Herend Porcelain Manufactory: Designing Strategy in a COVID-19 World

Description

Herend Porcelain Manufactory Ltd. (Herend) was an almost 200-year-old porcelain manufactory located in western Hungary. The company had weathered multiple social and political changes, world wars, and hardships and had variably experienced prosperity, international recognition, and, on one occasion, bankruptcy. However, under the current chief executive officer, Herend had become a stable and profitable organization. Then, in March 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic created unprecedented challenges. Government-mandated lockdowns—an attempt to contain the spread of COVID-19—restricted consumers from shopping in person at Herend’s shops and diminished the use of porcelain in hospitality and gastronomy where the porcelain sets would be used. The health safety of employees, production disruptions, and decline in orders were other concerns. How could Herend prepare for and survive this extraordinary challenge?

Learning Objective

This case can be used in undergraduate- and graduate-level courses or modules dealing with strategic management, crisis management, entrepreneurship, or leadership. After working through the case and assignment questions, students will be able to do the following:

• Identify categories of business uncertainty and their associated risks.
• Recognize the challenges and opportunities that the COVID-19 pandemic posed for the luxury products market.
• Use quantitative and qualitative methods to evaluate business uncertainty.
• Understand the strategy under uncertainty (SUU) framework.
• Design a strategy decision tree based on SUU.

Related Documents

• Herend Porcelain Manufactory: Designing Strategy in a COVID-19 World - Teaching Note

Keywords

Business continuity Business Strategy COVID-19 Crisis management national heritage porcelain