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This case introduces students to the heritage brand Maille. Dating back to 1747, this brand has managed to elevate the image of mustard from commodity to premium product, capitalizing on brand authenticity and adopting the codes and strategies of luxury brands. Present in supermarkets with a premium price positioning, Maille develops its image through creating an elaborate customer experience in its boutiques, as well as through a communication strategy based on storytelling. Yet, the core base of customers who identify as gourmets is aging. To sustain its development, Maille needs to gain appeal among younger generations of consumers, without betraying its identity.

The Maille brand manager was interviewed in relation to the case. Participant observation was conducted in the boutiques in Paris (both Place de la Madeleine and Caroussel du Louvre) and in London, followed by discussions with Maille sommeliers. Data were also gathered through secondary sources. The question “How to seduce younger consumers with mustard” was proposed by Unilever.

This case has been effectively used with MBA and MSc Marketing students in Brand Management classes to demonstrate how brands draw inspiration from the luxury sector to become aspirational, enhance their social prestige and position themselves at higher price points. Students must reflect on how to build on the brand’s current strengths in order to protect it from a decline in consumption and competitive threats. Based on this analysis of the current situation, students must decide on the value of Maille differentiation strategy to younger consumers and on which segments to target without harming the brand’s identity. The rejuvenation of heritage brands (or gaining appeal to younger generations of customers) is a major issue in many sectors, from luxury, to wine and spirits, to food.

The case fosters discussions on core marketing concepts such as heritage branding and brand authenticity as well as differentiation and premiumisation strategies, all concepts that should be developed when answering the assignment questions. Furthermore, students should choose between a segmentation based on demographics (age, generations), and a segmentation based on lifestyle and attitude toward food.

Comme l'a relevé le Gouvernement suisse dans son message du 23 septembre 1991 au Parlement sur la poursuite de la collaboration renforcée avec des Etats d'Europe orientale et centrale, les pays occidentaux ont un intérêt direct à une évolution contrôlée en Europe occidentale, afin de ne pas mettre en péril la stabilité internationale. La crise d'alors dans les Etats qui ont pris la succession de l'Union soviétique a été en particulier provoquée par des facteurs économiques. La stabilité recherchée ne peut par conséquent être garantie que si la situation économique est relativement bonne dans ces Etats d'Europe orientale et cet objectif nécessite un soutien de la Suisse. En outre, le Gouvernement helvétique était d'avis qu'au sens d'une coresponsabilité solidaire, la Suisse a le devoir “de contribuer à la réussite du processus de réforme en Europe de l'Est, afin de surmonter la partition européenne et de prendre part à l'édification de l'Europe”. Cela doit tre compris comme une politique de paix au sens large de cette expression. En 1990 déjà, le Parlement suisse avait approuvé un crédit de programme conférant au Gouvernement un instrument “qui lui permettait d'oeuvrer à la coopération avec l'Europe orientale sur divers plans: économie, politique, culture et société”.

The first purpose of this communication is to highlight retailers' current challenges related to branding as a value creation process. The second purpose is to identify existing organizational brakes that may slow down retailer brand building. The final aim is to indicate managerial and research priorities in retail branding.

The article confronts the conclusions of previous research and the findings of a longitudinal case study conducted with a major French retailer and brand experts between 2004 and 2011.

The authors identify managerial implications and four research priorities: cultural and organizational change, development and sharing of new capacities, customer behavior knowledge, and development of a strategic retailer brand building model.

The question of creating and sustaining retailer brands in the long term is addressed both from a managerial and academic perspective. The longitudinal case study illustrates how a major European retailer copes with branding issues and creates customer value thanks to its brands.

The field of commercial (or public) food services in France has never been so open. The development of new concepts under the impulsion of an Americanization that many contest, the necessity of mastering management, new techniques and processes with constantly evolving regulations (9 May 1995, HACCP method), the adoption of a strategy of internal growth by some and expansion through acquisitions by others, the explosion of thematic food services or the launch of new formulas by major food specialists, all go to show the turbulent framework in which the players in this field of activity are evolving.

Longtemps considérés comme des destinations surtout recherchées par les trappeurs, les chercheurs d'or et de minerais précieux, les explorateurs arctiques et les amateurs de nature sauvage et indomptée, le Canada et le Québec sont devenus, au fil des ans et du développement des moyens de communication, une destination touristique grand public, répondant aussi bien aux aspirations de dépaysement des uns qu'aux besoins de sécurité, de paix et de convivialité des autres.

The paper deals with an evaluation of the future of international tourism and its impacts for french supplyers. This not only includes key economic actors but also the entire tourism‐relevant environment. Furthermore, intersectoral perspectives are elaborated. The authors conclude with recommandation with special emphasis on the public sector.

With the introduction of the EUR, a new time of European economy and tourism has begun.

Many French organisations have recently chosen to decentralise their management control systems, extending them into the middle‐management level. This “irrigation” of management structure by management control systems called for a study of the articulation between central management control practices (at the head‐office level) and local management control practices (at the unit level). This exploratory study investigates the meaning that the actors in the organisational units‐local controllers and operational managers‐give to their practices aimed at implementing the central management control system. Starting from the standpoint of the subjectivist contingency theory, this research is founded on an interpretive epistemology and is based on a comparative analysis of eight case studies conducted at the regional level of a large French bank’s distribution network. The “Findings” section shows that the central management control system, developed at the bank’s head office, conveys a good many “contradictory injunctions”. A typology of the differentiated regional implementation practices is proposed. Next, the interactions between local actors exert a complex influence on these practices. Finally, a qualitative typology of the relational systems in play between management controllers and operational managers is proposed.

Questions à traiter. Le 47e congrès de l'AIEST s'est engagé à analyser les questions de fond suivantes: