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Show Results For
- All HBS Web
(4,021)
- People (16)
- News (905)
- Research (2,455)
- Events (27)
- Multimedia (47)
- Faculty Publications (1,845)
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- 28 Nov 2018
- HBS Case
On Target: Rethinking the Retail Website
jimkruger In the mid-1990s, Target was a discount superstore behemoth. The retailer had set itself apart from chief rival Walmart with a focus on more upscale but wallet-friendly fashion and lifestyle lines, spurring double-digit growth... View Details
- November 2003 (Revised May 2005)
- Case
Beverly Stern: Retail Executive
By: H. Kent Bowen and Alison Berkley Wagonfeld
Beverly Stern has been a successful operating manager in three prominent retail chains: GAP, Pottery Barn, and Williams-Sonoma. Stern's last job at a start-up did not meet her expectations, and she must now decide what to do next. She has an offer to start a new retail... View Details
Keywords: Personal Development and Career; Experience and Expertise; Personal Characteristics; Jobs and Positions; Decisions; Retail Industry
Bowen, H. Kent, and Alison Berkley Wagonfeld. "Beverly Stern: Retail Executive." Harvard Business School Case 604-018, November 2003. (Revised May 2005.)
- April 2009 (Revised December 2015)
- Case
Dot.com: Online Pet Retailing
By: Tom Nicholas and David Chen
From 1995 to 1999, the U.S. experienced a period of tremendous growth in its information technology (IT) sector. The IT industry, although it accounted for less than 10% of the U.S. economy's total output, contributed disproportionately to economic growth. One market... View Details
Keywords: Entrepreneurship; Price Bubble; Growth and Development Strategy; Failure; Competitive Strategy; Online Technology; Retail Industry
Nicholas, Tom, and David Chen. "Dot.com: Online Pet Retailing." Harvard Business School Case 809-117, April 2009. (Revised December 2015.)
- July 2015 (Revised September 2017)
- Case
Ron Johnson: A Career in Retail
In April 2013, Ron Johnson (HBS '84) stepped down after just 18 months as CEO of J.C. Penney. In his brief tenure, Johnson, an acclaimed retailer respected for his innovation and success in shaping the retail image at Target and Apple, introduced dramatic departures... View Details
Keywords: Leadership; Leadership Development; Legal Industry; Procurement; Professional Service Firms; Pricing; Organizational Behavior Modification; Change Management; Innovation Leadership; Situation or Environment; Failure; Management Teams; Brands and Branding; Competition; Retail Industry; United States
Narayandas, Das, Joshua D. Margolis, and Ryan Raffaelli. "Ron Johnson: A Career in Retail." Harvard Business School Case 516-016, July 2015. (Revised September 2017.)
- March 2017 (Revised July 2019)
- Case
Walmart: Navigating a Changing Retail Landscape
By: Michael E. Porter and Jorge Ramirez-Vallejo
As the largest company, by revenue, in the world, Walmart has been a lightning rod for criticism. However, in an attempt to stay ahead of traditional and digital retailers, and keep customers satisfied with evolving demands, the company is strengthening its competitive... View Details
Keywords: Shared Value; Strategy; Department Stores; Sustainability; Social Responsibility Of Business; Value Creation; Competitive Strategy; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Retail Industry
Porter, Michael E., and Jorge Ramirez-Vallejo. "Walmart: Navigating a Changing Retail Landscape." Harvard Business School Case 717-474, March 2017. (Revised July 2019.)
- May 2025
- Case
Boutiqaat: Influencing Retail in MENA
By: Juan Alcacer and Noor Al Qadhi
Boutiqaat, a Kuwait-based e-commerce platform, scaled an influencer-driven beauty retail model across MENA and now faces critical strategic choices about offline expansion and globalization. Founded in 2015, Boutiqaat combined social commerce, localized logistics, and... View Details
- 1996
- Book
Strategic Retail Management
By: D. E. Bell and W. J. Salmon
Bell, D. E., and W. J. Salmon. Strategic Retail Management. Cincinnati: South-Western College Publishing, 1996.
- June 2020 (Revised August 2020)
- Supplement
Vanguard Retail Operations (B)
By: Willy C. Shih and Antonio Moreno
The first two cases in this series are set in the financial services industry, and explore whether it is better for back-office workers to be generalists who provide the flexibility of being able to handle the complete range of transactions that the company faces or... View Details
Keywords: Pooling; Generalist Model; Specialist Model; Service Operations; Management; Financial Services Industry; United States
Shih, Willy C., and Antonio Moreno. "Vanguard Retail Operations (B)." Harvard Business School Supplement 620-105, June 2020. (Revised August 2020.)
