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September 2025
Article

Organizational Emplacement as a Response to Digital Threat: The Novel Resurgence of Independent Bookstores

By: Ryan Raffaelli and Ryann Noe

This study reveals how incumbent actors leverage physical place as source of differentiation in response to the threat of digital commoditization. Through a longitudinal, qualitative analysis of the U.S. independent bookselling industry from 1995 to 2019, we outline... View Details

Keywords: Retail; Place Making; Bookstores; Industry Evolution; Digital; Commoditization; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Adaptation; Business Strategy; Digital Transformation; E-commerce; Distribution Channels; Civil Society or Community; Value Creation; Retail Industry

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August 2025
Case

Must B Nutty?

By: Christina Wallace, Martha Hostetter and Alicia Dadlani

Veronica and Miguel Garza, siblings from a large Mexican-American family from Texas, founded a company in 2014 to sell the almond-flour tortillas Veronica had developed to fit her grain-free diet. Their company, Must Be Nutty, tapped into growing demand for... View Details

Keywords: Acquisition; Valuation; Family Business; Family Ownership; Small Business; Brands and Branding; Product Marketing; Distribution Channels; Market Entry and Exit; Food and Beverage Industry; United States

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; Expansion; Global Strategy; Distribution Channels; Business Model; Beauty and Cosmetics Industry; Beauty and Cosmetics Industry; Kuwait; Saudi Arabia; Middle East; North Africa

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

Keywords: Emerging Markets; Digital Strategy; Growth and Development; Expansion; Distribution Channels; Global Strategy; Business Model; Market Design; Beauty and Cosmetics Industry; Beauty and Cosmetics Industry; Kuwait; Saudi Arabia; Middle East; North Africa

May 2025
Supplement

On (B): The Cyclon Spins On

By: Ramon Casadesus-Masanell, Karolin Frankenberger, Sascha Mader and Karen Elterman

A follow-up to the On case (723-430), this short case explores how the performance athletic shoe company On expanded its Cyclon subscription and recycling program through 2024, adding two new shoe models to the subscription and a one-time-purchase recyclable T-shirt. View Details

March 2025 (Revised June 2025)
Case

Designing the Future of Work: Atlassian's Distributed Work Practices

By: Ashley Whillans and Gabriel Rondón Ichikawa

In early 2020, the software company Atlassian made a bold commitment: employees could work from anywhere—forever. While many tech peers reversed course on remote work, Atlassian worked to optimize their fully distributed model across 13 countries. This case follows... View Details

Keywords: Transformation; Working Conditions; Management Practices and Processes; Product Development; Organizational Culture; Business Strategy; Employees; Technology Industry

March 2025
Teaching Plan

Wasabi Technologies (A) and (B)

By: N. Louis Shipley and Stacy Straaberg

Teaching Plan for HBS Case Nos. 823-021 and 825-035. Set in 2019, the “Wasabi Technologies (A)” case centers on Wasabi Technologies (Wasabi), a successful hot cloud storage company based in Boston, Massachusetts. Founder and CEO David Friend is ready to scale the... View Details

Keywords: Sales; Product Development; Growth and Development Strategy; Business Divisions; Business Strategy; Marketing Strategy; Distribution Channels; Information Technology Industry; United States; Massachusetts; Boston

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

2025
Working Paper

New Product Diffusion Within Retailers: The Effect of Managerial Quality on Rollout

By: Tomomichi Amano and Jorge Tamayo

Retailers are key intermediaries through which consumers encounter innovation in the form of new products. How are these products rolled out within retailers? Despite standardized processes, we observe significant variation in the availability of new products across... View Details

Keywords: Managerial Quality; Firm Performance; Diffusion Of Innovation; New Product Rollout; Retailing; Distribution Channels; Product Launch; Management Skills; Retail Industry; Colombia

February 2025
Supplement

Moleskine: Daniela Riccardi Turns the Page

By: Ryan Raffaelli

Newly appointed CEO Daniela Riccardi needed to develop and present an action plan to the board of the company that owned Moleskine. Riccardi was hired because Moleskine had recently overextended its reach and needed more focus and discipline. Having previously served... View Details

Keywords: Brands and Branding; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Distribution Channels; Planning; Leading Change; Organizational Culture; Product Marketing; Retail Industry; Italy

February 2025
Supplement

eBee: Affordable Mobility for Africa

By: Ramon Casadesus-Masanell, Gamze Yucaoglu and Jordan Mitchell

The case opens in March 2023, as Sten van der Ham and Jaap Maljers, CEO and co-founder of eBee, an electric bike (e-bike) company in Africa, are contemplating the different avenues for growth and path to profitability for the young and ambitious company. In 2023, the... View Details

Keywords: Business Model; Value Creation; Competition; Logistics; Profit; Resource Allocation; Expansion; Business Strategy; Growth and Development Strategy; Distribution Channels; Entrepreneurial Finance; Bicycle Industry; Africa; Kenya

