Business Case Studies by Industry - Food & drink

The Times 100 food & drink case studies

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    Arla Foods

    • — The Natural 1st Choice Dairy Company

      This case study looks at the growth of a producers co-operative to become the largest dairy group in Europe and how rapid growth required a values-driven culture and identity. This has enabled Arla Foods to create leading brands across a range of markets. — Edition 8

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    Audi UK

    • — Investing in people and in brands

      As a result of carefully reading the Case Study, students should be able to: identify the important contribution that human resources make to brand image, know the difference between training and development, understand the importance of motivation in career progression. — Edition 10

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    BCCCA

    • [+] Supporting agriculture to create sustainable development

      This case study helps students understand why a sustainable supply chain is important for manufacturers. — Edition 11

    • [+] Creating a sustainable chocolate industry

      As a result of carefully reading the Case Study, students should be able to: explain BCCCA’s role in providing a focus for UK chocolate manufacturers to work together on non-competitive issues, describe the global nature of the market for chocolate, understand the importance of sustainability in providing a livelihood for small cocoa farmers. — Edition 10

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    Bernard Matthews

    • — Communicating with stakeholders

      This case study explores how Bernard Matthews has addressed the challenges of communicating with its customers and other important stakeholders. — Edition 16

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    Cadbury Schweppes

    • [+] Financial statements and reporting

      This case study helps students understand the process of setting, reporting and evaluating financial performance. — Edition 11

    • [+] Engaging stakeholders in a business

      As a result of carefully reading theCase Study, students should be able to: understand why it is important for organisations to engage with their stakeholders, be able to identify key stakeholders, suggest ways of engaging with stakeholders. — Edition 10

    • [+] Ethical business practices

      As a result of carefully reading the Case Study, students should be able to: understand what is meant by ethical behaviour within business, explain the possible broad-ranging benefits of ethical behaviour, describe the ways in which Cadbury Schweppes behaves ethically towards its stakeholders. — Edition 9

    • [+] Stakeholders and Corporate Community Investment

      This case study focuses on how Cadbury Trebor Bassett - the UK confectionery division of Cadbury Schweppes provides a positive role model and acts as a benchmark in how to exercise Corporate Community Involvement. — Edition 8

    • — Creating a new and exciting brand - Cafe Cadbury
    • — Branding strategies to create value
    • — Growing the value of a business for shareholders
    • — The importance of cause related marketing
    • — Launching a new product into a developed market
    • — Poland - a developing market
    • — The acquisiton of Dr Pepper/Seven-Up company inc
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    Coca-Cola Great Britain

    • [+] Creating an effective organisational structure

      As a result of carefully reading the Case Study, students should be able to: understand that the organisational structure of The Coca-Cola Company is designed to meet its own particular requirements, explain how a regional structure can support both centralised and localised decision making, describe the regional structure of The Coca-Cola Company. — Edition 10

    • [+] Using market research to develop a product range

      As a result of carefully reading the Case Study, students should be able to: understand what is meant by a product range, know the meaning of marketing and its importance to an organisation, appreciate why market research should shape the product range. — Edition 9

    • [+] Communicating through the "world game", for brand and corporate reputation

      This case study looks at the reasons why Coca-Cola supports 'the world game'. Coca-Cola focuses on the football fan rather than football itself, i.e. promoting the playing and watching of football rather than helping to fund professional clubs. Coca-Cola has a long-standing commitment to encourage young people to participate in team sports and live a healthy and active lifestyle. — Edition 8

    • — The importance of social responsibility
    • — Making the world's best known product
    • — Within An Arm's Reach Of Desire
    • — Corporate Citizenship and the community
    • — Working with bottling franchisees around the world
    • — Coca-Cola and sports - Partnership through Competition
    • — Who dares wins - Success through intelligent risk
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    Ford

    • — Sponsorship and the marketing mix

      This case study helps students understand how effective sponsorship involves all 4Ps of the marketing mix. — Edition 11

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    GREGGS

    • — Consumer focused product development

      This case study looks at an important part of market research. It illustrates how one of the UK’s leading bakery related retailers researches the market and uses the information it gains to influence its decisions about product development. — Edition 8

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    Hazlewood Sandwiches

    • — Going for growth by investing in people, products and plant

      As a result of carefully reading the Case Study, students should be able to: understand why businesses need ongoing investment in plant, people and products, identify three main ways of appraising/evaluating investment opportunities, describe ways in which Hazlewood Sandwiches has invested in its employees. — Edition 9

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    Kraft Foods UK

    • [+] The vital role of Sales at Kraft Foods UK

      This case study helps students understand how the scales and marketing functions work together. — Edition 11

    • [+] The vital role of Sales at Kraft Foods UK

      As a result of carefully reading the Case Study, students should be able to : know how the sales function is organised at Kraft, understand the key role played by Sales, understand the role of Sales in getting products to customers and consumers. — Edition 10

    • [+] Budgeting and strategy

      As a result of carefully reading the Case Study, students should be able to: define the term budget and explain the purpose of budgeting, outline the importance of identifying major variances and taking remedial actions, list the advantages and disadvantages of budgeting. — Edition 9

    • [+] Using planning analysts at the centre of brand development

      This case study illustrates how Kraft Foods’ management accountants act as financial planning analysts to support the process of brand development. It highlights how Kraft’s forward planning and supporting processes of investment/forecast analysis supports its core brands in a fast-changing market place. — Edition 8

    • — Delivering Service Exellence In The Supply Chain
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    Leyland Trucks

