Abstract:
A recent phenomenon characterizing the current development of the Italian entrepreneurial
tissue is represented by the rise and expansion of multinazionali tascabili. In spite of the
great contribution that this group of companies provides to the development of the Italian
economy, scarce studies about their internationalization process have been carried out up
until now. Multinazionali tascabili’s modus operandi is characterized by high attention to
quality and customer care, and the Made in Italy labelling represents one important source
of their competitive advantage. These factors might have an impact on the entry mode and
internationalization path that multinazionali tascabili tend to choose in order to enter foreign
markets.
The aim of this thesis is to explore through a case study approach based on the experience
of Facco S.p.A. which paths of internationalization are followed by multinazionali tascabili.
With a focus on the Argentinian and Brazilian market, the research examines whether the
main internationalization models suggested by the literature have been applied.
To study how multinazionali tascabili approach Argentina and Brazil, the country specific
barriers have been examined, as well as the potential ways to overpass them, that mainly
reside in the chosen entry mode. The research highlights that the main obstacles in the
development of trade relationships with Argentina lie on import restrictions in the shape of
bureaucratic and technical requirements, while in the case of Brazil tariff barriers are often
too high to enable international trade. When tariff barriers are excessively high, a company
might opt for an intensively resource-committing entry mode – as a cross-border acquisition
– even though it possesses scarce knowledge about the foreign market. Acquiring an
already established business in the target market could allow to both defeat the liability of
foreigness mentioned in the network approach, and act as a substitute for the level of foreign
market knowledge that the Uppsala model defines as crucial to determine the degree of a
company’s international commitment. This is found to be true above all if the management
of the acquired company is still involved in the business after its acquisition.
