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Examines a company that has been extremely successful in several product categories in its own domestic market and is defending its market position against intense competition from powerful multinational corporations, emerging domestic rivals, and newer low-cost alternatives. The multinational corporations include some of the world's most sophisticated marketing companies.

Focuses on the domestic Philippine market, particularly the competitive dynamics in the existing product lines of skin care and hair care; international expansion; and the introduction of a new line of nutraceutical products.

In early 2005, Nestle is in the midst of a decision: whether or not the Fairtrade mark should be applied on Partners' Blend, a new instant coffee product to be marketed in the growing UK 'ethical' coffee segment. Application of the Fairtrade mark on the Partners Blend product means that Nestle must go against its historical position of not offering minimum guaranteed prices to coffee farmers. As part of their deliberations, Nestle executives must consider their coffee sourcing program at large, their corporate social responsibility framework, Nescafe and corporate Nestle branding, the UK market, and the potential consumer benefit or backlash that could result from releasing such a product.

Sante Fe Relocation Services was a premium provider of relocation services based in Hong Kong. Founded in 1980, the company had built a reputation as a reliable, high-quality packer and mover of household goods. By 2000, the company also offered a full range of relocation support services, including visa and immigration applications, home searching, and cultural and language training. Santa Fe relocated expatriates and their families between Asian countries and between Asia and other regions. The company had its own staff and assets in Asia and managed its international operations through a network of partners. In 2005, the chief operating officer faced three key challenges: differentiating and positioning the brand in a crowded and often price-driven market; incorporating an expanded service line under the original brand and gaining market recognition for those additional services; and managing the brand across the Asian region with an effective balance of standardization vs. local adaptation.

Sante Fe Relocation Services was a premium provider of relocation services based in Hong Kong. Founded in 1980, the company had built a reputation as a reliable, high-quality packer and mover of household goods. By 2000, the company also offered a full range of relocation support services including visa and immigration applications, home searching and cultural and language training. Santa Fe relocated expatriates and their families between Asian countries and between Asia and other regions. The company had its own staff and assets in Asia and managed its international operations through a network of partners. In 2005, the chief operating officer faced three key challenges: differentiating and positioning the brand in a crowded and often price-driven market; incorporating an expanded service line under the original brand and gaining market recognition for those additional services; and managing the brand across the Asian region with an effective balance of standardization versus local adaptation.

This is an MIT Sloan Management Review article. Brands are an indispensable part of modern business. That is true in large measure because of a brand's remarkable efficiency in "aggregating" consumers--reaching large numbers of people with a promise to deliver a clearly stated benefit that sets it apart from competitors. But the information revolution is undermining the logic of aggregation, the very source of brand power. In fact, it is becoming evident that in an information-rich environment, consumer disaggregation is vastly more efficient and profitable than aggregation. Using customized publications, e-mail, direct mail, Web sites, and call centers that are based on a common platform of consumer information, companies are demonstrating that they can effectively and efficiently drive consumer behavior through two-way communications. Common underlying databases ensure that each interaction is personalized, regardless of the channel through which it occurs. And each interaction with the consumer builds the consumer database further, making future interactions even richer. The implications of the information revolution for the role of brands in business are far-reaching. Many of the strategic and tactical tasks entrusted to brands can now be performed better, less expensively, and more profitably at the level of consumer segments. And companies' brand-centric structures are not suited to marketing initiatives that are based on reaching segments or individuals. Given this changed environment, the author calls on companies to rethink three core areas of brand management: the consumer relationship, the channel relationship, and the organization of brand management. He draws on detailed examples involving Kraft, Procter & Gamble, and Tesco.

The Wahaha Hangzhou Group Co. Ltd. is one of China's largest soft drink producers. One of the company's products, Future Cola, was launched a few years ago to compete with Coca Cola and PepsiCo and has made significant progress in the soft drink markets that were developed by these cola giants. The issue now is to maintain the momentum of growth in the face of major competition from the giant multinationals and to achieve its goal of dominant market share.

