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On (A)

Casadesus-Masanell, Ramon; Frankenberger, Karolin; Mader, Sascha

Product #:723430
Supplier:Harvard Business Impact
Discipline:Strategy
Setting:Europe;Germany;Switzerland;United States, 2022
Details:Case (PDF) • 35 pages • 2023-03-10 (Rev: 2026-05-04)

Subjects:

EntrepreneurshipStrategySupply chain managementCustomer satisfactionCompetitive advantageCompetitive strategyMarket entryBrandingMarketing strategyCustomer relationship managementStart-upsInnovationBusiness modelsProduct developmentDisruptive innovationEnvironmental sustainabilityBusiness growthSocial mediaCorporate strategyOperations and supply chain managementCustomer experienceMarketingBrand managementProduct managementBusiness and societyWeb-based technologiesStrategy

Industries:

Goods, trade, and consumer services

Geography:

EuropeSwitzerlandGermanyUnited StatesNorth America
Your Price:$11.64

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Founded in 2010, in just one decade, the Swiss company On had established itself as a main player in global sports footwear and apparel. Based on an unconventional strategy which one of the founders labeled as "obsessively distinct," On grew its sales with a compound annual growth rate of more than 75% between 2013 and 2021, and went public in 2021. In 2022, On was on the verge of launching a revolutionary new subscription-based service that exclusively provided customers with the Cloudneo, a fully recyclable performance running shoe. Designed as a circular business model, Cyclon would deviate from On's proven growth strategy and would contradict the dominant logic of how running shoes were consumed. On had to decide whether or not to implement the subscription-based business model as envisioned.

Learning Objectives

This case was developed with the following teaching objectives in mind: First, to illustrate how a new player from a small home market can enter a competitive global industry dominated by large incumbents and become a key player; and, second, to illustrate the set-up of a circular business model based on a subscription pricing model in a consumer goods industry with short product life cycles and low switching costs.
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Case Study: On (A) (English version) | Ivey Publishing