In recent years, as the initial surge of new consumer brands has subsided, attention has refocused on established "heritage brands." The real challenge now under study is how a brand can achieve initial success, scale sustainably, and maintain its legacy over time. This case study traces L'Oreal Group's branding strategy evolution since its entry into the Chinese market. Founded in 1909 with a single hair dye product, L'Oreal expanded through strategic acquisitions to become the world's largest cosmetics group. Today, it boasts a portfolio of over 500 brands encompassing hair color, skincare, makeup, and fragrances. Beginning in 1996, L'Oreal introduced diverse brands such as Lancôme and Garnier to China, achieving significant success in the luxury cosmetics segment. However, its penetration into the broader mass skincare market proved challenging. L'Oreal acquired local favorites like Mininurse and Yue-Sai in 2004 to bolster its presence in this arena. Unfortunately, these acquisitions did not meet expectations and gradually faded from prominence. By 2022, L'Oreal had established an investment firm in China, focusing on equity investments to foster deeper collaboration with local brands. L'Oreal's journey in China illustrates a strategic evolution from brand introduction to local acquisitions and subsequent equity partnerships. Each strategic pivot reflects a nuanced understanding of market dynamics, a critical review of past approaches, and an ongoing commitment to innovation in response to evolving challenges.

In August 2018, the founder and chief executive officer of JD.com, one of China’s largest e-commerce sites, was accused of sexual assault and was arrested. He denied wrongdoing and was released less than a day later. One week after his return to China, JD.com’s share value hit a 19-month low. In November 2018, the company announced that its customer base had shrunk for the first time since 2014. The impact from the investigation into the alleged assault was unclear. However, the incident took place against the backdrop of the Me Too movement, a time when both traditional and social media were used to publicly launch accusations of sexual harassment and abuse, often against powerful celebrities. The sexual assault accusation complicated the almost singular level of power the founder had over his organization. According to JD.com’s corporate bylaws, no board meetings could take place without his presence. What options did the company have to regain market confidence? What strategies could JD.com adopt to minimize impact from the incident? With the founder at the centre of an international scandal, who was responsible to oversee crisis management at JD.com?

In less than four years, Easy Flower (EF) grew from an e-commerce flower retail start-up to China's largest supply chain operator in fresh flowers. Easy Flower positioned itself as a provider of quality flowers to retail florists. Taking advantage of its strength in technology talent, and pooling its finances, the company successfully created a national distribution infrastructure network, disrupting and transforming the fractured supply chain system of China's flower industry and dramatically enhancing its supply chain efficiency. Having built an industry leader from scratch, founder Rong Chao had to think about Easy Flower's future strategy. In late 2018, he saw two options: further integrating the flower value chain in China, or internationalizing his business by exporting components of his technology and systems to flower platforms in other countries. Constrained by the company's resources, he had to assess the various risks and requirements that each direction would entail.

The vice-president of new product development for Amazon Marketplace was preparing to propose the Seller Fulfilled Prime (SFP) initiative at Amazon.com Inc. (Amazon)’s three-year planning session. The SFP would allow Amazon Marketplace sellers who had proven their ability to meet Prime customers’ expectations for exceptional service to provide Prime shipping benefits for products that the sellers fulfilled themselves rather than through the Fulfillment by Amazon process. Because the vice-president did not yet have extensive data on the effects of his proposal, he had to work with an interdisciplinary team to determine the potential benefits and challenges associated with this initiative.

The vice-president of new product development for Amazon Marketplace was preparing to propose the Seller Fulfilled Prime (SFP) initiative at Amazon.com Inc. (Amazon)'s three-year planning session. The SFP would allow Amazon Marketplace sellers who had proven their ability to meet Prime customers' expectations for exceptional service to provide Prime shipping benefits for products that the sellers fulfilled themselves rather than through the Fulfillment by Amazon process. Because the vice-president did not yet have extensive data on the effects of his proposal, he had to work with an interdisciplinary team to determine the potential benefits and challenges associated with this initiative.

In August 2018, the founder and chief executive officer of JD.com, one of China's largest e-commerce sites, was accused of sexual assault and was arrested. He denied wrongdoing and was released less than a day later. One week after his return to China, JD.com's share value hit a 19-month low. In November 2018, the company announced that its customer base had shrunk for the first time since 2014. The impact from the investigation into the alleged assault was unclear. However, the incident took place against the backdrop of the Me Too movement, a time when both traditional and social media were used to publicly launch accusations of sexual harassment and abuse, often against powerful celebrities. The sexual assault accusation complicated the almost singular level of power the founder had over his organization. According to JD.com's corporate bylaws, no board meetings could take place without his presence. What options did the company have to regain market confidence? What strategies could JD.com adopt to minimize impact from the incident? With the founder at the centre of an international scandal, who was responsible to oversee crisis management at JD.com?

This case study describes how restaurant operator Wowprime, known for its brand creativity, implemented a diversification strategy in China's mainland. Having been present in the market for 14 years, Wowprime set out plans in August 2016 to expand from 149 restaurants to 1,000 by 2022. In a market where demand for customized offerings is gaining traction, should Wowprime maintain its fixed-menu-based diversification strategy for growth, or should it focus on core brands and priority markets? The case invites class participants to step into the shoes of Wowprime decision-makers and consider strategic options to achieve the 2022 goal while taking into account resource constraints as well as local market trends.