International Business Case Study: Boost Juice

ASIAN CASE RESEARCH JOURNAL, VOL.
18, issue 1, 175–197 (2014)
acrj
Internationalization of Boost Juice
This case was prepared by
Dr. Jane L. Menzies and to Malaysia
Professor Stuart C. Orr of
Deakin University, Australia,
Asian Case Res. J. 2014.18:175-197. Downloaded from www.worldscientific.com
as a basis for classroom dis- Introduction

cussion rather than to il-
lustrate either effective or
ineffective handling of an
Janine Allis, the founder and managing director of Boost
by Dr. Pradeep Kautish on 10/15/14. For personal use only.
administrative situation.
Juice, sat in her Melbourne-based head office, at Chadstone
Please address all correspon-
dence to Dr. Jane L. Menzies,
“The Fashion Capital”1, and pondered the achievements made
Deakin Graduate School of by Boost Juice in Malaysia. Since 2009, Boost Juice has opened
Business, Deakin University,
221 Burwood Hwy, Burwood, 11 stores, with exciting plans for two more stores in the not
VIC 3125, Australia. E-mail: too distant future.2 By 2014, a total of 30 stores are planned
jane.menzies@deakin.edu.au
for opening. She wondered, would the economic fall-out from
the European debt crisis have an effect on her Malaysian
plans? Was the choice of Master Franchisees the right deci-
sion for Boost Juice in Malaysia, and has the process of inter-
nationalization for Boost Juice in Malaysia been successful
thus far?
Background
Walk into a Boost Juice outlet and you will hear the music
pumping, see the staff bopping to the rhythm of making
you a fruit juice and you will understand what is meant by
the “customer experience” at Boost Juice3; it’s fun, loud and
designed to develop a unique relationship with customers.
The Boost Juice Company commenced operations in
Adelaide, South Australia, in 2000; established and run by
the entrepreneur, Janine Allis, who wanted to bring healthy
fruit juices to Australia.4 Allis was aware of the popularity of
juice bars across the globe. She had visited many juice bars in
© 2014 by World Scientific Publishing Co. DOI: 10.1142/S0218927514500072
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the United States where the industry was much more devel-
oped than in most other countries.5 Allis built the organi-
sation up from its modest beginnings in the Melbourne
suburbs where she started mixing up some “wicked juice and
smoothie blends” in her own garage, she then opened her
first retail outlet in Adelaide in 2000.6 In 2004, Janine Allis
was awarded Telstra’s Businesswoman of the Year award for
her entrepreneurialism.7 Since then, Boost Juice has become
an incredible franchising success story and, accordingly,
has been awarded a multitude of awards in the Australian
business community.8
By 2005, Boost Juice had expanded to 180 retail juice

outlets across Australia and its brand awareness had risen to
94%.9 Allis’s success in the Australian market (see Exhibit 1)
provided her with much of the motivation to internationalize

to other countries and Malaysia. Since 2004, Boost Juice has
embarked on an international expansion program and, in
2012, now operates over 240 retail outlets in 15 countries, plus
Australia.10 Boost Juice’s turnover was approximately A$135m
in 2011.11 In 2007, Boost Juice acquired a majority holding in
the Australian Mexican Food chain, Salsa.12 Then, in 2010,
Boost Juice sold a majority stake to a US private equity
company, The Riverside Company, for A$65m.13 The purpose
of this was to raise the much-needed capital to finance Boost
Juice’s further international expansion plans. See Figure 1 for
Boost Juice’s development timeline.
Boost Juice entered Malaysia in 2009, with its first retail
outlet in Suria, Kuala Lumpur (see Exhibit 2). By 2012, it had
expanded to 11 retail outlets (mainly located in the Klang
Valley, with one in Penang at Gurney Plaza)14. Locational
decisions made by Boost Juice are usually based on sound
research, foot-traffic, and demographic analysis.15 All Boost
Juice outlets in Malaysia have been established in high-end
shopping centres. These locations were selected because the
ʹͲͲͶ ʹͲͲ͹ ʹͲͳͲ

ʹͲͲͲ ʹͲͲͳ

Fig. 1. Boost Juice Company Development Timeline.
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internationalization of boost juice to malaysia 177
volume of foot-traffic in shopping centres is high, and there

is a belief that customers would be willing to pay a premium
for juice and other juice products in shopping centres. These
are also locations where it is “cool” for young people — a
major segment of the juice bar market — to hang out. Boost
Juice plans to continue to expand in Malaysia and have 30
outlets operating there by 2014.16 The company’s international
expansion is driven by Boost’s global brand strategy; “To
become to juice, what Starbucks is to coffee”.17
Industry
The juice bar industry structure in Malaysia is fragmented,

incorporating many small single owner/operator businesses.

