Publications

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

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

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

09 Jan 2019
Video

Interning in the Retail Sector

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

Keywords: History; Distribution; Change; Retail Industry; Retail Industry; United States

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Clubs

Retail & Luxury Goods Club

Keywords: Consumer Products / Retail

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

Keywords: Emerging Markets; Digital Strategy; Growth and Development; Retail Industry; Retail Industry; Kuwait; Saudi Arabia; Middle East; North Africa

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

Awards

American Accounting Association. Management Accounting Section. Dissertation Award

By: Tatiana Sandino

Won the 2005 Outstanding Doctoral Dissertation Award from the Management Accounting Section of the American Accounting Association for "Introducing the First Management Control Systems: Evidence from the Retail Sector." View Details

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

Keywords: by Julia Hanna; Retail; Retail

February 1982 (Revised June 1985)
Case

U.S. Retail Coffee Market (B)

Describes the corporate portfolio of General Foods, Procter & Gamble, and Nestle, thereby placing in context their coffee activities in the United States. The objective of this case is to allow students to evaluate each competitor's commitment to the U.S. retail coffee... View Details

Keywords: Competition; Markets; Retail Industry; Retail Industry; United States

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

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29 May 2009
Working Paper Summaries

Crafting Integrated Multichannel Retailing Strategies

Keywords: by Jie Zhang, Paul Farris, Tarun Kushwaha, John Irvin, Thomas J. Steenburgh & Barton Weitz; Retail

26 Nov 2009
News

Holiday Retail Traditions

29 Apr 2014

HBS Retail Webinar

This online information session will highlight the resources at HBS for students interested in pursuing a career in Retail. There will be a brief presentation followed by a student panel discussion. Registration is required. 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

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel; Health

January 2025 (Revised February 2025)
Teaching Note

Vanguard Retail Operations

By: Antonio Moreno, Willy C. Shih and Margaret Underwood

Teaching Note for HBS Case No. 620-104. View Details