January 2025
Case

Olive Young: Formulating Beauty Innovation

By: Rebecca Karp and Shu Lin

Sun-jung Lee, CEO of Olive Young, South Korea's largest beauty and health retailer, saw significant potential in the U.S. market and considered three pathways: replicating Korea's omnichannel model, adopting a digital-native approach with curated products, or relying... View Details

Keywords: Business Model; Market Entry and Exit; Business Strategy; Distribution Channels; Retail Industry; Retail Industry; South Korea; East Asia; United States

January 2025
Technical Note

Get Cool: Air Conditioning Industry Background

By: Rosabeth Moss Kanter and Jacob A. Small

The “air conditioning paradox” is tied to climate change: the more the planet warms, the greater the need for cooling (due to the dangers of extreme heat as well as comfort within buildings), but the use of electricity-powered AC contributes to further warming. There... View Details

Keywords: Appliances; Global Warming; Energy Efficiency; Climate Change; Venture Capital; Demand and Consumers; Distribution Channels; Green Technology; United States; Asia

January 2025
Teaching Note

Vytal: Packaging-as-a-Service

By: George Serafeim, Michael W. Toffel and Stacy Straaberg

Teaching Note for HBS Case No. 124-007. The Germany-based startup Vytal operated the largest digital-native reusable packaging-as-a-service network globally, having raised nearly €15 million, established a large network of restaurant partners, and prevented the use of... View Details

January 2025
Case

Driving Efficiency and Sustainability at P&G China

By: Feng Zhu, Philip Kuai and Billy Chan

P&G China’s business had reached new heights thanks to the explosive growth of e-commerce in the country, but the rapidly increasing volume of shipments to customers had created operational and environmental challenges in terms of packaging waste, shipping damage, and... View Details

Keywords: Transformation; Customer Value and Value Chain; Environmental Sustainability; E-commerce; Logistics; Product Design; Value Creation; Order Taking and Fulfillment; Supply Chain Management; Consumer Products Industry; China

January 8, 2025
Article

Why Retailers Are Turning to Third-Party Marketplaces

By: Antonio Moreno

Some traditional retailers—including Walmart, Target, and Best Buy—are adopting third-party marketplaces, which connect customers with external sellers and thereby offer customers a much broader selection. Many other traditional retailers are considering whether to... View Details

Keywords: Marketplace Matching; Distribution Channels; Customer Focus and Relationships; Cost vs Benefits; Retail Industry

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January 2025 (Revised April 2025)
Case

Mercado Libre: The Best Is Yet to Come

By: Krishna G. Palepu, Fernando Fragueiro, Carla Larangeira and Mariana Cal

In 2024, Marcos Galperín, CEO and co-founder of Mercado Libre, reflected on its 25-year rise as Latin America’s largest marketplace, fintech leader, and most valuable public company. With operations spanning 18 countries and a robust ecosystem combining e-commerce,... View Details

December 2024 (Revised March 2025)
Case

WayCool: Addressing Food Loss

By: Rajiv Lal and Kairavi Dey

Headquartered in Chennai, India, WayCool started by focusing on solving the growing challenge of food losses and low farmer incomes. Dasari and Jayaraman, surprised at the amount of fruits and vegetables lost in the agricultural supply chain, set up the company with... View Details

Keywords: Agribusiness; Entrepreneurship; Business Model; Food; Supply Chain; Loss; Expansion; Distribution Channels; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; Asia; India; Bangalore; Chennai

December 2024 (Revised March 2025)
Case

Strategy and CEO Succession at Starbucks

By: Krishna G. Palepu and David Lane

On August 13, 2024, Starbucks announced that Laxman Narasimhan who was appointed as the CEO only in September 2023, was stepping down as CEO and board director “with immediate effect.” Laxman would be replaced on September 9 by Brian Niccol, CEO since 2018 of Chipotle... View Details

Keywords: Strategy; Corporate Governance; Leadership; Management Succession; Cost Management; Labor Unions; Working Conditions; Order Taking and Fulfillment; Service Operations; Investment Activism; Governing and Advisory Boards; Resignation and Termination; Food and Beverage Industry; United States

November 2024
Supplement

AlphaGo (C): Birth of a New Intelligence

By: Shikhar Ghosh and Shweta Bagai

This case, the final of a three-part series, explores DeepMind's pivotal transition from mastering games to solving real-world scientific challenges. In December 2020, DeepMind's AI system AlphaFold 2 achieved a breakthrough by solving protein folding—a 50-year-old... View Details

Keywords: Autonomy; Deep Learning; Drug Discovery; Healthcare Innovation; Neural Networks; Scientific Research; Technology Startup; AI and Machine Learning; Technological Innovation; Research and Development; Business Model; Business Strategy; Open Source Distribution; Technology Industry; United States

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