Building sustainable competitive advantage
May 2024
Avon International: Imagining a Refill Program in Turkey
By Ioannis Ioannou, Ken Mark, Lisa Duke
The case explores the role of sustainability initiatives in Avon's business strategy and how they align with its mission of empowering women. It also discusses the potential financial and operational implications of the yet-to-be implemented idea of a refill program, including changes to supply chai...
May 2024
The HASSLACHER Group: The Capital Equipment Decision
By Ioannis Ioannou, Ken Mark
A visitor to Sachsenburg, a quiet village nestled in the Austrian Alps, might not know that it was the headquarters of the Hasslacher Group, Europe’s largest producer of glued laminated timber. It was early May 2022 and Christoph Kulterer, CEO of the Hasslacher Group, wanted to decide what to do w...
August 2023
Stepping out of lockdown: Launching a footwear brand during a pandemic
By Claudia Yoshinaga, Elisa Larroudé, John Mullins
Marina Larroudé stared glumly at all the crossings out on the proposed boots order for the autumn collection. Her husband Ricardo wanted to cut her suggestions by nearly half – in models, colours and quantities. Their fledgling shoe business had begun to a promising buzz a few months ago, but las...