While sophisticated juice bars are becoming more common in
Malaysia, especially in shopping malls and new urban areas,
Boost Juice must also compete with the local Malaysian road-
side drinks and juice stalls that service more than 50% of the
market.18 The juice bar industry in Malaysia is in the early
stages of development and is characterized by high growth.
The two critical influences that apply to the juice bar industry
in Malaysia are the economic and socio-cultural forces
(Table 1). The economy is performing strongly and there is
an increasing need for consumers to be health and weight
conscious, thereby driving the consumption of healthy prod-
ucts such as fruit juice. These two factors make the juice bar
industry in Malaysia attractive.
The juice bar industry is relatively new in Malaysia —
juice bars have been popping up over Malaysia since around
2005. Before that, juices tended to be “do it yourself” (DIY),
supermarket bought products, or were bought on the side
of the road and in hawker centres. Therefore the juice bar
industry in Malaysia has a large number of new market
entrants. All new entrants, including Boost Juice, have to
invest substantially in promoting the juice bar concept
to develop the market, especially since juice bars usually
charge a premium for their products. In Malaysia, there are
a number of branded juice bar competitors for Boost Juice,
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Table 1. PESTEL Analysis of Boost Juice’s International Environment
Macro-environmental Intensity Reason

Force
Political forces Low Government support is strong for FDI

and business development
Economic forces High Malaysia has a relatively positive
economic situation, with moderate
growth, low interest rates, and optimistic
outlook
Socio-cultural forces High Malaysian consumers are becoming more
health-conscious
Technological forces Low Technology has a limited role to play as

the product is produced to demand and
often customized
Natural environment Low The industry’s environmental impact is

forces low so it is easily able to comply with
current expectations
Legal forces Medium Franchisees each require a food retail
licence
which include “For Fresh People”, “New Zealand Natural”,

“Juice Works”, “Juice Bars”, “Bobalicious Smoothies”, “Sharing
Planet,” “Desserts Bar” and “Black Canyon”.19 These competi-
tors mainly operate in the same locations as Boost Juice —
shopping centres, and high-end urban centres. There are a
number of unbranded competitors, which include juice stalls
on the side of the road or in hawker centres. An analysis of
the competitors in Malaysia suggests that Boost Juice has the
most brand awareness.
The degree of rivalry between competitors is quite low
and Boost Juice benefits from their size, resources and skills
in developing the market. The other rivals competing in a
similar manner to Boost Juice are comparable in size and
economies of scale, being either a small chain of franchises or
just a single independent juice bar. The single independent
juice bars do not generate the same level of brand awareness
as chains such as Boost Juice. The product ranges and basis of
competition are similar for all of the juice bars in this segment
of the market; they compete by offering quality to a broad
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market. Competitors do not aggressively use pricing strate-

gies to attract a greater market share because of the rapidly
developing market opportunities. Customers make frequent
low-value purchases (possibly buying a juice every day), or
when they visit a shopping centre during the weekend.
The threat of market entry is high as barriers (mainly
set-up costs) are low. For example, a Boost Juice fran-
chise investment costs between A$240,000 and $300,00020
in Australia, with predicted lower costs in markets such as
Malaysia, because of lower factor costs. Furthermore, estab-
lishment costs would be significantly lower for independent
operators. The barriers to exiting the industry are also low,

reflecting the low set-up costs. Malaysian government policy
is strongly supportive of the entry of either local or foreign
new businesses into its markets.21 Economies of scale are less

important to juice bars, except in the area of purchasing and
transportation of the fruit. The cost of the raw materials is
fairly low, compared to the overall operating costs (site rental,
power and labour costs), so economies of scale in purchasing
and transportation offer only limited benefits. Otherwise,
products are highly customized and, therefore, little benefit
results from increased economies of scale in the juice bars
themselves. There would be slight product differentiation
between competitors, as competitors offer different flavours
and blends.
Juice bars rely on a regular and dependable supply of
fresh fruit and on the local labour force. The tropical climate
contributes to the low cost of fruit in Malaysia where both
fruit and vegetables are inexpensive and readily available. As
the agricultural industry in Malaysia is fairly fragmented and
comprises many small growers22, the range of suppliers avail-
able to meet the relatively modest demands of a juice bar is
extensive.
Customers in this industry are able to switch easily to
another juice bar or substitute products such as fruit juices
purchased from supermarkets. From a socio-cultural per-
spective, however, Malaysians are becoming more health
conscious. One of the reasons for this health-consciousness
is reflected in a 2006 National Health and Morbidity Survey
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finding that 43% of Malaysian adults are either overweight or

obese.23 Health concerns, therefore, are probably significant
motivators for many customers of juice bars such as Boost
Juice.
There are many alternatives to fresh fruit juice,
including packaged fruit juice, milk drinks, soft drink, alcohol
and coffee/tea, although fresh juices are more strongly dif-
ferentiated from the health perspective. The threat of substi-
tutes varies considerably as the preferences of the customers
change, whereas other features of the industry change more
slowly. Although the threat of substitutes is not as strong, it
is difficult to react to because Boost Juice has a considerable

investment in their juice bar systems, franchise and assets.
There are a number of brands for fruit juices in Malaysia,
which are mainly sold in supermarkets or convenience stores.

