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As a leading short-video social and livestreaming app in China, Kuaishou Technology’s Kuaishou application (app) was facing various challenges, including fierce competition from ByteDance Ltd.’s Douyin. In June 2018, to sustain its long-term growth, Kuaishou needed to evaluate the possibility of entering the livestreaming e-commerce market, as livestreaming was becoming one of the hottest ways to sell to Chinese consumers. The co-founder and chief executive officer of Kuaishou Technology needed to decide whether Kuaishou should launch a livestreaming e-commerce business. If so, should Kuaishou cooperate with an existing e-commerce platform or build its own e-commerce ecosystem? What potential challenges might Kuaishou face in its livestreaming e-commerce business expansion?

This case describes the journey of Gucci, a hundred-year-old luxury fashion brand, and how over the years it has reinvented its designs and marketing strategy to grow its market dominance world-wide. In 2015, Gucci's dismal performance over two successive years led the fashion house to rejig its top management, and bring in Marco Bizzarri, as the new President and CEO, and Alessandro Michele as the new creative director. By end-2019, the duo had achieved a remarkable turnaround, having tripled Gucci's sales and quadrupled its profits over 2015. In the process, they had redefined 'luxury', transformed the high-end fashion industry and contemporised the Gucci brand by being avant-garde and embracing new paradigms such as purpose-driven, gender-neutral, cross-generational and digital-oriented strategies. However, despite regaining its position as the world's fastest growing luxury brand, Gucci had clocked a much lower annual growth in 2019 than 2018 and 2017. Did this indicate that the brand was losing its relevance and needed to reinvent itself again? Could Gucci's recent foray into beauty products, making it more accessible and affordable, be diluting its brand equity? Additionally, the outbreak of the global pandemic Covid-19 in 2020 had plunged the luxury industry and the fashion house to new lows. The only silver lining was Gucci' strong digital capability, which helped the brand recover some of its lost ground through an increase in online sales. With the pandemic relenting in China, the luxury market in the country had begun to revive since March 2020. However, it was difficult to predict how other markets would behave post-pandemic. Would consumers be driven by the need to compensate for the lost opportunity to consume, or would the pandemic induce in them values that encouraged cutbacks in discretionary spending? Moreover, if the other markets did not pick up, what would be the effect of an increased dependence of the luxury brands on Chinese consumers?

This case explores how a creative agency in Southeast Asia created the region's first virtual influencer. The client, a prominent global sports and lifestyle brand, wanted someone to run a campaign to promote its new line of sneakers. Because Southeast Asia is an incredibly diverse region, the agency struggled to find an influencer who would appeal across all markets. Eventually, it decided to create its own influencer, using artificial intelligence and the latest 3D-rendering techniques. Through the case, students will study the factors that led the agency to make such a decision, and examine how virtual influencers compare with traditional flesh-and-blood ones, in terms of marketing appeal, cost, and other factors. They will also consider the question of how sustainable virtual influencers are as a marketing tool for future campaigns.

In 2020, the head of the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) Academy, faced some tough decisions surrounding co-creation initiatives. The UEFA Academy was founded in early 2019 to address the learning needs of the football world with the aim of advancing the game. Since its inception, the UEFA Academy had been enthusiastically received by the sporting world. However, in pursuit of constant improvement, the head of the UEFA Academy wondered whether the use of co-creation could bring innovation and excellence to the UEFA Academy’s programs. Which key stakeholders should the UEFA Academy involve in this initiative? What factors should be considered when formulating the UEFA Academy's value co-creation strategy? And what co-creating activities should the co-creation initiative focus on?

Drop Technologies Inc. was a major success in the Toronto, Ontario, Canada technology community. Having raised its initial pre-seed funding with only a slide deck, it grew to become a popular loyalty mobile application across North America. In 2017, the company was featured in LinkedIn’s top 25 start-ups in Canada, and it closed CA$58 million in a series B funding round. In 2018, the marketing manager had to decide which marketing channel was most effective based on the goals of the company. Traditionally, Drop Technologies Inc. used paid social advertising and referrals to generate user growth. However, the rise of influencer marketing was on the marketing manager’s radar, who had previously tested this channel, but had yet to decide whether or not to allocate more of the marketing budget to it. While this channel had many potential benefits, it was still a new concept and held many potential risks.

Spreadsheet to accompany product 9B21A006.

