A holistic perspective on the international market selection phenomenon

This work seeks to identify the factors that lead to the selection of a specific country as an international location for foreign investment. Using three case studies of Portuguese firms that have internationalized to Poland, we were able to identify three different types of behaviour that led to the selection of the same international market location: systematic, relational and mimetic. Despite international market selection being a common topic of research in international business, few studies have focused on the rationale behind the selection of a specific target market. This study shows that market characteristics are decisive when firms intentionally seek a foreign market to enter, but are of less importance when country selection is motivated by rising business opportunities, a firm’s existing relationships (following the client’s strategy), or cost and risk reduction, in the form of mimetic behaviour.