An explorative study of the relationship between country reputation and corporate localisation strategies in Italian companies

The last topic addressed with the interviewees about Made in Italy deals with the thought of managers regarding the positive or negative influence of Made in Italy to the customers in their industry. This subject is different from the influence of Made in Italy in the localisation choices of Italian companies.
However, they are strictly related between each other, since the target market proximity has been one of the most discussed themes in the localisation drivers section. As we can observe from the next chart, the thoughts are different based on the dissimilar choice of localisation that the companies made, over the past years. [...]

Most of off-shoring managers affirm that Made in Italy does not have influence on the customers in their industries, whereas never-shoring managers and back-reshoring ones are convicted of their strength and impact in the market.
However, industry and Made in Italy are once again strictly linked. The idea is that the choice of locating a plant abroad can only be made in certain business sectors, namely those where Made in Italy does not affect the market.
According to the FirmN5’s manager, companies that have decided to exclusively produce in Italy are strongly tied to the concept of Made in Italy and high-end products. That also went for FirmN7’s manager. Nevertheless, if the product positioning in the market moves to a medium-low position then you can relocate, because otherwise you would not remain competitive in the global markets. It is a concept that has its point of origin in business and market choices and relates to what products one is dealing with.

In markets related to mechanics and engineering there is no clear perception of the value of Made in Italy, but more than anything else there is a good perception of Made in Europe. In these industries, Made in Italy does not result in a competitive advantage and the high premium belongs to other nations. However, few managers of mechanical industry as such as FirmN8, admit that Made in Italy influences customers even in sectors divergent from agro-food and textiles. Customers are influenced by the experience of the company that strengthens the company reputation in the market and the Italian reputation in the world. The same thought belongs to the manager of FirmN6, according to whom the Made in Italy label is certainly influential in the market, especially abroad, and this is a value to be preserved and reinforced.