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Anna and Jack Oleson, long-time owners of a bridal and formal wear shop in a small community in Michigan's Upper Peninsula (U.P.), are contemplating making an offer to buy the Keweenaw Mountain Lodge (KML) property, located in Copper Harbor on the Keweenaw Peninsula. The property has been owned and operated by Keweenaw County since its beginnings in 1933, constructed under the Civil Works Administration and the Work Progress Administration during the Great Depression. Situated on 167 heavily-wooded acres in the northernmost part of Michigan, the facility includes a 6,000 square foot lodge built from logs and rough-cut stone, a banquet room and conference center, 24 rustic cabins, an eight-room motel, a nine-hole golf course, mountain biking and hiking trails, a tennis court, and disc golf. In 1970, the lodge was listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and in 1976, it was designated as a Michigan State Historic Site. Keweenaw Mountain Lodge, however, has not produced profits in several years. A consultant noted that while some repairs were needed (e.g., roof replacement/repairs, replacement of carpeting, installation of Wi-Fi), it has been a utilized for both hosting wedding receptions and as family vacation destination for Michiganders and other Midwesterners. The asking price for the property is $1.5 million. The Olesons, who are in their 70's in age, are considering selling the bridal shop and using proceeds towards purchasing the KML. The case provides a general overview of Michigan's Upper Peninsula and its unique culture, and the considerations involved in making a purchase decision - i.e., marketing, location and local demographics, marketing positioning, operations and management, succession planning, and financial valuation. It requires the reader to utilize the planning, analytical, and decision-making techniques of an entrepreneur investigating a new business opportunity.

In the fall of 2013, Anna and Jack Oleson, the owners of a full-service bridal shop in one of Michigan's Upper Peninsula's small communities were preparing for their annual six-hour drive to Chicago for the National Bridal Market. They would be making merchandise buying decisions for the upcoming season. However, this year's trip would be very different because the Olesons were reevaluating previous suppliers and potentially selecting new ones. In operation for 23 years, the shop prided itself on offering a full range of services, including alterations by a full-time seamstress. Because brides typically placed special orders for wedding gowns - after seeking consultation and trying on samples in the store - rather than buying them "off the rack," receiving timely and reliable deliveries from suppliers was critical. While vendors' corporate headquarters were located in the U.S., their gowns were often manufactured overseas, primarily in China. After incidents of "miscommunication" regarding deliveries, delivery failures, and suppliers' inflexibility regarding minimum order quantities for samples (i.e., unwillingness to grant concessions to smaller shops), the owners needed to re-conceive their buying criteria and sourcing strategies. To add complexity, the growing population of millennial brides (those turning 27 years before 2030) were brand- and quality-conscious, sought unique products, and increasingly turned to online retailers to make purchases. The case provides a general overview of retail operations within a small apparel (bridal and formalwear) shop, as well as insights into its market and suppliers' policies and operations, and challenges associated with online competitors.

Ned Larsen, the CEO of Ferris Valley Foods Company (FVF), located in westernMichigan, was focusing on the issue of hiring ex-felons. He planned to ask his management team to consider if (and how) FVF could use information obtained from the Michigan Department of Corrections (and the Michigan Prisoner Reentry Initiative) and West Michigan Therapy, Inc. to benefit people like Lori Mitten, a middle-aged ex-offender who recently earned a Bachelor of Business Administration degree and was seeking employment. In a deeper sense, Ferris Valley Foods Company also needed to consider the meaning of corporate social responsibility, with respect to the human, financial, and time-related resources that would be required in order to reach out to ex-offenders. One option might be to adopt a hands-off approach and either do nothing at all or simply make a financial donation to a non-profit organization that provides support for ex-offenders; another could be to become actively involved in partnering with the aforementioned entities. Finally, it could begin to hire ex-offenders. Additional (ethical) complications arise because the CEO's nephew is one of the ex-offenders portrayed in the case.