The case describes the ascend of EcoVadis in the market for supply chain sustainability ratings as well as its competitive position in 2023. EcoVadis is a platform that allows corporations to get transparency on the sustainability practices and status of their suppliers, and simultaneously allows suppliers to show their sustainability credentials to their corporate buyers. Founded in 2007 by Pierre-François Thaler (INSEAD MBA, 1999) and Fréderic Trinel, it had achieved unicorn status in 2023. The case ends with a review of the key strategy issues that the company is facing in 2023.

In June 2015, Peter Phillips, Chief Operating Officer of Frontier Services Group (FSG), was preparing an update for the board on how operations would support the company's new strategy. Given the ongoing decline in the price of oil and the extractive industries, the outlook had changed for FSG. His aim was to steer a new course to becoming the leading pan-African logistics provider. Founded in March 2014 by Erik Prince, a former U.S. Navy Seal and ex-CEO of Blackwater, a private security firm, FSG was a logistics and transportation company listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, with a market capitalization in excess of $200 million. Headquartered in Nairobi, Kenya, the company employed more than 340 staff in its head office and regional subsidiaries in Hong Kong, Beijing, Dubai, and Malta. In addition to traditional logistics solutions like transporting personnel, materials, supplies, and humanitarian aid, FSG provided civil engineering and support services such as in-house construction, facilities management, and workforce accommodation. Its mission was to build and maintain the infrastructure, installations and platforms its client organizations required to operate in Africa. Although the new approach would open up significant growth opportunities, a number of operational challenges remained. The lack of trained and skilled labor in Africa, coupled with the limited competence of the logistics sector would, if not addressed, impede the future growth of the company. The case traces the evolution of FSG since its inception in 2014 as a Kenyan air charter and freight services company. It offers an overview of the company's recent development and current strategy, notably how it handles the logistics needs of customers across the vast and very diverse African continent.

In early 2014, Tara Fela-Durotoye, the founder and CEO of House of Tara, was contemplating one of her greatest achievements to date. Her company had been named by L'Oréal as a strategic distributor for Nigeria of leading international cosmetics brand Maybelline - marking another milestone in its ongoing success story. Lauded as a pioneer in the beauty and makeup industry in Nigeria, House of Tara was credited with launching the country's first makeup studio, establishing the first makeup school in West Africa, and creating a full makeup product line entirely dedicated to African women. From a small venture in the late 90s, the company had grown into a sophisticated organization with a broad array of products and services, a multi-channel distribution network, professional makeup schools, and high-touch customer service. With operations throughout the country, House of Tara was well placed to take advantage of the continued growth in cosmetics sales, fuelled by an emerging middle class with more disposable income. But despite the apparent opportunities, a number of distribution challenges remained. Unlike a typical beauty company operating through retail channels, House of Tara had a limited pool of beauty sales reps through which to reach the end customer. Since the mass-market segment accounted for the majority of cosmetics sales, how best could the products be made widely available? The case describes the evolution of House of Tara from a 'one woman show' initially offering bridal makeup services to a fully-fledged beauty business with a network of resellers and branded stores throughout the country. It gives an update on the latest developments that have seen House of Tara become the leading indigenous makeup brand in Nigeria, with a focus on how the local retail environment shaped its distribution strategy to reach its target markets.

In early 2014, Sanjay Swamy and Valerie Rozycki Wagoner, respectively chairman and CEO of ZipDial, were discussing the possibility of extending the company's operations to Indonesia and the Philippines, two key markets in Southeast Asia. Having successfully rolled out ZipDial solutions in Bangladesh and Sri Lanka - from their primary market in India - they planned to accelerate expansion into selected markets in the region. Through its proprietary technology platform, ZipDial enabled brands in emerging markets to create, track and manage mobile marketing campaigns, engaging hundreds of millions of consumers who were otherwise unconnected. Building on its user database, the company created engagement opportunities based on user profiles that marketers could leverage to deliver targeted advertising messages. Although poised to take advantage of the continued growth in mobile adoption, the company faced a number of challenges. At a time when India's mobile technology landscape had started to consolidate and new competitors had entered the mobile advertising market, the need to find new sources of financing to support its operations and expansion plans was becoming more pressing. The case traces the evolution of ZipDial since its inception in 2010 as India's first mobile marketing and analytics company. It offers an overview of the latest developments and current strategy, including its approach to bridging the offline-online world through innovative marketing solutions and partnerships with social media platforms such as Facebook and Twitter.

In June 2014, Anthony Pile, founder and chairman of Blue Skies, called a board meeting to discuss the company's development plans. The economic crisis in Europe had made consumers more price sensitive, putting pressure on profit margins and spurring the search for new markets. Founded in 1998, Blue Skies was a fruit processing company headquartered in the U.K., with its main production site located in Ghana, Africa, where it cut and packaged fruits sold primarily to retailers in Europe. Relying on air-freight transport, it shipped produce within 48 hours of harvesting. Although Blue Skies had grown into a multinational with production operations on three continents, the company was still dependent on European markets. It remained largely focused on the U.K., whose retail sector was one of the most competitive in the world, but thanks to its product innovation capabilities, it was in a unique position to shape the future of the fresh-cut fruit industry. The case describes the evolution of Blue Skies since its foundation as a small fruit processing business exporting fresh-cut pineapple to Europe. It gives an overview of its strategy to capture more value using vertical integration as a mean to reduce supply costs and improve the quality of inputs. It illustrates how competitive structures in the fresh-cut market shape the balance of power within the agri-food value chain, and how Blue Skies maintained its competitive edge through a combination of production efficiency, product quality and market diversification.