International value chain processes by retailers and wholesalers --A general approach
Résumé
Many traditional behaviorist or marketing approaches and descriptive models have been developed in the past to explain
internationalization of retail firms. Only a few of these have a wider scope comparable to theories used today in international
management research. The international retailing research so far has barely touched upon the international management of value-added
activities and processes. This paper proposes and discusses a general value chain approach which opens up a promising perspective to
provide a new direction for research and a better understanding of management options for increasingly internationalized retail firms.
This appears to be all the more important because, in practice, more and more highly internationalized firms are structuring their valueadded
activities and processes on an increasingly international basis in order to gain competitive advantages or to increase their profits.
internationalization of retail firms. Only a few of these have a wider scope comparable to theories used today in international
management research. The international retailing research so far has barely touched upon the international management of value-added
activities and processes. This paper proposes and discusses a general value chain approach which opens up a promising perspective to
provide a new direction for research and a better understanding of management options for increasingly internationalized retail firms.
This appears to be all the more important because, in practice, more and more highly internationalized firms are structuring their valueadded
activities and processes on an increasingly international basis in order to gain competitive advantages or to increase their profits.