Emerging market multinationals' location choice : The role of firm resources and internationalization motivations

Purpose – Location choice made by emerging market multinationals (EMMs) constitutes an important yet somewhat neglected topic in business research. The purpose of this paper is to develop a research framework that elucidates the role of EMM‐specific resources and internationalization motivations on the location choice of EMMs. Design/methodology/approach – The literature pertaining to firm‐specific resources and internationalization motivations as determinants of location choice is reviewed. This leads to the development of a research framework that takes into account various combinations of resources and motivations in explaining the location choice of EMMs. The paper offers research propositions by linking resources, motivations, and the appropriate choice of locations. Findings – The paper illustrates that location choices of EMMs are determined by the interplay of various resources (relationship‐based, home experiences‐based, and country created assets‐based) and internationalization motivations (market‐seeking, asset‐seeking, and resource‐seeking). Originality/value – The paper investigates the simultaneous influence of two important determinants: firm‐specific resources and internationalization motivations on the location choices of EMMs. Prior literature has extolled the importance of these factors in international business but not in the context of the location choices of EMMs. Thus, this paper fills an important void in business scholarship.