Close
    - IMD Business School
    Affordable lighting for mass appeal

    Candles Killer: Igniting a blue ocean at the bottom of the pyramid

    In villages long dependent on dangerous kerosene lamps, Shenzhen Power-Solution (SPS) sparked a revolution with the Candles Killer, a solar lamp priced under $5. By stripping design to nine components and leveraging everyday items like water bottles for stands, SPS unlocked affordable, safe light for millions. By 2023, 55 million people across 66 countries were illuminated, while 6.7 million tons of carbon emissions were avoided. Could this simple innovation be the blueprint for serving the world’s most underserved markets?

    Winter Nie and Yunfei Feng
    November 2025
    Find out more
    BEST-SELLERS
    Best-Selling Case Studies
  • Nespresso: Strategy reset for growth: The youth market

    By Kamran Kashani and Goutam Challagalla

    Case reference: IMD-7-2479, ©2023
  • Rituals Cosmetics: Building the world’s leading well-being brand in Asia

    By Dominique Turpin and Sandeep Puri

    Case reference: IMD-7-2411, ©2023
  • Apple’s supply chain transformation

    By Carlos Cordon and Nick Georgiev

    Case reference: IMD-7-2451, ©2023
    • See all
    NEWEST
    Recently Published Case Studies
  • The seven dimensions of academic strategy: A systems framework for higher education excellence

    By Michael D. Watkins

    Case reference: IMD-2727, ©2025
  • Lemonade: Is its “AI everywhere” strategy a competitive advantage?

    By Goutam Challagalla and Ivy Buche

    Case reference: IMD-2691, ©2025
  • The seven elements of adaptive advantage

    By Michael D. Watkins

    Case reference: IMD-2730, ©2025
    • See all
    Award Winners
    Award-Winning Case Studies
  • Not so black and white: Grupo Inca’s black alpaca dilemma (B)

    By Vanina Farber, Carolina Duran Silva, Baris Silahcioglu, Hugo ten Zijthoff and Shih-Han Huang

    Case reference: IMD-7-2610, ©2024
  • Not so black and white: Grupo Inca’s black alpaca dilemma (A)

    By Vanina Farber, Carolina Duran Silva, Baris Silahcioglu, Hugo ten Zijthoff and Shih-Han Huang

    Case reference: IMD-7-2609, ©2024
  • Moon Creative Lab: Mitsui’s venture studio

    By Benoit F. Leleux, Jim Pulcrano, Adam Hansson Tönning, Alexandra Loboda, Anette Papuga and Daisuke Shinohara

    Case reference: IMD-7-2544, ©2024
    • See all
    Nespresso: Strategy reset for growth: The youth market
    By Kamran Kashani and Goutam Challagalla
    Case reference: IMD-7-2479 ©2023
    Summary
    Nespresso, the global leading brand in portioned coffee, is facing an existential threat. The company’s current market base, which consists primari…
    The Case Centre Awards and Competitions Winner 2025 – Overall Award
    Best-selling Case Study
    Read more
    Reference IMD-7-2479
    Copyright ©2023
    Copyright owner IMD Copyright
    Organization Nespresso
    Industry Consumer Goods, Coffee
    Available Languages English
    Contact

    Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications

    Related topics
    Marketing
    Strategy
    Sustainability
    Browse all topics
    Rituals Cosmetics: Building the world’s leading well-being brand in Asia
    By Dominique Turpin and Sandeep Puri
    Case reference: IMD-7-2411 ©2023
    Summary
    Rituals, founded in the Netherlands in 2000 by Raymond Cloosterman, has had double digit growth over the last 15 years. It had taken the European b…
    Best-selling Case Study
    Read more
    Reference IMD-7-2411
    Copyright ©2023
    Copyright owner IMD Copyright
    Organization Rituals Cosmetics
    Industry Consumer Goods, Cosmetics and Perfumes
    Available Languages English
    Contact

    Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications

    Related topics
    Marketing
    General Management
    Browse all topics
    Apple’s supply chain transformation
    By Carlos Cordon and Nick Georgiev
    Case reference: IMD-7-2451 ©2023
    Summary
    In 2022, Apple lost US$1.5 billion in Black Friday sales due to iPhone supply constraints. One in three retail stores across the US and Europe expe…
    Best-selling Case Study
    Read more
    Reference IMD-7-2451
    Copyright ©2023
    Copyright owner IMD Copyright
    Organization Apple
    Industry Consumer Goods, Consumer Electronics
    Available Languages English
    Contact

    Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications

    Related topics
    Operations
    Strategy
    Browse all topics
    The seven dimensions of academic strategy: A systems framework for higher education excellence
    By Michael D. Watkins
    Case reference: IMD-2727 ©2025
    Summary
    Academic institutions face unprecedented complexity from technological change, evolving funding models, diverse stakeholder demands and pressure to…
    Read more
    Reference IMD-2727
    Copyright ©2025
    Copyright owner IMD Copyright
    Available Languages English
    Contact

    Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications

    Related topics
    Strategy
    Leadership
    Decision Making
    Browse all topics
    Lemonade: Is its “AI everywhere” strategy a competitive advantage?
    By Goutam Challagalla and Ivy Buche
    Case reference: IMD-2691 ©2025
    Summary
    The case examines how a New York-based 10-year-old start-up, Lemonade Inc., successfully disrupted the insurance industry. Powered by artificial in…
    Read more
    Reference IMD-2691
    Copyright ©2025
    Copyright owner IMD Copyright
    Organization Lemonade
    Industry Finance and Insurance, Insurance
    Available Languages English
    Contact

    Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications

    Related topics
    Customer Centricity
    Artificial Intelligence
    Disruption
    Start-up
    Browse all topics
    The seven elements of adaptive advantage
    By Michael D. Watkins
    Case reference: IMD-2730 ©2025
    Summary
    This technical note presents a comprehensive framework for achieving adaptive advantage, which is the ability to consistently evolve at a speed tha…
    Read more
    Reference IMD-2730
    Copyright ©2025
    Copyright owner IMD Copyright
    Available Languages English
    Contact

    Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications

    Related topics
    Organizational Change
    Organizational Design
    Leadership
    Browse all topics
    Not so black and white: Grupo Inca’s black alpaca dilemma (B)
    By Vanina Farber Carolina Duran Silva Baris Silahcioglu Hugo ten Zijthoff and Shih-Han Huang
    Case reference: IMD-7-2610 ©2024
    Summary
    Picking up where Case A ends, Case B reveals that Grupo Inca decided to innovate internally and develop a new fabric from the rare black alpaca fib…
    2024 EFMD Case Writing Competition Award – Responsible Business Category
    Read more
    Reference IMD-7-2610
    Copyright ©2024
    Copyright owner IMD Copyright
    Organization Grupo Inca
    Industry Manufacturing, Textile
    Available Languages English
    Contact

    Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications

    Related topics
    Social Innovation
    Business Ethics
    Sustainability
    Browse all topics
    Not so black and white: Grupo Inca’s black alpaca dilemma (A)
    By Vanina Farber Carolina Duran Silva Baris Silahcioglu Hugo ten Zijthoff and Shih-Han Huang
    Case reference: IMD-7-2609 ©2024
    Summary
    Grupo Inca, a conglomerate that owned Peru’s leading textile business with a long history of working with alpaca fleece, was at a crossroads regard…
    2024 EFMD Case Writing Competition Award – Responsible Business Category; The Case Centre Awards and Competitions Winner 2025 – Outstanding Compact Case
    Read more
    Reference IMD-7-2609
    Copyright ©2024
    Copyright owner IMD Copyright
    Organization Grupo Inca
    Industry Manufacturing, Textile
    Available Languages English
    Contact

    Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications

    Related topics
    Social Innovation
    Business Ethics
    Sustainability
    Browse all topics
    Moon Creative Lab: Mitsui’s venture studio
    By Benoit F. Leleux Jim Pulcrano Adam Hansson Tönning Alexandra Loboda Anette Papuga and Daisuke Shinohara
    Case reference: IMD-7-2544 ©2024
    Summary
    This case follows the steps taken by Kaichi Yokoyama, Moon Creative Lab’s CEO, to establish the entity as a pioneering venture studio and entrepren…
    2024 EFMD Case Writing Competition Award – Continuous Improvement: The Journey to Excellence Category
    Read more
    Reference IMD-7-2544
    Copyright ©2024
    Copyright owner IMD Copyright
    Organization Moon Creative Lab, Mitsui Group
    Industry Finance and Insurance, Venture Capital
    Available Languages English
    Contact

    Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications

    Related topics
    Entrepreneurship
    Venture Capital
    Browse all topics
    IMD case collection
    - IMD Business School
    Diversity, equity, and inclusion

    IMD’s selection of case studies on diversity, equity, and inclusion

    Find out more
    - IMD Business School
    Sustainability

    IMD’s selection of case studies on sustainability

    Find out more
    - IMD Business School
    Digital transformation

    IMD’s selection of case studies on digital transformation

    Find out more
    - IMD Business School
    Family business

    IMD’s selection of case studies on family business

    Find out more
    - IMD Business School
    Disruption

    IMD’s selection of case studies on disruption

    Find out more
    China Case studies collection - IMD Business School
    Chinese companies

    IMD’s selection of case studies on Chinese companies

    Find out more
    - IMD Business School
    Business to business

    IMD’s selection of case studies on business to business

    Find out more
    - IMD Business School
    Entrepreneurship

    IMD’s selection of case studies on entrepreneurship

    Find out more
    Bestselling authors
    - IMD Business School
    Ralf Seifert

    Professor of Operations Management

    Browse author’s case studies
    - IMD Business School
    Stefan Michel

    Professor of Strategy and Marketing

    Browse author’s case studies
    Niccolo Pisani - IMD Business School
    Niccolò Pisani

    Professor of Strategy and International Business

    Browse author’s case studies
    - IMD Business School
    Benoit Leleux

    Stephan Schmidheiny Professor of Entrepreneurship and Finance

    Browse author’s case studies
    Carlos Cordon - IMD Business School
    Carlos Cordon

    Professor of Strategy and Supply Chain Management

    Browse author’s case studies
    - IMD Business School
    Stéphane JG Girod

    Professor of Strategy and Organizational Innovation

    Browse author’s case studies
    - IMD Business School
    Vanina Farber

    elea Professor of Social Innovation and Dean of the IMD EMBA program

     

    Browse author’s case studies
    Case news
    - IMD Business School
    IMD case writing recognized in The Case Centre’s Top 50 Bestselling Case Authors list

    Each year, IMD faculty are included in the list, demonstrating the school’s ongoing excellence and impact in research and teaching.

    More info
    - IMD Business School
    Two IMD cases recognized in the 2024 EFMD Case Writing Competition

    Cases written by IMD faculty have been celebrated at this year’s EFMD Case Writing Competition.

    More info
    - IMD Business School
    Four IMD cases recognized in The Case Centre Awards and Competitions 2025

    Cases written by IMD faculty have been celebrated at this year’s Case Centre Awards and Competitions.

    More info
    Explore all Case Studies