IKEA, the well-known Swedish furniture retailer, has sold 150 million meatballs, bringing in nearly 2 billion in annual revenue. This food division of IKEA is not the same as those restaurants we see every day—the strategy is to keep the restaurant and menu simple.

The managers in IKEA apparently have a clear vision about what IKEA has to offer the customers. After walking in the big store for the whole morning, customers want to sit down and have something to eat. If there is a long menu with a variety of food, it may take a relatively long time for customers to hesitate about what to choose. IKEA knows that customers come to shop for furniture, not for food, so the menu it offers contains only 5 items at reasonable and inexpensive prices.

IKEA’s restaurant has found its point of difference among so many restaurants in the world, which is providing limited items on the menu. But this point of difference is not mainly used for competing with other restaurants. Rather, the restaurant of IKEA is like an accessory of the furniture shop. It provides customers with a better shopping experience. With its own restaurant embedded in the furniture store, it ensures that customers stay as long as possible since they don’t have to drive to other places for meals.

Reference:

Hansegard, Jens. “IKEA’s Path to Selling 150 Million Meatballs.” The Wall Street Journal. The Wall Street Journal, 17 Oct. 2013. Web. 28 Oct. 2013.

“IKEA.” Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 26 Oct. 2013. Web. 28 Oct. 2013.

BlackBerry is facing a lawsuit due to the misleading information it has disclosed to shareholders about its financial position. Recently it has reported a loss of 965 million operating losses and a decision to lay off 4,500 employees.

The shining moment of BlackBerry has definitely become a history. And the fact that it is eclipsed by Apple and Google is irrefutable. However, regardless of its failure of technological innovation, it could have be honest and more accurate about its statements for investors. Instead of “making a series of materially false and misleading statements and omissions related to the Company’s business and operations,” BlackBerry should have informed investors about its financial decline.

Why would BlackBerry conceal the truth? One reason might be that managers in BlackBerry were under big pressure from expectations of shareholders. But this doesn’t justify their dishonesty. Lies in business are dangerous enough to ruin a company. And although this is not the case for BlackBerry since it is already in decline, being honest could have saved it the money used in settling the lawsuit.

Avoiding pressure by lying can only make problems last longer. Those managers in BlackBerry should have known that truth is better than lie.

Reference:

• Reuters, Thomson. “BlackBerry Hit with Shareholder Lawsuit.” CBCnews. CBC/Radio Canada, 05 Oct. 2013. Web. 06 Oct. 2013.
• Hesseldahl, Arik. “BlackBerry’s Busy Weekend of Shareholder Lawsuits and Buyout Chatter.” AllThingsD. AllThingsD, 06 Oct. 2013. Web. 06 Oct. 2013.
• Gustin, Sam. “Business & Money.” Business Money The Fatal Mistake That Doomed BlackBerry Comments. Time, 24 Sept. 2013. Web. 06 Oct. 2013.

 Molson Canadian, a beer company, has launched an advertising campaign devised by Rethink Toronto in selected places in Europe. In this campaign, red fridges with free beers inside are placed across cities in Europe, and the door will unlock only if someone scan a Canadian passport.

Along with the tagline “I am Canadian”, this campaign succeeds in telling people where the company comes from. Also, it undoubtedly boosts Canadians’ national pride when they are called upon to open the fridge. They would be proud as they insert their passport into the scanning machine, and locals are also be happy because of the free beer that the whole crowd sample together. Potential European consumers involved in this campaign will be intrigued and thus will remember the brand better.

However, there might be some concern about whether this campaign discriminates in terms of nationality. Such concern might be unnecessary, because even if only Canadians can open the fridges, people from other countries can all taste the beer.

Other than the marketing in European countries, this campaign can also attract potential Canadian customers who watch the promotion video posted online and hear “I am Canadian” resonating in their ears.

Reference:

• YouTube. Dir. MyMolsonCanadian. YouTube. YouTube, 21 June 2013. Web. 05 Oct. 2013.
• Hutchings, Emma. “Beer Fridge Only Opens By Scanning Canadian Passport [Video] – PSFK.” PSFK RSS. N.p., 27 June 2013. Web. 05 Oct. 2013.
• Nudd, Tim. “Molson’s World-Traveling Beer Fridge Can Be Opened Only With a Canadian Passport | Adweek.” AdWeek. N.p., 27 June 2013. Web. 05 Oct. 2013.
• Szondy, David. “Molson’s Beer Fridge That Only Canadians Can Open.” Molson’s Beer Fridge That Only Canadians Can Open. Gizmag, 01 July 2013. Web. 05 Oct. 2013.

Line, a mobile massaging company from Japan, has reaped great profits through selling stickers, or emoticons. These are fully delineated cartoon characters that help users express their feelings and send their massages in a playful and funny way.

This success shows Line’s human-centered focus on the desire to express feelings in a more efficient way. Typically, apps like Line profit from advertising of discounted coupons and games. These streams rely on the additional functions of Line rather than the basic function of massaging. Stickers store, on the other hand, are more relevant to users and more related to its basic function. Also, it constantly updates the stickers store with classic or trendy cartoon characters. Apparently, Line is accepted as a “smartphone life platform” by most customers, and in this virtual platform, stickers contribute a lot to the fun of users’ real-time sharing and chatting.

The success of stickers reminds app designers of a big business potential in the social media market. Emoticons have existed for a long time, but it seems that the idea of selling them hasn’t been noticed for a period of time. Being the first ones to grasp this opportunity will definitely generate great profits for companies like Line. Business is about people, and Line has for sure practiced this notion.

Reference:

• Fitzpatrick, Michael. “The Japanese App That Is Storming the World.” Fortune Tech Technology Blogs News and Analysis from Fortune Magazine RSS. CNN Money, 29 Jan. 2013. Web. 04 Oct. 2013.
• Bea, Francis. “Line Is a Messaging App Meets Social Network Headed for the U.S. Market – Here’s What to Expect.” Digital Trends. N.p., 29 Jan. 2013. Web. 04 Oct. 2013.
• TNW. 2013. Untitled. [image online] Available at: http://thenextweb.com/asia/2013/09/13/lines-web-store-lets-you-buy-stickers-and-virtual-goodies-without-a-credit-card-via-a-computer/ Web. 04 Oct. 2013.