Drop Technologies Inc. was a major success in the Toronto, Ontario, Canada technology community. Having raised its initial pre-seed funding with only a slide deck, it grew to become a popular loyalty mobile application across North America. In 2017, the company was featured in LinkedIn's top 25 start-ups in Canada, and it closed CA$58 million in a series B funding round. In 2018, the marketing manager had to decide which marketing channel was most effective based on the goals of the company. Traditionally, Drop Technologies Inc. used paid social advertising and referrals to generate user growth. However, the rise of influencer marketing was on the marketing manager's radar, who had previously tested this channel, but had yet to decide whether or not to allocate more of the marketing budget to it. While this channel had many potential benefits, it was still a new concept and held many potential risks.

Student spreadsheet to case W21265

Kapila Krishi Udyog Limited, a Kanpur-based cattle feed manufacturer, was the market leader in the organised cattle feed market in North India. The organised cattle feed market was estimated at around 17-18% of India's cattle feed market. The product was commodity type and had demand mainly in rural and semiurban areas. Traditionally, Kapila Krishi had a market presence in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, but later, it moved to Punjab and Haryana. It faced competition from national and international brands in the cattle feed market besides competing with many unorganised players. Kapila Krishi saw a decline in its year-on-year revenue growth in 2018-19, but it simultaneously witnessed a massive increase in promotional expenses. The decline in Kapila's revenue growth could be traced to a changing competitive market scenario and unawareness among customers towards market-based cattle feed, besides a lack of strategic fit between market segmentation and marketing mix and a shift in the promotional and distribution strategy. Sameer Shivhare, Director, Kapila Krishi, was concerned with this development and was pondering to prepare a business plan to bring a reversal in declining revenue growth and ensure a steady growth in the business. He had to present the plan in the next board meeting.

Uala's bold "tech-and-touch" strategy brought 2.7 million new customers - 1 out of 20 people in Argentina - into banking in less than four years (2017-21). Readers step into the shoes of CEO Pierpaolo Barbieri as he begins by (1) uncovering pain points and untapped needs in banking in Argentina through digital analytics, (2) transforming his insights into a clever tech-and-touch strategy combining physical (prepaid card) and digital aspects powered by a mobile app. Having achieved massive success onboarding unbanked customers in Argentina, Uala must craft a strategic response to new competition from online banks and digital "Goliaths" such as Mercado Pago (finance arm of Mercado Libre, the 'Amazon of Latin America').

Set in May 2020, this case describes the entrepreneurial journey of Bynd Artisan (Bynd), a Singapore-based atelier that sold premium paper and leather goods. Founded by Winnie Chan and James Quan in October 2014 as an entity distinct from Chan's traditional paper and leather goods family business, Bynd had grown to become an iconic retail luxury brand recognised for its artisanal excellence and heritage. Over the years, it had won numerous accolades in Singapore for the craftsmanship, quality and designs of its bespoke products. By 2020, Bynd had five retail stores in the city-state and employed 35 people. However, Bynd's sophisticated and premium product line predominantly catered to professionals, managers, executives and technicians (PMETs) above the age of 23 years. Its' high-end pricing made it inaccessible to the younger customers such as the Generation Z. In order to target these young customers, Chan and Quan planned to launch a second product line under the brand name 'reBynd' - made of recycled material, comprising simpler but more modern designs, and priced significantly lower than Bynd. However, the founders faced a dilemma regarding the retail channel - online or physical - to be used for distributing reBynd's products. On the one hand, the online channel seemed to be a better fit with the target customers' profile, and the brand's sustainable positioning and value proposition. On the other hand, reBynd, as a new and a lifestyle-related brand, would need a tactile physical environment to gain customers' acceptance. Moreover, despite the high internet penetration in Singapore, brick & mortar sales had dominated its retail industry by far. What retail strategy should Bynd consider for its second brand, given the trade-offs associated with both online and offline channels? More importantly, would the introduction of a cheaper secondary brand dilute the primary brand's luxury status?

In 2019, after completing her postgraduate work in dentistry in Mangalore, India, an entrepreneur decided to set up a chain of clinics in Bengaluru, in the Indian state of Karnataka. She was not considering any partnerships for her venture, which she planned to fund with personal capital and a bank loan. The entrepreneur consulted her long-time friend, an independent business consultant, who introduced her to the manager of the Indian government-owned Syndicate Bank. The bank agreed to review her detailed financial and marketing plans, and consider funding the venture. The independent business consultant offered to help with the task of financial forecasting for the development of a marketing plan to increase foot traffic to the proposed clinics.

