New industries are created from the pioneering activities of a few firms. These firms generally face great uncertainty and risk, but also stand to benefit from early mover advantages due to the preemption of resources. Based on an empirical analysis of a diverse set of consumer and industrial...

We study the processes of firm growth in the evolution of the Japanese cotton spinning industry in the late 19th-early 20th century, the first episode of successful industrialization outside of Western Europe and the United Sates. By integrating strategy and historical approaches and utilizing...