Alicia Soulier, owner of Capelli Salon Studio, a hair salon in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, has developed an application (app) that can help save hair salons thousands of dollars per month in hair colour costs. However, she is struggling to recruit enough subscribers to her new software as a service (SaaS) company, SalonScale. With the diversion of her attention from her hair salon to the app threatening her core business, Soulier must soon decide on a customer acquisition strategy.
In February 2017, the chief executive officer of Conexus Credit Union, a local credit union headquartered in Regina, Saskatchewan, was preparing to meet with the board of directors. He would be pitching his plan to build, staff, and operate a start-up venture program to be called the Cultivator. The Cultivator would create a stream of new regional high-technology businesses that would be well-placed, both for Conexus to serve and its members and the wider community to benefit from. The real question was how to operationalize this model: Should Conexus use the template of existing for-profit start-up accelerator programs to launch companies quickly and optimally to fail or scale? Or considering its community mandate, should Conexus take a different route?
In 2016, the founder and chief executive officer of West Paw Design (WPD) was faced with a growth dilemma: how could he align WPD’s socially responsible ethos with his desire to expand business activities in the growing pet products market? Based in Bozeman, Montana, WPD developed, manufactured, and distributed pet products. The company was a certified “B Corporation,” meaning its social and environmental credentials had been verified by an external organization, B Lab. The founder had to consider his options very carefully, because some of them could undermine or negate WPD’s growth objectives, as well as its cherished B Corporation principles.
An entrepreneur in Atlantic Canada believes he has a five to six year window to capitalize on the growth of his newest venture, Maritime Bus, a passenger transportation and parcel delivery service, before his retirement. Having turned around a business that lost $12 million over the previous eight years in less than six months, he believes he has the opportunity to continue this success. However, he is unsure what strategies to follow to achieve growth: expand the parcel service, partner with other transportation operators to attract more riders, increase marketing efforts or move into Newfoundland and Labrador. He is also unsure about the value of the business and how he can smoothly and profitably transfer his ownership shares to his partner, one or more of his children or an external investor. Any decision needs to be made in consultation with his family.
In 2014, two friends have launched tentree (TT), a Canadian entrepreneurial venture that sells an environmentally sustainable and trendy brand of apparel. For every product sold, TT plants 10 trees in locations around the world. Although TT is still in its infancy, it is already experiencing huge growth. The entrepreneurial founders now face several challenges: how to keep pace with the growing demand; how to plant as many trees as they can while staying true to their sustainable, environmental philosophy; how to break into the U.S. and other markets; and where to source their product.
The chairperson of the United Church Housing Corporation (UCHC) of Regina, Saskatchewan, received some information from an external consultant who was hired to assess the state of affairs of the UCHC. This non-profit organization had operated for over 50 years and had built accommodations for many seniors that were both affordable and offered personal independence. In 2005, the UCHC board approved a new four-storey assisted living facility, Wascana Wing, which was to be built in response to long waitlists. With this decision, the UCHC board had taken out a $3 million mortgage to finance the project. Since opening the new facility, UCHC had been plagued by high vacancy rates as new for-profit competitors entered the market for senior accommodations. The combination of high vacancy rates and UCHC's highly leveraged financial position were the source of losses from 2006 to the present. The board's break-even mentality was not working. UCHC was at a major crossroads - the housing situation of more than 100 seniors residing in assisted living apartments and cottages would need to be decided upon at the next meeting. The question was whether or not June, a retired nurse, would recommend that the board proceed with winding up UCHC or make suggestions that would call for major changes to the current business model.
Beanz Espresso Bar is located in downtown Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, Canada. It is operating in a market with high rivalry (11 other coffee businesses in a two-block radius). The economy in Prince Edward Island has seen several diners, restaurants, and coffee shops close their doors within the past few years, while simultaneously drawing in large corporate businesses such as Starbucks and Running Room. Beanz has thus far survived the major environmental changes and managed to keep its clientele and the owners, Lori and Doug, feel it is time to either sell Beanz and leave the industry, or exploit their competitive advantages to grow and capture more market share. Beanz specializes in high-quality, baked-from-scratch food and specialty coffee beverages. The café is known for its artistic vibe, warm atmosphere, and eccentric staff. After operating Beanz for 16 years, the couple has made few changes to the decor, menu, the set-up. Internally, the company faces several issues concerning management control systems, marketing, and strategic direction. Lori and Doug must choose between five different directions for the future of Beanz.
In 2004, Holland College formed a not-for-profit organization with the Canadian policing community and National Research Council to create the Canadian Police Knowledge Network (CPKN). In 2011, CPKN is Canada's leading provider of e-learning solutions for Canadian law enforcement, with more than 60,500 registered learners - including customers such as the Regina-based Royal Canadian Mounted Police and INTERPOL. To date, these learners have successfully completed more than 161,000 course events. Despite CPKN's recent successes, its president believes there is significant potential for growing the organization and he is looking for ways to reach new customers and improve the financial performance of the organization.
After working together on a university business plan, two entrepreneurs worked for three years to develop their venture: Shutout Solutions Inc. Their start-up venture was established in response to an issue familiar to most hockey players: notoriously smelly equipment. While their familiarity with hockey equipment helped them identify a specific problem, subsequent research revealed a much broader issue: the need to clean products made of micro-fibre. Utilizing a technology that addressed the micro-fibre odour issue, they believed they had a five-year opportunity window to develop and profit from the business before it was imitated or superseded. As they considered their options, they realized that they might have to choose to focus their resources on a single product line rather than continue to develop their current portfolio of a detergent, body wash, and spray. They also questioned whether they were using the right channel - gyms and sporting goods stores - to reach customers. The opportunity to pursue bulk institutional sales was also intriguing, though it would require a different sales, pricing, and distribution strategy. Also, they considered how they might respond to an offer to sell the company in its current form.