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Case
| HBS Case Collection
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2012
(Revised from original 2012 version)
Gary Hirshberg and Stonyfield Farm
by
Nancy F. Koehn, Nora N. Khan and Elizabeth W. Legris
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Abstract
Gary Hirshberg and Stonyfield Farm is the story of one entrepreneur's vision and journey to create a market-leading, environmentally responsible business founded on the principles of product quality, organizational alignment, and sustainability. A former environmental activist, Hirshberg built Stonyfield Farm (an organic yogurt maker based in New Hampshire) up from a seven-cow operation into a business that in 2010 had $360 million in annual revenues. The narrative pays particular attention to the early, turbulent years of the yogurt company and the excitement and uncertainty of entrepreneurial life. The case also details the supple, innovative marketing the company created to expand its customer base, the means it devised to cultivate and maintain customer loyalty, and the strategies it employed to penetrate the highly competitive yogurt and dairy categories nationwide. Throughout, readers will encounter the challenges that Hirshberg, his colleagues, and his family confronted as they all worked to create a business with a firm commitment to both sustainability and high quality—a commitment rooted in Hirshberg's dedication to spreading the "gospel" of organic production to consumers.
Keywords: entrepreneurship;
entrepreneurs;
values;
development stage enterprises;
innovation;
management by objective;
experimentation;
emerging technologies;
Entrepreneurship;
Environmental Sustainability;
Innovation and Invention;
Competitive Strategy;
Values and Beliefs;
Business Growth and Maturation;
Customer Focus and Relationships;
Food and Beverage Industry;
New Hampshire;
Citation:
Koehn, Nancy F., Nora N. Khan, and Elizabeth W. Legris. "Gary Hirshberg and Stonyfield Farm." Harvard Business School Case 312-122, October 2012. (Revised from original March 2012 version.)