Hayward & Guzman researches and develops contact lens products and has recently developed a new disposable contact lens. Two segments with different price sensitivity have been identified. In order to reach these segments, the products will need to be packaged and sold differently. A marketing representative for Hayward & Guzman must develop a marketing mix for the two segments and determine pricing for each product.

<p style="color: rgb(197, 183, 131);"><strong> AWARD WINNER - Emerging Chinese Global Competitors, EFMD Case Writing Competition</strong></p><br>The Wahaha Hangzhou Group Co. Ltd. is one of China's largest soft-drink producers. One of the company's products, Future Cola, was launched a few years ago to compete with Coca Cola and PepsiCo and has made significant progress in the soft-drink markets that were developed by these cola giants. The issue now is to maintain the momentum of growth in the face of major competition from the giant multinationals, and to achieve its goal of dominant market share.

This is an MIT Sloan Management Review article. Why do your customers choose to buy from you rather than from your competition? For the past three years, marketing professors Mark Vandenbosch and Niraj Dawar have posed that question to more than 1,500 senior executives in interviews and group discussions. And despite the vast range of industries represented by the executives they probed, the responses they got were remarkably similar: Customers often value how they interact with their suppliers as much or more than what they actually buy. As the main drivers of customer choice, the executives cited cost-oriented factors such as convenience, ease of doing business, and product support and risk-oriented factors such as trust, confidence, and the strength of relationships. Strategies built around reducing customers' interaction costs and risk offer a systematic way to tap into new sources of customer value while avoiding the often futile attempt to compete on product innovation. The authors illustrate five different strategies that some companies are using to build a sustainable advantage.

The managing director and director of overseas marketing of Midea Group, China's largest air conditioner manufacturer, had concerns about the company's domestic and global competitive position. They felt the company needed to develop a strategy to defend its home market in the wake of more liberalized imports, and simultaneously, develop the resources and skills required to play in a global market where its cost advantages had been nullified because international players were also exporting from China. To do so, they needed to review the company's current international strategy and examine both branding and private label options.

South African Breweries (SAB) was the only profitable international brewer in the crowded and hyper-competitive beer market in China. SAB's keen understanding of emerging market environments allowed it to develop a unique strategy for the Chinese market. This resulted in large market shares in each of the provinces in which it was present. However, SAB and its joint venture partner, China Resources Enterprise, only served five per cent of China's immense population. The managing director was faced with decisions: how to expand to other markets where SAB's approach would be replicated, how SAB could expand its successful business model to new markets, and what would happen when it ran head-to-head with a global giant or a well-positioned local competitor.

South African Breweries (SAB) was the only profitable international brewer in the crowded and hyper-competitive beer market in China. SAB's keen understanding of emerging market environments allowed it to develop a unique strategy for the Chinese market that resulted in large market shares in each of the provinces in which it was present. However, it served only 5% of China's immense population. The managing director was faced with decisions: how to expand to other markets where SAB's approach would be replicated, how SAB could expand its successful business model to new markets, and what would happen when it ran head-to-head with a global giant or a well-positioned local competitor.

As cable operators across Europe go digital, they will require a means of remotely upgrading the applications software on subscribers' digital set-top boxes, using some kind of loader software to do so. Intellibyte Inc., a small Canadian software firm, has developed the only remote loader software that currently meets the specifications of the European Cable Communications Association. However, it must sell the software to manufacturers of set-top boxes before cable operators can use it. The competition is no more than two years behind. The president must decide among several pricing and positioning alternatives for intellectual property products in a complex industry.

The economy segment in the market for mayonnaise in Venezuela has become extremely competitive. Mavesa, Venezuela's largest and most professional consumer goods firm, finds its pioneer Nelly brand under assault from large players such as Kraft, and small nimble regional players such as Albeca. In this competitive scenario, Nelly's managers decide to cut price on the brand. The managers must analyze the implications of cutting price, including both the profitability impact of a pricing decision, as well as strategic competitive considerations.

