In June 2021, as Toronto-based Flashfood Inc. (Flashfood) continued to grow dramatically, its founder and chief executive officer was facing critical questions about how to manage both the firm’s mission and its business model. Flashfood partnered with grocery chains to sell near-expiry food to consumers via an app, and it had an expanding network of locations in Canada and the United States. The firm had a clear sustainability-driven objective: to .....more

FunctionFox Systems Inc. (FunctionFox) was a small company headquartered in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, specializing in project management and timesheet tracking software. Following the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and ensuing restrictions, FunctionFox decided to move to 100 per cent remote work in late 2020 and sold the building where its office had been located. In early 2022, when the pandemic appeared to be subsiding, the president of .....more

In March 2021, Siesta Splash sold colourful rings exclusively through Instagram. By the beginning of July 2021, the entrepreneurial venture had managed to exceed CA$20,000 in sales and had accumulated almost 2,000 Instagram followers. However, this success merely created more questions for the owner about how to continue to grow and scale her business. She wondered if expanding Siesta Splash’s product line, for instance by selling earrings, was a .....more

Circulr was a start-up that provided a solution for consumer waste by collecting used packaging, washing it, and selling it back to the original brand and product manufacturer so that the packaging could be reused. Instead of building its own washing facility, Circulr rented spare washing capacity from industrial kitchens. The company’s co-founders had ambitious goals for Circulr, but in order to achieve them, there were two essential issues that .....more

The case highlights the challenges encountered by Laura Williams, founder and owner of Williams HR Law, a firm based in Toronto, Ontario, providing a full range of legal services on labour, employment law, and human resources (HR) matters. Demand for the firm’s services grew exponentially in 2020 following the tragic death of George Floyd and due to the ongoing workplace challenges encountered during the global pandemic. Williams faced decisions regarding .....more

In 2019, an entrepreneur and Ivey Business School graduate was facing a critical decision regarding how best to maximize the growth of his new product, The Chosen One card game. The entrepreneur had recently created and launched his Jewish-themed satirical card game in Los Angeles, California, after playing the adult-themed and highly popular Cards Against Humanity. Buoyed by initial small-batch sales, he secured deals to sell his product through .....more

In late 2020, the board of the Edmonton Community Foundation (ECF) was preparing for its strategic planning session. The question on the agenda was, Should the ECF target millennials or baby boomers for its endowment development tools and strategies? Board members were of two minds when it came to millennials. Some members believed the ECF should intensify its efforts among baby boomers, as time was running out on this donor demographic. Others believed .....more

New opportunities, challenges, and decisions arose for a pub owner and his business partners when celebrity Halle Berry raved on social media about the hot wings served at the pub. Berry's post sparked an unprecedented 28-day sellout and a firestorm of news coverage that kept the business going at a time when the restaurant industry was suffering from government-imposed restrictions due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The pub owner and his partners .....more

The Edmonton Opera Association (Edmonton Opera) was founded in 1963 as a not-for-profit arts organization with the aim of providing audiences with compelling productions that combined music, song, and theatre. Over the years, Edmonton Opera had been successful in providing its services, but, in 2020, it was challenged. Just when it had almost recovered from a deficit, reported in 2012, the global COVID-19 pandemic occurred, and an economic slowdown .....more

In August 2021, the founders of We are Marlow Corporation (Marlow) were considering the company’s future. Marlow was a direct-to-consumer (D2C), subscription-based business that sold lubricated tampon kits. The company was about to receive full approval from Health Canada to sell its products and the founders needed to shift their focus to a marketing strategy for their upcoming launch. They needed to decide on their target market and pricing scheme .....more