Entering Central and Eastern European markets through Gateway Strategies: the case of the French company SLAT

Noémie Dominguez (1) , Ulrike Mayrhofer (1)

1 Laboratoire de Recherche Magellan

This paper focuses on the international development of SLAT, an independent SME which develops, produces and markets solutions of secured alimentations. Located in the Rhône-Alpes region, the company has 67 employees. The SME has mainly developed in international markets through export activities: it realizes 15% of its total sales abroad and its products are marketed in 37 countries. The company has recently decided to implement a sales subsidiary in Germany to strengthen its presence in international markets. In this process, the company was accompanied by ERAI (Entreprise Rhône-Alpes International), a French agency which helps companies from the Rhône-Alpes region to expand into foreign markets. The authors of this paper explain the role played by ERAI in the establishment of the foreign subsidiary and the influence of a successful accompaniment experience on the internationalization process.

Mots clés: SLAT; international expansion; gateway strategy; Central and Eastern Europe.; Central and Eastern Europe

Domaines: Gestion et management

Noémie Dominguez, Ulrike Mayrhofer. Entering Central and Eastern European markets through Gateway Strategies: the case of the French company SLAT. 4th Franco-Czech Conference " Trends in International Business ", Jun 2013, France. 14 p. ⟨halshs-00839726⟩