International manufacturing strategies: experiences from the clothing industry

Abstract

In traditional sectors, due to the strong incidence of labour costs, the progressive delocalization of manufacturing activities in low‐wage countries has been typically considered unavoidable. However, this process appears to be very different at national, industrial, and also corporate level. Empirical studies are needed to investigate the existing linkages among industry general conditions, each firm’s global operations strategy and specific operative choices for implementing it. Presents empirical research on the patterns and the factors characterizing the international relocation of manufacturing followed by Italian clothing firms.