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The purpose of this chapter is to offer instructors and students a real managerial dilemma faced by a large Brazilian company in the cosmetics industry as it ventures into the European arena after successful expansion in Latin America.

This is a teaching case for use in class discussion about the advantages and disadvantages of certain courses of internationalization, in particular, standardization versus adaptation of the marketing mix, the choice of entry and operation modes, and the management of international acquisitions.

Since this is a teaching case, there are no “findings” in the usual sense of the word related to traditional empirical studies.

Data for the case came mainly from the manifested perspectives of the company’s Vice-president of International Operations, complemented by the opinions of the company’s Senior Manager of Strategic Planning and of a business analyst of the cosmetic industry, which has been following the company for years. Such data may reflect the particular views of these actors. The authors also used public secondary data from the company’s presentations to the public, consulting companies, and business magazines. Although these accounts may be partial, this is not a severe limitation since a teaching case is expected to provide some information, but not a full set of information, in order to reflect better the real context of managerial decisions.

This teaching case study can help students reflect upon a real managerial dilemma related to international expansion of a firm into psychically distant markets.

This teaching case discusses how an emerging market firm can challenge strong incumbents in developed markets and find a viable positioning, based on a distinctive sales model and value proposition for customers.

Innovation and Intrapreneurship.

MSc, MBA and Executive Education Programmes.

The case on Priscila Matta focuses on the role of social intrapreneurship and social inclusion at Natura, the largest cosmetics company in Brazil and a corporate responsibility leader. Centred in the complexity stemming from dealing with a local community which supplies key ingredients to the Ekos product line, the company's most prominent and innovative brand, it illustrates the difficulties of establishing inclusive forms of business with a traditional community in the northeast of Brazil. Ekos builds on the rich Brazilian biodiversity and traditional knowledge. Brazilian law requires Natura to share the benefits obtained from the access to genetic heritage and associated traditional knowledge with those communities who supply such resources. Implicitly, the case focuses on the role of the social intrapreneur – Priscila Matta – and how she navigated corporate politics to structure the company's community relations. The case demonstrates the difficulties of social intrapreneurs who aim to create sustainable innovations to execute shared value strategies.

The case has the following four learning objectives: to illustrate best practices in intrapreneurial activities that aim to create shared value – in this case, value for Natura and for the community; to define the role and characteristics of social intrapreneurs – people inside big corporations who drive sustainable innovation; to discuss obstacles the corporate environment presents in the process of social innovation; and to illustrate how individuals within companies can implement a shared value strategy.

Teaching Notes are available for educators only. Please contact your library to gain login details or email support@emeraldinsight.com to request teaching notes.

Faced with declining market share and sales, Natura, Brazil’s second-largest brand in the cosmetics, fragrances, and toiletries market, expanded its customer reach by moving from a direct-sales company to a multichannel company. In 2014, Natura added online catalogs, physical stores, and drugstores to its well-established direct-selling model, but the results were disappointing. Between 2014 and 2016, three different Natura CEOs attempted to lead the company in the strategic transition to focus less on the direct sales consultants and more on reaching the end consumers directly with multiple channels and touchpoints. In October 2016, the company’s board appointed its former commercial vice president, João Paulo Ferreira, as the most recent CEO. Ferreira’s challenge was to find the right balance between the direct-selling and other channel formats to market Natura, thus enabling it to thrive in the face of intense competition in the beauty and personal care market in Brazil.

This study aims to analyse how Natura's practices of circular economy and sustainability overlap.

This study is descriptive and qualitative, based on a thematic content analysis, and it describes and compares the performance of Natura in several dimensions, including economic, environmental, social, human rights, society, product responsibility and stakeholder engagement. A longitudinal study was carried out on the basis of an analysis of all Natura sustainability reports; these reports are available for public consultation and cover the period from 2001 to 2016.

The main results show that there is symmetry between sustainability practices and the premises of the circular economy, with the ReSOLVE classification being met in most of the items.

Innovation is the essential element that facilitated the creation of a portfolio of products that meet consumer demand.

The purpose of this paper is to discuss whether it is possible to reconcile the objectives of sustainable development (SD) with a company's socially responsible performance in the Brazilian Amazon. The relationship between the concepts of SD and corporate social responsibility (CSR) is presented.

The case study method was used, based on the analysis of the Saboaria (soaps factory) of the Brazilian cosmetics company Natura.

The study demonstrated the coexistence and integration of both concepts, translated into strategies and practices of organizational management.

The fundamental limitation of the paper is that it is formed using secondary data, collected from the internet and printed media. Conducting further research using primary data, such as interviews or surveys with Natura's managers, Natura's consumers, or Natura's employees/community, and for a longer period to analyze the Natura Saboaria experience is necessary.

The major implication for practice is that a sustainable strategy is necessary on a wide sense, not just in line with economic dimension.

This study integrates the literatures on SD and CSR to a series of business projects geared towards the sustainable use of the Amazon's resources, in pursuit of socially responsible behavior.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of the assessment procedure under the European Union Habitats Directive. The wider scope of this procedure together with the lack of detail as to its requirements has originated from an important body of case law from the European Court of Justice. The Court has steadily clarified some of the key matters underlying the procedure. Its case law now represents a significant constraint for development plan and projects affecting Natura 2000 sites.

The methodology is based on the analysis of the directive’s text [Article 6(3) and (4)] in the light of the case law. This paper aims to highlight the relevant findings of the European Court and how they limit the prima facie discretion on the part of the Member States.