In 2010, the major brands of fruit juices in Malaysia were
Malaysia Milk’s well-known Marigold and Peel Fresh Brands,
which have 23% of the market share, and F&N Dairies which
have 18% of the market with their Sunkist and Fruit Tree
Fresh Brands.24
At present, there is only limited competition in the
industry, but many new juice bars are being established. It
can be expected that competition will continue to increase in
the industry in response to demand for juice bars and because
of their profitability. In the short term, Boost Juice will need
to keep their customers interested through constant product
innovation to make their products more attractive than the
substitutes, such as soft drinks. To achieve this, Boost Juice
will need to expand its marketing and product innovation
skills.
As the industry matures and the rivalry with new
entrants increases, Boost Juice will have to respond to the
actions of its competitors to maintain its market share. These
competitors are also likely to develop their marketing and
product innovation skills and will, therefore, be directly com-
petitive with Boost Juice. It is also likely that, as the market
matures, rivalry will move to predominantly price-based
competition and profit margins will reduce. This will require
Boost Juice to become more cost-efficient and to utilize more
of its internal resources to respond to competitor actions.
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Resources
A number of Boost Juice’s strategic resources have enabled

them to internationalize successfully. The framework of
people, product, marketing and brand characteristics will be
utilized to analyse the resources that Boost Juice has available
to transfer to its Malaysian operations.
People
Human resources are an important resource for Boost Juice.

For example, the founder and director of Boost Juice, Janine
Allis, has extensive business experience both in Australia and
abroad in Hong Kong. Allis has been successful in interna-

tionalizing Boost Juice to many other international locations
thus far. The knowledge developed from these experiences
has been a useful resource for both the establishment of the
Malaysian operations, and for the advice given to Boost Juice
Master Franchisees in Malaysia.
Master Franchisees are usually individuals, an organi-
zation or partnership that has had previous retail experience
operating multiple outlets. A Master Franchisee also needs to
commit to an agreed number of retail outlets to be opened in
a country over a period of time, referred to as a development
schedule.25 The Master Franchisees in Malaysia for Boost
Juice are a husband and wife team who had become fans of
the famous Australian smoothies and juices when they lived
and worked in Melbourne.26 The husband, Nick Tiernan, who
is English and his wife, Dr. Soraya Rahim Ismail, a Malay-
sian national, decided they wanted to bring Boost Juice to
Malaysia when on their honeymoon — which is an indication
of their enthusiasm for the product! They then successfully
applied to become a Master Franchisee.27
The background, experience and knowledge of both
Nick and Soraya are valuable resources for Boost Juice’s inter-
nationalization to Malaysia. Nick is highly creative and has
been a director in the retail industry. His enthusiasm and
ideas are important motivators for Boost Juice’s Malaysian
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operations.28 Both Nick and Soraya had worked at Accenture

in the United Kingdom (UK) and had been a consultant to
multinational organisations across many countries including
Europe, Japan, US and Australia.29 Furthermore, Soraya’s
valuable understanding of Malaysian culture and informal
institutions is critical for the successful management of staff
and development of strategies for the Malaysian market.30
Boost Juice also goes out of its way to develop a com-
petitive advantage in its juice bar employees. It selects
employees on the basis of their customer service skills, moti-
vation, and enthusiasm and they refer to those motivated
individuals as a Boostie.31 The employees working at Boost

Juice need to be able to function well in a team, provide
exceptional customer experiences and have fun along the
way.32 Given the power of the customer in this industry,

having service staff able to provide a positive customer expe-
rience is important in attracting back customers who could
easily switch to other juice bars or substitute products.
Product
Obviously, having a “good product” is a key requirement for

sales in both domestic and international markets. Boost Juice
has a healthy, nutritious and good-tasting product range.
The range includes fresh fruit juices, crushes and delicious
smoothies made with their top secret TD4® (To Die For)
low-fat frozen yoghurt.33 Boost Juice also produces and sells
complementary snacks and yoghurt at their retail outlets, and
has a supermarket range, which is currently stocked in Aus-
tralia, but not yet in Malaysia. These products are a healthy
alternative to fast food. Table 2 displays the range of Boost
Juice products.
Boost Juice has an innovation focus and develops new
products and tastes to remain ahead of the competition.
The products are the result of a sophisticated development
process, which is another of Boost Juice’s competitive advan-
tages. A Boost Juice nutritionist assists in the development of
all products and everything is at least 98% fat-free and does
not contain any artificial flavouring or colours.35 Not only
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Table 2. The Range of Boost Juice Products34
Products
Low-Fat Smoothies Super Smoothies Skinny Smoothies Indulgence

Mango Magic Energy Lift Mini-Me Mango Smoothies
Strawberry Squeeze Green Tea Mango Berry Berry Light Raspberry Ripe
All Berry Bang Mantra Skinny Minnie King William
Passion Mango Gym Junkie Melon Chocolate
Janine’s Favourite Brekkie to go-go
Blueberry Blast
Banana Buzz
Tropical Storm
Juices Create Your Own Crushes Boosters

Two & Five Juice Juice Mango Tango Vita Booster

Energiser Juice Choose from a variety Crush Immunity Booster
Wild Berry Juice of fruits Berry Crush Energiser Booster
Immunity Juice Lemon Crush Protein Booster
Watermelon Crush
Tropical Crush
Complementary Supermarket Range

