Teaching note for product 9B21A003.

Linc Pen and Plastics Limited (LPPL) was a 40 year old Indian writing instruments company with a presence in over 50 countries through its sole brand Linc, a value brand that had a brand image of providing good quality products at a low price. Over the past year and half , LPPL had faced margin pressure due to a steep increase in the price of raw materials. In late 2019, Deepak Jalan, the managing director , decided not to disturb the brand equity .....more

Teaching note for product 9B20A077.

Spencer’s Retail, a fast-moving consumer goods retail chain in India, had been perceived as an expensive retailer exclusively for high-end consumers. A new sector head took over in 2013 and shifted the store from a positioning statement of “Taste the World” to “Make Fine Living Affordable.” Within five years, Spencer’s was making a profit. However, traditional grocery stores continued to dominate the Indian retail scene and were more heavily frequented .....more

Teaching note for product 9B20A046.

Wow! Momo Foods Private Limited (Wow! Momo), a quick-service restaurant (QSR) chain, was a Kolkata-based start-up that sold a variety of momos, a Tibetan food. The restaurant’s specialty was a pan-fried variety of momos prepared to suit the Indian palate. In late 2018, the founders were reviewing the company’s financials and considering how they could improve the company’s growth. Their goal of becoming a widely recognized brand, both nationally and .....more

Teaching note for product 9B20A030.

In mid-2019, the managing director of Switz Foods Pvt. Ltd. (SFPL), which owned the Mio Amore bakery brand, faced the dilemma of how to tackle its competition. Under a franchise agreement from 1989–2014, the company had manufactured and sold cakes and other food products in Eastern India under the Monginis brand name. Due to the managing director’s innovative and emotion-centric market positioning, Monginis quickly became the number one bakery brand .....more

Teaching note for product 9B14A047.

The director of Edible Agro Products Limited (EAPL) was reviewing the production figures for Gujarat Til-2, a variety of white sesame that EAPL had introduced to West Bengal in 2008. He had hoped to bring about a revolution in sesame production with this superior new variety and to create higher value for West Bengal farmers and for EAPL. However, his plan had yet to achieve the outcomes he had anticipated. The year 2010 was the third consecutive .....more