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The importance of industry context for new venture internationalisation: A case study from the life sciences

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Abstract

During internationalisation, international new ventures in the life sciences industry face distinct challenges. For example, high product development costs push companies into early internationalisation to increase sales turnover and recover investments. At the same time, financial and managerial resource limitations and the demand to adjust to local regulations render internationalisation difficult. To date, relatively little is known about how different industry contexts influence new venture internationalisation processes. This paper presents an in-depth case study of the internationalisation process of a Swedish new venture from the life sciences industry to fill this gap. The findings outline factors in the industry context that affect the internationalisation process, with specific emphasis on entrepreneurs and their networks, leading to several propositions and a model of life sciences new venture internationalisation.

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Notes

  1. These include biotechnology, computer equipment, computer software, computer services, electronics and communications (Ranft and Lord 2000, 2002).

  2. Many academic entrepreneurs in the biotech industry lack international business networks (Brännback et al. 2007; Lindstrand et al. 2011).

  3. A medical device refers to “any instrument, apparatus, appliance, software, material or other article, whether used alone or in combination, including the software intended by its manufacturer to be used specifically for diagnostic and/or therapeutic purposes and necessary for its proper application, intended by the manufacturer to be used for human beings” (http://www.eucomed.org/medical-technology).

  4. Biotechnology refers to “the application of science and technology to living organisms, as well as parts, products and models thereof, to alter living or nonliving materials for the production of knowledge, goods and services” (http://www.oecd.org/science/inno/36760212.pdf).

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Acknowledgments

We are grateful to the anonymous reviewers and the editor for their helpful comments and suggestions for improving this paper. We are also grateful to the informants of the case company for their valuable experiences and time. This paper is part of a larger research project, and we acknowledge the financial support from the Swedish Research Council.

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  1. School of Business and Engineering, Halmstad University, Box 823, 301 18, Halmstad, Sweden

    Hélène Laurell & Svante Andersson

  2. Jönköping International Business School, PO Box 1026, 551 11, Jönköping, Sweden

    Leona Achtenhagen

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  1. Hélène Laurell
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  2. Svante Andersson
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Correspondence to Hélène Laurell.

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Laurell, H., Andersson, S. & Achtenhagen, L. The importance of industry context for new venture internationalisation: A case study from the life sciences. J Int Entrep 11, 297–319 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10843-013-0116-y

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