The vice president of marketing at Creemore Springs Brewery needs to develop a marketing plan to absorb the doubling of brewing capacity without hurting the brand. According to him, the Creemore brand has been successful and has had such committed and loyal consumers because it was known only to a select few. Its reputation had grown mainly through word of mouth. However, with the brewing capacity increase in progress, Creemore would need to double sales. Would this hurt the brand?

DayQuil Brand Sampling is part of a three-case series about the execution of a sampling project for the DayQuil brand of cold medication made by Procter & Gamble. The Brand Sampling case focuses primarily on brand management issues. The case serves to introduce students to the implementation aspects involved in a sampling program as well as to some tricky decisions regarding use of samples from a different country. In particular, the use of samples from the United States in the Canadian market requires over-stickering the expiry date and using one which is one year longer. While the use of the extended expiry date was perfectly legal and safe, the potential for consumer confusion was significant. (The other cases in this Procter & Gamble series are Managing DayQuil Sampling, case 9A98C015, and DayQuil Sampling Operations, case 9A98D020.)

The arrival of a multinational corporation often looks like a death sentence to local companies in an emerging market. After all, how can they compete in the face of the vast financial and technological resources, the seasoned management, and the powerful brands of, say, a Compaq or a Johnson & Johnson? But local companies often have more options than they might think, say the authors. Those options vary, depending on the strength of globalization pressures in an industry and the nature of a company's competitive assets. In the worst case, when globalization pressures are strong and a company has no competitive assets that it can transfer to other countries, it needs to retreat to a locally oriented link within the value chain. But if globalization pressures are weak, the company may be able to defend its market share by leveraging the advantages it enjoys in its home market. Many companies in emerging markets have assets that can work well in other countries. Those that operate in industries where the pressures to globalize are weak may be able to extend their success to a limited number of other markets that are similar to their home base. And those operating in global markets may be able to contend head-on with multinational rivals. By better understanding the relationship between their company's assets and the industry they operate in, executives from emerging markets can gain a clearer picture of the options they really have when multinationals come to stay.

Shanghai Jahwa is the largest domestically owned Chinese manufacturer of cosmetics and personal care products. In recent years, it has been part of a booming market with growth rates of 35 per cent per year. This spectacular growth rate has attracted and been fuelled by the entry of major multinationals, including Unilever, Procter & Gamble, Shiseido, Kao, and others. The marketing challenge for Shanghai Jahwa is to carve out viable and defensible positions in the marketplace, in the face of competition from some of the most powerful global players in the industry. The case illustrates management issues with respect to extending a very successful brand of Chinese eau-de-toilette named into the shower cream product category. Unilever already has a strong and established shower cream on the market under its well-known Lux brand. In addition, other international players are entering in the market. The case calls for the development of a brand strategy, taking into consideration market position, brand extension, and competitive issues. A follow-up case (9A98A024) is available.

Shanghai Jahwa is the largest domestically owned Chinese manufacturer of cosmetics and personal care products. In recent years, it has been part of a booming market with growth rates of 35 per cent per year. This spectacular growth rate has attracted and been fuelled by the entry of major multinationals, including Unilever, Procter & Gamble, Shiseido, Kao, and others. The marketing challenge for Shanghai Jahwa is to carve out viable and defensible positions in the marketplace, in the face of competition from some of the most powerful global players in the industry. This case illustrates management issues relating to a successful brand of cream. The two main flagship products, the Maxam Tremella Pearl Cream and the Maxam Hand Cream, have evolved in very different directions. The Tremella Pearl Cream is still popular in rural areas and is considered a mainstay of rural cosmetic use. The Maxam Hand Cream, on the other hand, is primarily an urban brand which meets the need of urban women looking to soften their hands after they have been exposed to the cold and to detergents. However, in urban areas the brand is losing its appeal, as foreign competitors roll out their international brands and products. The challenge is to renew the Maxam brand without losing the loyal customers of Tremella Pearl Cream.