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Advisor(s)
Abstract(s)
As companies increasingly trade in a greater variety of countries with different cultures, it
is essential to understand how these may influence the success when operating abroad.
This thesis was designed to contribute to existing literature by studying the impact that
perceived and actual cultural distance, encompassing habits and language, have on the
internationalisation process and decisions using the case study of a Portuguese fast food
restaurant, H3. As the company has internationalised into Poland, Spain and Brazil, it was
possible to study situations with varying degrees of cultural distance from Portugal.
The study was undertaken in a sequential process, encompassing the decision, preparation,
implementation and post-implementation phases, to get a comprehensive overview of the
entire process.
From this study’s results it was possible to notice that the company’s perceived cultural
distance didn’t appear to have an obvious relation with the definition of strategic objectives,
the duration of the preparation period and the entrance sequence in the countries. On the other
hand, when perceived cultural distance was lower there were more adaptations done. The
longevity of the company in the countries could also have influenced this result. Nonetheless,
this study supports that the company will have more success in culturally closer countries.
The study highlights that a company’s success in foreign countries was always found to
encompass cultural challenges, due to different mentalities and habits. Thus, companies
should do an extensive in-depth research prior, so they may be prepared and can more easily
adapt to the challenges that arise.