retail industry - Publications - Faculty & Research

October 2002 (Revised June 2005)
Case

McDonald's Corporation (Abridged)

McDonald's has over many years built an operating strategy based on consistency and quality through a limited product range. Competitive forces have drawn the company into a much wider variety of foods and services to maintain growth. Now, new competitors threaten to... View Details

Keywords: Risk Management; Competition; Brands and Branding; Growth and Development Strategy; Retail Industry; Retail Industry

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February 2001 (Revised April 2001)
Case

Warnaco Group, Inc. (A)

By: David F. Hawkins

Warnaco's history of nonrecurring charges is traced from 1990 through 2000 along with the stock market and security analysts' response to these charges. Teaching Purpose: To expose students to the accounting for a variety of new recurring accounting items. View Details

Keywords: Financial Statements; Financial Reporting; Restructuring; Apparel and Accessories Industry; Apparel and Accessories Industry

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October 1997 (Revised May 1998)
Supplement

Asda (B)

By: Michael Beer and James Weber

Describes Archie Norman's efforts over a five-year period to turn around the company by regaining financial control, delivering management, creating experimental projects where individuals felt free to innovate, instituting a back-to-roots strategy that put customers... View Details

Keywords: Change Management; Customer Relationship Management; Governance Controls; Innovation and Invention; Management; Service Delivery; Organizational Culture; Strategy; Food and Beverage Industry; Food and Beverage Industry

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18 Feb 2014
First Look

First Look: February 18

level of maturity where scaling the business model was the next logical step. With two greenhouses already in Canada, he was looking into other locations in the U.S. Though Lufa Farms' advanced cultivation technologies made the company stand out in its sector, the... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

17 May 2016
First Look

May 17, 2016

industries and geographies, this collection provides students with an appreciation for the importance of consumer empowerment and consumer behavior in shaping both health and corporate outcomes. Publisher's link: View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

01 May 2018
First Look

First Look at New Research and Ideas, May 1, 2018

rents from firms producing and commercializing products. In this Industry Note, we describe the origin, evolution, costs, benefits, and future outlook for Patent Trolling in the United States. Purchase this case:... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

April 2025 (Revised June 2025)
Case

Governing Sustainability in a Shifting Context (A)

By: Lynn S. Paine and Will Hurwitz

In early 2025, boards of directors had to rethink corporate responsibility and sustainability efforts amid rapidly-shifting social, legal, regulatory, and economic forces. While just a few years earlier, calls to address racial justice and climate change reached into... View Details

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March 2025
Teaching Note

Kering Eyewear

By: Rohit Deshpandé and Nicole Zelazko

This teaching note provides comprehensive documentation of how to use the Kering Eyewear case (HBS No. 525-027). View Details

Keywords: Mergers and Acquisitions; Business Conglomerates; Business Subsidiaries; Global Strategy; Growth and Development Strategy; Brands and Branding; Marketing Strategy; Product Marketing; Product Positioning; Distribution; Product; Luxury; Apparel and Accessories Industry; Apparel and Accessories Industry; Apparel and Accessories Industry; United States

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March 2021
Supplement

Artea (A), (B), (C), and (D): Designing Targeting Strategies

By: Eva Ascarza and Ayelet Israeli

Power Point Supplement to Teaching Note for HBS No. 521-021,521-022,521-037,521-043. This collection of exercises aims to teach students about 1)Targeting Policies; and 2)Algorithmic bias in marketing—implications, causes, and possible solutions. Part (A) focuses on... View Details

Keywords: Targeted Advertising; Targeting; Algorithmic Data; Bias; A/B Testing; Experiment; Advertising; Gender; Race; Diversity; Marketing; Customer Relationship Management; Prejudice and Bias; Analytics and Data Science; Retail Industry; Retail Industry; Retail Industry; United States

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September 2020 (Revised February 2024)
Teaching Note

Artea (A), (B), (C), and (D): Designing Targeting Strategies

By: Eva Ascarza and Ayelet Israeli

Teaching Note for HBS No. 521-021,521-022,521-037,521-043. This collection of exercises aims to teach students about 1)Targeting Policies; and 2)Algorithmic bias in marketing—implications, causes, and possible solutions. Part (A) focuses on A/B testing analysis and... View Details

Keywords: Targeted Advertising; Targeting; Race; Gender; Diversity; Marketing; Customer Relationship Management; Prejudice and Bias; Analytics and Data Science; Retail Industry; Retail Industry; Retail Industry; United States

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September 2020 (Revised July 2022)
Supplement

Spreadsheet Supplement to "Artea: Designing Targeting Strategies"

By: Eva Ascarza and Ayelet Israeli

Spreadsheet Supplement to "Artea: Designing Targeting Strategies" (521-021). View Details

Keywords: Race; Gender; Marketing; Diversity; Customer Relationship Management; Retail Industry; Retail Industry; Retail Industry; United States

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23 Oct 2018
First Look

New Research and Ideas, October 23, 2018

By: Deller, Carolyn, and Tatiana Sandino Abstract—Using retail chain data, we study the effects of a tournament incentive plan based primarily on objective performance, but incorporating managerial discretion in the selection of winners.... View Details

Keywords: Dina Gerdeman

04 Oct 2016
First Look

October 4, 2016

https://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Pages/item.aspx?num=51680 forthcoming Journal of Financial Economics What Do Measures of Real-Time Corporate Sales Tell Us About Earnings Surprises and Post-announcement Returns? By: Froot, Kenneth A., Namho Kang, Gideon Ozik, and Ronnie... View Details

23 Oct 2007
First Look

First Look: October 23, 2007

square-foot retail complex, a hotel, and the Kodak Theatre, the future home of the Academy Awards. The second project was a mixed-use development, located on Sunset and Vine. This property had suffered a bad run of previous development... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

January 2017 (Revised April 2018)
Background Note

Introduction to Incentive-based Sales Compensation Systems

By: Willy Shih

This background note explains the structure of incentive-based sales compensation systems. View Details

Keywords: Sales Compensation; Sales Force Compensation; Sales Force Management; Sales; Salesforce Management; Compensation and Benefits; Motivation and Incentives; Industrial Products Industry; Industrial Products Industry; Industrial Products Industry; United States

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19 May 2014
Research & Ideas

Why Companies Should Compete for Your Privacy

receive lower prices in return but also because, in some cases,firms provide better service. A: There are many examples of how firms exploit consumer personal information to improve online services. Retailers and travel agencies, for... View Details

Keywords: by Dina Gerdeman; Consumer Products

March 2014 (Revised September 2015)
Case

Clef Company: Turnover

By: Frank V. Cespedes

The Clef case focuses on the issue of turnover in a firm's sales force. Students must analyze the factors contributing to turnover as well as the role of the field sales force in Clef's profitable business strategy. Among other things, the Clef case illustrates that... View Details