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Suning Group launched Suning.com when its chain stores were developing at the highest speed, realizing the transformation to an Internet retailer. Suning continued to follow the growth strategy of “Technological transformation and Smart Services”, and was renamed Suning Commerce Co. Ltd. It launched a business model of “e-commerce + stores + retail service providers”. Riding on the brand new O2O business model, Suning is thinking and practicing from simple donation to actual implementation, from constructing public welfare network to extending CSR ecosystem in a bid to advance towards deeper and more extensive Internet economy, and to create greater social value.

The learning outcomes of this case study are to develop an understanding of informal business practices (IBP) from an economic and a behavioural perspective, identify the pros and cons of IBP and how they can hinder the realization of entrepreneurial aspirations, use the effectuation perspective to understand the entrepreneurial journey of the protagonist and apply the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (SWOT) analysis and effectuation theory to understand the need for transition from informal to formal business practices.

KSN Iyengar Catering Services (KSNICS) had gained popularity for cooking and serving traditional “Iyengar” cuisine during festivals, ceremonies and other auspicious occasions. With the passage of time, KSNICS slowly diversified into offering food carrier services, corporate catering and preparation of sweets/savouries during the Diwali festival. The enterprise managed to sustain itself without additional investments from external sources. KSNICS was managed in an informal manner by the protagonist, Krishna Kumar. After almost 30 years of KSNICS’s existence, in 2021, Kumar felt that they should diversify into the restaurant business by establishing an authentic “Iyengar” restaurant. In spite of the unpredictable market and the challenging times due to the COVID-19 pandemic, he had somehow managed to sustain his catering business. However, given the informal methods through which he operated his catering services and in the post-COVID-19 pandemic scenario, would it be prudent on his part to establish a restaurant?

This case study is suitable for post-graduate- and executive-level instruction in courses such as managerial skills, entrepreneurship and human resource management. In managerial skills course, it can be used for applying SWOT analysis from a particular perspective for effective decision-making. In entrepreneurship-related courses, it can be used to introduce aspects such as entrepreneurship orientation, effectuation and decision-making. In organizational behaviour and HR-related courses, it can be used to highlight how employees can be trained and motivated and how businesses can be sustained within the scale, especially during challenging times. Irrespective of the course, the IBP discussion would remain a constant point of reference because that was the context under which the current business was operating.

Teaching notes are available for educators only.

CSS 3: Entrepreneurship.

This case replaces UVA-M-0837. It can be used in a variety of marketing and strategy classes to understand how (1) at a macro level, a shift in consumer and environmental factors can impact firm strategy and (2) at a micro level, an e-mail-based marketing campaign designed to address these changes can impact firm-level performance.

The case puts the students in the position of CEO Robert Huth as he is preparing for a board meeting. He had taken David's Bridal from a loss in 1996 to sales of over $1 billion by 2011, but he was concerned about future growth. People were waiting longer and longer to get married and, once they decided to, were spending much less than in the past, so the industry had seen year-over-year declines since 2007. How would David's Bridal establish its brand in the minds of a new generation of brides who shopped, purchased, and decided differently than had brides in past generations?

The tech giants Alibaba and Tencent compete on many fronts. This case focuses on three areas where they have competed very hard: new retailing, mobile payment, and ride-hailing. At the beginning of 2018, Alibaba and Tencent were gathering retail investments in bids to battle each other for shoppers' digital wallets. Key to the battle is China's mobile payment market, worth more than 200 trillion RMB, where Alibaba and Tencent are going head to head. The giants are not only directly competing in the payment platform area but also extensively fighting in other areas, such as ride-hailing, where they invested in and supported Didi and Kuaidi, respectively. To enhance understanding, this case also briefly goes through the history of the two giants. The purposes, methods, and consequences of their platform competition deserve an in-depth discussion

In the light of the case study and the accompanying case study questions, the incumbent would be able to gain a comprehensive understanding on the theoretical underpinnings of retail store expansion, identify the challenges for expanding a brand into emerging markets such as India and apply various marketing strategies aimed at in-depth analysis retail expansion. Learners can further comprehend the importance of brand communication incorporated by the brand to attract its customer subset.

It was in December 2022, when Mason Chatterjee, the Indian brand head of Armani Exchange (A|X), was confronted with the managerial dilemma whether launching the second store in the city of Ahmedabad would be a right decision. Another issue that was troubling him was how to go about launching a second store in a city which was not a home to other luxury sublabels. The case study illustrates the decisional aspect of retail expansion adopted by Chatterjee, considering the distinct managerial perspectives. Chatterjee found potential in the city of Ahmedabad, owing to an increased number of high-net-worth individuals and other macro factors. The case study is primarily an outcome of research carried out at A|X store at Ahmedabad One mall, Ahmedabad, for over a fortnight in the month of February 2023. The expansion decision of Chatterjee proved to be a success in the city of Ahmedabad reaching a sales figure of INR 1 crore (US$130,344.11) in the very first month of its launch. However, he was confronted with the managerial dilemma of further expansion, just six months after the launch of the latest expansion.

The case study is intended for advanced undergraduates or postgraduate programs in management or electives such as marketing, retail management and strategic management. It has not only been specifically designed for teaching the concept of retail expansion but can also be used to integrate contexts on brand’s merchandise mix, retail positioning, visual merchandising and brand communication. The case study has an overview of each of these elements. The instructor may choose them into the context for a wider encompassing detailed lesson or particularly on the main aspect of the case.

Teaching notes are available for educators only.

CSS8: Marketing