International Business: Culture's Impact on Company Performance

This report examines the profound influence of local culture on the strategies and successes of foreign-owned companies in international business. It emphasizes the importance of understanding and adapting to local cultural nuances to effectively develop products, services, and marketing campaigns. The report uses case studies of Nestle, Apple, and Zandbergen to illustrate how companies navigate cultural differences in diverse markets. Nestle's success is attributed to its customization of products and marketing strategies, Apple's adaptability is evident in its investment in the Chinese market, and Zandbergen's approach highlights the impact of religious and cultural practices on product offerings. The report underscores that grasping cultural attributes is essential for new entrants into foreign lands, guiding the development of products and services that meet the needs of the local market and ensuring brand success through effective communication of local culture.

Impact of Culture in International Business 1
THE IMPACT OF LOCAL CULTURE TO FOREIGN OWNED COMPANIES.
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Impact of Culture in International Business 2
Introduction
Culture is basically the way of life of a people in a given community. Culture therefore
dictates most of the economic activities taking place in a jurisdiction. For new entrants into a
foreign land ought to understand how the locals live their lives. Grasping the cultural attributes
will inform development of products and services that meet the needs of the local market (De
Jong 2013). Additionally, culture guides marketing activities. Therefore, the success of a brand
in a foreign country is highly dependent on the interpretation and communication of the local
culture.
Nestle is a Swiss multinational company. The company was the largest food producing
company according to 2014 statistics according to the company growth report. Nestle boosts of
over 2000 brands which is best record set by the company since inception (Sethi 2012). The
company has granted has franchise for the sale of its goods and services across different country.
The success of Nestle in various countries where it operates is as a result of understanding the
market needs and customization of products and services (Sethi 2012). According to an article
done by business-to-you (2017), Nestle uses unique marketing and sales strategies in each of the
market segmentation that they serve (Sethi 2012). Moreover, the products vary from on market
to the other depending on the needs of the consumers in a given country of operation.
Apple is a technological American company. Apple produces both mobile phones and
computers and its accessories (Thompson, Strickland and Gamble 2015). The companies
headquarter is based in California America where all the sales and marketing strategies are
instigated. However, due to low production cost in China, Apple has tapped into the China
market and it now produces its products in China (Thompson, Strickland and Gamble 2015).
China culture in the tech industry is known to be an overwhelming and a passionate activity to its

Impact of Culture in International Business 3
people thus enabling Apple an easy transition into China’s market. The raw materials are sourced
separately from different countries then assembled in China. Apple therefore utilizes the labor of
the tech savvy citizens in China in the production process. Basically Apple has invested into the
rich technological space in China to become among the most competitive tech companies in the
region (Thompson, Strickland and Gamble 2015).
Lastly, Zandbergen Company is specialized in meat manufacturing and supplying across
different regions in American states, Europe and other countries. The company boosts of a large
scale capacity in the region with over 1000 employees (Zulfakar, Chan and Jie, 2018). The
company mainly deals in beef, lamb, pork, poultry and veal. It imports meat from United States
of America, New Zealand, Argentina, Brazil, Chile among other countries. After processing the
meat is exported to European Union (EU) member states, Norway and the United Arab Emirates.
Culture in the United Arab Emirates dictates much the supply of pork (Zulfakar, Chan and Jie,
2018). United Arab Emirates is dominantly Islamic and the religion is against consumption of
pork. Therefore, for the success of Zandbergen Meat Company in United Arab Emirates, they
supply more of the other types of meat and not pork (Zulfakar, Chan and Jie, 2018).
Additionally, in marketing efforts more emphasis is placed on the other products that are fast
moving in that specific market segmentation.

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References
De Jong, E., 2013. Culture and economics: on values, economics and international business.
Routledge.
Sethi, S.P., 2012. Multinational corporations and the impact of public advocacy on corporate
strategy: Nestle and the infant formula controversy (Vol. 6). Springer Science & Business
Media.
Thompson, A., Strickland, A.J. and Gamble, J., 2015. Crafting and executing strategy: Concepts
and readings. McGraw-Hill Education.
Zulfakar, M.H., Chan, C. and Jie, F., 2018. Institutional forces on Australian halal meat supply
chain (AHMSC) operations. Journal of Islamic Marketing, 9(1), pp.80-98.