Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Session 13
The Situation
Should LS&Co continue sourcing and purchasing fabric in China Should the company make direct investments in marketing and manufacturing venues in China
Background
LS&Co traced its roots to 1850s Early success producing and selling canvas trousers to miners during the gold rush Strong brand identity-synomous with jeans Company went public in 1971 Experienced a difficult times in 80s Executed a LBO in the 1985, by 1993, 95% of shares were owned by the descendants and certain non-family members
Backround (Contd)
In the 90s-Shifted from being a just a manufacturer to a marketer Jeans epitomized much of American cultures: freedom, originality, youthfulness
Internal Context
Marketed its clothes in more than 60 countries Production and distribution in more than 20 countries Enjoyed a market cap of $5.5B in 1993 Strong international sales in the 80s and early 90s Market leader in every country where LS&Co jeans were sold
Internal Context
Faced increased scrutiny from employees and customers Was the company doing the right thing?
External Context
Trade Issues were source of significant concern in America Trade friction with Japan was at its most serious point ever Media and unions were increasingly raising concerns about working conditions in Asia
Core Values
Core values- How we do things around here Values were use to align the firms strategy, people, and resources Focused on creating a culture that employees and customers could be proud of Wanted employees to bring their whole self Responsible commercial success Moved to principles-based code of ethics and statement of social responsibility