The basic findings could be summarised as follows: the environmental assessment procedure under the Habitats Directive represents a strong tool for controlling activities affecting Natura 2000 sites. Unlike the other environmental assessment directives, a negative conclusion concerning their effects precludes any execution. Significant territorial gaps between plans and projects and Natura 2000 sites do not necessarily avoid the carrying out of complete assessments. The conjunction between a general duty to prevent the deterioration of sites and environmental assessments requires that projects authorised before the designation of sites may be subject to this procedure.

The originality of this paper is based on a structured presentation of the key matters surrounding the assessment procedure in the light of the recent case law.

This paper aims to operationalize and to test the ARCTIC (A – Advantage, R – Relatedness, C – Complexity of Competence, T – Time of Integration, I – Implementation Plan, C – Cultural Fit) framework to assess the prerequisites of competence-based synergy in the acquisition process. The current research provides new analyses of recent acquisitions in the global beauty industry where the ARCTIC framework was satisfied and where the ARCTIC model was NOT satisfied by decisive factors to get the acquisition's synergies. It allows readers to contrast two case studies and grasp how the framework works in greater detail.

The current research relies on an extensive archival search that included financial statements, annual reports, internal documents, industry publications and CEO statements to get at a micro-level understanding. This boosts research data and the operationalization of the ARCTIC framework.

The research identified four steps for investigating whether core competence transfer in an acquisition process would be a source of competence-based synergies. The incorporation of real options into the synergy valuation measures market value-added arising from M&A deals.

The current paper contributes to theoretical and practical issues of global M&As as part of the existing literature of international business and strategic management. The impact on reciprocal synergies of agency problems, external interaction between CEOs in M&A deals, corporate governance systems and an executive compensation theory are promising areas of future research.

El presente artículo pretende poner en práctica y a prueba el esquema ARCTIC a fin de evaluar los requisitos previos de la sinergia basada en las competencias en el proceso de adquisición. Este estudio ofrece nuevos análisis de las recientes adquisiciones acontecidas en el sector de la belleza a nivel mundial en las que se siguió el esquema ARCTIC y en las que NO se siguió por factores decisivos para conseguir las sinergias de la adquisición. Permite a los lectores contrastar dos casos prácticos y comprender con mayor detalle cómo funciona el esquema.

Para el estudio actual se ha llevado a cabo una amplia búsqueda de archivos entre los que se incluyen balances financieros, informes anuales, documentación interna, publicaciones del sector y declaraciones del director general para obtener una comprensión pormenorizada. De este modo, se potencian los datos de la investigación y la puesta en práctica del esquema ARCTIC.

En el estudio se han identificado cuatro pasos que determinan si la transferencia de competencias básicas en un proceso de adquisición sería el origen de sinergias basadas en las competencias. La incorporación de opciones reales en la evaluación de las sinergias mide el valor añadido del mercado derivado de las operaciones de fusión y adquisición.

Este artículo contribuye a los aspectos teóricos y prácticos de las fusiones y las adquisiciones mundiales como parte de la bibliografía existente sobre comercio internacional y gestión estratégica. El impacto de las sinergias recíprocas de problemas del agente-principal, las interacciones externas entre directores generales en acuerdos de fusiones y adquisiciones, los sistemas de gobernanza empresarial y una teoría de la compensación ejecutiva son campos prometedores para futuras investigaciones.

Entrepreneurs, Strategic planning, Management, Family businesses.

Undergraduate and Graduate (as an introductory case study).

Marisa® is a consolidated bakery in Guadalajara México, selling a wide variety of dessert products. It has achieved fast growth and has diversified with other brands, either by buying or developing them. Examples are Tía Lola® (economical cakes) and Dolce Natura® (artisanal ice creams). The company founder has maintained not only the growth and development of her brand but also the organizational values and culture. These she has transmitted to her over 400 employees. The company is currently facing expansion.

The expected learning outcomes are as follows: to distinguish the different expansion strategies; to discuss how to maintain culture and values in a firm despite time and growth; to analyze the current market and long-term objectives, as well as different competitors of the firm; and to make strategic decisions at the corporate level.

Teaching Notes are available for educators only. Please contact your library to gain login details or email support@emeraldinsight.com to request teaching notes.

CSS: 3: Entrepreneurship.

This paper aims to compare the CSR strategy, stakeholder engagement and overseas approaches of six leading companies that have large potential environmental and social impacts, influential stakeholders and notable CSR actions.

This is an exploratory survey based on interviews with senior executives from British and Brazilian companies operating in the steel, petroleum and retail sectors, that makes comparisons between and within them.

The British companies interviewed are more rule-based, adopt an implicit CSR approach, react to stakeholders' demands based on moral motives, and focus on environmental issues. The Brazilian companies reviewed in this study adopt an explicit CSR approach, have relational motives to engage with stakeholders, and are more concerned with building a responsible image and narrowing social gaps.

The survey is based on the perceptions of the senior executives interviewed, which may or may not correspond to actual practices. The sample size restricts generalisation of the results, and the specific firms interviewed may not represent the prevailing CSR business strategy in their respective countries.

British companies can learn from the Brazilian experience how to become more innovative in a broader approach to CSR. Brazil should reinforce its legal framework to provide a more systematic and rule-based approach to CSR, close to the UK experience.

The way CSR is conceived and implemented depends on the ethical, socioeconomic, legal and institutional environment of the country in which the firm operates.