Retail had always fascinated Katrina Lake, the youngest woman CEO to ever lead a US initial public offering. But she couldn’t help noticing that the age-old industry never changed. Brick-and-mortar retailers still competed on variety and touch-and-feel, while online competitors sought to differentiate through low prices and fast shipping.

In 1999 Toys R Us faced the most challenging time of its history. After recording losses for the first time in 1998, it lost its number one position in toy retailing to Wal-Mart and was late in entering electronic retailing where eToys was pre-empting the competitive space. How would TRU be able to reaffirm its competitive position and improve its profitability?

Competing head-to-head in a mature, slowly growing market can be cutthroat. The US car retailing industry was very much characterized by the classic symptoms of an unattractive industry. Players very much disliked competing in this difficult environment but did not see how they could break away from the pack.

Competing head-to-head in a mature, slowly growing market can be cutthroat. The US car retailing industry was very much characterized by the classic symptoms of an unattractive industry. Players very much disliked competing in this difficult environment but did not see how they could break away from the pack.

Competing head-to-head in a mature, slowly growing market can be cutthroat. The US car retailing industry was very much characterized by the classic symptoms of an unattractive industry. Players very much disliked competing in this difficult environment but did not see how they could break away from the pack.