Drongesen 1

Leland Drongesen

ENC 1102

March 4th, 2020

Research Dossier: Understanding the Cause of Business Failure

Dossier Introduction

Many hopeful people attempt to open new businesses every year, however, most
unfortunately fail within the first 5-10 years. I plan to analyze the patterns in statistics of
popular failed businesses, try to discover possible reasons for their failure, and provide
strategies and insight to how this demise can be avoided in the future. I have researched
at the downfall of multiple once popular businesses including Toys R’ Us, Lucky’s
Market, Sears, and Blockbuster and tried to find reasons behind the loss of profit and
ultimate failure of these businesses. I chose these specific businesses because they all had
a massive amount of success and popularity at one point and became unprofitable over
time. This will help me identify specific factors that contributed to the loss of income
within these companies and see what was going on within the business around the time
that they began to lose money. I also intend to compare the management of these
businesses to common habits of successful businesses. I have taken a look at successful
businesses including McDonald’s, Apple, Tesla, and Disney to try to understand what
makes their brand so appealing to consumers in comparison to struggling businesses. I
decided to research these specific successful companies because they all are very popular
among consumers and have maintained steady profit for years, even during hardships. In
my research, I will look at strategies used in both successful and unsuccessful companies
and try to understand what techniques failing businesses can use to turn a profit again.
The ultimate purpose of this research is to understand the aspects that failing businesses
must focus on in order to increase profits and what changes must be made to become
profitable again. Since my major is marketing and I plan to get my Master’s in Business
Administration, it seems appropriate to research businesses and the reasons behind the
success and failure of companies. This seems like a beneficial topic to research since I
can possibly apply my research to my future career and try to avoid the mistakes made by
failed companies and incorporate techniques observed in more successful companies.
Another reason this topic is relevant to me is because my family owns and manages a
restaurant business, called Champs Cafe. Since I am researching about strategies used in
both successful and unsuccessful businesses, I can identify the mistakes made in
unsuccessful businesses and try to ensure that the same mistakes are not made at Champs
or any business I may work at in the future. I can also try to use the strategies of more
successful companies as a basis for suggestions to improve the business.
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Research Proposal
The topic I chose is to explore the reason businesses become unprofitable and
investigate ways that businesses can avoid this demise and attain long term success. This
is an issue faced by business owners around the world, since research suggests that 50%
of new businesses fail within 5 years of opening. I will be researching how popular
businesses including Lucky’s Market, Sears, Toys R Us, and Blockbuster have become
unprofitable over time and compare their business strategies to similar more successful
businesses. 
Research Question / Thesis: What is the primary reason that companies like Sears,
Lucky’s, Toys R’ Us, and Blockbuster are unable to maintain profitability over time,
while companies like Apple, Tesla, McDonalds, and Disney have are?

Field Research / Internet / Library

My sources are primarily from the internet, with a few library resources, since I need
current and up to date information about businesses and have found the best resources to
research this data on the internet. I did not perform any field research, since it would be
difficult to do with a topic like mine.

Keywords:
- Business Success
- Business Failure
- Company Statistics
- Successful Business Strategies
- Business Case Study
- Entrepreneurship

Timetable

Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday

nd
March 2 – Math Class Work 5am – Work 5am Work 5 am Work on Work on Math
March 8th Economics 10am – 10 am – 1pm Math Rhetorical Homew
Homework English Math Class Economics Homework Analysis Due
Due Class Math Test Class Start Do
Rhetorical Rhetorical Rhetorical Econom
Analysis 1 Analysis 2 Analysis 3 Homew
Due and
Research
Dossier
Due
March 9th – Spring Spring Spring Spring Spring Spring Spring
March 15th Break Break Break Break Break Break Break
March 16th – Math Class Work 5am – Work 5am Work 5 am Work on Work on Math
March 22nd Economics 10am – 10 am – 1pm Math Rhetorical Homew
Homework English Math Class Economics Homework Analysis Due
Due Class Revision Test 2 Work on Do
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Rhetorical Strategies Rhetorical Econom

