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Case Study

K'NEX (B): 1991-1994 USA - entering a market dominated by giants

By Jacques Horovitz and Els Van Weering

14 pages

June 1997

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Reference: IMD-3-0700

The K’NEX cases (A,B,C) focus on entrepreneurship–both in setting up a new business and in keeping the entrepreneurial spirit alive in large established organizations–and on internationalization. Case B describes how toy manufacturer Hasbro and other large toy manufacturers turned Glickman’s idea down and how he started to market the toy (‘K’NEX’) himself. Even though K’NEX competed in a market dominated by powerful construction toy maker–Lego–, it became a success in the USA. The immediate issue in case B is how Glickman could take his product international. The basic issue is to discuss the timing and the different strategies for going international. Case B is accompanied by video B, showing an interview with Joel Glickman.

Keywords

New Product Launch, Toy

Settings

United States of America
1991-1994

Type

Field Research

Available Languages

English

Related material

Teaching note, Video

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This case study is part of a series

K'NEX (A): 1991 - product development in the toy industry
K'NEX (B): 1991-1994 USA - entering a market dominated by giants
K'NEX (C): 1994-1996 - going international

This case study is part of a series

K'NEX (A): 1991 - product development in the toy industry
K'NEX (B): 1991-1994 USA - entering a market dominated by giants
K'NEX (C): 1994-1996 - going international

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