Costco Wholesale Corporation (Costco), the world’s second-largest retailer, officially entered the Chinese market in Shanghai in August 2019. The opening day was so jam-packed with customers that the massive influx forced the company to close early, after only five hours of operations. However, after only one week, customers were lining up outside the store, asking Costco for refunds for their membership cards. The warehouse’s traffic declined significantly as well. What caused this situation? Did Costco make the right decision to enter the Chinese market? Does Costco’s membership system fit the Chinese market? What kinds of challenges will Costco face in the future?

Costco Wholesale Corporation (Costco), the world's second-largest retailer, officially entered the Chinese market in Shanghai in August 2019. The opening day was so jam-packed with customers that the massive influx forced the company to close early, after only five hours of operations. However, after only one week, customers were lining up outside the store, asking Costco for refunds for their membership cards. The warehouse's traffic declined significantly as well. What caused this situation? Did Costco make the right decision to enter the Chinese market? Does Costco's membership system fit the Chinese market? What kinds of challenges will Costco face in the future?

Sudden outbreak of the COVID-19 epidemic in 2020 caught small- and medium-sized Chinese enterprises off guard, such as Ciyang Garment Factory (CY) in Zaozhuang City, Shandong Province. Many migrant workers could not come for work on time because of the outbreak, and Li Qiang-the founder and general manager of CY-felt uneasy about defaulting on orders and worried about future lawsuits. The experienced garment maker Liu Ning, who had been working in Dongguan, Guangdong Province, was also stranded at home in Zaozhuang because of the epidemic. After meeting with Li, the two reached a cooperation agreement. Liu Ning's arrival temporarily solved the urgent labour shortage of CY; however, the pay difference between the veteran senior workers in the factory and those who had worked in the south, such as Liu Ning, became the catalyst of the 'absenteeism incident'. Because of the human resource management problems caused by this incident, Li was once again caught in a dilemma. Will the absent workers be back in 3 days? How should Li solve the human resource crisis caused by absenteeism? To help the development of CY, does Li need to reform the human resource management system? How can he change it? This case examines Li, the director of the factory, and Liu Ning, a skilled technician, to demonstrate the difficulties faced by small- and medium-sized private manufacturing enterprises in China under the impact of COVID-19. With the conflict between the two salary systems as the background, this case discusses how Li deals with the crisis and the future development plan of CY.

Since the opening up of its economy in 1979, China has followed an export-led growth policy and transformed the country into a 'Factory of the World' with its labour-intensive manufacturing. Since then, many factories were set up and concentrated mostly in the south-eastern coastal provinces. Although this policy resulted in consistently high annual growth and creation rates, negative side effects such as environmental, economic and social problems became increasingly evident. To address these challenges, in 2012, China's policymakers changed the policy direction to focus more on domestic consumption-led growth. One strategy to achieve the goal was to expand its manufacturing base into the hinterland. To attract investors to move to the inner regions, the government developed gigantic industrial parks and basic infrastructure to accommodate the new policy. This case depicts Xi Yong Micro-electronics Industrial Park in Chongqing, the largest municipality in Western China. It discusses the implementation of the government's development strategy at Xi Yong and presents an opportunity to examine whether Xi Yong and other similar industrial parks would provide the solution that the government is looking for.

Based on the automobile sale model in the mainland of China, this business case describes Xiamen Honda 4S Shop’s current sales situation, marketing strategy and management. It emphasizes the dilemma faced by the company CEO — whether or not he will implement the plan proposed by the sales department to offer lifetime car care for customers who bought car insurance from the company. Deeper marketing management problems are also raised, such as how to distribute marketing resources, how to evaluate the marketing plan and its performance and how to raise company value when it supplies better value to the customers. This case can be used in marketing management for MBA students and senior undergraduates. It provides an opportunity to discuss the subjects of customer lifetime value and marketing budget management.

Based on the automobile sale model in the mainland of China, this business case describes Xiamen Honda 4S Shop's current sales situation, marketing strategy and management. It emphasizes the dilemma faced by the company CEO - whether or not he will implement the plan proposed by the sales department to offer lifetime car care for customers who bought car insurance from the company. Deeper marketing management problems are also raised, such as how to distribute marketing resources, how to evaluate the marketing plan and its performance and how to raise company value when it supplies better value to the customers. This case can be used in marketing management for MBA students and senior undergraduates. It provides an opportunity to discuss the subjects of customer lifetime value and marketing budget management.