MNEs in the CEECs : shaping the microeconomic architecture of states in the context of EU integration : the cases of Unilever, Nestlé and InBev

Abstract

Using Systems of Innovation Approach (SI) and International Business (IB) literature, this dissertation analyzes the level of embeddedness of Multinational Enterprises (MNEs) in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE). MNEs are discussed as they link the economy of the host country with the global economy by their regional and global networks. The expansion and successful embeddedness of West European multinational firms is crucial for the industrial integration of CEECs into the EU. The focus of the study is on the largest food processing companies, which invested in the region : namely Nestlé, Unilever and InBev. The dissertation discusses the motives of investment and the entry strategies of food MNEs, outlines their contribution to the local development and stresses the national actors as forces to embedded FDI. The research discovered that EU membership facilitated the processes of global reorganizations of Nestlé, Unilever and InBev in CEE. All of the three MNEs, which form the object of this research, closed partially or completely plants all over CEE (and Western Europe). Hence, in a liberal trade regime it is very difficult to talk about long-term embeddedness of MNEs. It seems that the global strategies of the companies and the size of the market are the factor, which pre-determines the level of embeddedness of food MNEs in a certain economy and not so much the national actors and institutions.