Product details

Product details
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Abstract

Manos de Valdivia, a Chilean business with a social mission to provide economic and skill-building opportunities to low-income women believed that it needed to enter the export market to increase its revenue and to operate sustainably. Though it provided a valuable opportunity to its workers, it had operated at break-even for many years. It wished to expand its business, begin generating profits, and operate sustainably. Its parent corporation wished for Manos de Valdivia to find another parent corporation. Though the women managers of Manos de Valdivia were interested in owning the business themselves, they were reluctant to take the financial risk without a parent corporation. The company faced several business and cultural challenges typical of small Latin American businesses. Its products were unique, hand-knitted, high-end apparel pieces created by local labour. Manos de Valdivia struggled to gain a foothold in the market large enough to sustain it, but it operated on a tight budget. It faced ownership questions central to its continued existence, and its managers were uncertain as to how to enter the international market. This case examines the various stakeholders'' interests, motivation, and decision-making challenges regarding marketing and legal issues inherent to the development of small, socially-conscious businesses. This case was sponsored by the Indiana University CIBER Case Collection.
Location:
Size:
< USD600,000 revenue
Other setting(s):
2006

About

Abstract

Manos de Valdivia, a Chilean business with a social mission to provide economic and skill-building opportunities to low-income women believed that it needed to enter the export market to increase its revenue and to operate sustainably. Though it provided a valuable opportunity to its workers, it had operated at break-even for many years. It wished to expand its business, begin generating profits, and operate sustainably. Its parent corporation wished for Manos de Valdivia to find another parent corporation. Though the women managers of Manos de Valdivia were interested in owning the business themselves, they were reluctant to take the financial risk without a parent corporation. The company faced several business and cultural challenges typical of small Latin American businesses. Its products were unique, hand-knitted, high-end apparel pieces created by local labour. Manos de Valdivia struggled to gain a foothold in the market large enough to sustain it, but it operated on a tight budget. It faced ownership questions central to its continued existence, and its managers were uncertain as to how to enter the international market. This case examines the various stakeholders'' interests, motivation, and decision-making challenges regarding marketing and legal issues inherent to the development of small, socially-conscious businesses. This case was sponsored by the Indiana University CIBER Case Collection.

Settings

Location:
Size:
< USD600,000 revenue
Other setting(s):
2006

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