The Blonde Salad

Anat   Keinan; Kristina  Maslauskaite; Sandrine  Crener; Vincent  Dessain

Case | HBS Case Collection | January 2015

The Blonde Salad

by Anat Keinan, Kristina Maslauskaite, Sandrine Crener and Vincent Dessain

Abstract

In 2014, Chiara Ferragni, a globe-trotting founder of the world's most popular fashion blog "The Blonde Salad," had to decide how to best monetize her blog as well as her shoe line called the "Chiara Ferragni Collection." A year earlier, Ferragni, together with her team, had already made a decision to transform her blog into an online lifestyle magazine and to build its positioning as a high-end brand. It meant that "The Blonde Salad" envisaged to only cooperate with a limited number of luxury fashion advertisers, inevitably reducing the blog's revenues. Ferragni considered changing the revenue-generating model by incorporating an online market place within "The Blonde Salad," but which strategy and timeline would she need to achieve her aim? Should Ferragni's shoe line, a separate company with a different ownership structure, be merged with "The Blonde Salad" or was it desirable to keep the two apart?

Keywords: luxury; social media; digital influencers; fashion blogger; brand authenticity; digital marketing; Brands; entrepreneurship; start-up; fashion; shoe; Chiara Ferragni; celebrity endorsement; celebrity management; lifestyle brand; digital brand; new brand development; branding; Instagram; online followers; fashion blog; marketing partnerships; brand portfolio; luxury brand; Louis Vuitton; Dior; designer brands; Authenticity; Business Model; Blogs; Product Positioning; Commercialization; Consolidation; Luxury; Brands and Branding; Fashion Industry; Apparel and Accessories Industry; Publishing Industry;

Language: English

Format: Print

25 pages

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Citation:

Keinan, Anat, Kristina Maslauskaite, Sandrine Crener, and Vincent Dessain. "The Blonde Salad." Harvard Business School Case 515-074, January 2015.

Case | HBS Case Collection | February 2020

Leading Change in Talent at L'Oréal

Lakshmi Ramarajan, Vincent Marie Dessain and Emer Moloney

Jean-Claude Le Grand had dedicated almost his entire career to following talent at L'Oréal. He strongly believed that L'Oréal's workforce needed to be diverse in order to ensure creativity and innovation. In early 2018—as he was about to take up the position of EVP for Human Relations and a place on the Executive Committee—L'Oréal still struggled to diversify its senior leadership team, which was often male, French, elite-educated and made up of executives who had spent their entire careers at the company. At the same time, in an increasingly competitive market for talent, and given digitalization and new ways of working Le Grand was preoccupied that L'Oréal would no longer be able to attract vibrant young talent.

Keywords: Advertising; Business Headquarters; Business Divisions; Business Organization; Change; Change Management; Transformation; Competency and Skills; Experience and Expertise; Talent and Talent Management; Demographics; Diversity; Gender; Nationality; Multinational Firms and Management; Human Resources; Employees; Recruitment; Retention; Selection and Staffing; Innovation and Management; Jobs and Positions; Employment; Human Capital; Leadership; Leadership Development; Leadership Style; Leading Change; Management Practices and Processes; Marketing; Brands and Branding; Product Marketing; Organizations; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Organizational Structure; Personal Development and Career; Planning; Strategic Planning; Problems and Challenges; Networks; Social Psychology; Attitudes; Power and Influence; Social and Collaborative Networks; Business Strategy; Advertising Industry; Beauty and Cosmetics Industry; Consumer Products Industry; France; Paris;

Citation:

Ramarajan, Lakshmi, Vincent Marie Dessain, and Emer Moloney. "Leading Change in Talent at L'Oréal." Harvard Business School Case 420-106, February 2020. View Details

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The Blonde Salad

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