The international performance of standardizing and customizing Spanish firms : The M curve relationships

Purpose – This paper aims to shed new light on the multinationality‐performance debate by examining the performance of standardizing versus customizing firms from Spain. Design/methodology/approach – The reasons for variations in performance of exporting firms build on the industrial organization and resource‐based views of strategy, which are shown to be linked to the integration (standardization) versus responsiveness (customization) framework of international business. The paper also incorporates the Uppsala model and the home region nature of international business activity. It develops hypotheses for both standardizing and customizing paths of international expansion for exporting firms. The paper uses the Survey on Business Strategies which has the support of the Ministry of Industry of Spain. This databank collects data of a representative sample of the Spanish manufacturing sector. The paper uses fixed‐effects regression models for the period 2000‐2008. Findings – The paper provides evidence on how firms with a strategy of product standardization follow an M curve‐fourth degree polynomial relationship between the degree of internationalization (DOI) and performance. In contrast, product customization firms are observed to follow an inverted M curve relationship. Furthermore, by using both models, an appropriate level of internationalization can be suggested. Originality/value – The paper provides theoretical and empirical support for the different relationships of standardizing and customizing firms when expanding abroad. This paper is one of the first to find empirical support for an M curve relationship between the DOI and performance, and certainly is the first one testing and corroborating an inverted M curve.