A Strategic Supply Chain Approach: Consortium Marketing in the Italian Leatherwear Industry

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to describe inter-firm marketing cooperation as a strategy by small and medium enterprise (SME) players in local systems of fashion firms. Design/methodology/approach – This case study research focuses on Italian leatherwear manufacturers that join together to...

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Main Authors: Guercini, S., Woodside, Arch
Format: Journal Article
Published: Emerald Group Publishing Limited 2012
Subjects:
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/18906
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author Guercini, S.
Woodside, Arch
author_facet Guercini, S.
Woodside, Arch
author_sort Guercini, S.
building Curtin Institutional Repository
collection Online Access
description Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to describe inter-firm marketing cooperation as a strategy by small and medium enterprise (SME) players in local systems of fashion firms. Design/methodology/approach – This case study research focuses on Italian leatherwear manufacturers that join together to create an interfirm consortium which acts as a sole manufacturer-marketing player. Findings – The case study observes marketing policy orientations toward the final consumers while remaining consistent with the aim of preserving cooperation with the big international retail buyers. The comprehensive description provides propositions relevant for advancing a theory of interfirm cooperation and marketing behavior. The paper reports on implementing consortium marketing through the integration of marketing activities among the SMEs in the Italian fashion leatherwear industry. Research limitations/implications – Consortium marketing (CM) organizations represent one structure among several for the coordination of activities by independent firms in a supply chain; CM usually includes planned collaboration in innovation processes in creating and adopting superior technologies, designing products highly desired by customers, and manufacturing to meet the demands greater than the production capability of any one member are common characteristics of CM organizations.Practical implications – “Consortium marketing” has special strengths that this paper describes and explains. Creating inter-firm structures to achieve marketing synergies is the core objective of CM. CM can be a very powerful structure for supply chains for achieving multiple synergies in innovating, designing, manufacturing, promoting, and/or delivering of products and services to their immediate customers and downstream customers. Originality/value – Inter-firm design and relationships need not be a given; firms participating in CM can innovate their inter-firm relationships to achieve synergies that may be impossible to achieve otherwise. This paper is the first to offer this conclusion and describe its applicability within the high-fashion Italian leatherwear industry.
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spelling curtin-20.500.11937-189062017-09-13T13:43:07Z A Strategic Supply Chain Approach: Consortium Marketing in the Italian Leatherwear Industry Guercini, S. Woodside, Arch Supply chain management Case study Small to medium-sized enterprises Interfirm cooperation Consortium marketing Fashion Relationship marketing Branding Organizational structure Italy Design Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to describe inter-firm marketing cooperation as a strategy by small and medium enterprise (SME) players in local systems of fashion firms. Design/methodology/approach – This case study research focuses on Italian leatherwear manufacturers that join together to create an interfirm consortium which acts as a sole manufacturer-marketing player. Findings – The case study observes marketing policy orientations toward the final consumers while remaining consistent with the aim of preserving cooperation with the big international retail buyers. The comprehensive description provides propositions relevant for advancing a theory of interfirm cooperation and marketing behavior. The paper reports on implementing consortium marketing through the integration of marketing activities among the SMEs in the Italian fashion leatherwear industry. Research limitations/implications – Consortium marketing (CM) organizations represent one structure among several for the coordination of activities by independent firms in a supply chain; CM usually includes planned collaboration in innovation processes in creating and adopting superior technologies, designing products highly desired by customers, and manufacturing to meet the demands greater than the production capability of any one member are common characteristics of CM organizations.Practical implications – “Consortium marketing” has special strengths that this paper describes and explains. Creating inter-firm structures to achieve marketing synergies is the core objective of CM. CM can be a very powerful structure for supply chains for achieving multiple synergies in innovating, designing, manufacturing, promoting, and/or delivering of products and services to their immediate customers and downstream customers. Originality/value – Inter-firm design and relationships need not be a given; firms participating in CM can innovate their inter-firm relationships to achieve synergies that may be impossible to achieve otherwise. This paper is the first to offer this conclusion and describe its applicability within the high-fashion Italian leatherwear industry. 2012 Journal Article http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/18906 10.1108/02634501211273814 Emerald Group Publishing Limited restricted
spellingShingle Supply chain management
Case study
Small to medium-sized enterprises
Interfirm cooperation
Consortium marketing
Fashion
Relationship marketing
Branding
Organizational structure
Italy
Design
Guercini, S.
Woodside, Arch
A Strategic Supply Chain Approach: Consortium Marketing in the Italian Leatherwear Industry
title A Strategic Supply Chain Approach: Consortium Marketing in the Italian Leatherwear Industry
title_full A Strategic Supply Chain Approach: Consortium Marketing in the Italian Leatherwear Industry
title_fullStr A Strategic Supply Chain Approach: Consortium Marketing in the Italian Leatherwear Industry
title_full_unstemmed A Strategic Supply Chain Approach: Consortium Marketing in the Italian Leatherwear Industry
title_short A Strategic Supply Chain Approach: Consortium Marketing in the Italian Leatherwear Industry
title_sort strategic supply chain approach: consortium marketing in the italian leatherwear industry
topic Supply chain management
Case study
Small to medium-sized enterprises
Interfirm cooperation
Consortium marketing
Fashion
Relationship marketing
Branding
Organizational structure
Italy
Design
url http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/18906