MJ Wineries

ProHub Comment

This is a profitability case that combines quantitative framework-building with creative brainstorming. The case guides candidates from diagnosing profitability drivers (cost vs. revenue), analyzing market trends through exhibits, to recommending product diversification. The emphasis on qualitative reasoning rather than calculations makes candidate creativity and business intuition paramount.

Estimated Time 15 minutes
Difficulty Medium
Source NYU
50 / 100

Our client MJ Wineries produces wine in Sonoma Valley, California. MJ Wineries specializes in growing Chardonnay grapes and has won numerous awards for their famous full-bodied Chardonnay. Although MJ Wineries market share in Chardonnay remains strong, profitability has recently declined.

The CEO has hired your firm to recommend ways to immediately improve profitability.

Clarifying Information

  1. The year date is currently January 1st, 2018; you can assume 2017 has just concluded
  2. It takes at least nine months to produce a bottle of Chardonnay from the time the grapes are planted to the time the wine can be un-corked but the wines get better as they age
  3. MJ Wineries only produces wine in Sonoma Valley produced from grapes grown at one large 3,000 acre vineyard
  4. Wine production is a very-capital intensive industry but MJ Wineries owns the equipment they use to produce wines
  5. There are some major wine producers but tens of thousands of small producers