個案資料

<div style="font-size: 0.95em; line-height: 1.4;"><p align="justify">Robertet Group was established in 1850 and headquartered in Grasse, France, the world’s perfume capital, specializing in crafting premium natural ingredients for flavours and fragrances. By early 2022, Robertet Group was facing a unique strategic and survival threat from intensifying competition between the industry’s leading Swiss company, Givaudan, and its US challenger, International Flavors & Fragrances Inc., a rising power in the industry that had completed several acquisitions to challenge the ruling Givaudan by quickly gaining market share. As the smallest of the major market leaders in the global flavours and fragrances industry, Robertet Group was suddenly facing the risk of being overtaken and subsequently acquired. The company was caught in what was known as the “Thucydides trap,” and facing a destabilized industry. Robertet Group had to find a way to respond to imminent threats. Could the company remain a leading brand in a natural, sustainable, and environmental flavours and fragrances market, while avoiding being consumed by the industry’s giants?

<div style="font-size: 0.95em; line-height: 1.4;"><p align="justify">This case study can be used in courses on industry analysis, corporate strategy, international expansion strategy, and sustainability at the graduate, post-graduate, or executive level, or in programs specializing in luxury management or marketing. After working through the case and assignment questions, students will be able to do the following:<br><br><ul><li>Propose and apply an ad hoc method (incremental and articulated sequence of strategic tools) to analyze the structure of an industry and assess its attractiveness from the perspective of an incumbent company.</li><li>Understand the corporate strategy and business model implemented by companies and assess (with appropriate ratios) whether they deliver profit and growth while enhancing sustainability.</li><li>Analyze the international expansion strategy pursued by companies from a tri-dimensional perspective (i.e., international position, international expansion stage, and entry mode selection) and examine the degree of fit between the company’s priorities when entering foreign markets and the selected (or equity) entry modes (e.g., wholly owned subsidiaries, joint ventures, acquisitions).</li><li>Contextualize the Thucydides trap in the corporate world and understand the ongoing competitive consequences of conflicting mechanisms in hegemonic challenges between rising and ruling powers.</li><li>Develop an expert view on the F&F industry, a steadily growing “ingredient” industry driven by multiple applications for food, perfume, health, cosmetics, home care, and pharmaceuticals.</li></ul>

• profitable growth
• flavour and fragrance industry
• internationalization
• sustainability
• Thucydides trap