The Lao Coffee Industry: Implementing Vertical Integration for a Social Cause at Bolaven Farms Harvard Case Solution & Analysis

Founded in 2007, Bolaven Farms coffee business with a social purpose. Established in Laos and Hong Kong, Bolaven Farms aims to provide high-quality coffee around the world, helping the public to combat poverty among coffee farmers in Laos. The business model involves the full integration of the supply chain of coffee, from planting seeds of coffee in the final sale of branded products to wholesale and retail customers. Consequently, the farmers and the company benefits from the accounting intermediaries from the supply chain and to maintain profit margins for themselves. The company's vision for training farmers and providing them with higher incomes for their work is very attractive to the public and was quickly picked up by the media. However, the business model has not yet been verified. On the one hand, after the farmers graduate program, they need job security and more land for cultivation. On the other hand, the coffee market is mature, with many players and many competing and low price offers to choose from. People are finding the company's vision is inspiring, but it is also very difficult to translate into sustainable action. The company has already invested U.S. $ 4.0 million to the project, but still far away from public education and finding customers willing to pay a high price for coffee. At both ends of the supply chain need to be developed further, and say not willing to compromise on quality or price. The case starts with the introduction of coffee industry and its practices. Laos as a description of the business environment for farms Bolaven follows. The case describes the development and implementation of a business model, which includes the vertical integration of social networking. This allows for in-depth analysis of issues related to the choice of a suitable business model and focuses on the risks associated with future expansion and as a result of a strategic choice of the entrepreneur. "Hide
by Marta K Dowejko, Gilbert Wong Source: University of Hong Kong, 19 pages. Publication Date: June 9, 2011. Prod. #: HKU933-PDF-ENG

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