We Googled You - Hbr Case Stydy - 5679 Words

www.hbrreprints.org HBR CASE STUDY AND COMMENTARY S hould Fred hire M imi d espite her on line history? Four commentators offer e xpert advice. We Googled You by Diane Coutu †¢ Reprint R0706A Hathaway Jones’s CEO has found a promising candidate to open the company’s flagship store in Shanghai. Should a revelation on the Internet disqualify her now? HBR CASE STUDY We Googled You COPYRIGHT  © 2007 HARVARD BUSINESS SCHOOL PUBLISHING CORPORATION. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. by Diane Coutu The wind was howling and relentless as Fred Westen opened the door and called upstairs to tell his wife that he was home. While he waited for her to come down, he poured himself a shot of whiskey, tilting the decanter with†¦show more content†¦Bullish on a China Shop Fred left the house at 5:30 AM every day for his ofï ¬ ce at 1 Constitution Road. He had a lot of work to do, and there was not a moment to waste. Despite sales of $5 billion in 2006, Hathaway Jones had fallen on hard times. Four years ago, the privately owned U.S. retail chain had recruited Fred because of his imposing credentials and a lifetime’s experience of working with luxury brands and had charged him with waking up the company’s sleepy, conservative stores. It hadn’t been easy. Though aggressive outsourcing to suppliers in Mexico for some of the chain’s lower-tier brands had helped bring the company’s margins closer to industry standards, that was just a start. An avid consumer of his ï ¬ rm’s marketing research, Fred knew that the company’s image was getting old fast. Younger people across the United States, where Hathaway Jones had 144 shops and outlets, wanted more affordable clothing, with more ï ¬â€šair. The trend was starting to show up in declining numbers for the company’s highpriced—some said stodgy—designer clothes. Plans for radically revamping the company’s image and product line were in the ofï ¬ ng. Fred’s biggest bet, however, was to elbow in on China’s luxury goods market, which was growing by 70% a year. He had earmarked millions of dollars to open new stores in three of the largest cities, including Beijing and