Apple Yield

Case Study Prompt

Your client is a Korean conglomerate (Danut) that has acquired a small Boston-based biotech firm. This company has developed a chemical that helps control the ripening of produce.

After limited testing, this chemical appears to work especially well with apples; it allows apple orchards to harvest earlier and improves the overall quality of the harvest. Your client would like to know if they should attempt to commercialize this chemical.

How would you structure your approach to this problem?

Case Study Overview

Your client is investigating the possibility of taking a new product to market. In this BCG case study, you are being asked to examine the market to determine the viability of this new chemical product.

This is an ideal case study for a second round interview at BCG. You can use the Market Study Framework to solve this case. However, we suggest building your own structure by blending the framework with your own business experience to build a custom solution to fit this specific case.

This case has no math exhibits. The qualitative difficulty is 3 out of 4 and will prepare you for a final round interview.

BCG Interview Tips

BCG is looking for candidates that are structured and are able to clearly communicate that structure.

When going through the case, make sure that your structure is crystal-clear, and that you verbalize every part of your process. The focus is not on the actual answer, but on how you get to the solution.

During this case, time yourself. Spend 2min to build a structure, 2min to present it, 5min for math, 2min for brainstorming, and 2min for a recommendation.

Book an hour with an ex-MBB coach for expert case practice.