Analysis 3 Due Analysis Homew
Due
March 23rd Math Class Work 5am – Work 5am Work 5 am Work on Work on Math
– March 29th Economics 10am – 10 am – 1pm Math Rhetorical Homew
Homework English Math Class Economics Homework Analysis Due
Due Class Peer Class Work on Final Draft Do
Rhetorical Review Ted Talk Begin Econom
Analysis Workshop Pitch and Research Homew
Draft Due Due work on Paper Draft
final draft.
March 30th – Math Class Work 5am – Work 5am Work 5 am Work on Work on Math
April 5th Economics 10am – 10 am – 1pm Math Research Homew
Homework English Math Class Homework Paper Draft Due
Due Class Rhetorical Do
Ted Talk Analysis Econom
Pitch Due Final Draft Homew
Due
April 6th – Math Class Work 5am – Work 5am Work 5 am Work on Work on Math
April 12th Economics 10am – 10 am – 1pm Math Research Homew
Homework English Math Class Homework Paper and Due
Due Class Research Work on Ted Talk Do
Research Paper Draft Research Econom
Paper Draft 3 Due Paper and Homew
2 Due Ted Talk
April 13th – Math Class Work 5am – Work 5am Work 5 am Work on Practice Math
April 19th Economics 10am – 10 am – 1pm Math Ted Talk Homew
Homework English Math Class Economics Homework Due
Due Class Research Class Practice Do
Paper Final Ted Talk Econom
Due Homew
April 20th – Production Ted Talk Work 5am Work 5 am Economics
April 26th Review Presentation – 10 am – 1pm Final
Writing
Assignment
Due
Aleks Pie
Goal Due
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Annotated Bibliography:

Dias, Artur, and Aurora A.c. Teixeira. “The Anatomy of Business Failure.” European
Journal of Management and Business Economics, vol. 26, no. 1, Mar. 2017, pp.
2–20., doi:10.1108/ejmbe-07-2017-001.

Content: This is a journal that analyzes the aftermath of business failure and how to deal
with the issue of business failure. It includes interviews with 6 entrepreneurs who
experienced business failure prior to their success. The journal seeks to understand what
causes the downfall of a business and how individuals are affected after their businesses
fail.

Author: Aurora AC Teixeira has a PhD in Science and Technology Policy and is a
member of the scientific counsel at Universidade Porto. She has been a professor at
multiple universities around the world and is also a member at the Editorial Board of the
Journal of Academic Ethics.

BEAM: This source is unbiased and includes an analysis about what happens to
individuals after the failure of their business. It includes the perspective of entrepreneurs
who experienced business failure at some point and were able to be successful despite
this obstacle.

Business Radio. “The Demise of Toys R Us: What Went Wrong.” Knowledge@Wharton,
knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article/the-demise-of-toys-r-us/.

Content: This educational article examines the demise of Toys R’ Us and details the
downfall of this once very successful business. It explains how the company went
bankrupt and provides statistics about the business and how many stores closed. It also
discusses possible reasons for the failure of Toys R’ Us and suggests they could not adapt
to remain popular.

Author: Denise Dahlhoff is the senior consumer researcher at the conference board and
at Wharton School’s Lauder Institute for Management and International Studies, while,
Mark A. Cohen is the CEO and founder of Legal Mosaic

BEAM: This article provides an example of a specific failed business. It is important as

an example in my research since it has data about the failure of the company and suggests
what they could have done differently.

Lauren Thomas. “Sears Owner Gets $250 Million Lifeline, Says It Will Shut 96 More
Stores-Here's Where They Are.” CNBC, CNBC, 8 Nov. 2019,
www.cnbc.com/2019/11/07/sears-owner-gets-250-million-lifeline-says-it-will-
shut-another-96-stores.html.

Content: This article provides information about the failure of the popular companies
Sears and K-Mart. It includes factual information about the bankruptcy of the company as
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well as how many of their stores closed. It also provides some suggestions about how this
demise may have been caused.

