For this assignment you will looking at two completely different companies that sell completely different types of products. However, both companies have strong international potential. As you saw in the background materials, different types of products lead to different types of strategies regarding standardization or adaptation and whether you decide to become a global, multi-domestic, or transnational corporation.
The first business you will look at is Yogurtland, a California-based frozen yogurt franchise with 300 locations. Most of the company's locations are in the United States and Australia, but it has also opened up a small number of locations in Mexico, Venezuela, Thailand, and the United Arab Emirates. The company has been successful in part because of customer satisfaction with the flavors, and in part because its self-serve model allows for local franchise owners to open up a new location at a relatively low cost.
The second business to look at is Micromax, an Indian smartphone company that is starting to expand internationally. The smartphone business is a notoriously tough market with dominant competitors such as Apple and Samsung. Micromax is the largest local smartphone company in India and is second only to Samsung in the Indian smartphone market. Micromax has recently started to expand to Russia and is hoping to expand to other countries as well. Given the high price of smartphones from Apple and Samsung, there may be room for a lower priced competitor in the global smartphone market.
Do a careful review of the concept of standardization and adaption in Chapter 18.3 of Carpenter and Dunung (2012) and the concepts of multi-domestic, global, and transnational strategies in Chapter 14.3 of Carpenter and Dunung (2012) and Chapter 12 of Jeyarathmm (2008). Then do some research on Yogurtland and Micromax in the Trident library or other sources. Here are some articles to get you started:
Yogurtland and Sanrio launch co-brand partnership. (2011, July 26). China Weekly News, p. 282. [ProQuest]
Leung, L. (2014, July 17). Yogurtland founder returns, trims staff: Fifteen are cut as Phillip Chang looks to reinvigorate Irvine chain. Orange County Register. [ProQuest]
Micromax: Cheap and best. (2014, December 23). Financial Express. [ProQuest]
Anwer, J. (2014, January 10). Micromax to foray into Russia, sell phones, tablets (hardware). The Times of India (Online) [ProQuest]
Case Assignment
Once you have finished your research, write a 4- to 5-page paper answering the following questions:
- What kind of strategy do you recommend if Yogurtland continues its international expansion? Would you recommend product standardization or localization? Which overall strategy would you recommend-transnational, multi-domestic, or global? Explain your reasoning and apply the concepts from Carpenter and Dunung (2012) and Jeyarathmm (2008). Make sure to cite some articles on Yogurtland as well.
- What kind of strategy would you recommend for Micromax's international expansion? Would you recommend product standardization or localization? Which overall strategy would you recommend-transnational, multi-domestic, or global? Explain your reasoning and apply the concepts from Carpenter and Dunung (2012) and Jeyarathmm (2008). Make sure to cite some articles on Micromax as well.