    • — Continuous improvement within an organisation

      This case study looks at how use of Kaizen can achieve improved productivity and a culture of continuous improvement. — Edition 12

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    Masterfoods

    • [+] Getting the right message across - the re-launch of Mars

      This case study explains the reasons why Masterfoods had to re-position the Mars bar. It also focuses on how it used public relations to gain the positive support of new and existing customers when it re-launched the Mars bar in March 2002. — Edition 8

    • — How Mars transformed the ice cream market
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    McCain Foods

    • [+] The marketing mix in the food industry

      This case study shows how McCain combines all four parts of the marketing mix to develop its marketing strategy. — Edition 15

    • [+] Sustainability through investment

      This case study explores how McCain Foods evaluated the benefits of proposed sustainable energy projects before making major financial investment. — Edition 13

    • [+] How McCain responds to changes in the external environment

      This case study highlights how use of a SLEPT analysis helps a company respond to changes in its external environment and remain competitive. — Edition 12

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    McDonald's Restaurants

    • [+] Managing stock to meet customer needs

      This case study shows how important effective management of stock is for an organisation in both meeting customer needs and controlling costs. — Edition 12

    • [+] The marketing process

      This case study helps students understand essential elements of marketing including marketing objectives, the 4Ps and market research. — Edition 11

    • [+] Recruiting, selecting and training for success

      As a result of carefully reading the Case Study, students should be able to: outline the key stages and processes involved in a recruitment process, understand why McDonald’s places high emphasis on its people and the recruitment process, know that McDonald’s is committed to training its employees. — Edition 10

    • [+] Franchising and entrepreneurship

      As a result of carefully reading the Case Study, students should be able to: understand the concept of franchising , understand the advantages to the franchisee , understand the advantages to the franchisor. — Edition 9

    • [+] The route to fast food franchising

      This case study examines the success and reasons of franchising and investigates the special three-way relationship that exists between franchisee, franchisor and the suppliers at McDonald’s Restaurants. — Edition 8

    • [+] Staying ahead in a competitive environment

      This case study examines the positive way in which McDonald’s is responding to changing customer habits and increased levels of competition. Keeping ahead involves continuous hard work to enhance the reputation of the brand, coupled with product innovation based on detailed market research that indicates how to please customers. — Edition 7

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    Michelin

    • [+] Respecting stakeholder values

      This case study helps students understand the difference between stakeholders and shareholders and how companies must respect their values. — Edition 11

    • [+] Business aims, objectives, and values

      As a result of carefully reading the Case Study, students should be able to: explain the relationship between aims, objectives, values, and plans, identify Michelin’s mission and its economic objectives, understand the importance of organisational values. — Edition 10

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    Nestle

    • [+] Business principles in action - nutritional labelling

      This case study shows how market research has helped Nestlé understand what consumers wanted to know about Nestlé products so they can make informed choices. This has enabled Nestle to exercise corporate responsibility and demonstrate its business principles. — Edition 12

    • [+] Nutrition, Health & Wellness - New Product Development at Nestle

      This case study helps students understand how companies research, develop and launch new products. — Edition 11

    • [+] Responding to changing customer requirements: the drive towards Wellness

      As a result of carefully reading the Case Study, students should be able to: know that increasing numbers of people want healthier foods, understand how and why market focused companies (e.g. Nestlé) respond to such developments, know about Nestlé: its size, its products and its worldwide reputation. — Edition 10

    • [+] Sustainability and water

      As a result of carefully reading the Case Study, students should be able to: know the basic economic problem and how it is solved, understand the factors of production and opportunity cost, describe what is meant by sustainability. — Edition 9

    • [+] From bean to bar - the production process

      This case study looks at the massive, complex worldwide operations that ensures that chocolate products are on the shelves of retail outlets 365 days a year. In reality, it represents a triumph for careful planning and meticulous organisation. — Edition 8

    • — Kit Kat: Revitalising a Brand Leader
    • — Doing Better By The Environment
    • — Coffee - The Supply Chain
    • — Long term maintenance of a classic brand name
    • — The power of love
    • — Injecting new life into the product life cycle
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    Nissan

    • — Planning for quality and productivity

      As a result of carefully reading the Case Study, students should be able to: explain why continuous flow methods are appropriate to car manufacturing, show how Total Quality Management (TQM) is a customer focused approach to production, describe examples of just-in-time manufacturing and Kaizen. — Edition 9

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    Red Bull

    • — Engaging consumers through word of mouth marketing

      This case study illustrates how Red Bull, the manufacturer of the world's best selling energy drink, uses a range of innovative promotional techniques to improve the process of communication and drive consumer engagement and loyalty. — Edition 16

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    Skoda

    • — SWOT analysis in action

      The case study shows how Å koda UK transformed its brand image and built its competitive edge using SWOT analysis. — Edition 13

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    United Biscuits

    • [+] An enterprising approach to a marketing re-launch

      This case study focuses on one of the UK’s leading savoury snacks, Phileas Fogg. This case study analyses how United Biscuits reinvented Phileas Fogg in an attempt to retain its innovative culture and individuality within a much larger group. — Edition 8

    • — The repositioning of Hobnobs
    • — Hula Hoops - emphasising the core values of the brand
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    Walkers

    • — Success through managing quality, safety, customer service and cost

      This case study helps students understand operations management – balancing safety, quality, customer service and cost. — Edition 11

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    Warburtons

    • — Managing the supply chain to meet customer needs

      This case study focuses on how the second largest grocery brand inthe UK - Warburtons - manages its supply chain. — Edition 15