Author: Lauren Thomas is a reporter at CNBC in New York who graduated from the
University of North Carolina. She reports about primarily retail information and real
estate.

BEAM: This article is unbiased and includes another example of a specific failed
business. It provides specific company information about the sears corporation and its
store closures.

Lieberman, Mike. “Why Blockbuster Failed and Netflix's Popularity Skyrocketed: A Key
Lesson for Business Owners.” Why Blockbuster Failed and Netflix's Popularity
Skyrocketed: A Key Lesson for Business Owners, Square 2, 2 May 2018,
www.square2marketing.com/blog/why-blockbuster-failed-and-netflix-popularity-
skyrocketed-a-key-lesson-for-business-owners.

Content: This article discusses how the once very popular company Blockbuster failed to
innovate and ultimately failed as a business. It suggests that as online streaming services,
such as Netflix, began to arise, Blockbuster did not think that monthly subscriptions
would become popular so they kept with their typical business model. This did not work
out, as we know, and innovative streaming sites like Hulu and Netflix took over
Blockbusters’ territory.

Author: Mark Lieberman is a Chief Revenue Scientist and CEO of the company “Square
2 Marketing”

BEAM: This source suggests the reasons for Blockbuster’s failure and gives a useful
example of a specific failed company that could not innovate and lost its business to more
modern companies. The author is somewhat biased, and at times, suggests his favoritism
toward Netflix.

“McDonald's Sees Success from Its 'Most Ambitious Plan in History'.” Food Business
News RSS, 12 Feb. 2020, www.foodbusinessnews.net/articles/13711-mcdonalds-
sees-success-from-its-most-ambitious-plan-in-history.

Content: The article discusses a current ambitious plan that McDonalds, a highly
regarded successful business, plans to incorporate into its stores. This is an example of a
successful business incorporating new techniques to increase profits. Although a specific
example, this shows how new strategies can be incorporated to help a business make
more profit.

Author: Rebekah Schouten is a Digital Media Associate Editor who got her degree in
journalism from Cedarville University.

BEAM: This source is unbiased and includes factual information about McDonalds’
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revenue and how this plan will increase profits. It will be useful as an example in my
research as a successful company implementing new ideas to increase profits.

“Applebee's and IHOP's New Recipe for Success: Technology, Takeout and
Takeovers.” Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 21 Feb. 2018,
www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-dine-equity-20180221-story.html.

Content: This article discusses current new strategies that are being incorporated by
IHOP and Applebee’s restaurants around the world to increase the profitability of these
businesses. It discusses how both restaurants began to lose relevance to customers, with
Applebee’s performance dropping nearly 10% within one year. The restaurants now plan
to use more modern technology in an attempt to become more appealing to customers and
increase sales.

Author: Alejandra Reyes-Velarde is an experienced reporter at the Los Angeles Times

who graduated from UCLA.

BEAM: This source is about a current strategy that is being put in place by failing
Applebee’s and IHOP restaurants. It will be useful as an example of a current company
using modern techniques to maintain popularity and profitability.

Dans, Enrique. “The Secret Of Tesla's Success Is Not Selling Cars: It's Being Able To
Anticipate The Future.” Forbes, Forbes Magazine, 9 Sept. 2019,
www.forbes.com/sites/enriquedans/2019/09/09/the-secret-of-teslas-success-is-
not-selling-cars-its-being-able-to-anticipate-thefuture/#150664594973.

Content: This article is primarily about Tesla and its power as a brand, since this brand
vehicles has become extremely popular lately and is often considered a luxury brand by
consumers. It discusses how Tesla’s success comes from its ability to predict the future
and the wants of consumers. It suggests that Tesla is very good at innovating and
studying what consumers want, for example, the increase in demand for battery powered
cars.

Author: Enrique Dans got his MBA, as well as Ph.D. in Management Information
Systems. He is a Professor and Senior Advisor for Digital Transformation at IE
University.

