個案總覽

Captain Gorur Ramaswamy Gopinath started his journey with a dream - a dream inspired by one simple statement: "I want every Indian to fly at least once in their lifetime." With a population in excess of 1 billion people, India certainly offered a vast reservoir of future air travelers. In 2002, when Capt. Gopinath first broached the idea of starting a low-cost airline to serve India's travel needs, no one took him seriously. Bankers refused to fund him, aircraft manufacturers ignored him and aviation industry observers swore that India was not ready. However, he was convinced that India's burgeoning middle class, already buying color TVs and cell phones, could be converted to air travel. In 2003 he launched the first low-cost airline company in India with a leased 48-seater ATR aircraft and $10 million from investors. By 2007, Capt. Gopinath was close to realizing his dream. Air Deccan, with a market share of 21.6%, was India's fastest-growing low-cost carrier and the second-largest airline in the country. It ran the most extensive network in India, covering 61 airports, flew some 306 scheduled flights a day and operated a brand new fleet of 14 Airbus A320 and 22 ATR Turboprops. Visionary and always optimistic, Capt. Gopinath had brought about a total revolution to the highly regulated Indian skies. But every revolution carries the seeds of its own demise. Competition was increasing rapidly now that the model had been validated, and the Indian airport infrastructure was on the verge of a massive breakdown. New business models had to be devised to remain ahead of the curve. The new logo for the company enigmatically offered a glimpse of what Capt. Gopinath had in mind: S I M P L I F L Y ... Learning objectives: Learn about new business models, innovations, growth management, low cost carrier strategies, Indian issues.

Robin Budowski, a wine specialist and enthusiast, had dreamed about owning and running a vineyard for years, and on 28 July 2003 he was closer than ever to realizing his dream. He was putting the finishing touches to an offer to acquire Château d'Agel, a property in the Minervois region in the South West of France. The property, undermanaged and located in one of the cheapest wine AOCs, would be turned around on three dimensions: (1) improving the wine quality, (2) supporting the property's reputation with marketing campaigns, and (3) equipping it with the appropriate distribution channels. Château d'Agel seemed like the perfect candidate for a buyout. But a number of issues had to be solved before closing the deal. How would Robin structure the transaction so as to have minimal tax exposure in France and even less exposure for his investors, mostly non-French Europeans? The pure financial returns of wine properties are relatively modest, in particular when adjusted for the risk of agribusiness operations. So Robin needed to go after passion investors, i.e. enthusiasts. These investors expect large "affiliation" benefits from owning part of a vineyard. But how do you attract enthusiasts, in this case wine lovers, as investors? In other words, how do you maximize the non-financial benefits in the investment package?

Venture Valuation conducts an independent valuation of Genedata, a Swiss start-up company in order to help Novartis Venture Fund analyze and structure the next financing round. Venture Valuation, under a tight investment timeframe, has to customize the evaluation process, using both quantitative and qualitative data, to meet the customers needs. The case outlines Genedata's background, its product portfolio, competitive positioning, and issues that it will need to deal with in the near future. Learning Objective: This case is part of a three case series intended to draw the audience into the issues surrounding the valuation of a startup biotechnology company, one of the most speculative and volatile marketplace.

The Novartis Venture Fund is considering investing into a start up, Genedata, and must take into account the valuation analysis by both the start up as well as Venture Valuation -- an independent boutique organization that specializes in valuing high growth potential startups. NVF uses the Venture Valuation inputs to determine how best to structure the next round of financing for Genedata and the case requires the reader to discuss and analyze pricing, further financing requirements, and exit strategy for the fund.

In June 2001, Jean-François Hilico, industrial project manager at Renault Trucks, had to recommend to his board a development strategy for the company's truck remanufacturing business. Remanufacturing consisted of rebuilding used parts to bring them to a level of performance just beneath that of new parts, at a much lower cost. After having analyzed the pros and cons of three investment options, participants are asked to make a recommendation. This case invites participants to take into account other investment criteria than just profitability, such as environmental protection, safety and the competitive implications of offering remanufactured parts. It is supplemented with a video of Renault Trucks remanufacturing activities.

In April 2002, Guy Semmens, a partner in Argos Soditic, has to decide whether to take the lead in the management buyout (MBO) of Kermel, a niche player in the specialty fiber market. Invites participants to consider an MBO from the perspective of the private equity investor and answer the following questions: What is the fair value of Kermel? How should you structure the deal to provide incentives for management while generating adequate returns? What would be the exit strategy?

Supplements the (A) case.

Supplements the (A) case.

Supplements the (A) case.

Supplements the (A) case.

Investigates the genesis of an idea and its champion within the Fortis Group, how Fortis Venturing ended up "hosting" it, and the fate of the venture.

In April 2002, Venkatesh Tulluri, then strategy director of Rhodia's technical fibers division, announced to management that he wanted to engineer a spin-off and management buyout (MBO) of Kermel, a small company within Rhodia's portfolio. Kermel was a niche player in the specialty fiber market that had not been included in the ongoing company's asset divestment program. Investigates the evolution of the MBO process and the hurdles Tulluri has to overcome to give life to his endeavor.

Governments are increasingly faced with the delicate task of balancing the need to effectively regulate and control trade while not stifling its development. These controls have to be reinvented, shedding their old garbs as rigid barriers to trade to reveal more up-to-date trade enhancement and facilitation characteristics. Tatis Ltd, a Geneva-based startup company, is developing an integrated web-based solution for the management of pre-shipment inspections in emerging and developing countries, a key component of trade and customs management. But how can a Swiss-based startup extend itself to five continents to implement its solutions in the ever-changing world of taxes and tariffs? The case investigates the challenges of Business to Government (B2G) activities, of developing a global partnership for solution implementations with a leading consulting firm, of raising funds with a leading venture capitalist and of balancing the needs of end-users (custom services in developing nations) with those of the solution funders (mostly multinational and donor organizations such as the World Bank and the World Trade Organization).

This case provides a unique illustration of how a high-tech European new venture starts-up, grows, burns cash, stumbles, adapts, captures value, disappoints, survives on the verge of bankruptcy to eventually achieve in the fall of 1995 among the most successful IPOs on NASDAQ. On 27 November 1995, L&H received an IPO pricing proposal of H and Q at the low end of the pricing range, after L and H had rejected proposals by Robertson Stephens. The proposal valued the company at US $152 million, when its accumulated deficit was $(72) million and its shareholder equity $(37). The case explains the company and its technologies. It then describes the sequence of financing and strategic events that eventually lead to the IPO: early company development, international alliances, several private equity placements, financing on main street and pre-IPO private placement. It provides a lively and timely learning opportunity for an intermediate MBA corporate finance or for a private equity course in three areas: guerrilla financing, the why, what and how of an IPO, IPO valuation.