Product Bottled Juice
Banana Bread Frozen Yoghurt
Wraps Healthy Snacks
Yoghurt
Fruit
Muesli Bars
does the product serve as a source of competitive advantage,

the customer experience is also influential, as Soraya explains:
“Boost is not just another juice bar — the brand is based on
the entire Boost Experience, which takes place every time a
customer enters a store.”36
Therefore, this broader experience is designed to develop
a relationship with customers and ensure that they return,
as Soraya further elucidates: “It is a combination of a fantastic
product, served by positive and energetic people who greet you
with a smile and are polite enough to call you by your first name,
with a bright and colourful store environment to match”.37 This
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relationship is an important source of competitive advantage

for Boost Juice. Therefore, as a result of the development of
innovative products and customer service to match, Boost
Juice is able to compete successfully in the Malaysian market.
Marketing and Branding
Boost Juice marketing and branding is also a source of

competitive advantage. It has made a name for itself with
brightly-coloured stores, packaging and advertising; per-
ceived to be “cool” and “fun” by young consumers. The

company has successfully built a well-recognized brand
through public relations exercises, the media including
radio and television, and it also has a vibrant and exciting

website.38 It also approximately eight campaigns per year in
the stores to boost the profile of Boost Juice, attract customers
and develop the customer experience. They also have an
active Facebook page, with a dedicated Boost Juice Malaysia
site where they promote various campaigns, specials and
offers. Through social media, Boost Juice aims to connect with
its customers and assist in developing the customer experi-
ence. Promotions tend be fun, for example, a recent promo-
tion has been “the name game”, where Boost offer a “Free
Boost” to people with a particular name every weekday for a
period of four weeks. Generation Y and X customers are par-
ticularly responsive to this type of marketing, branding and
promotions. The brand profile is used to Boost Juice’s com-
petitive advantage in its marketing activities.39
The development of Boost Juice's brand in Malaysia
has been necessary for it to continue to innovate its product
lines. Introducing innovative products such as “All Berry
Bang” and “Mango Tango”, “Brekkie to go-go” and “Energy
Lift” has provided Boost Juice with a significant portion of its
differentiation from its competitors. It would not be possible
to introduce these innovations, however, without a highly
enthusiastic customer base. The introduction of such unusual
products could easily backfire on Boost Juice if the customers
were not already expecting and enthused by this type of
innovation.
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Internationalization Strategy
for Malaysia
Boost Juice took a planned approach to establishing their

operations in Malaysia, deciding that it was the “right time to
bring Boost to Malaysia”.40 This decision-making process was
very consistent with the idea that local conditions in Malaysia
must offer an advantage to Boost Juice, and that some of its
home country competencies must be available to create a
competitive advantage in the local market. Allis considers the
relative merits of each potential international market from
this perspective as part of Boost Juice’s overall international-

ization expansion plans:
“We were delighted to open stores throughout Europe
and South America, but Asia in particular holds so much

potential for a brand and product like ours, so we’re really
looking forward to working with Nick and Soraya to make
this venture a huge success.”41
The high growth of the juice bar industry in Asian markets
offers opportunities to innovative businesses such as Boost
Juice. The relative proximity of Malaysia to Australia, and
time zone similarities (Kuala Lumpur is only 3,000 km from
Darwin and is in the same time zone as Perth), combined
with the strong trade relationships between Australia and
Malaysia, simplified transferring valuable competencies from
Boost Australia to Boost Malaysia.
The Process of Franchising
Boost Juice was able to expand rapidly in Malaysia through

franchises. Sharing the financial load and risk with fran-
chisees enabled Boost Juice to expand more rapidly than
would have been possible if it had had to rely purely on
its own resources and access to capital. The rapid rate of
expansion in a number of countries, including Malaysia, has
enabled it to build first-mover advantages, with the result
that Boost Juice is now a highly internationalized organisa-
tion with little evidence of a home country bias.42 To assist
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Fig. 2. Number of Boost Juice Operations across the Globe.
in internationalization, Boost Juice works with an experi-

enced US-based consultancy firm, which assisted Subway
and Gloria Jean’s to enter China.43 Boost Juice operates in
Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia, China, Thailand, Hong Kong,
Macau, Kuwait, Chile, Brazil, South Africa, the UK, Estonia,
Lithuania, Germany, United Arab Emirates (UAE) and South
Korea (Figure 2).44 In 2012, Boost Juice also has plans to
open five stores in India, with a total of 30 over the next five
years.45 Boost Juice has also aimed to be locally-orientated
when internationalizing to different countries, which gives
them a better understanding of the local market. For example,
choosing Soraya Rahmin Ismail as a Master Franchisee offers
Boost Juice two advantages. The first advantage is that
because Soraya is a Malaysian national, she understands the
Malaysian environment and culture well, and second, having
worked and lived in the UK, she also has an international
perspective.
Franchising offers Boost Juice an advantage in Malaysia
relative to many of the competitors who are not utilising
franchising to reduce the amount of capital outlay and risk.
Franchising has also been very effective in introducing
good quality front-line management, and the development of
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greater efficiencies than could be achieved by using central-

ized staff management practices typical of company-owned
juice bars.
Boost Juice aims to select its Master Franchisees from
a variety of backgrounds and industries to ensure franchises
are varied by personal and professional interests.46 Master
Franchisee selection is based on a number of factors, which
include prior significant retail experience, previous owner-
ship and operation of a successful businesses, experience in
driving teams, and exposure to leasing, supply chain man-
agement, marketing, sales, training and operations.47 In addi-
tion, they need to also share the values of Boost Juice. Master
Franchisees are required to have sufficient financial resources
to properly support their franchise — a net worth of US$2
million and liquidity of at least US$1 million.48

