Category
In the News
Thorntons worries over Brexit delays and shortages
A fair sprinkling of business gold in here for Edexcel Paper 3 - the potential impact of tariff and non-tariff barriers on chocolate confectionery imported into the UK (5,000 truck loads each year...
Poorly pup inspires pet food business success story
This is superb - jam-packed (or should that be (blueberry and vegetable-packed) with core business concepts. Sources of finance; dealing with suppliers; niche v mass. It's got the lot - we'd be...
Nestlé's Gold Blend gambit
Consumer demand for premium coffee has grown strongly in recent years. How is Nescafe responding to changing market preferences for soluble coffee granules?
Bira 91 - An Indian brand aiming high in craft beer
Here is a tremendous case study article on the rapid expansion of Bira 91, an Indian craft beer manufacturer with big ambitions! Pick as many business concepts as you can out of this!
The Failure of ToysRUs
Stunning analysis and pure, 900 carat gold, for strategic drift - The BBC reports on the failure of Toys R Us
Ethical business doesn't guarantee success
A good example here of how operating an award-winning ethical business doesn't guarantee business success - particularly if your costs are too high, profit margins too low and consumer demand weakens.
The casual dining crunch
Fantastic article here analysing the reasons for the increasing number of business closures in the UK restaurant market. The importance of rent as a fixed cost which significantly increases the...
A cautionary tale here for multinationals wanting to grow in international markets using external growth strategies. Australian firm Wesfarmers have admitted they made a pretty disastrous decision...
Can Nestle Succeed With a Market Development Strategy in the Indian Pet Food Market?
Multinational pet food giant Nestle has spotted an opportunity in India. Would it be barking mad to ignore the opportunity, or should it paws before making an investment in this market development...
Facebook v Unilever: Porter's Five Forces & CSR in Action
Where does the balance of bargaining power lie between a customer and a supplier? That’s one of the key questions that underpins the announcement by multinational consumer goods giant Unilever that...
Tesco's pay claim - what makes different jobs 'equal'?
The size of pay claim that Tesco's could face, if they are found guilty of gender discrimination, is massive, as employees would then have the right to reclaim underpaid wages for up to six years....
Brand values
This map looks at the most valuable brand in each country in 2018. The list of the world's top 500 brands by value is dominated by U.S. brands like Google, Amazon, Facebook, Visa, AT&T, and...
A Challenging External Environment Puts Pressure on UK Restaurants
This BBC Business articleon the difficulties being faced by the UK restaurant market is full of topical examples of how the external environment can threaten seemingly well-established and...
Who makes key parts of the iPhone?
This article contains a fantastic graphic on how the iPhone is a great example of the process of globalisation, with components from a variety of companies with, surprisingly, some made by...
Employee benefits - grow-your-own healthcare
How often do you hear a CEO saying that 'our most important asset is our people'? If that is the case, then keeping those people in good health is critical to the success of the business, which...
Will Roy's Rolls come a cropper?
Knead a perfect soap case study for the business classroom? Today's breaking news fits the bill! Analyse two ways in which Roy's Rolls could respond to the increase in competition.
IKEA founder Kamprad passes away
Hard to think of a better example of strong organisational culture that is formed and shaped by the founder. Ingvar Kamprad has died today.
Going nuts for Nutella
French consumers are showing what must be almost infinitely elastic price elasticity of demand for Nutella. Supermarket Intermarche have discounted the price by 70%, from 4.50 euros a jar to 1.40...
Pets at Home shuts Barkers stores
This market development strategy by Pets at Home didn't work as well as planned. Pets at Home is closing its upmarket (premium) dogs-only grooming and accessories chain - Barkers. Presumably...
"We're Man United - we're top of the league"
If you follow football, you may think I have that wrong - at the time of writing, Manchester United are actually second in the Premier League, a full 12 points behind noisy neighbours Manchester...