton Christensen and Michael Raynor suggest that when companies segment markets and build brands in ways that match how the... View Details

Keywords: Innovation Strategy; Marketing Strategy; Global Strategy; Brands and Branding; Segmentation; Food and Beverage Industry; United States; Mexico

November 2024
Case

Dr. Bombay Ice Cream

By: William R. Kerr, Alexis Brownell and Michael Liu

This case examines the creation, launch, and rapid growth of Dr. Bombay Ice Cream, a joint venture between Happi Co., a consumer packaged goods incubator, and entertainment mogul Snoop Dogg, with his son, Cordell Broadus. The brand was inspired by a Bored Ape Yacht... View Details

Keywords: Joint Ventures; Growth Management; Brands and Branding; Product Launch; Product Positioning; Market Entry and Exit; Distribution Channels; Food and Beverage Industry; United States

May 1990 (Revised August 1990)
Case

Campbell Soup Co.

By: Steven C. Wheelwright

Describes the engineering effort at Campbell Soup Co. to develop a microwavable package and product for the growing convenience segment. Focuses on the role of engineering services in developing the production process, acquiring and installing equipment, and getting... View Details

Keywords: Product Development; Production; Engineering; Strategy; Business Processes; Innovation and Management; Planning; Competitive Advantage; Food and Beverage Industry; Food and Beverage Industry

May 2023 (Revised November 2023)
Case

Arcos Dorados: Decarbonizing McDonald’s in Latin America

By: George Serafeim, Michael W. Toffel, Jenyfeer Martinez Buitrago and Mariana Cal

This case describes the decarbonization strategy of Arcos Dorados—McDonald’s largest independent franchisee, operating in 20 countries and territories in Latin America and the Caribbean—and how the company measured its greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, including those... View Details

Keywords: Environmental Accounting; Animal-Based Agribusiness; Plant-Based Agribusiness; Change Management; Forecasting and Prediction; Environmental Sustainability; Food; Growth Management; Supply Chain; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Strategy; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; Food and Beverage Industry; Green Technology Industry; Consumer Products Industry; Latin America; North and Central America; South America

14 Nov 2017
First Look

New Research and Ideas: November 14, 2017

through three examples: the design of medical residency matching programs, a scrip system to allocate food donations to food banks, and the recent "Incentive Auction" that reallocated wireless spectrum from... View Details

Keywords: Carmen Nobel

September 1999 (Revised February 2004)
Case

Juice Guys (B)

By: Joseph B. Lassiter III, Sharon Lee Fox and Cynthia Rushmore Kuechle

The case explores who the customers are for a new beverage product, their desires as customers for this product, and their desires when ordering this product from a local specialty store location. View Details

Keywords: Entrepreneurship; Product Launch; Product Positioning; Customer Relationship Management; Consumer Behavior; Commercialization; Customer Satisfaction; Food and Beverage Industry

March 2019
Case

DayTwo: Going to Market with Gut Microbiome

By: Ayelet Israeli and David Lane

DayTwo is a young Israeli startup that applies research on the gut microbiome and machine learning algorithms to deliver personalized nutritional recommendations to its users in order to minimize blood sugar spikes after meals. After a first year of trial rollout in... View Details

December 2010
Article

Why You Aren't Buying Venezuelan Chocolate

By: Rohit Deshpandé

The article discusses the "provenance paradox," wherein consumers are unwilling to buy high-quality products from regions not commonly associated with excellence in certain product categories. Venezuelan chocolate maker Chocolates El Rey does little international... View Details

Keywords: Geographic Location; Global Strategy; Globalized Markets and Industries; Brands and Branding; Marketing Strategy; Product Marketing; Emerging Markets; Food and Beverage Industry; Venezuela

Find at Harvard

October 2005 (Revised May 2007)
Case

Friona Industries: Delivering Better Beef

By: Ray A. Goldberg, Carin-Isabel Knoop and Mary L. Shelman

CEO James Herring of Friona Industries, a leading U.S. cattle feedlot operator, has a history of leadership in the highly fragmented and often contentious U.S. beef industry. Friona has established relationships up and down the beef production chain to provide... View Details

Keywords: Production; Quality; Leadership; Price; Partners and Partnerships; Sales; Food and Beverage Industry; Texas; United States

February 2016 (Revised June 2016)
Supplement

The Maggi Noodle Safety Crisis in India (B)

By: Karthik Ramanna and Radhika Kak

The local government in Delhi has ordered a ban on Nestlé's flagship product in India—Maggi Noodles, citing excessive lead content per government lab tests. Nestlé disputes the government tests, noting that internal and third-party tests show the product to be safe.... View Details

Keywords: Multinationals; Globalization; Regulation; Customer Relations; Business And Government; Safety; Leadership; Food; Multinational Firms and Management; Governance Compliance; Crisis Management; Customer Focus and Relationships; Business and Government Relations; Food and Beverage Industry; Delhi

2017
Working Paper

Business and Sustainability: New Business History Perspectives

By: Ann-Kristin Bergquist

This working paper provides a long-term business history perspective on environmental sustainability. For a long time, the central issues addressed in the discipline of business history concerned how business enterprises innovated and created wealth, as well as... View Details

Keywords: Environmental Sustainability; Business History; Perspective

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February 2020
Case

Rotoplas: Bringing More and Better Water

By: John D. Macomber and Carla Larangeira

Private companies were being turned to for potable water in the world’s megacities due to impacts of climate change including droughts and flooding. Mexico City had endured several water-related crises, with its population suffering from floods, droughts, water... View Details

Keywords: Water Supply; Water Management; Finance; Infrastructure; Urban Development; Business and Government Relations; Latin America; Mexico

October 2002 (Revised May 2004)
Case

Starbucks and Conservation International

By: James E. Austin and Cate Reavis

Starbucks, the world's leading specialty coffee company, developed a strategic alliance with Conservation International, a major international environmental nonprofit organization. The purpose of the alliance was to promote coffee-growing practices of small farms that... View Details

Keywords: Financial Crisis; Growth and Development Strategy; Markets; Demand and Consumers; Production; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Cooperative Ownership; Performance Efficiency; Alliances; Nonprofit Organizations; Food and Beverage Industry; Mexico