Italian Abstract: Nel caso di una filiera verticale di produzione in cui siano necessari forti investimenti di capitale fisso in qualche segmento ci si chiede quale sia la composizione di forme di mercato più efficiente dal punto di vista sociale (soluzione integrata del pianificatore sociale)...

This study of the Italian wool-based textile industries (woollens, worsteds, and serges) seeks to examine its rise, expansion, and ultimate decline, over a period of five centuries (from ca. 1200 to ca. 1730) in the context of both international competition and economic conjoncture, in the...

The paper argues that the shape of the long-run size distribution of business firms is basically determined by the availability of organisational capabilities, and that its changes over time (the "direction" of change) depend on the way in which (exogenous) "environmental" conditions affect...

This paper presents a survey of the literature on the determinants of inter-firm credit and on its implications for the transmission mechanism of monetary policy. Theoretical explanations for trade credit can be divided in two categories: a) theories based on real functions performed by trade...

In this paper we examine the main aspects of Italian factoring market and its evolution during last two decades. Moreover, we analyze the characteristics of firms accessing this kind of financing. In Italy factoring market size is the third in the world in absolute terms (amount of turnover),...

This paper investigates the strategy changes of the Benetton Group who have been facing severe intense competition in the international fashion market since the mid nine-ties. New competitors, in particular the European brands Zara, Mango and H&M, have challenged the Benetton position in the...

In this short essay the contributions discussed at the Conference “From the crisis to the growth. Policies to sustain the SM firms”, taken place in June 2009 at the University of Padova, have been collected. In the contributions presented, moving from different points of view, the authors...

Integrated logistics inside industrial districts, in spite of its potential, still faces infrastructural and cultural barriers. The article analyses fourteen cases of logistic innovation within industrial district firms, highlighting both the current status and intervention areas for building up...

The paper provides an analysis of the internationalization of medium-size Italian industrial enterprises that aims to become multinational companies. This work takes inspiration from the essay by Mariotti and Mutinelli (2009) on the evolution of Italian multinational enterprises and the role of...

Il saggio si propone di esaminare la realtà dei distretti tecnologici come evoluzione del concetto di distretto industriale e di individuare i fattori fondamentali che ne determinano lo sviluppo. A tal fine viene analizzato il caso emblematico del distretto tecnologico di Cambridge la cui...