Olin team takes 2nd, named ‘people’s choice’ in USC competition

Lauren Dumas, BSBA 2019, was part of the Arch Consulting team that competed at USC Marshall. She wrote this for the Olin Blog.

Arch Consulting, a traveling case competition organization on WashU’s campus, participated in the Marshall International Case Competition at the University of Southern California from February 19-23.

After competing in a pool of 20 total teams represented by schools across the globe, Arch secured second place in the final round and was voted to win “people’s choice” by the advisers and fellow participants.  The team was comprised of Lauren Dumas, BSBA 2019, Madison Stoecker, BSBA 2019, Andrew Montgomery, BSBA 2020, and Kevin Zhang, BSBA 2022.

The case was based on Zuru, “a disruptive and award-winning company that designs, manufactures and markets innovative toys and consumer products.”

The private company is globally recognized for its dynamic and agile manufacturing capabilities, with popular brands including Fidget Cube and Bunch O Balloons within its product portfolio. 

The WashU team was challenged with answering several key questions Zuru faces in light of a volatile macroeconomic environment and changing consumer trends and preferences, particularly as they endeavor to expand manufacturing outside of the toy industry and enter as a competitor in the consumer packaged goods space.

Over the course of 24 hours, the WashU team developed a two-pronged strategy that focused first on addressing Zuru’s current challenges in establishing strong positioning within the Chinese market, while also creating a replicable infrastructure to ensure Zuru’s sustainable growth and competitive advantage as it expands across geographies and new industries.

The team had an incredible experience at the competition, enjoying the case analysis as well as the opportunity to build life-long friendships among teammates and across representatives from various universities in attendance.

We feel fortunate to have had the opportunity to represent WashU at Marshall, and look forward to future teams enjoying the experience.

Pictured above: The Arch Consulting team at the USC Marshall case competition. From left, Kevin Zhang, BSBA 2022, Madison Stoecker, BSBA 2019, Lauren Dumas, BSBA 2019, and Andrew Montgomery, BSBA 2020.

Watch the final presentation