Foreign Direct Investment - Political Ideologies (Starbucks Case Study)

Countries would participate in foreign direct investments because it helps in the economic development of the country where the investment is being made. They also engage in FDI to reduce production costs.

Starbucks is no doubt a phenomenon in the United States, but the brand wants to expand globally. Opening chains in various global locations such as Japan, Vienna, England; Starbucks wants to reach out to the coffee loving fans everywhere. Nevertheless opening chains globally is not that simple. There are many uncontrollable factors Starbucks need to focus on to make sure they are making profit as well has abiding by the country’s laws and regulations. Going global takes a lot of market research to make sure that the brand will be successful even with uncontrollable factors. Controllable factors can be tailored to fit the needs of each country. Starbucks has to find the happy medium so they don’t lose their identity overseas.

As well as the direct impact on employment and wider economic benefits of FDI as follows:

FDI allows the home country to invest into the host country to produce, advertise, and distribute products, in order to upsurge their market share and provides a long-term investment and enhancement. (Moosa, 2002)

They FDI also increase the amount of investment and consumption goods within a country. This sets the pace for development since most of these goods that multinational corporations produce are usually for export purposes. Increased export performance also helps in mobilization of the labor and accumulation of capital within the host country4. This greatly improves the trading position of the country in question by improving its Balance of Trade statement. Increased exports not only increase the productivity of a country but also provide a country with foreign exchange which in turn increases imported capital to assist in the development of a country4.

By definition, an FDI is an “investment that involves some ownership and/or operating control. The foreign residents are usually multinational corporations (MNCs)” (Cohn 412).

This case study gives an overview about Starbucks International Operations. It will explain how Starbucks expanded outside US and the strategies they adopted to give tough competition to its international rivals.

Foreign direct investment (FDI) can be defined as a process whereby residents of one country (the source country) acquire ownership of assets for the purpose of controlling the production, distributions and other activities of a firm in another country (the host country). FDI also have another definition like ‘an investment that is made to acquire a lasting interest in an enterprise operating in an economy other than that of the investor, the investor’s purpose being to have an effective voice in the management of the enterprise’- International Monetary Fund’s Balance of Payment Manual and ‘ an investment involving a long-term relationship and reflecting a lasting interest and control of a resident entity in one economy (foreign

Foreign direct investment (FDI) is an investment made by a company or individual in one country in business interests in another country, in the form of either establishing business operations or acquiring business assets in the other country, such as ownership or controlling interest in a foreign company. Foreign direct investments are distinguished from portfolio investments in which an investor merely purchases equities of foreign-based companies. The key feature of foreign direct investment is that it is an investment made that establishes either effective control of, or at least substantial influence over, the decision making of a foreign business.

Reduces cost of production: FDI is a means for you to reduce your cost of production if the labor market is cheaper and the regulations are less restrictive in the target foreign market. For example, it's a well-known fact that the shoe and clothing industries have been able to drastically reduce their costs of production by moving operations to developing

One of the primary benefits of foreign direct investment is that it helps the developing country. When a large corporation pours millions or billions of dollars into building part of its business in that country, it can significantly stimulate the local economy. This helps other businesses in the surrounding

Another incentive for prospects of FDI in developing countries has moved from location advantage to competitive advantage. Before, investing firms based their FDI motives on natural resource allocations, cheap labor and production. Now, it is becoming a bigger trend for these firms to count more on the `availability of knowledge creating activities' that allow them to exploit their advantage over competition through the new technology they bring to the developing countries. A further incentive deals with `asset control' that leads to cost reduction and larger markets in which

A business will always look for new ways to profit – its success is dependent on how well it can attract growth and keep the profits flowing. One of the modern ways of increasing profits is conducted through foreign direct investment (FDI). What is about and how can it provide profits to businesses? Here’s a look at the modern phenomena and the advantages businesses can enjoy from engagement.

Starbucks’ retail entry model in the United States does not have the same strategy as their international model. In the states Starbucks holds great control as a corporation, but in international territory, country partnerships, cultural, government laws and politics play a very important role in Starbucks’ entry strategy. Starbucks has set it sights globally since the coffee market has come close to saturation in the U.S. which will give them the opportunity to continue to expand without fierce competition. Starbucks has looked to countries like India and other emerging markets with great growth potential to set down new roots. Starbucks recognizes India as a great choice to expand business internationally but also recognizes the complexity in the same market after several attempts to enter without success.

Economists believe that Foreign Direct Investments is an essential part of economic evolution in every country. There are many academic papers that attempt to assess FDI aspects. Despite many researchers have tried to give an accurate explanation to FDI, there is no comprehensively approved theory. FDI motivations have been mainly researched by John Dunning, Stephen Hymer, Raymond Vernon, etc.