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The spring of 2002 had been grueling for the owner of Pet Care Veterinary Services, a small-animal veterinary practice with two clinics in Southwestern Ontario. Everything seemed to be going wrong at Pet Care's Avery, Ontario location. Profitability was disappointing, medication had disappeared, and the owner had serious concerns about her associate veterinarian's quality of animal care. The owner wondered what would be her best course of action. She could afford to keep the clinic open for another year and try to either fix the operational issues or leave things as they were and see if the problems resolved themselves. The owner wondered whether it would be best to sell and avoid future problems. What price would she ask for the clinic if she chose to sell? Whatever her choice, she knew she had to make a decision quickly, because the uncertainty and stress of running two clinics were beginning to take their toll.

The co-founder of a continuing education lecture series needs to develop and implement a marketing communication strategy to meet target enrolment while constrained by limited promotional funds. The case focuses on the development of a marketing communication strategy in a non-profit environment and emphasizes the importance of target market definition. It introduces issues surrounding the use of e-commerce and websites to support a marketing plan.

A business school graduate started The 10 Beach Hut as a sole proprietorship in January 2000. The company designed and sold beachwear in towns across Ontario, Canada. This exercise focuses on the preparation and interpretation of a cash flow statement.

The owner of Arrow Printing and Publishing, and his accountant were reviewing the company's fiscal performance. After nearly 45 years in the printing industry and with an increasing interest in other fields, such as municipal politics, the owner was considering if the time had come to leave printing and move on to new challenges. The options included keeping Arrow Printing and expanding into a potentially lucrative market or selling the business and move on.

The owner of a restaurant serving Middle Eastern cuisine realizes the need for a bigger location due to extreme customer congestion. He is contemplating moving the restaurant to a new location that would require $255,000 of renovations in order to keep pace with his growing consumer base. Students are asked to: 1) identify those items relevant to the decision and categorize them as either recurring or one-time flows; 2) understand that recurring flows consist of both fixed and variable costs; 3) identify investments, including working capital accounts; 4) calculate return on investment and 5) make a decision based on both qualitative and quantitative analysis.

The founder of Skadurz Pro, a skateboard, snowboard and clothing store has a tough decision to make regarding the future of his business and its two retail stores. His mother is ready to retire from her position as his business partner, and a large national competitor is about to open a franchise in direct competition with one of his outlets. It appears that the new competition will have severe impact on the company, and he must decide how he will face the challenge. Should he turn his attention to other ventures that spur his imagination, or try to maintain the unique position his business has carved for itself.

The owner of Runners' Choice, a running specialty store, must determine what changes to make to his marketing strategy in order to differentiate his business from that of his chief competitor, which has a similar name. Students perform a customer analysis, evaluate the existing promotional activities and product offerings of the two similar competing businesses to clearly position Runners' Choice relative to its competition.

The owner and sole proprietor of a small clothing company has to plan a future marketing strategy. The company has not yet generated a profit from the seasonal store operation in Sauble Beach or from annual sales in two London, Ontario fitness clubs. This case will expose students to major marketing decisions involving product, price, promotion and place (distribution). It will also emphasize the importance of a thorough market analysis and corporate capabilities analysis before evaluating marketing alternatives and making decision. The case gives students practice calculating contribution and contribution margin rates and encourages students to develop a promotional strategy around a new method of distribution. Students also learn how to illustrate the use of a projected income statement, which will crystallize the student's marketing decisions.

The assistant vice-president of strategic development for a trucking company, must investigate the feasibility of moving dispatchers within the long-haul operations department in Quebec, to the head office building in Mississauga, Ontario. Students are given practice using differential analysis as an analytical tool, and are exposed to a work environment involving unions and labor issues within a unionized workforce.

The founder and owner of Eden Creations debut line of hand-crafted specialty beaded jewelry had been well received by the local bridal industry, and several retailers throughout the region had placed orders. She now has to develop a formalized marketing plan to ensure the continued success of her company before returning to her postgraduate studies.

The partners of a furniture company manufacturing Muskoka chairs from hockey sticks must decide whether to expand the distribution of their current product offering, or to introduce new and complimentary products. Students are required to discuss strategy, calculate costs, and determine the long-term impact on the company when volume and additional products are added.

The partners of a small jewelry design company have decisions to make regarding distribution alternatives for their products. Students are asked to: 1) identify those items relevant to the decision and categorize them as investment, fixed costs, or variables; 2) calculate the unit contribution and contribution margin for each necklace and earring set at both wholesale and retail selling price points; 3) calculate the weighted-average-contribution margin for each of the two product lines; 4) perform a breakeven analysis and identify what information would be useful in the interpretation of these breakeven levels and 6) project the profitability of both distribution strategies and perform sensitivity analysis around the expected sales levels.

The co-founder of a continuing education lecture series needs to develop and implement a marketing communication strategy to meet target enrollment while constrained by limited promotional funds. The case focuses on the development of a marketing communication strategy in a non-profit environment and emphasizes the importance of target market definition. It introduces issues surrounding the use of e-commerce and websites to support a marketing plan.

The owner of a large greenhouse is preparing a cash budget for the upcoming selling season. He has made projections regarding future sales and expenses and also mentioned what the effect of a late spring or early winter would have on his sales.

The founder and owner of Eden Creations debut line of hand-crafted specialty beaded jewelry had been well received by the local bridal industry, and several retailers throughout the region had placed orders. She now has to develop a formalized marketing plan to ensure the continued success of her company before returning to her postgraduate studies.

The partners of a furniture company manufacturing Muskoka chairs from hockey sticks must decide whether to expand the distribution of their current product offering, or to introduce new and complimentary products. Students are required to discuss strategy, calculate costs, and determine the long-term impact on the company when volume and additional products are added.

The assistant vice-president of strategic development for a trucking company, must investigate the feasibility of moving dispatchers within the long-haul operations department in Quebec, to the head office building in Mississauga, Ontario. Students are given practice using differential analysis as an analytical tool, and are exposed to a work environment involving unions and labor issues within a unionized workforce.

The account manager at the Business Development Bank of Canada reviews a loan request from the owner and president of Miami Car Care Center Inc. Miami Car Care is a six-bay, self-serve, coin operated carwash. The owner, a previous client of the bank, has requested a $1 million long-term loan to finance the opening of a second location in the city.

The associate director of a university campus reviews two opportunities to improve the profitability of the largest food sales generator on the campus. Low profitability prompts an evaluation of the restaurant mix and a decision regarding operational improvements or more restaurant alternatives.

The associate director of a university campus reviews two opportunities to improve the profitability of the largest food sales generator on the campus. Low profitability prompts an evaluation of the restaurant mix and a decision regarding operational improvements or more restaurant alternatives.