Labatt Breweries of Canada introduced its Ice Beer to the Canadian market, it gained rapid acceptance by consumers, and has spawned imitators and attracted the interest of brewers in the United States. The president of Labatt Breweries, Hugo Powell, must decide if and how Labatt should enter the U.S. market with its product and new brewing technology. The case provides information on the Canadian and United States beer markets, pointing out the differences that Labatt has to consider in trying to profit from its new product in the U.S. An in-depth note Note on the Mexican Beer Industry is available to accompany this case.
Royal Trustco presents a chronology of some of the key decision points in the history of the firm (the parent firm of Royal Trust) from 1980 to 1992. To clarify the concept of corporate governance, a number of interesting discussion questions are presented: How did Royal Trustco get to the point where the directors had to sell the company to save it? Why did this happen? Was it appropriate for Royal Trustco directors to keep paying dividends given the problems the company faced? Were there any signs that the company's actions might lead to problems in the future? Could the problems have been prevented? Why might the board not have believed the CEO's assessment of the situation? What are a director's legal obligations in the operation of a firm? What can a director be held responsible for? If you had been a director of the company, would you have resigned at any point in time? Why or why not? The case is intended to serve as the starting point for a discussion of corporate governance in Canada.
Alex MacDonald, president and owner of AWC Inc., a southwestern Ontario aluminum fabrication operation, is confronted with a decision of whether to install ventilation equipment that will negatively affect the financial performance of the company, possibly forcing the company out of business. His alternative is to ignore environmental regulations and risk being charged by government authorities for contravening the law. This case provides the opportunity to discuss several environmental forces that impact business decision making.