The impact of cyclones on assets and sales of manufacturing firms in India is examined econometrically using data on manufacturing companies for 2008–2019. We find that there is about a 4–6 per cent dip in sales and a 2–3 per cent dip in total assets of manufacturing firms following a cyclone incident in the district where the firms' plants are located. The fall in sales is bigger for relatively small-sized firms. For multi-plant firms with plants in different states, which are relatively bigger firms, the impact may be small or even negligible. By contrast, cyclones cause a fall in total assets for both big and small firms. The adverse effect of cyclones on sales and assets of manufacturing firms is relatively less for firms with a high trade-technology orientation. We also find that cyclones significantly raise the risk of business failure among manufacturing plants, more so among small plants.

During the last three decades of the twentieth century, John Labatt Ltd., one of Canada’s oldest and most successful breweries, attempted to gain a share of the British beer market. This article examines the push and pull factors of why foreign brewers like Labatt decided to enter the competitive British marketplace and analyzes the strategies of the winners and losers of the “lager war.” The article pays attention to the branding efforts of marketing managers and how some used product–place associations to imbue their brands with authenticity. While positive country images often lead to a favorable assessment of the products from that country, it is also true that unfavorable perceptions often foster negative assessments of their products. By examining the entrepreneurship and structural barriers of the beer industry in the United Kingdom toward the end of the twentieth century, the article adds to our understanding of the dynamics of business failure.