- November 2002 (Revised February 2009)
- Teaching Note
Value Retail (TN)
By: Arthur I Segel and Ani M Vartanian
Teaching Note for (9-803-008). View Details
- December 1998
- Background Note
Retail Financial Services in 1998
By: Stephen P. Bradley and Takia Mahmood
Provides an overview of the current restructuring that is taking place in the retail financial services industry. Provides a brief overview of the structural changes in banking, brokerage, insurance, and mutual funds. Used as background for examining the strategies of... View Details
Keywords: Economic Sectors; Economy; Financial Institutions; Financial Markets; Industry Growth; Strategy; Competitive Strategy; Banking Industry; Financial Services Industry
Bradley, Stephen P., and Takia Mahmood. "Retail Financial Services in 1998." Harvard Business School Background Note 799-051, December 1998.
- April 2002 (Revised March 2006)
- Background Note
Economics of Retail Banking Note
By: Frances X. Frei and Dennis Campbell
Explains the financial operations of retail banking, highlighting profitability challenges facing the industry. For U.S. banks, it is quite common for more than half of the customer base to be unprofitable and to have relatively few customers make up the vast majority... View Details
Keywords: Customers; Economics; Cost; Banks and Banking; Profit; Revenue; Service Operations; Banking Industry; United States
Frei, Frances X., and Dennis Campbell. "Economics of Retail Banking Note." Harvard Business School Background Note 602-153, April 2002. (Revised March 2006.)
- May–June 2023
- Article
Need for Speed: The Impact of In-Process Delays on Customer Behavior in Online Retail
By: Santiago Gallino, Nil Karacaoglu and Antonio Moreno
The impact of delays has been widely studied in various offline services. The focus of this study is online services, and we explore the impact of in-process delays—measured by website speed—on customer behavior. We leverage novel retail and website speed data to... View Details
Keywords: Online Retail; Quasi-experiments; Abandonment; Synthetic Control; E-commerce; Internet and the Web; Consumer Behavior; Policy; Retail Industry
Gallino, Santiago, Nil Karacaoglu, and Antonio Moreno. "Need for Speed: The Impact of In-Process Delays on Customer Behavior in Online Retail." Operations Research 71, no. 3 (May–June 2023): 876–894.
- 19 Apr 2004
- Research & Ideas
Ground-Floor Opportunities for Retail in India
India's economic growth is an exciting new playing field for the retail industry and for entrepreneurs looking to get in on the ground level, a panel of that country's businessmen agreed. Rising incomes, increased advertising, and a jump... View Details
- 19 May 2011
- Research & Ideas
Empathy: The Brand Equity of Retail
There's a famous line from the movie The Godfather, which is often repeated in corporate settings: "This is business, not personal." Ironically, though, that statement is actually bad business advice. During the Consortium for Operational Excellence in View Details
- September 1997 (Revised March 1998)
- Background Note
Automobile Retailing in the U.S.
By: V. Kasturi Rangan and Marie Bell
In the mid-1990s, the U.S. automobile retailing industry is on the brink of profound change. This case traces the drivers of change, the history of the industry, and potential distribution systems of the future. View Details
Rangan, V. Kasturi, and Marie Bell. "Automobile Retailing in the U.S." Harvard Business School Background Note 598-014, September 1997. (Revised March 1998.)
- May 2025
- Teaching Note
Boutiqaat: Influencing Retail in MENA
By: Juan Alcacer and Noor Al Qadhi
Boutiqaat, a Kuwait-based e-commerce platform, scaled an influencer-driven beauty retail model across MENA and now faces critical strategic choices about offline expansion and globalization. Founded in 2015, Boutiqaat combined social commerce, localized logistics, and... View Details
- May 1998
- Background Note
Note on the Retailing Industry
By: David E. Bell and Ann Leamon
Presents a survey discussion of retailing and current issues. Examines the impact of changing consumer attitudes on the industry and outlines the industry's response: consolidation, adoption of technology, use of brands and private labels, and changing relationships... View Details
Keywords: Transformation; Debates; Customers; Surveys; Partners and Partnerships; Attitudes; Adoption; Consolidation; Retail Industry
Bell, David E., and Ann Leamon. "Note on the Retailing Industry." Harvard Business School Background Note 598-148, May 1998.
- December 1998
- Case
Retail Financial Services in 1998: Travelers
By: Stephen P. Bradley and Takia Mahmood
Provides an overview of Travelers Group's current strategy for retail financial services. Retail Financial Services in 1998 should be given to all students as background material. The class should then be split into groups, with each group receiving one of the... View Details
Keywords: Investment Funds; Management Analysis, Tools, and Techniques; Industry Structures; Competition; Competitive Strategy; Financial Services Industry
Bradley, Stephen P., and Takia Mahmood. "Retail Financial Services in 1998: Travelers." Harvard Business School Case 799-056, December 1998.