Yama Ribbons & Bows Co., Ltd.: Where to Next?

In March, 2014, the founder and chairman of the board of Yama Ribbons & Bows Co., Ltd., the world's largest polyester ribbon manufacturer based in Xiamen, China, was reflecting on the awards, accolades, victories and revenue growth that he had achieved over the past 16 years. In spite of the problems that beset the Chinese ribbons industry — intense competition, rising labour and production costs and strict international regulation of imports — the company had not only launched a successful subsidiary in the United States and was poised to open a second in Hong Kong but planned to outsource some of its manufacturing operations to a new plant in India. It had won a major trademark dispute and successfully survived an investigation by the U.S. Department of Commerce joint investigation into anti-dumping and anti-subsidy practices. By concentrating on superior customer service through its make-to-stock strategy and in-house research and development, the company was able to control inventory while achieving an excellent product deliverable on time anywhere in the world. As he reflected on his growth goals for the company, the founder wondered what, if anything, he was missing. How could he best grow the company over the next decade?

This case is appropriate for strategy classes in undergraduate and MBA programs to achieve the following objectives:<br><br><ul><li>To study a very successful company that wants to achieve exponential growth over the next 10 years by expanding its marketing and manufacturing to other countries.</li><li>To illustrate a company that differentiates itself on customer service as well as product quality while keeping its prices below its competitors.</li></ul>

• Ribbon industry
• profitable growth
• China