Analysing Sectoral Competitiveness: A Framework of Strategic Management

In the recent years several key industries in the CEE transition economies, such as food and beverage, once epitomised industrial supremacy have lost significant market shares to their foreign competitors, both at home and abroad. Recognising the fact that once pre-eminent world-wide economic position of former socialist economies has significantly eroded in recent years, our study examines the competitive implications of the major determinants of competitiveness within a framework favoured by the strategic management theory. We develop an analytical framework for analysing industrial competitiveness and apply it to the food sector and it's related industries. Our empirical findings suggest that the process of distribution has developed from a conduit between the functions of production and consumption to a position where it exerts considerable influence on both the process of production and the pattern of consumption. Further, we find that the structure of retailing in the accession countries of European Union is largely oligopolistic and the level of concentration continues to increase. Retailers are increasingly vertically integrated with dedicated distribution systems substantially replacing the role of the wholesaler.