Cooking Up Trouble

Case #3: Cooking Up Trouble 1. What resources and capabilities did Martha Stewart living Omnimdeia appear to have prior to the trial and conviction? Have these resources and capabilities changed? Explain. * Martha Stewart living Omnimedia had powerful and trustworthy resources and the capabilities included: very extensive and specific merchandise lines that were advertised and sold in big distributors like Kmart and Sherwin Williams. This company had positioned its resources and capabilities well to exploit sociocultural and demographic trends. Now these capabilities have changed because these products were involved solely around Martha Stewart’s image. With her personal image being “stained” the company has a hard decision to make and they have already started to produce new products that do not include her name anymore. 2. Do you think an organization can ever regain its competitive advantage from weakened or lost resources or distinctive capabilities? Why or Why not? Do you think that Martha Stewart living Omnimedia will be able to do so and why not? Be prepared to debate one side or the other in class. * I don’t think this company can ever regain its competitive edge although I do not see them going out of business either. I just think that it is not going to e as successful anymore because the main image and the main reason why everybody loved this company and their products was Martha Stewart. I believe the public feels betrayed and although her products are well loved and they are still selling, eventually they will phase out. 3. Would a company that has a reputation for having the “best” product in its industry ever have a need for competitive intelligence information? Why or why not? * I don’t think a company that has the best product in its industry ever need competitive intelligence information. By performing regular internal audits, the company should have a realistic idea of where do they stand in the market and how