Brewery Profits

Case Study Prompt

We are evaluating two beer brewing companies, Cheapo Beer Company and Bourgeois Beer, Inc. Cheapo and Bourgeois are competitors; both have been reporting similar revenues over the last five years showing steady growth. Cheapo is designated the “All-American Beer” and is a staple of tailgate parties. Bourgeois markets its product as brewed fresh from mountain water, and they are located in Colorado. 

Cheapo has posted consistent profits that have been growing at a moderate rate whereas Bourgeois’s profits have fluctuated significantly.

If you were CEO of Bourgeois, what steps would you take to diagnose and minimize these fluctuations?

Case Study Overview

In this Strategy& Case interview case study you are being asked to look at two competitors in the beer market and determine what steps should be taken to slow the declining profitability of one of them, Bourgeois Beer, Inc. It’s time to familiarize yourself with their operations, dig into profitability and determine next steps.

Getting ready for a first round Strategy& interview? We recommend using the Profitability Framework to solve this case study, but don’t stop there. The most sought after candidates blend frameworks and their own business acumen to create a custom framework.

There are no math exhibits in this case. The qualitative difficulty is 2 out of 4, which makes this a beginner case interview.

Strategy& Interview Tips

Creativity and innovative approaches to problem solving are highly sought after characteristics in any Strategy& interview candidate.

Make sure you are comfortable working outside the box and finding unique solutions to problems presented to you.