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Show Results For
- All HBS Web
(3,913)
- People (16)
- News (908)
- Research (2,470)
- Events (27)
- Multimedia (47)
- Faculty Publications (1,848)
- February 2001 (Revised September 2005)
- Case
Howard Schultz and Starbucks Coffee Company
By: Nancy F. Koehn
Investigates the entrepreneur's strategic initiatives to develop a mass market for specialty coffee in the 1980s and 1990s. These initiatives included the development of premium products, rapid expansion of company-owned stores--each with attractive retail environments... View Details
Keywords: Entrepreneurship; Groups and Teams; Brands and Branding; Growth Management; Employee Relationship Management; Consumer Behavior; Organizational Design; Leadership Style; Customer Relationship Management; Competitive Advantage; Vertical Integration; Food and Beverage Industry
Koehn, Nancy F. "Howard Schultz and Starbucks Coffee Company." Harvard Business School Case 801-361, February 2001. (Revised September 2005.)
- September 2010
- Article
Do Inventory and Gross Margin Data Improve Sales Forecasts for U.S. Public Retailers?
By: Saravanan Kesavan, Vishal Gaur and Ananth Raman
Firm-level sales forecasts for retailers can be improved if we incorporate cost of goods sold, inventory, and gross margin (defined here as the ratio of sales to cost of goods sold) as three endogenous variables. We construct a simultaneous equations model, estimated... View Details
Keywords: Sales; Forecasting and Prediction; Distribution; Goods and Commodities; Cost; Public Sector; Profit; Mathematical Methods; Analytics and Data Science; Retail Industry; United States
Kesavan, Saravanan, Vishal Gaur, and Ananth Raman. "Do Inventory and Gross Margin Data Improve Sales Forecasts for U.S. Public Retailers?" Management Science 56, no. 9 (September 2010): 1519–1533.
- August 2005 (Revised October 2007)
- Case
Best Buy Co.,Inc.: Competing on the Edge
By: John R. Wells and Travis Haglock
While Circuit City struggles, Best Buy has overtaken it to become the premier consumer electronics retailer in the United States. What has driven its success? How can it be sustained? View Details
Wells, John R., and Travis Haglock. "Best Buy Co.,Inc.: Competing on the Edge." Harvard Business School Case 706-417, August 2005. (Revised October 2007.)
- Research Summary
The Location Component of Pricing Strategies
By: David E. Bell
David E. Bell is examining retail pricing strategies in the context of location. He finds that customers' willingness to visit a particular store depends on their price expectations, the likelihood that a suitable item will be in stock, and the store's proximity to... View Details
- February 2001 (Revised December 2002)
- Case
Marshall Field and the Rise of the Department Store
By: Nancy F. Koehn
Analyzes Marshall Field's efforts to develop a market for mass retailing in late 19th-century Chicago. Examines Chicago's expansion in the 1860s and, within this context, how Field struck out on his own to, build a wholesale and retail business. Concentrates on the... View Details
Keywords: Fluctuation; Industry Growth; Corporate Strategy; Entrepreneurship; Brands and Branding; Society; Retail Industry; Retail Industry; Chicago
Koehn, Nancy F. "Marshall Field and the Rise of the Department Store." Harvard Business School Case 801-349, February 2001. (Revised December 2002.)
- 18 Apr 2005
- Research & Ideas
Selling Luxury to Everyone
Luxury is the new essential. Consumers know it and retailers are reaping the bounty. At a "Growth Strategies in the Luxury Goods Industry" panel on April 3 at the HBS Retail and Luxury Goods... View Details
- May 2003 (Revised May 2009)
- Case
ZARA: Fast Fashion
Focuses on Inditex, an apparel retailer from Spain, which has set up an extremely quick response system for its ZARA chain. Instead of predicting months before a season starts what women will want to wear, ZARA observes what's selling and what's not and continuously... View Details
Keywords: Organizational Change and Adaptation; Multinational Firms and Management; Competitive Advantage; Retail Industry; Retail Industry; Retail Industry; Spain
Ghemawat, Pankaj, and Jose Luis Nueno. "ZARA: Fast Fashion." Harvard Business School Multimedia/Video Case 703-416, May 2003. (Revised May 2009.)
- 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; Retail Industry; Retail Industry; Norway
Narayandas, Das, Krishna Palepu, and Kerry Herman. "Vita: Cosmetics in the Nordics." Harvard Business School Case 516-013, July 2015.
- 14 Dec 2017
- HBS Seminar
Andrew Davis, Johnson, Cornell University
- June 1998 (Revised April 1999)
- Case
Wiegandt GmbH Cologne
By: Dwight B. Crane and Mathew M Millett
The credit department of Wiegandt, a furniture manufacturer, is evaluating the financial condition of two stores that retail the company's furniture. View Details
Keywords: Financial Condition; Credit; Financial Management; Distribution Channels; Profit; Management Analysis, Tools, and Techniques; Financial Strategy; Manufacturing Industry
Crane, Dwight B., and Mathew M Millett. "Wiegandt GmbH Cologne." Harvard Business School Case 298-159, June 1998. (Revised April 1999.)
- January 2012 (Revised June 2015)
- Background Note
Inventory-Based Lending Industry Note
By: C. Fritz Foley, Ananth Raman and Nathan C. Craig
Inventory-based lending is a form of asset-based lending used by retailers and wholesalers. This note describes the development and the current state of the inventory-based lending industry. View Details
Foley, C. Fritz, Ananth Raman, and Nathan C. Craig. "Inventory-Based Lending Industry Note." Harvard Business School Background Note 612-057, January 2012. (Revised June 2015.)
