Sirona Hygiene Private Limited (Sirona Hygiene) started operations in 2015 with its launch of PeeBuddy—a portable urination device for women. For Sirona Hygiene, the first four years had been extremely satisfying, as the company was able to launch five unique products and 15 differentiated products across its three brands—PeeBuddy, Sirona, and BodyGuard. Each brand had its own unique value proposition and operated in a different product space. The company’s founder was looking for additional funding as he moved toward achieving his mission of tripling the company’s growth by 2022. When it came to investor mindsets, most investors were traditional in their thinking and sought to invest in single brands. As such, the company’s founder was considering consolidating all of the brands under the corporate brand—Sirona Hygiene. Brand articulation, strategy formulation, and fundraising were all interlinked, and to steer the firm to its next journey, a sequential path was imperative. The question was clear, but there were no straight answers.
Saregama India Limited (Saregama), a 117-year-old music company, was on a growth trajectory. Its third-quarter financial results in 2017–2018 had shown unprecedented growth. Over the previous three years, Saregama had converted its conventional copyrighted music into high-quality digital formats and made a rare stretch from the business-to-business (B2B) to business-to-consumer (B2C) market. The company had added new intellectual properties (IP) in audio and video. Then in 2017, Saregama launched Carvaan, a portable music player with 5,000 evergreen songs. Cleverly created to meet the needs of its older target audience, the Carvaan was largely responsible for the company’s turnaround.<br><br>Saregama’s goal was to be a ?20 billion IP content company in the next five years. To make that happen in the context of rapidly evolving technologies and consumer trends, the company needed sharply defined short- and long-term strategies that addressed content acquisition, its success with Carvaan, and its pursuit of B2B and B2C markets.
The Indian luxury leather brand Nappa Dori, founded in 2010 in Delhi, had a product range that included a luxury line of trunks, bags, accessories, and bespoke projects for its prestigious clients, which included international luxury hotels and airlines. The brand had earned worldwide recognition from global luxury clients, and by 2017, it had seven stores, a design studio, and two cafés in India as well as one destination store at a luxury resort in the Maldives. The company’s self-taught designer-owner wanted his brand to be globally recognized as an affordable luxury brand from India by 2020. However, he often wondered whether his brand story was on the right track. For instance, was it a good idea to expand into related categories while creating a unique user experience? Should Nappa Dori focus on setting up shops in luxury destinations around the world? Did the young brand have the right story to resonate with globe-trotting luxury connoisseurs? To build a global luxury brand, the firm needed to craft a unique experience that resonated with luxury connoisseurs. The founder knew that what had started as an organic exploration into luxury now needed a well-crafted blueprint as it entered the next phase of sustainable growth toward achieving global recognition.
LaundryWala was an online, on-demand laundry service provider in the suburbs of Delhi, India. In 2018, three years after its inception, the firm had more than 30,000 individual and business customers. The 33-year-old owner had to make quick strategic decisions regarding the next phase of the firm's growth. She looked at the firm's operation details to assess the following: Was her service model viable and profitable? Should the customer segment focus be business-to-consumer or business-to-business sales? Was a company-owned business model the best option, or should she look at outsourcing operations? Could the young start-up move into new territories and service offerings?
Clubb International Private Limited (Clubb) was a 26-year-old travel goods and accessories firm based in Kolkata, India. The owner believed in a complete ownership model. The firm had come a long way since its beginning and now had close to 200 product offerings. In March 2017, the owner’s son (the second-generation director of Clubb) felt it was time to scale up the business and acquire a leadership position in the market. Clubb had at its core a legacy of innovation, quality, and a bootstrapping philosophy, but it might not be conducive to the new strategic vision. For the road ahead, the company needed a professional and streamlined product and retail strategy. Could the desired scale of operations be achieved with the complete ownership model and mantra of no advertising?
NourishCo Beverages Ltd.’s newest drink, Tata Gluco Plus, was an innovative ready-to-drink product that offered instant energy and wellness with a blend of dextrose, electrolytes, and iron. It was available in six different flavours and packaged in a 200-millilitre cup. The economical cup was targeted to consumers at the bottom of the economic pyramid. Despite strong initial sales and customer recognition, the brand was unable to build a distinct identity or a clear connection with consumers, and sales dropped by 11 per cent in 2014. In 2016, the vice-president of marketing and innovations, who was given the task of reviving the brand, was left with several questions to resolve. How would he create an image for the brand that could be adapted to local energy needs? Would the brand be able to relate locally while resonating nationally? Could the brand compete in territories where both regional and international cola brands dominated the market? NourishCo Beverages Ltd.’s business model emphasized operational efficiency and cost efficiency, but would the challenge of achieving a national presence be possible with a conservative promotional budget?
