International retailing as embedded business models

Abstract

International Retailing as Embedded Business Models AbstractAs retailers internationalise they interact with diverse socio-political-economic environments and the activities, processes, behaviours and outputs underpinning their business models evolve over time and space. Retailers are not passive, and through managerial agency they interpret the environment to compete and further their own commercial aims. Consequently, mutual interaction with the host environment means that changes may also occur in the established institutional norms in a market. Most existing studies have focused on the implications of territorial embeddedness for internationalising retailers. In this paper we also consider the societal and network forms of embeddedness identified by Hess, and illustrate how retailers transfer, negotiate and adapt their business model as they embed themselves in different institutional environments. A case study of IKEA is used to illustrate the synthesis of these two frameworks.

Embeddedness and the (re)making of retail space in the realm of multichannel retailing: the case of migros sanal market in turkey

“…Hess (2004) proposed to substitute the network metaphor with the rhizome metaphor to capture translocal links. A helpful intervention concerning this is made by Burt et al (2016), who describe the difference between the proposed dimensions of embeddedness within Hess's framework not associated with the territorial terms of home and host market, but with characteristic processes that are stressed in each category. tubers and bulbs are characteristic for rhizomatic structures and therefore enable us to think of spatial structures not only in continuous territories but also in terms of characteristics of virtual or relational spaces that increasingly shape spatial structures for the background of globalization and digitalization (Jones 2008).…”

“…tubers and bulbs are characteristic for rhizomatic structures and therefore enable us to think of spatial structures not only in continuous territories but also in terms of characteristics of virtual or relational spaces that increasingly shape spatial structures for the background of globalization and digitalization (Jones 2008). thereby societal embeddedness rather describes processes of 'transfer' from and territorial embeddedness processes of 'adaption' to (Burt et al 2016). in the trade of physical goods or logistics, for example, catchment or delivery areas remain crucial measures.…”

“…more recent works integrate conceptions of embeddedness in theories of global space economy -particularly in the context of internationalization processes in retailing (e.g. Wrigley et al 2005;lee 2006, 2013;tacconelli and Wrigley 2009;lowe and Wrigley 2010;Burt et al 2016;Wood et al 2016). Several of these studies build on and refine the conceptualization of embeddedness as proposed by Hess (2004).…”

“…even though Hess intervenes concerning an over-territorialization of embeddedness, it still has to be seen that his categories of societal and territorial embeddedness are associated with territorial connotations of home and host markets. A helpful intervention concerning this is made by Burt et al (2016), who describe the difference between the proposed dimensions of embeddedness within Hess's framework not associated with the territorial terms of home and host market, but with characteristic processes that are stressed in each category. 'the processes of transfer, negotiation and adaption within the three categories of embeddedness therefore involve the dialectics of mutual interaction of the retail firm with society, network and territory' (Burt et al 2016, p. 4).…”

“…'the processes of transfer, negotiation and adaption within the three categories of embeddedness therefore involve the dialectics of mutual interaction of the retail firm with society, network and territory' (Burt et al 2016, p. 4). thereby societal embeddedness rather describes processes of 'transfer' from and territorial embeddedness processes of 'adaption' to (Burt et al 2016). network embeddedness is associated with processes and practices of 'negotiation'.…”