In 2019, after completing her postgraduate work in dentistry in Mangalore, India, an entrepreneur decided to set up a chain of clinics in Bengaluru, in the Indian state of Karnataka. She was not considering any partnerships for her venture, which she planned to fund with personal capital and a bank loan. The entrepreneur consulted her long-time friend, an independent business consultant, who introduced her to the manager of the Indian government-owned Syndicate Bank. The bank agreed to review her detailed financial and marketing plans, and consider funding the venture. The independent business consultant offered to help with the task of financial forecasting for the development of a marketing plan to increase foot traffic to the proposed clinics.

In the phygital realm, the customer experience can be enhanced using the best of the physical and digital worlds. Unfortunately, digital transformation projects are often limited to the incorporation of various digital devices at different stages of the purchase experience. As a result, many companies are failing to seize the opportunities presented by this new hybrid world. While the physical-realm experience stems from sensory interactions between individuals and a distinct form of the bricks-and-mortar environment, the digital customer experience tends to relate to the integration of technologies that help consumers control, customize, optimize, and monitor their actions. Although physical experiences generate emotions, and digital ones are mostly functional, the phygital realm engages consumers by being both emotional and functional. When the concept of phygital is recognized as a hybrid realm with both functional and emotional components, companies can break free of existing customer experience constraints. Phygital-world competition is about an enhanced customer experience, not showcasing digital bells and whistles. To ensure a successful digital transformation, companies need a consumer-centric strategy that utilizes technologies to combine valuable experiences from the physical and digital realms to create something new and superior that consumers appreciate and don’t reject because it doesn’t fit with customer needs or expectations.

Spreadsheet supplement to case 521101.

In May 2020, the three cofounders of Kinsip House of Fine Spirits (Kinsip), a craft distillery located on a farm in Prince Edward County, Ontario, Canada, felt a great sense of accomplishment. The distillery had a varied product mix that included light and dark spirits, a broad variety of bitters, and cask-aged maple syrup. However, in March of 2020, the business had retooled to produce hand sanitizer in response to the shortages resulting from the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. As a distillery, Kinsip already produced ethanol for its regular products, which was also a key ingredient in the composition of hand sanitizer, and in combining this with their production and bottling expertise, were able to meet the needs of the community quickly and effectively. Before long, Kinsip had added hand sanitizer to its list of products for sale to the public. Should the cofounders make hand sanitizer a regular Kinsip product offering?

In May 2020, the three cofounders of Kinsip House of Fine Spirits (Kinsip), a craft distillery located on a farm in Prince Edward County, Ontario, Canada, felt a great sense of accomplishment. The distillery had a varied product mix that included light and dark spirits, a broad variety of bitters, and cask-aged maple syrup. However, in March of 2020, the business had retooled to produce hand sanitizer in response to the shortages resulting from the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. As a distillery, Kinsip already produced ethanol for its regular products, which was also a key ingredient in the composition of hand sanitizer, and in combining this with their production and bottling expertise, were able to meet the needs of the community quickly and effectively. Before long, Kinsip had added hand sanitizer to its list of products for sale to the public. Should the cofounders make hand sanitizer a regular Kinsip product offering?

In April 2020, Yuno Learning Global Private Limited, an entrepreneurial venture that offered online training for International English Language Testing System examinations, wanted to optimize its digital marketing and increase the number of prospects who subscribed to the company's program. The founder and chief executive officer had to decide among multiple marketing channels and funnels to choose the option that maximized value for the marketing effort, and he had to make that decision in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, when all businesses were being affected by the move to online interaction.

In May 2019, a Vietnam-based entrepreneur was wondering which strategy would work best to sell nipa honey, the first product launched by his nipa palm products company, Viet Nam Nipa Development Company Limited (Viet Nipa). The product was launched in February 2019 and the entrepreneur had been selling the nipa honey at trade fairs, through partnerships with three popular resorts in his home district, and on a sales platform on Viet Nipa's Facebook page. He was reaching out to grocery retailers in Vietnam with sale propositions, but to no avail. Should the entrepreneur continue to pursue business-to-consumer (B2C) distribution or leverage his company's operational and manufacturing capabilities to shift to a business-to-business (B2B) operation? What was his target market and how should he tailor Viet Nipa's marketing strategy and tactics to these consumers? Should he also consider taking nipa honey to the international market?