Boost provides extensive support to its Master Fran-
chisees, including a dedicated International Field Support
(IFS) team, on-going access to Boost Juice marketing and
promotional material, a training and induction program, an
operating system and operations manuals, substantial group
buying power, and a long-established supplier network.49
A Master Franchisee has exclusive rights to open an agreed
number of Boost Juice retail outlets over an agreed time
period in their given market. They also have a number of
responsibilities50:
1. They are required to own and operate a number of Boost
Juice retail outlets (although they are able to grant sub-
franchises to third parties for some outlets).
2. They are required to establish infrastructure to support
their franchise network in the chosen country, which
includes training, marketing, leasing, design and develop-
ment, and supply chain management operations.
Master Franchisees are charged a fee, based on the minimum
number of retail outlets to be opened in a given market,
which is mutually agreed by Boost Juice and the Master
Franchisee.51 There is also an on-going royalty fee that ranges
between 4% and 6% of gross monthly turnover for the Master
Franchise-owned retail outlets.52 Sub-franchise retail outlets
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also generate an on-going royalty fee, which is shared equally

between the Master Franchisee and Boost Juice. In addition,
there is an International Marketing Levy, which is 3% of
gross monthly turnover for the Master Franchise-owned retail
outlets.53 One per cent (1%) of this levy is repatriated to Boost
Juice Australia, and the 2% balance is to be spent by the
Master Franchisee in increasing the brand awareness of Boost
Juice in their local market.54 Average retail outlet establish-
ment costs in Australia are A$240,000–300,000, although the
costs are lower in Malaysia, reflecting the lower costs of mate-
rials and equipment. These costs include the signage, fit-out
and equipment.
The General Manager and the Training Manager of
each Master Franchisee are required to complete a minimum
six-week training program prior to opening their first retail

outlet. This ensures that the overall management practices
associated with operating the franchise network and indi-
vidual retail outlets are transferred from Boost Juice to the
Master Franchisee. The majority of this training is con-
ducted in Australia, and an International Field Consultant
(IFC) assists later on when the first retail outlet is opened.55
On-going support is provided by the IFC, and they are a key
point of contact for questions, training, support and opera-
tional needs. The IFC also visits the Master Franchisee’s retail
outlets twice during the first year of operation. Through the
IFC, each Master Franchisee has access to Boost Juice’s cen-
tralized support departments, which include finance, fran-
chising, marketing, training, design and development, leasing,
operations and purchasing.56
Internationalization through franchising has brought
many benefits to Boost Juice. It is not exposed to the full risk
nor the capital investment required for wholly-owned foreign
subsidiaries. In addition, the franchisees provide Boost Juice
with local market knowledge and contacts. These features
have enabled Boost to internationalize quickly across the
world and in countries such as Malaysia, which has allowed
it to rapidly establish economies of scale in its operations
there.
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Performance
Boost Juice has performed strongly over its 11 years of

operation, with an annual turnover of AUD$135m in the
2011 financial year.57 In addition, Boost has been the fastest-
growing juice and smoothie bar chain in the Southern
Hemisphere, and their achievements have been recognized
with a multitude of awards over the years.58 Some notable
awards include AMEX Franchisor of the Year in 2005, PWC
Franchisor of the Year in 2005, and BRW Fastest-Growing
Franchise in 2004.59
A blended future for Boost Juice

Boost Juice has a relatively aggressive international expansion

plan, with The Riverside Group recently purchasing a major
stake in the Boost Investment Group, named the Retail Zoo
(see Figure 3).60 Allis’s vision for the group is to be the next
global phenomenon, and it needed the financial backing and
expertise of Riverside to do this.
Despite the backing of Riverside, Boost Juice faces a
number of threats in the future, which it must learn to deal
with. The first of these is the threat of increased local compe-
tition in its various markets. For example, Boost Juice’s local
marketing efforts and the visual appeal of its retail outlets
Boost Investment Group

(Reg. Bus Name:
The Retail Zoo)
Boost Foundation Salsa (Mexican

Boost Juice
(Charitable) Restaurant Chain)
Supermarket product Retail (Franchised)

lines outlets
Fig. 3. Organisational Chart for Boost Juice.
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has done much to develop the markets in various countries.

