Title:                         CityLife Retail Private Limited Globalization Decision
Subject Area:          International Business
Region:                      Eastern and Northern India (Bangladesh or Vietnam)
Industry:                 Retail Industry
Company:               Citylife Retail Private Limited
Decision Makers: Ritesh Kedia and Rajesh Baid

Challenge:                In this case, we analyzed a retail store chain that is looking to grab the international market. This push has come from an oversaturated and highly competitive retail industry already well established in India. The potential markets analyzed in this case study are Vietnam and Bangladesh. These choices were made because of low labor costs, geographical proximity to the home country, and similar market conditions that facilitate business model transferability. Each market has displayed attractive characteristics. This will be Citylife’s first international expansion, and therefore the success of this would pave the way for further growth opportunities.

“Citylife Retail Private Limited Globalization Decision” as a BE-EDGE Project :

Investment to Personal Capital:

Four Northeastern University undergraduate students chose Citylife Retail Private Limited for their BE-EDGE consulting case, which furthered their understanding of global industries and boosted their confidence in today’s complex business environment.

Nitya’s CORE as a PRO: Having a personal connection to the company made this project extremely important to her. It confirmed her decision to own and operate her own company along with expanding her father’s company in the future.

Joshua’s CORE as a PRO: Although not personally connected to the company, Joshua’s continued involvement and excitement on the project grew his relationship with City Life. Through personal reflection along the way, finishing this project confirmed Joshua’s goals to break into the consulting space and one day start his own consultancy.

Melody’s CORE as a PRO: Applying her experience in academic research to global business strategy reinforced her core belief in the detail-oriented analysis of research and big data. This spurred her interest in consulting and similar in-house positions. Now, Melody is centering her career on business analytics.

Investment to Social Capital :

The group grew both as individuals and as a well-established team. They learned invaluable leadership skills and lessons in overcoming adversity. The refinement of their public speaking abilities, confrontations of strengths and weaknesses among group members, and the understanding of how to utilize strengths were all contributed to the team members’ skill sets. They felt what truly working hard with other people means, and their ability to understand each other and unite ingrained these valuable ideologies.

Investment to Professional Capital :

An essential component of this case was conducting thorough market research. The group researched potential markets in great depth, understanding the necessity of informed decisions. They applied analysis tools like the PESTEL model and Hofstede’s cultural dimensions on a global problem in order to gain a holistic perspective on potential markets. Afterward, they weighed various global strategies and entry modes, and quantitatively selected the best opportunity. On the basis of their research, they selected the most lucrative market, decided on a global strategy and an entry mode, and designed an appropriate suggestion for globalization.

Capitals Utilization :

The team is currently furthering their paper and working towards publication in SAGE, making them published case writers and consultants with a proof of completed projects. While the members have yet to apply for co-op, this project is sure to help prove their value as business experts to hiring managers in the future.