ABSTRACT
Josef Novak is an engineer formerly in charge of product design and development at Electro-Products Limited (EPL) and recently appointed manager of marketing and marketing analysis at Electro-Products Limited (EPL). EPL, located in a semi-rural area of Czechoslovakia, manufactured small home appliances. A significant portion of EPL's production was being exported under an exclusive agreement with a large European-based international electronics manufacturing and marketing firm (LIEM). EPL had been manufacturing and exporting a wide range of small home appliances and heating elements since 1943. Before 1990, EPL was represented exclusively by Alfa, a state-owned export trading company located in Prague. An agreement between EPL and LIEM to produce a new handheld vacuum cleaner was negotiated by Alfa during 1987. EPL's relationship with Alfa changed significantly after late 1989. EPL management offered to cooperate with LIEM as part of the new marketing perspective, and LIEM appeared uninterested.
