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Product cover image for Asahi Kasei: Building an Inclusive Value Chain in India

Asahi Kasei: Building an Inclusive Value Chain in India

Savita Shankar; Masahiro Okada

Product #:9B18M107
Supplier:Ivey
Discipline:International Business, Strategy
Setting:India, Japan, 2016
Details:Case (PDF) • 8 pages • 2018-07-27

Subjects:

Creating shared valueCorporate social responsibilityBusiness managementInternational businessStrategy

Industries:

Fabrication and manufacturing

Geography:

IndiaJapanAsia
Your Price:$9.71

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Asahi Kasei Corporation (Asahi Kasei), a diversified company based in Japan, had partnerships with weavers in India for its cupro yarn, which was used to make traditional garments for Indian women. The company developed a unique, inclusive value chain in India and began focusing on enhancing the development impact of its operations there. With a growing market for cupro yarn in India, Asahi Kasei expanded the capacity of its production facility in Japan in 2014, even though the domestic market for the product was shrinking. However, in 2015, the product started to face intense price competition in India from viscose rayon, which was an inferior but cheaper product. In 2016, the company had to address the competitive pressures while considering its economic and social objectives.

Learning Objectives

This case is suitable for use in an undergraduate or a graduate-level course on creating shared value or corporate social responsibility. It can also be used in a course on business strategy or international business when discussing the topic of shared value creation, especially with regard to foreign markets. The case allows instructors to walk students through the challenges that arise when large corporations in developed countries use inclusive value chains to tap into markets in developing countries. After working through the case and assignment questions, students will be able to
  • apply the concept of shared value;
  • use the shared value lens to look at a specific decision situation;
  • analyze alternative courses of actions from both a business and a societal perspective; and
  • understand the concept of an inclusive value chain and the challenges it involves.
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Case Study: Asahi Kasei: Building an Inclusive Value Chain in India (English version) | Ivey Publishing