BEAM: This article argues that a company’s success is directly related to its ability to
innovate. This will aid in my analysis of how companies maintain success and will be
useful as an example of a successful business that is able to easily innovate and stay
modern.

Gilbert, Ben. “Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos Says Multibillion-Dollar Failures Are Actually a
Good Thing: 'If the Size of Your Failures Isn't Growing, You're Not Going to Be
Inventing at a Size That Can Actually Move the Needle'.” Business Insider,
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Business Insider, 11 Apr. 2019, www.businessinsider.com/jeff-bezos-says-multi-

billion-dollar-failures-necessary-for-amazon-growth-success-2019-4.

Content: This article is about Jeff Bezos, the owner of Amazon. It references a speech
made by Bezos where he suggests that “If the size of your failures isn’t growing, you’re
not going to be inventing at a size that actual moves the needle”. This suggests that
failure is a crucial part of the process of business growth and encourages companies to
take risks and make attempts to innovate even if they may fail.

Author: Ben Gilbert is a Senior Tech Correspondent at Business Insider, who got his BA
in Magazine Journalism at Temple University.

BEAM: This source argues that failure is an important part of business and that
companies can become even more successful after failing. It assists in my analysis of
how businesses can try to become profitable again after a period of losing money.

Kahney, Leander. “Apple: It's All About the Brand.” Wired, Conde Nast, 4 June 2017,
www.wired.com/2002/12/apple-its-all-about-the-brand/.

Content: This article discusses how a desire specific brands impact a consumers desire to
purchase products. It specifically talks about the well known company, Apple, and how
this company has had so much success. It remarks that Apple users are extremely loyal to
the company, not because of the quality of the products, but because of the power of the
brand.

Author: Leander Kahney is a frequent publisher at Wired.com

BEAM: This article is somewhat biased towards Apple. It argues that brand power and
advertisement is a very important aspect of businesses. This argument aids in my analysis
of business strategies and helps provide suggestions to increase profits.

Frederiksen, Lee. “Business Development Strategy: A High-Growth Approach.” Hinge

Marketing, 3 Mar. 2020, hingemarketing.com/blog/story/business-development-
strategy-a-high-growth-approach.

Content: This informational article provides useful information about business

development and the importance of business strategies. It provides suggestions about the
most effective business strategies, as well as the least effective. This information will be
extremely helpful in explaining what strategies failed businesses can use to increase
profit.

Author: Lee Frederiksen is a marketer, businesses strategist, and entrepreneur who has a
PhD in Behavioral Psychology

BEAM: This article contains useful background information will that help the reader
understand what business strategies are and explains specific strategies that can be used
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in businesses. This information will be helpful in explaining how they can different
strategies implemented to help a failing business make a profit again.

Hill, Catey. “Why Did General Motors Fail?” Nydailynews.com, New York Daily News,
10 Jan. 2019, www.nydailynews.com/news/money/general-motors-fail-article-
1.374800.

Content: This news article discusses the failure of the business General Motors. It
explains how they used to produce high performance cars, but also created many cars that
did were very poor in quality. They explain how they made efforts to improve the quality
of their cars but ultimately failed because of mismanagement.

Author: Catey Hill is a Daily News Staff Writer.

BEAM: This article is somewhat biased, regarding General Motors as “Beloved” and
“Integral” in the past. This news article will be useful as an example of a failed business
that failed to modernize their products to remain popular.

“Company Finder.” Gale Business Insights: Essentials, Cengage Learning,

bi.gale.com/essentials/companyFinder?u=orla57816#limiters=country^United
States.

Content: This website provides factual information about specific companies. It includes
market share reports, financial reports, and detailed information about companies and
industries. It includes many statistics about the companies that I am researching and even
provides graphs and charts that I may use as visuals.

Author: This source has no specific author since it is reporting factual data about
businesses. It is, however, published by Cengage, which is a textbook company.

BEAM: This source provides unbiased, factual information about specific businesses. It
will be useful in my research as evidence since it includes specific information about the
companies that I am researching.