The Big Idea case is a description-based case assembled from secondary data, including a book by Big Idea’s founder, Phil Vischer. The names and dates given in the case have not been disguised.
VeggieTales, a computer-animated video series designed to teach religious values to children, was the most successful direct-to-video series in history but, due to a series of misfortunes and miscalculations, Big Idea Entertainment went bankrupt and was ultimately purchased by another firm. Told through the eyes of company founder Phil Vischer, the case tells the story of the firm’s founding and early successes and the difficulties the company encountered in its attempt to enter the mainstream market and compete in an industry dominated by media giants like Disney and Dreamworks.
The case illustrates the problems encountered by successful small business owners as they attempt to grow their firms into large businesses. Changes in corporate structure and governance, the need for different managerial skills, and rising personnel and facilities costs all serve to make this transition difficult or even treacherous. This case is ideal for use in entrepreneurship, and organization theory courses. Students are challenged to analyze and summarize the decisions and events that plunged a commercially-successful business with a popular product into bankruptcy. In addition, the case illustrates some of the managerial challenges faced by businesses that produce religious materials but hire employees from a variety of faith backgrounds.