This leaves the gates open to increasing competition from
rivals offering competitive products in a similar manner. The
limited reliance of Boost Juice’s subsidiaries on the Austra-
lian headquarters makes its operations in other countries easy
to imitate. Boost Juice will need to find new ways of coun-
tering competition in all of its international markets and
in Malaysia. Further, can Boost Juice continue with its fran-
chising approach in Malaysia, or will too many franchisees
cause it to lose differentiation?
Weak economic conditions as a result of the global
financial crisis (GFC) and the European debt crisis in many of

its markets are another issue that it must grapple with. For
much of its development phase, Boost Juice has relied on the
positive economic conditions in its international markets to

support the establishment of its franchised subsidiaries. This
was a satisfactory approach leading up to the GFC in the
years 2008 and 2009, but may not be suitable for today’s envi-
ronment, especially if there is another global economic down-
turn as a result of the European debt crisis. Will Boost Juice
need to find new approaches to continue its global devel-
opment? How will it accomplish its global vision if there is
another world recession?
references
1. Chadstone is a shopping centre in the south eastern suburbs of

Melbourne, Australia. It is claimed to be the largest shopping
centee in the southern hemisphere, and it is labeled “The Fashion
Capital” as a majority of the stores are fashion based. Chadstone
also has office towers where Boost Juice’s head office is located.
2. Boost Juice, 2011a. Boost Juice in Malaysia, retrieved on
08/03/12 at http://www.boostjuicebars.com.my/Default.aspx#/
about-boost/our-history/.
3. Boost Juice, 2011b. About Us, retrieved on 10/05/11 at http://
www.boostjuicebars.com.my/Home-boost-malaysia.html#/
about-boost/our-history/.
4. Ibid.
5. Loc. cit., Boost Juice, 2011b.
S0218927514500072.indd 190 21/7/2014 5:06:47 PM

7. Telstra Businesswoman Awards, 2004. Janine Allis — Founder

and Managing Director of Boost Juice, retrieved on 20/05/11 at
http://www.telstrabusinesswomensawards.com/assets/pdf/
winnerbooklets/janine%20allis.pdf.
8. Boost Juice, 2012a. National Awards, retrieved on 22/05/11 at
http://www.boostjuice.com.au/national-awards.
10. Boost Juice, 2011. About Us, retrieved on 08/03/12 on http://
www.boostjuice.com.au/about.
11. Boost Juice, 2012b. Boost Global, accessed on 08/03/12 at http://
www.boostjuice.com.au/boost-global.
12. Smartcompany, 2007. New look Boost Juice ready to expand,
11 September 2007, retrieved on 30/08/11 at http://www.

smartcompany.com.au/retail/new-look-boost-juice-ready-to-
expand.html.
13. Greenblat, E., 2010. Boost Juice sells majority stake for $65m, The
Sydney Morning Herald, retrieved on 14/06/11, at http://
www.smh.com.au/small-business/franchising/boost-juice-sells-
majority-stake-for-65m-20100502-u1ez.html.
14. Loc. cit., Boost Juice, 2011a.
15. Boost Juice, 2012c. Investment & FAQ, retrieved on 08/03/12 at
http://www.boostjuice.com.au/investment-faq.
17. Facebook, 2011. Boost Juice Bars Malaysia, retrieved on 20/05/11
at http://www.facebook.com/boostmalaysia?sk=info.
18. Gan, I., 2011. Personal Communication on 14/05/11.
19. Euromonitor International, 2011. Consumer Food Service
in Malaysia, retrieved on 08/03/12 at http://www.
euromonitor.com/consumer-foodservice-in-malaysia/report;
Che Wan, R., 2010. Juice Up, Boost Up, retrieved on
15/05/11 at http://thestar.com.my/metro/story.asp?file=/2010/
2/28/sundaymetro/5749918.
20. Loc. cit., Boost Juice, 2012c.
21. Personal communications with Malaysian small-business
operators, 4/07/11.
22. Economist, 2011. Country Report Malaysia, August 2011.
23. Samy, F. A., 2010. Malaysians getting obese — by eating too heavily at
night, The Star, retrieved on 27/07/11 at http://thestar.com.my/
news/story.asp?file=/2010/4/11/nation/6034589&sec=nation.
24. Euromonitor, 2011. Fruit/Vegetable Juice in Malaysia, http://
www.euromonitor.com/fruit-vegetable-juice-in-malaysia/report,
accessed on the 08/03/12.
S0218927514500072.indd 191 21/7/2014 5:06:47 PM

192 ACRJ
25. Boost Juice, 2011c. International Franchising, retrieved on

15/05/11 at http://www.boostjuicebars.com/#/franchising/
international-franchising.
31. Boost Juice, 2012d. What’s a Boostie? Retrieved on 08/03/12, at
http://www.boostjuice.com.au/whats-a-boostie.
34. Boost Juice, 2012d. Study Kit, retrieved on 08/03/12, at http://

www.boostjuice.com.au/study-kit.

