Cultural distance and its influence on MNEs' choice of market entry mode: The case of Dr. Schär

The following work examines the extent to which cultural distance influences the internationalization process of a multinational company along with the associated choice of entry mode. In contrast to most existing economic studies, which focus on the examination of several companies in this topic, only one company is analyzed in this thesis. Within the framework of a case study, the role of foreign culture in the internationalization process of the South Tyrolean company Dr. Schär is investigated. This analysis is divided into two parts. The first is to determine the cultural distance between Northern Italy and the countries in which Dr. Schär is represented. This facilitates the second part of the analysis, as countries that are culturally more distant from Northern Italy can be specifically selected. The second part deals with the question of how foreign culture influences internationalization and the choice of entry method. In this context, it is also tested whether it is valid that companies are more likely to choose an entry mode with less control and less use of resources when cultural distance is higher.