Saturday, March 24, 2007

Starbucking !!

Starbucks Chairman Howard Schultz sent an email to CEO Jim Donald and other top executives on Valentine's day. You can read the whole text here. There are a ton of blogs & newspaper stories on Internet about the subject. My question here is not about the Starbucks' strategy but about the memo itself. Do you think Howard did the right thing by sending this email? Could he make a similar or stronger impact by any other mode? Is there a need for new communication startegies when you're not confident that internal memos will remain 'internal'? (or can we write an internal memo keeping in mind that it won't remain internal?)

Wednesday, March 21, 2007

Can an 'Amul' be done in Indian retail?

It may be the right time to do an 'Amul' in the Indian retail sector. The more I think about it and the more I talk to others familiar with Indian retail scene, the more convinced I get. It seems to be the only way to enable existing retailers to compete effectively with the Wal-Marts & Carrefours of the world. However, it took a V.J. Kurien to create an 'Amul' in the dairy sector. What is it going to take in retail?