The case study is appropriate for use in a range of postgraduate courses, including the Postgraduate Diploma in Management, Master of Business Administration and the Master of Management in Digital Business. It is also suitable for use in executive education short courses such as the Management Advancement Programme, Strategic Management and Launching New Ventures.
At the end of the case discussion, students should be able to:
Analyse a company’s current business status as a first step to marketing strategy formulation, including identifying key factors in the company’s internal operations and external business environment that offer opportunities and challenges.
Conduct a competitor analysis by comparing both direct and indirect competitors.
Identify and discuss key factors influencing consumer buying behaviour.
Critically examine three principal pricing strategies.
Critically evaluate and recommend a range of promotional strategies to increase consumer awareness of a brand, maintain a favourable brand image and create greater differentiation.
In June 2022, Julia and Nic Rosslee, partners in life and business, reflected on the digital journey of their company, Julep – an online cut flower retail business based in South Africa. Launched just before the country’s first COVID-19 lockdown in March 2020, Julep’s early days were shaped by uncertainty and rapid adaptation. With no fixed costs at the time, the Rosslees were able to pause operations and resume once trade restrictions eased. Built with digital at its core, Julep offered a seamless customer experience suited to online retail. However, as the business matured, Julia and Nic began questioning whether their current digital model would sustain future growth or whether a strategic shift in their digital approach was necessary to differentiate Julep further in a crowded market.
This case study explores Julep’s entrepreneurial journey, from its pandemic-era inception to its current status as a small but promising player in South Africa’s online flower industry. While the brand has earned praise for its authenticity, elegant floral arrangements and user-friendly ordering system, it remains relatively unknown outside its existing customer base. This perception poses challenges, as potential customers may assume Julep is too niche, too expensive or incapable of offering services such as same-day delivery or guaranteed freshness – features often associated with more established competitors such as InterFlora and NetFlorist. The case study prompts students to analyse Julep’s current positioning, assess its digital strategy and recommend pathways for growth and differentiation in a competitive e-commerce environment.
The case study enables students to learn and put into practice key marketing principles related to digital marketing, differentiation strategy and marketing strategy. Furthermore, it provides students with the tools and frameworks required to make important marketing decisions in the context of small and medium enterprises in emerging markets.
CSS8: Marketing
