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This case study is based on the company Cookups.com (hereafter Cookups), an initiative started by a woman who has changed the culinary dimension of business by bringing home cooks together under one platform. This case presents the institutional entrepreneurship journey of the first culinary platform of home cooks in Bangladesh, which benefits and facilitates female entrepreneurs who would otherwise be unemployed. Starting with the sociocultural aspects, the case study analyzes the various elements of the “cloud kitchen” and the factors that make this business model sustainable even in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. Cookups has been a pioneering effort in the field of women’s empowerment in the country, ensuring that women of all social backgrounds and classes have access to a platform to generate income. The case study also aims to discover the various challenges a startup can face in its mode of operation and how to overcome them using technological solutions.

This case study analyses the Information & Communication Technology (ICT) sector of the West African country Nigeria; the growth of their internet services leading to online payment options. The rise of telecommunication companies and mobile payment options are also scrutinized here to some extent. The report discusses the overlying assumptions of weak online financial security issues that developing countries face and how payment aggregators are aiding in the process in order to achieve a smooth digital marketplace. Flutterwave, is a B2B digital payment Application Programming Interface (API) that allows processing of credit and debit for cards, other local alternative payments, such as mobile money and Automated Clearing House (ACH), across Africa. They ensure that global merchants are able to process payments like a local African company. The case of Flutterwave is discussed in detail with their business model—customer profiles, provided services, a landscape of their competitors and the challenges faced doing business; in order to shed some light on the aspect of making Nigeria a potential destination of investment for many Multinational Corporation (MNC’s) in the future.

Papers N Parcels (hereafter PnP) is an end-to-end logistics business organization founded in 2018 by Tilak Mehta, who was a teenager at the time. The capital that supported the initial activity of the company was derived from family investments. The company has an efficient business model and gains a competitive advantage by setting up its primary objectives and strategies, which position it for success. PnP aims to deliver its products within 4–8 h of an order, which is the fastest rate among existing delivery companies. The parcels are picked up from the end customers and delivered to the recipient company’s main hub. From there, the parcel is sent to the final recipient with the help of the PnP app. This approach streamlines the process, and the time involved is very minimal. The business model of this fast-moving company was new and unique. The case study highlights how effectively PnP capitalizes on the vast network of dabbawalas (lunchbox deliverymen) in Mumbai who use the PnP app.

Digitalization captures most aspects of human life. New trends in digitalization have a great impact on the retail chain stores; hence, the implementation of artificial intelligence (AI) has somewhat become necessary to cope up with the changing trend in this sector. This case study analyses the use of artificial intelligence in an unstaffed supermarket called LIFVS located at the rural areas of Sweden. As the number of supermarkets was decreasing in the rural areas over the years due to high maintenance costs, many have opted out of business. In response to the situation, Co-founder Daniel Ludh (hereafter Daniel) implemented a sustainable business model using AI, which serves the purpose of supermarket chains meeting the demands of the consumers in the rural areas while keeping the costs truncated. The case also discusses the various challenges an unstaffed supermarket face and highlights the success of LIFVS, paving the path for the future retailers of the industry.