Just Kitchen Taiwan: The Growth Conundrum

In April 2022, the founder and chief executive officer of Just Kitchen Holdings Corporation (Just Kitchen)—a Canada-based and publicly listed operator of ghost kitchens in Taiwan—was sitting with part of his team to discuss the marketing plans for the year. The company reported revenues of CA$4.6 million for the second quarter of 2022. In the second quarter 2022, total revenues increased by 127 per cent and retail order volume grew by 151 per cent. That year, the number of ghost kitchen locations had increased from 14 to 28. The founder wanted to double the company’s revenue by 2023. To achieve this goal, the management team faced several questions: Should Just Kitchen focus more on local brands in Taiwan or invest in international brand licensing and partnerships? How could the company leverage the omni-channel opportunity to better engage with its consumers and not depend on the delivery partners? What strategies should Just Kitchen consider to attract and retain customers, grow its sales revenues, and increase profitability?

This case is designed for undergraduate or graduate courses that discuss services marketing strategy, supply chain, and omni-channel retailing. The case is also suitable for a discussion on how technology and digitization drive unbundling and re-bundling in the value chain across a growing cloud kitchen industry. The case can also be used for an executive session of three to four hours.<br><br>After working through the case and assignment questions, students will be able to achieve the following objectives:<br><br><ul><li>Understand the impact of digitization on the value chain for new entrants and their ability to create and capture value in new ways.</li><li>Understand how a focused value proposition allows new companies to optimize operations and add value to stakeholders.</li><li>Analyze how to leverage the omni-channel opportunity to better engage with consumers.</li><li>Learn about the various strategies available for attracting and retaining customers.</li><li>Evaluate the growth strategies in the cloud kitchen industry.</li></ul>

• value chain
• ghost kitchens
• Just Kitchen Holdings Corporation
• Canada-based
• publicly listed operator
• ghost kitchen locations
• local brands
• international brand licensing
• omni-channel opportunity
• delivery partners
• customer retention
• undergraduate courses
• graduate courses
• services marketing strategy
• supply chain
• omni-channel retailing
• technology
• cloud kitchen industry
• executive session
• value proposition
• operations optimization
• growth strategies.