This paper explores the impact of firm internationalization on regional industrial clusters. The past decade has witnessed the popularization of two intertwined trends in geographic competitiveness: globalization and localization. While previous research has sought to understand and analyse how multinational enterprises pursue strategies to capture critical expertise and resources in dynamic regional environments, to date only limited efforts have sought to explore how internationalization affects 'cluster' relationships among locally founded, rapidly growing firms. Specifically, this paper explores whether the internationalization of local firms weakens the local relationships associated with industrial clusters. It reports the findings of research conducted on the internationalization of a cluster of companies in the photonics industry. Twenty-three senior executives were interviewed, face-to-face. Grounded theory methodology was applied to the data to create a new conceptual framework to explore how internationalization impacts the embedded social relationships of locally established firms. The findings suggest that, as firms internationalize, intimate local relationships become less significant. As local companies mature and their sales and markets expand, they develop new capabilities and operations. Firms pursuing strategies to develop capabilities outside their home region gain access to outside resources and, in turn, elect to reorient their level of intra-vs. inter-cluster interaction.

That the business of vote winning is essentially a marketing problem is illustrated, and how knowledge of consumer behaviour can be interrelated with the principles of persuasion and thus utilised in the formulation of political marketing strategies is highlighted.

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This article reports on a study which had the purpose of probing the reality of strategic planning, of highlighting some of its shortcomings then contrasting that reality with the literature‐based constructs which are taught in business schools worldwide. In this way it is shown that the benefits of strategic planning are not realized unless the process is totally integrated with current operations. This study shows that only rarely is strategic planning a live process within companies. However, to make an improvement is extremely difficult because frequently the commitment and energy does not exist in companies. As a result, many companies are failing to benefit from their strategic planning efforts and are thus failing to establish appropriate long‐term corporate positionings.

“Marketing is a social and managerial process by which individuals and groups obtain what they need and want through creating and exchanging products and value with others” (Kotler 1991). This definition is based on notions of: needs, wants, demands, products, utility, value, satisfaction, exchange, transactions, relationships, markets, marketing, and marketers. The need for marketers to focus on consumer behavior flows from this widely held definition. Yet, with this focus on consumers, little strategic note has been taken of the influence of key markets on other markets. For example, the United States— in particular, California— was a major influence on style and consumer tastes in the 1970s. The world witnessed the emergence of Silicon Valley and listened to Californian sounds, which were subsequently recycled through advertising and movies. The essential purpose of this article, therefore, is to highlight the importance of the Japanese market upon others and to offer a prognosis of the impact it will have.