Sogrape

: born to the world

Abstract

This dissertation aims to understand how Sogrape, a successful Portuguese wine company, was able to start its internationalization since an early stage of its existence and how it has been capable to sustain that ability to serve globally throughout its 75 years of existence. Furthermore, the main goal is to recognize how the company was able to enter foreign markets, what role their resources and capabilities had throughout that process, and what kind of barriers are in the way of born global firms (BGFs). It is possible to conclude that the combination between an unique portfolio – possible due to their great number and diversity of vineyards, and products that have gained an international status due to their quality and history – and a big scale operations plus the capability of managing knowledge from all their learning experiences and being able to meet local tastes, ultimately leads to a path of success and great conquers, enviable by any company. Nevertheless, it is also exposed some concerns regarding growth opportunities which are still a grey area concerning some markets, especially the Chinese wine buying behavior. Intrinsic to all industries, online commerce is a global trend and since even well-established companies face obstacles, Sogrape is still trying to understand how to incorporate it to their business model.

Date of Award	2 Mar 2018
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	Universidade Católica Portuguesa
Supervisor	Nuno Cardeal (Supervisor)