The Global History of Capitalism Case Study Series

The Global History of Capitalism Case Study Series

Christopher McKenna & Rowena Olegario, University of Oxford

These historical case studies are free to use for non-commercial teaching via the Creative Commons copyright system as long as attribution is given.

Berry Brothers & Rudd: Family, Reputation, and the Cultivation of the European Wine Trade
Douglas Ajram, Charlie Harris and Christopher McKenna

Between the Market and the Land: the Mechanisation of Quinoa
Charlie Harris and Christopher McKenna

Burn Brightly and Fade Fast: The Story of Sun Records
KC Harris and Christopher McKenna

Ching Shih and the Pirates of the South China Coast: Shifting Alliances, Strategy, and Reputational Racketeering at the Start of the 19th Century
Charlie Harris and Christopher McKenna

Discounting gold: Money and banking in Gold Rush California
Jonathan Tiemann and Christopher McKenna

Enclosing the English Commons: Property, Productivity and the Making of Modern Capitalism
Charlie Harris and Christopher McKenna

For All the Tea in China: The English East India Company
Jamie Haworth, Sai Mirthipati, Charlie Harris and Christopher McKenna

From India to Europe: The Production of the Kashmir Shawl and the Spread of the Paisley Motif
Ben Skarratt, Scarlett Mansfield and Christopher McKenna

Gossip, Corporate Reputation, and the 1905 Life Insurance Scandal in New York
Oenone Kubie, Rebecca Orr, Mara Keire and Christopher McKenna

Holy Scarcity and the Management of Mecca
Barclay Bram, Charlie Harris and Christopher McKenna

Making Money: Mathew Boulton and the Industrial Revolution in Coins
Michael Lever and Christopher McKenna

Mansa Musa I of Mali: Gold, Salt, and Storytelling in Medieval West Africa
Charlie Harris and Christopher McKenna

Money, Cattle Hides and William A Leidesdorff: California before the Gold Rush
Jonathan Tiemann, Oenone Kubie and Christopher McKenna

Morris Motors: How Oxford became a Motor City
Jack Felton and Christopher McKenna

Nestlé’s Corporate Reputation and the Long History of Infant Formula
Lola Wilhelm, Oenone Kubie and Christopher McKenna

Organ Transplants at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, and the Third Industrial Revolution
Steven Yamshon, Oenone Kubie and Christopher McKenna

Penicillin and the Antibiotic Revolution
Daniel Rowe and Christopher McKenna

Rhodes Must Fall: The Legacy of Cecil Rhodes in the University of Oxford
Emma Day and Christopher McKenna

Robert Maxwell’s Expectations Gap: Regulation and Reputation in the British Communications Industry, 1981-91
Charlie Harris and Christopher McKenna

Sexual Harassment in the “World’s Largest Store”: Managing Macy’s Department Store at the Start of the 20th Century
Mara Keira, Emma Day and Christopher McKenna

Shipping Migrants in the Age of Steam: The Rise and rise of the Messageries Maritimes c. 1870-1914
Riccardo Liberatore and Christopher McKenna

Studio 54: The Discothèque that Reinvented Nightlife
Mario Stepanik and Christopher McKenna

Sugar: Sustainability, Consumer Sentiment, and Regulation
Mimi Goodall and Christopher McKenna

The Alaskan fur rush and the Russian-American Company
Jonathan Tiemann and Christopher McKenna

The Apple of My Eye: A History of René Magritte’s, the Beatles’, and Steve Jobs’ Entwined Trademarks
Emma Day and Christopher McKenna

The Birth Of The Modern Chinese Banking Industry: Ri Sheng Chang
Vivdi Lam, Oenone Kubie and Christopher McKenna

The Boom and the Busts: Mendocino County’s Agricultural Revolution
Charlie Harris and Christopher McKenna

The Chicago Merchandise Mart: How the World’s Largest Commercial Building Fueled an American Political Dynasty
Kevin Higgins, Oenone Kubie, Courtney Bruno and Christopher McKenna

The Father of Japanese Capitalism: Shibusawa Eiichi’s Vision of the Ethical Corporation
Sean Valencia, Rebecca Orr and Christopher McKenna

The Globalization of Mexican Tortillas: GRUMA and the Mass Production of Corn Flour
Rosalía del Carmen Ríos Arreguín, Rebecca Orr and Christopher McKenna

The Hudson’s Bay Company: Royal Charters, Rivalries and Luxury Hats in the North American Fur Trade
Jason Saldana, James Haworth and Christopher McKenna

The “A1” Reputation of the Lloyd’s Register of Shipping
Charlie Harris and Christopher McKenna

To Infinity and Beyond: Pixar’s Journey to Reinvent Animation
Helen Scantlebury and Christopher McKenna

Union Cold Storage and the Birth of Multinational Tax Planning, 1897-1922
James Hollis and Christopher McKenna

Volkswagen Since World War Two: Rebuilding the Corporate Reputation of the World’s Largest Car Manufacturer
Scarlett Mansfield, Jamie Haworth, Charlie Harris and Christopher McKenna