Jerónimo Martins distribuição

: are mature export markets

Abstract

The main goal of this research is to uncover the main challenges of the export business, mainly in the perspective of small-country companies, like the Portuguese, and potential resolutions, in order to excel the development of external markets, namely mature and / or non-affinity ones. Mainly through the insights of the major exporters in the Portuguese food industry and associated government entities, the main conclusion of the study is that likely, previous strategies deployed in emerging / affinity markets will not suffice. Because in mature markets competing in price is tough and because the Portuguese national brand still means little abroad, the study concludes that companies need to find new sources of competitive advantage: from product differentiation and targeted portfolio adaptations to intangibles like hospitality and strong international brands. In order to conquer these, companies should acknowledge the required investments of this activity, to build own knowledge on those markets and their consumers, in building proximity bridges with those markets, and in re-adjusting the organization to the new business objectives. Having this in mind, the definition of priority markets and resilience in the application of the delineated strategy is of outmost importance. Lastly, the study concludes that strategic partnerships, own-nation collaborative strategies or even private-label production are all viable solutions to face the limited financial resources, usually characteristic of companies with origin in countries with small internal markets.

Date of Award	2015
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	Universidade Católica Portuguesa
Supervisor	João Simão Pires (Supervisor)