38. Loc. cit., Boost Juice, 2012d.
42. Sammartino, A., 2011. International business and strategy blog:
A juicy tale of international expansion, retrieved on 20/05/11 at
http://internationalbs.wordpress.com/2009/01/23/a-juicy-tale-
of-international-expansion/.
45. Boost Juice, 2012e. Global News: Boost to launch in India
2012, accessed 11/03/12, at http://www.boostjuice.com.au/
global-news-2.
S0218927514500072.indd 192 21/7/2014 5:06:47 PM

57. Greenblat, E., 2010. Boost Juice sells majority stake for $65m,
The Sydney Morning Herald, retrieved on 14/06/11, at http://
www.smh.com.au/small-business/franchising/boost-juice-sells-
majority-stake-for-65m-20100502-u1ez.html.
61. Datamonitor, 2010. Australia Country Analysis Report — In-
Depth PESTLE Insights, Datamonitor.
62. DFAT, 2011. Australia — Economic Factsheet, retrieved on
02/11/2011, at http://www.dfat.gov.au/geo/fs/aust.pdf.
63. DFAT, 2008. Australia in Brief: A stable and competitive
economy, retrieved on 02/11/2011, at http://www.dfat.gov.au/

aib/competitive_economy.html.
64. Austrade, 2011. Austrade, retrieved on 02/11/2011, at http://
www.austrade.gov.au/.
65. Loc. cit., Datamonitor, 2010.
66. Loc. cit., DFAT, 2011.
67. The Australian, 2011. Aussie hits parity with US dollar, retrieved
on 02/11/11, at http://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/
aussie-hits-parity-with-us-dollar/story-e6frg8zx-1225939430116.
68. RTT News, 2011. AUD/USD Slides After Topping 1.10 Level —
Westpac, retrieved on 02/11/11, at http://www.rttnews.com/
ArticleView.aspx?Id=1611446.
69. Loc. cit., DFAT, 2011.
71. Datamonitor, 2010. Malaysia Country Analysis Report — In-Depth
PESTLE Insights, Datamonitor.
72. Ibid.
73. Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, 2011. Malaysia
Country Brief, retrieved on 2/11/11, at http://www.dfat.gov.
au/geo/malaysia/malaysia_brief.html.
75. Loc. cit., DFAT, 2011.
78. Loc. cit., DFAT, 2011.
79. Loc. cit., Datamontior, 2010.
S0218927514500072.indd 193 21/7/2014 5:06:47 PM

194 ACRJ
Exhibit 1
Country background — Australia
Australia is a developed and stable economy with a Parliamentary

democracy.61 Its business sector is primarily export-based, and Aus-
tralia has traditionally been labelled “the lucky country” because of
its huge deposits of natural resources such as coal, iron ore, gold,
and petroleum.62 The Australian government realizes that Australia
should not be dependent on natural resources, and heavily pro-
motes a “knowledge-based economy” (which reflects Australia’s
significant export of education services and education to interna-
tional students in Australia).63 Australia has embraced globalization
in the past 30 years, as it has a strong export sector and it encour-
ages foreign direct investment (FDI) in and outside of Australia.

Austrade, the Government’s foreign trade department, actively pro-
motes internationalization and supports Australian organisations
operating internationally, on a number of levels (i.e., advice, edu-

cation, financial assistance, support offices).64 Australia has a small
population of 22.4 million and has high GDP per capita ($64,351 in
2011 in real prices).65
Australia has been able to weather the most recent global
financial crisis, and currently has a positive economic growth rate,
stable and moderate inflation of around 2–3%, low unemployment
(6.1%) and its business outlook and confidence is good.66 Australia’s
ability to dodge the true effects of the GFC has been attributed to
its natural resource export arrangements with China, the fact that
the Australian economy maintains good economic fundamentals,
and the economic weaknesses associated with the US and European
countries. In 2011, the Australian dollar surpassed parity with the
US dollar67, and achieved an all-time high, since it was floated in
1983, of A$1.10 against the greenback.68
S0218927514500072.indd 194 21/7/2014 5:06:47 PM

Table 3. Australia’s Economic Characteristics.69
Annual Data 2011

Population 22.4 million
GDP Growth Rate 3%
GDP (Billions US$, Market Exchange Rate) 1,448.2
GDP (Billions US$, PPP) 918.5
GDP per capita (US$, Market Exchange Rate) 64,351
GDP per capita (US$ PPP) 40,86
Inflation 3.00%
Current Account Balance (Millions US$) −5,529

Unemployment 6.1%
Interest Rates (Cash Rate) 4.50
Table 4. Australia’s Economic Outlook 2012–2014.70
Annual Data 2012 2013 2014

Population (million) 22 22.3 22.5
GDP Growth Rate 3.6% 3.2% 3.0%
GDP (Billions US$, PPP) 545.1 563.1 580.1
GDP per capita (US$ PPP) 24,782 25,295 25,774
Inflation 2.7% 2.9% 2.7%
Unemployment 5.9% 5.9% 6.0%
S0218927514500072.indd 195 21/7/2014 5:06:48 PM