NourishCo Beverages Ltd. (NourishCo) was founded as a fifty–fifty joint venture between one of the world’s best-known companies, PepsiCo India Holdings, and one of India’s most respected and trusted brands, Tata Global Beverages. The long-term corporate vision of NourishCo was to focus on the health and wellness needs of India. In May 2016, after a considerable amount of investment in product, packaging, manufacturing, and innovation, NourishCo had successfully met the objectives of its business model. The company wanted to continue its expansion nationwide. NourishCo had a distinct, low-cost, and effective business model. However, the low barriers to entry in this segment could lead to fierce competition. To retain its first mover advantage and achieve financial viability, it needed to move quickly to become a national company. How could NourishCo strike a balance between managing cash flows and expansion?
Addons Retail Private Limited was incorporated in 2006 in Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. The objective behind the venture was to sell lifestyle products and fashion accessories to cater to the impulsive buying urges of urban Indian men and women. The retail chain store sold a range of fashion accessories and products; competitors included both small mom-and-pop stores and kiosks as well as multinational chains. By summer 2014, the founder and director had painstakingly created 80 retail touch points in shopping malls and high streets in a range of cities across the country; his goal was to grow to 500 retail outlets by 2019. The company was on a rapid growth model, but it needed customer footfall and loyalty to support its aspirations. How could it achieve the fine balance between novelty and loyalty for a whimsical, impulse fashion product?
Cookie Man, an Australian bakery chain, ventured into India in 2000 with the unique promise of providing “freshly baked premium cookies” on the spot. Opening with a manufacturing unit and its first outlet in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, it bought raw materials and most of its packaging locally and used a local refrigerated trucking firm to distribute its goods. By 2015, it was operating 70 company-owned and franchised stores in newly designed malls and high fashion streets in 25 cities across the country. Increasing competition, a move by competitors towards Internet distribution, and the changing tastes of consumers have hurt the financial health of the brand, and some drastic and quick strategic choices need to be made. Should the company grow horizontally and open more stores in India and/or expand into neighbouring countries? Should it look at new channels of delivery or new offerings? What is the right path for survival and growth?
Rockland Hospitals, a family-run entrepreneurial health care venture, had gone from a 90-bed capacity in 2004 to 808 beds in 2014. It had created an identity as an affordable, quality-driven health care provider in the National Capital Region of India. However, the managing director needed a growth plan that would achieve his goal of creating a medical corridor in the National Capital Region with a consortium of four super-specialty hospitals. Should he focus on capacity utilization and enhancing the efficiency of existing hospitals? Was attracting more medical tourists from foreign countries the answer? Or should he strive to create a health care network that reached the remotest corners of India?<br><br>Can be used with Rockland Hospitals: Innovating Health Care in India (B). 9B15A034
Rockland Hospital, a family-owned entrepreneurial health care group, had conceptualized an integrated health care network that could connect patients, clinics, diagnostic centres, secondary-care hospitals and three existing Rockland specialty hospitals through an information technology interface. Implementation and control of the strategy had to be seamless. When profitability and growth came with the necessary conditions of coordination, transparency and accountability, how could Rockland ensure effective, efficient medical treatment and services to the end user? Could Rockland manage the complexities of multiple stakeholders and multiple health care delivery paths?<br><br> Can be used with Rockland Hospitals: Innovating Health Care in India (A), 9B15A033.
Mother Dairy was created as a subsidiary of India’s National Dairy Development Board in 1974, with a mandate to leverage the capacities of small, village-based milk producers. After a very successful run as the major supplier of Delhi’s milk and dairy products, Mother Dairy is looking at an expanded national footprint as an essential strategy for growth. Milk is a commoditized product, so how can Mother Dairy create differentiation to move the consumer mindset from “mundane milk” to “magical Mother Dairy”? Is it possible to nudge out the existing state players? What would be the inventory and supply-chain challenges of a national launch, especially when the product has a very short shelf life?
Safe Water Network, a charity initiative focused on providing underserved populations with clean drinking water, established its first site in the village of Nizampally, India. This initiative was unique in a number of ways in its conception as well as its execution. Firstly, after vigorous assessment of the identified region, demand-driven solutions were customized to deal with the specific water-related issues of the region. Secondly, it was supported by prominent Indian and international companies who not only provided monetary support but also extended assistance in terms of technology, assessment and further research. Thirdly, the project was economically sustainable and required active participation and ownership by the community it served. Safe Water Network’s directors hoped to scale up and sustain the adoption of the Safe Water project. The commitment and participation of the villagers was truly heartening but would this enthusiasm continue? Would the villagers see value in this expenditure? Were there any barriers to the project’s adoption?