Global Strategies in Retailing: Asian and European Experiences

Large and medium sized retailers have increased their international operations substantially over the last 25 years. This is evident in: the number of countries to which these retailers expand; the growing international sales of retailers; and the heightening of the level of commitment of retailers to their international activity - a trend that is likely to continue over the next decade as general globalization in the service industries increases.

The managerial implications of the moves to become global are considerable. Different retailers are pursuing different approaches, to varying degrees of success and are no longer simply multi-national, but are also multi-continental. Consequently, existing concepts and theories of international business fit uneasily in explanations of international retailing, so new corporate strategies need to be explored.

Featuring in-depth studies of seven retailers, by international scholars from Japan, the UK and Sweden, Global Strategies in Retailing explores recent developments in strategy that are related to international retailing and in particular, the emergence of a Global Portfolio Strategy. As such, this book will be important reading for all international business and retailing students and academics researching in these areas.

John Dawson is Emeritus Professor at the Universities of Edinburgh and Stirling, both in the UK. He has been researching issues in international retailing over the last 20 years and has supervised a number of doctoral students in the area. His recent visiting positions include Visiting Researcher at the University of Valencia, Spain and Distinguished Professor at UMDS, Japan. He has been author or editor of over 20 books and is the founding co-editor of International Review of Retail, Distribution and Consumer Research

Masao Mukoyama is Professor of Retailing at the University of Marketing and Distribution Sciences, Japan. He has published many papers on international retailing, including ’Toward the Emergence of Pure Global’ (in Japanese), and is one of pioneers in international retailing research in Asia.