196 ACRJ
Exhibit 2
Country background — Malaysia
Malaysia has had a relatively stable political climate and is ruled

by the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO).71 The polit-
ical environment is usually described as a democracy, although
there are rules that do impinge on free speech and the media.72
The most recently-elected Prime Minister, Najib Razak, has set out
a number of reforms which are aimed at liberalising the service
sector. Malaysia is classified as a high middle-income, export-ori-
ented economy, with per capita GDP (in market price) of US$8,235
in 2010. Malaysians have a life expectancy of 74 years.73 Economic
growth in Malaysia dropped to 1.4% in 2009; however, the Malay-
sian economy has rebounded from the GFC in 2010, supported

by a spike in export and import activity with China.74 The Malay-
sian government reported a growth rate of 5.5% in 2010.75 In 2010,
Malaysia faced a high debt to GDP ratio, which suggests that

government spending needs to be reduced otherwise this could
severely affect Malaysian business competitiveness.76 Malaysia’s
future strategies and targets, stated in its Vision 2020, are to “move
up the value chain”, and as a result it has developed attractive
FDI policies to attract technology intensive businesses in response.
Malaysia’s outlook looks good, with growth expected to average
around 5–6% for the next three years.77
Source: CIA Factbook, 2011.
Figure 4. Map of Malaysia.
S0218927514500072.indd 196 21/7/2014 5:06:48 PM

Table 5. Malaysian Economic Characteristics.78
Annual Data 2011

Population (million) 28.3
GDP Growth Rate 5.5%
GDP (Billions US$, Market Exchange Rate) 247.8
GDP (Billions US$, PPP) 442.0
GDP per capita (US$, Market Exchange Rate) 8,624
GDP per capita (US$ PPP) 15,385
Inflation 2.7%
Current Account Balance (Millions US$) 28,231
Unemployment 3.4%
Interest Rates (Cash Rate) 3.0
Table 6. Malaysian Economic Outlook 2011–2014.79
Annual Data 2012 2013 2014

Population (million) 27.1 27.5 28
GDP Growth Rate (%) 5.6 5.9 6.0
GDP (Billions US$, PPP) 165.0 174.7 185.2
GDP per capita (US$ PPP) 6,096.3 6349.1 6621.9
Inflation 2.3% 2.5% 2.5%
Unemployment 3.3% 3.3% 3.3%
S0218927514500072.indd 197 21/7/2014 5:06:48 PM

International Business Case Study: Boost Juice

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International Business Case Study: Boost Juice

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ASIAN CASE RESEARCH JOURNAL, VOL.

18, issue 1, 175–197 (2014)

as a basis for classroom dis- Introduction

© 2014 by World Scientific Publishing Co. DOI: 10.1142/S0218927514500072

S0218927514500072.indd 175 21/7/2014 5:06:47 PM

By 2005, Boost Juice had expanded to 180 retail juice

provided her with much of the motivation to internationalize

ʹͲͲͶ ʹͲͲ͹ ʹͲͳͲ

Fig. 1. Boost Juice Company Development Timeline.

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volume of foot-traffic in shopping centres is high, and there

The juice bar industry structure in Malaysia is fragmented,

incorporating many small single owner/operator businesses.

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Table 1. PESTEL Analysis of Boost Juice’s International Environment

Macro-environmental Intensity Reason

Political forces Low Government support is strong for FDI

Technological forces Low Technology has a limited role to play as

Natural environment Low The industry’s environmental impact is

which include “For Fresh People”, “New Zealand Natural”,

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market. Competitors do not aggressively use pricing strate-

operators. The barriers to exiting the industry are also low,

new businesses into its markets.21 Economies of scale are less

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finding that 43% of Malaysian adults are either overweight or

is difficult to react to because Boost Juice has a considerable

which are mainly sold in supermarkets or convenience stores.

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A number of Boost Juice’s strategic resources have enabled

Human resources are an important resource for Boost Juice.

abroad in Hong Kong. Allis has been successful in interna-

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operations.28 Both Nick and Soraya had worked at Accenture

individuals as a Boostie.31 The employees working at Boost

way.32 Given the power of the customer in this industry,

Obviously, having a “good product” is a key requirement for

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Table 2. The Range of Boost Juice Products34

Low-Fat Smoothies Super Smoothies Skinny Smoothies Indulgence

Juices Create Your Own Crushes Boosters

Two & Five Juice Juice Mango Tango Vita Booster

Complementary Supermarket Range

does the product serve as a source of competitive advantage,

S0218927514500072.indd 183 12/8/2014 9:05:31 AM

relationship is an important source of competitive advantage

Marketing and Branding

Boost Juice marketing and branding is also a source of

ceived to be “cool” and “fun” by young consumers. The

radio and television, and it also has a vibrant and exciting

S0218927514500072.indd 184 21/7/2014 5:06:47 PM

Boost Juice took a planned approach to establishing their

this perspective as part of Boost Juice’s overall international-

and South America, but Asia in particular holds so much

The Process of Franchising

Boost Juice was able to expand rapidly in Malaysia through

S0218927514500072.indd 185 21/7/2014 5:06:47 PM

Fig. 2. Number of Boost Juice Operations across the Globe.

in internationalization, Boost Juice works with an experi-

S0218927514500072.indd 186 21/7/2014 5:06:47 PM

greater efficiencies than could be achieved by using central-

million and liquidity of at least US$1 million.48

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