Big Fish Sinks Tourist Season: An Introductory Cost Accounting Case

ABSTRACT This teaching case study is designed for students in introductory managerial accounting classes and integrates the fictional events of the movie Jaws with real‐world financial data from Martha's Vineyard Island and the fishing industry. The case study reinforces key concepts of cost–volume–profit analysis, special‐order decisions, and managerial decision‐making in conditions of uncertainty. After several shark attacks disrupt an island town's economy, the town's mayor turns to local fishermen to catch and remove the threat in order to preserve the tourist season. The fishermen, who have a strong affinity for the island, are willing to offer a discounted price for the job but lack the accounting expertise needed to evaluate the financial implications and remain profitable. Students are tasked with helping the fishermen analyze their cost structure and determine whether the proposed arrangement is financially viable. Will the fishermen's business survive, or are they sunk? Although the case study emphasizes the importance of cost accounting data in decision‐making, it is also designed to be engaging and entertaining for both instructors and students. Although written with a tongue‐in‐cheek tone, it is not without teeth … or bite.