Mack Henley (a)

This series of cases follows a Darden student's career decision and tracks his search process for an acquisition candidate in the retail industry. The (A) case confronts the student's career choice. But the (B) case, the student has decided to acquire his own business and must construct a timetable in the (C) case. The (D) case provides summaries of six candidates for acquisition, followed by an acquisition check list in the note. Excerpt UVA-G-0346 MACK HENLEY (A) On September 25, 1986, early in his second year of graduate business school, Mack Henley was sitting at his desk at home wondering what career he should pursue. He had received attractive offers from Venturecorp, Wood Stores, and Jacob Hart Associates. Venturecorp was the new owner of Henley Department Stores, a business Mack's great‑grandfather had started nearly 100 years ago. Wood Stores was one of Henley Stores' main competitors, and Jacob Hart Associates (JHA) was a consulting firm Mack had worked for the previous summer. Mack's emotions pulled him toward Venturecorp, but he wondered whether working for it would be in his best long‑term interests. On the other hand, Wood Stores, a major regional retailer, offered Mack an attractive career opportunity. Then there was JHA and another option lingered in the back of Mack's mind: going into business for himself by buying a small specialty store chain. Mack had been mulling over these options for days, but time was running out. He would have to let his father, chief executive officer of Henley Stores, know by October 1 whether he would accept the Venturecorp offer. Mack Henley's Background Mack thought his knowledge of and experience in the retail industry were big pluses and helped differentiate him from other Darden MBAs. He had started working for Henley at age 13 in the company's warehouse in Martinsville, Virginia, and had spent several summers in high school and college working at Henley stores. He also worked part time at Henley in Raleigh, North Carolina, during his senior year at the University of North Carolina. After graduating from UNC, Mack spent four years with Henley: one as a store operations manager, one as a store merchandise manager, and two years as a store manager. His track record with Henley was good (see resume Exhibit 1). He also had the advantage of 27 years of dinner table conversation focused on retailing. One particular worry Mack had, however, was that he believed he was only an average student in graduate school. Mack had taken a personal inventory to see which career path within retailing he should pursue. His self‑perceived strengths and weaknesses appear in Exhibit 2. . . .