Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits - McGraw-Hill Introduction to Business

Toymaker Sues Louis Vuitton over the Right to Create Parody Purses

January 24, 2019

For luxury brands like Louis Vuitton, maintaining an image of elegance and sophistication is essential for success. After all, high-end consumers might not be willing to hand over huge amounts of cash to a company that has fallen out of fashion. In order to remain in control of its image, Louis Vuitton has often been quick to file lawsuits against knockoff businesses that place its signature logo onto poorly made items. Along with targeting bootleggers, however, the company also has Continue reading →

Clothing, Global, Product Development, Ethics, Copyright, Entrepreneurship, Branding, Fashion, Legal, Luxury, Louis Vuitton

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 3: Globalization, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Chapter 6: Entrepreneurship, Chapter 13: Marketing, Chapter 14: Product and Price, Bonus Chapter A: Business Law

Netflix Raises Prices as Streaming Market Gets Crowded

January 22, 2019

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When Netflix launched its video streaming platform in the late 2000s, all of the titles featured on the service came from other movie studios and production companies. If you boot up your account these days, though, most of the TV shows and films listed on the homepage are owned and produced by Netflix itself. Over the last few years the streaming giant has invested heavily to create its own content. By one estimate, Netflix spends more than $8 billion annually Continue reading →

Debt financing, Product Development, Licensing, Entertainment, Global, Pricing, Netflix, Streaming, Television, Product Distribution, Movies, Debt

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 3: Globalization, Chapter 13: Marketing, Chapter 14: Product and Price, Chapter 15: Distribution, Chapter 18: Financial Management, Bonus Chapter B: Technology and New Media

[VIDEO] Why “Buy One, Get One Free” Isn’t a Great Deal

January 18, 2019

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For many shoppers, a “buy one, get one free” deal is often too good to pass up. As this video shows, though, “BOGO” promotions aren’t as special as many consumers perceive them to be.

Questions:

How do “buy one, get one free” deals sometimes deceive customers?
Why do retailers like Amazon show customers a product’s original list price along with the discounted price?

Amazon, Ethics, Product Distribution, Promotions, Retail, Pricing

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Chapter 13: Marketing, Chapter 14: Product and Price, Chapter 16: Place and Promotion, Videos

2019 Could Be the Breakout Year for “Alternative Meats”

January 17, 2019

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Nearly four years ago, we published a blog post centered on companies like Impossible Foods and Beyond Meat who claimed to be creating the future of food. Both of these startups developed plant-based alternatives to meat that looked and tasted similar to the real thing, an idea which seemed straight out of science fiction at the time. Fast forward to 2019, though, and now consumers can purchase Beyond Meat’s burger patties at any Whole Foods location that manages to keep Continue reading →

Product Distribution, Synthetic Meat, Economics, Marketing, Global, Ethics, Product Development, Entrepreneurship, Innovation, Sustainability

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 2: Economics, Chapter 3: Globalization, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Chapter 6: Entrepreneurship, Chapter 13: Marketing, Chapter 14: Product and Price, Chapter 15: Distribution, Bonus Chapter B: Technology and New Media

Johnson & Johnson Must Pay $4.7 Billion in Talcum Powder Settlement

January 15, 2019

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Back in 2016 we took a look at the enormous legal fight surrounding talcum powder produced by Johnson & Johnson. At the time, a judge ruled that the company had to pay $72 million to a group of 60 plaintiffs who said they contracted ovarian cancer from using J&J baby powder. But that settlement was far from the end of the pharmaceutical giant’s problems as it continues to face thousands of talc-related lawsuits all over the country.

In fact, Continue reading →

Regulation, Legal, Johnson & Johnson, Business reputation, Ethics

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Chapter 13: Marketing, Bonus Chapter A: Business Law

The BreadBot Aims to Automate Baking

January 10, 2019

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For thousands of years, people have been baking bread by largely following the same procedure: dough is kneaded into a loaf and then placed in a hot oven until it’s done. And while this may sound simple enough, baking a perfect loaf of bread actually requires a great deal of skill and years of experience. That is unless you have a BreadBot, a new machine that automates nearly every aspect of the baking process.

Recently unveiled at the annual Consumer Continue reading →

Product Development, Innovation, Automation, Entrepreneurship, Product Distribution, Production, Food & Drink

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 6: Entrepreneurship, Chapter 9: Production and Operations Management, Chapter 13: Marketing, Chapter 14: Product and Price, Chapter 15: Distribution, Bonus Chapter B: Technology and New Media

Apple Stock Drops after iPhone Sales Slow in China

January 8, 2019

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Apple started the new year on the wrong foot following a surprise announcement that last quarter’s iPhone sales will likely fall short of projections. While the company had originally planned to bring in between $89 billion and $93 billion, CEO Tim Cook said last week that overall revenue would likely tally at just $85 billion. “Lower than anticipated iPhone revenue, primarily in Greater China, accounts for all of our revenue shortfall,” Cook wrote in a letter to investors. As a Continue reading →

Smartphones, Silicon Valley, Product Distribution, Apple, Product Development, Pricing, China, Global

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 3: Globalization, Chapter 13: Marketing, Chapter 14: Product and Price, Chapter 15: Distribution, Bonus Chapter B: Technology and New Media

[VIDEO] Where Amazon Reviews Really Come From

January 3, 2019

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At the bottom of every product page on Amazon sits a collection of user reviews that serve as a resource for those who need a second opinion before making a purchase. And while regular customers write many of these reviews, there are also plenty of others who receive free products in exchange for their perspective. The following video shows the positives and negatives behind this system and how Amazon tries to filter out the worst offenders.

Questions:

Do you think Continue reading →

Promotions, Retail, Amazon, Marketing, Ethics, E-commerce, Word of Mouth

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 3: Globalization, Chapter 13: Marketing, Chapter 14: Product and Price, Chapter 16: Place and Promotion, Bonus Chapter B: Technology and New Media, Videos

[VIDEO] How To Grow The Perfect Christmas Tree

December 19, 2018

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With December 25th less than a week away, twinkling Christmas trees are currently illuminating homes across the country. And while these festive firs will only stand for a couple of weeks, their journey from farms to family rooms takes more than a decade. This video about the production process on Christmas tree farms looks at why they must follow strict logistical schedules or else face disastrous consequences in the long term.

Questions:

Why are logistics so important for Christmas tree Continue reading →

Product Development, Product Distribution, Production, Christmas, Operations Management, Holidays, Global

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 3: Globalization, Chapter 9: Production and Operations Management, Chapter 14: Product and Price, Chapter 15: Distribution

Amazon Considers Opening Stores in Airports

December 13, 2018

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While airports can be tense places at any time of year, they’re especially stressful during the holiday season. As crowds of travelers rush from security checkpoints to their gates, doing something as simple as buying a magazine or a bite to eat can become nearly impossible. That’s why Amazon is reportedly looking to expand its line of Amazon Go brick and mortar stores into airports. At these cashier-free retail outlets, customers simply grab items they want off the shelves and Continue reading →

Travel, Amazon, Product Distribution, E-commerce, Airports, Retail, Pricing, Innovation, Transportation

Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 13: Marketing, Chapter 14: Product and Price, Chapter 15: Distribution, Chapter 16: Place and Promotion, Bonus Chapter B: Technology and New Media