- March 2024 (Revised April 2025)
- Case
TELEXISTENCE Inc.
By: Paul A. Gompers and Akiko Saito
A case about a Japanese robotics startup aiming to enter the U.S. market with its robots that combine AI and human intervention to complete restocking tasks in retail stores. View Details
Keywords: Business Startups; Entrepreneurship; Market Entry and Exit; Technology Adoption; Decisions; AI and Machine Learning; Retail Industry; Retail Industry; Japan; United States
Gompers, Paul A., and Akiko Saito. "TELEXISTENCE Inc." Harvard Business School Case 224-031, March 2024. (Revised April 2025.)
- October 2022 (Revised September 2024)
- Case
mPharma: Scaling Access to Affordable Primary Care in Africa
By: Regina E. Herzlinger and Ben Creo
mPharma hopes to scale up to create the largest pan-African healthcare company ever to provide much-needed primary care in retail pharmacies; a reliable, fairly priced supply of drugs; and micro-insurance for drugs. They must prioritize launching a telemedicine... View Details
Keywords: Africa; Pharmaceutical Companies; Pharmacy Benefit Manager; Health Care; Health Care And Treatment; Health Care Costs; Health Care Delivery; Health Care Entrepreneurship; Telehealth; Health Equity; Corporate Strategy; Social Entrepreneurship; Equity; Growth and Development Strategy; Expansion; Product Launch; Customer Value and Value Chain; Social Enterprise; Multinational Firms and Management; Pharmaceutical Industry; Health Industry; Africa
Herzlinger, Regina E., and Ben Creo. "mPharma: Scaling Access to Affordable Primary Care in Africa." Harvard Business School Case 323-033, October 2022. (Revised September 2024.)
- August 2018
- Case
Garanti Payment Systems: Digital Transformation Strategy (A)
By: Shelle M. Santana and Esel Çekin
Işıl Akdemir Evlioğlu, executive vice president of marketing at Garanti Payment Systems (GPS), a subsidiary of Garanti Bank, is grappling with three questions. First, should GPS create its own mobile app for credit card customers or leverage the bank’s already... View Details
Keywords: Loyalty Program; Campaign Management; Campaign Enrollment; Branding; Customer Acquisition; Regulations; Regulatory Changes; Bank; Retail Banks; Banking; Credit Card; Payment Systems; Installment; Mobile App; Call Center; Data Analytics; Digital Technology; Banks and Banking; Business Subsidiaries; Mobile and Wireless Technology; Credit Cards; Brands and Branding; Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms; Decision Choices and Conditions; Digital Transformation; Financial Services Industry
Santana, Shelle M., and Esel Çekin. "Garanti Payment Systems: Digital Transformation Strategy (A)." Harvard Business School Case 519-014, August 2018.
- October 1986 (Revised July 2010)
- Case
Karen Leary (A)
By: Linda A. Hill
Describes the evolution of the working relationship of Karen Leary, a new manager of a Merrill Lynch retail branch, and Ted Chung, a new financial consultant in the branch. Leary has some concerns about her working relationship with Chung and with his performance.... View Details
Keywords: Management Style; Employee Relationship Management; Decision Choices and Conditions; Personal Development and Career; Performance Evaluation; Diversity; Financial Services Industry
Hill, Linda A. "Karen Leary (A)." Harvard Business School Case 487-020, October 1986. (Revised July 2010.)
- April 2019 (Revised April 2021)
- Case
Wayfair
By: Jeffrey F. Rayport, Susie L. Ma and Matthew G. Preble
In 2016 Niraj Shah and Steve Conine, founders of online home goods retailer Wayfair, are faced with a decision about how to improve user experience on their e-commerce sites. A key driver of consumer interest and conversion to purchase in the home category is visual... View Details
Keywords: Visual Assets; Corporate Entrepreneurship; Decision Making; Business or Company Management; Growth Management; Innovation and Invention; Operations; Strategy; Technology; Retail Industry; Retail Industry; United States; Massachusetts
Rayport, Jeffrey F., Susie L. Ma, and Matthew G. Preble. "Wayfair." Harvard Business School Case 819-045, April 2019. (Revised April 2021.)
- 16 Nov 2012
- News
Something for the weekend
- 02 Mar 2017
- News
For retail, the revolution is televised
- April 2012 (Revised February 2013)
- Case
H-E-B: Creating a Movement to Reduce Obesity in Texas
By: Jose B. Alvarez, Jason Riis and Walter J. Salmon
In January 2012, H-E-B Grocery Co., a private retail chain with stores located in Texas and Mexico, was introducing its Healthy at H-E-B program to its customers. The program, which started with the company's employees a few years earlier, was an effort to educate and... View Details
Keywords: Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Profit; Leading Change; Customer Focus and Relationships; Retail Industry; Retail Industry; Texas
Alvarez, Jose B., Jason Riis, and Walter J. Salmon. "H-E-B: Creating a Movement to Reduce Obesity in Texas." Harvard Business School Case 512-034, April 2012. (Revised February 2013.)
- August 1985
- Supplement
Benetton Factory Tour--Ponzano, Italy, Video
By: James L. Heskett
Shows the flow of products through Benetton's Ponzano factory, including its use of subcontractors. Includes information about Benetton's manufacturing, logistics, and retailing strategies. View Details
Heskett, James L. "Benetton Factory Tour--Ponzano, Italy, Video." Harvard Business School Video Supplement 886-510, August 1985.