The Consequences of De-Internationalization: Empirical Evidence from Belgium
Global Entrepreneurship: Past, Present & Future
ISBN: 978-1-78635-484-6, eISBN: 978-1-78635-483-9
Publication date: 10 November 2016
Abstract
In this chapter, we explore the effect of export exit on subsequent firm performance in a sample of 13,629 Belgian small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). We find that firms that stop exporting have lower profitability and profitability declines even further after they exit foreign markets. Firms that were highly dependent on revenues from exports and firms exiting multiple markets are more negatively affected, as reflected in lower post-exit survival rates and profitability. However, export duration or exiting institutionally distant markets does not have a significant impact on subsequent firm performance. Finally, although firm performance is negatively affected by exit, failed internationalization does not always lead to firm failure. Theoretical and practitioner implications are discussed.
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Acknowledgements
Acknowledgments
The authors would like to thank the National Bank of Belgium for their cooperation with the data and the participants of the 2015 Advances in International Management workshop in Denver, CO, for their helpful comments on a previous version of this manuscript.
Citation
Onkelinx, J., Manolova, T.S. and Edelman, L.F. (2016), "The Consequences of De-Internationalization: Empirical Evidence from Belgium", Global Entrepreneurship: Past, Present & Future (Advances in International Management, Vol. 29), Emerald Group Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. 45-66. https://doi.org/10.1108/S1571-502720160000029006
Publisher
:Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2016 Emerald Group Publishing Limited