Question Description
Module Three:
Wayfair Case Introduction
Founded in 2002 in Boston, Massachusetts, Wayfa
ir Inc. (NYSE:W) engages in
e
–
commerce business in
the United States, Europe, and internationally. The company leverages over 10,000 suppliers to offer
approximately 10 million products for the home sector under various brands, including wayfair.com,
Joss & Main, AllModern, DwellStud
io, and Birchlane. The company operates in Ireland, the British Virgin
Is
lands, Australia, the United Kingdom, the United States,
and Germany, which represents about 13% of
gross revenues.
Wayfair had a highly successful IPO in 2014 on the New York Stock
Exchange and its market
c
apitalization continues to rise
,
as investors have driven share values from $36 to $149 from 2016 to Q3
2018.
Wayfair has aggressively focused its corporate strategic policy on growing its customer base and
product line breadth,
i
ncreasing revenue nearly 40 percent between 2017 and 2016 (Forbes, 2018)
.
However, to achieve that growth the company has incurred protracted losses and negative cash flow.
Presently, Wayfair is experiencing intensifying competitive attention from online a
nd offline rivals with
equally unique business models and distinctive competencies along the global industry value chain, such
as Ikea, Amazon, Walmart,
Overstock.com, Ethan Allen, and others.
Some analysts are beginning to wonder how long any business mo
del or firm should be allowed to
operate without being profitable. “
Wayfair’s rise to prominence is indicative of the
newer crop of tech
companies
—
it still loses money every year, yet it has achieved its massive valuation largely because
investors currentl
y value growth over profitability” (Bizjournals.com, 2018)
In your case analysis preparation
,
determine just how competitive Wayfair’s strategic policy and
competencies are within the industry at the domestic and global levels. Where should their resource
s
and competencies be further developed along the industry value chain to achieve profitability? Can
Wayfair get out of its own way to become profitable? How? Case Study Guidelines and Rubric
Module Three: Wayfair Case IntroductionFounded in 2002 in Boston, Massachusetts, Wayfair Inc. (NYSE:W) engages in e-commerce business in the United States, Europe, and internationally. The company leverages over 10,000 suppliers to offer approximately 10 million products for the home sector under various brands, including wayfair.com, Joss & Main, AllModern, DwellStudio, and Birchlane. The company operates in Ireland, the British Virgin Islands, Australia, the United Kingdom, the United States,and Germany, which represents about 13% of gross revenues. Wayfair had a highly successful IPO in 2014 on the New York StockExchange and its market capitalization continues to rise,as investors have driven share values from $36 to $149 from 2016 to Q3 2018.Wayfair has aggressively focused its corporate strategic policy on growing its customer base and product line breadth, increasing revenue nearly 40 percent between 2017 and 2016 (Forbes, 2018). However, to achieve that growth the company has incurred protracted losses and negative cash flow. Presently, Wayfair is experiencing intensifying competitive attention from online and offline rivals with equally unique business models and distinctive competencies along the global industry value chain, such as Ikea, Amazon, Walmart, Overstock.com, Ethan Allen, and others.Some analysts are beginning to wonder how long any business model or firm should be allowed to operate without being profitable. “Wayfair’s rise to prominence is indicative of thenewer crop of tech companies—it still loses money every year, yet it has achieved its massive valuation largely because investors currently value growth over profitability” (Bizjournals.com, 2018)In your case analysis preparation,determine just how competitive Wayfair’s strategic policy and competencies are within the industry at the domestic and global levels. Where should their resources and competencies be further developed along the industry value chain to achieve profitability? Can Wayfair get out of its own way to become profitable? How? Case Study Guidelines and Rubric
