Territorial servitization in Marshallian industrial districts: the industrial district as a place-based form of servitization

Abstract

This paper is the first general study of territorial servitization in Marshallian industrial districts (MIDs). It introduces the novel idea of place-based servitization as a form of territorial servitization, which is then used conceptually to reframe the traditional perspective on MIDs, manufacturing places par excellence. Drawing on comparable quantitative data from Italy and Spain for 1991, 2001 and 2011, the paper then provides generalizable empirical evidence about the stylized facts of servitization in MIDs, casting a light on the transition to services of the MID as one model of place-based servitization.