Predictions from dominant strands of the management strategy and business history literature suggest that the adoption of the multi-divisional form is associated with corporate success. There is theoretical support for this contention and, in certain non-British contexts and historical periods,...

The investment and divestment policies of Lancashire cotton companies are examined by reference to historical financial and other archival data. Capital/product market and political/institutional constraints on entrepreneurial behaviour are evaluated. Lancashire entrepreneurs were faced with a...

Recent business history has been much concerned with the relationship between organization structure and competitive advantage. Using an archetypal case, the decline of the export-led British cotton industry, the contention that the vertically integrated, professionally managed firm has been an...