دشمنی خریدار در بازارهای تجارت بنگاه به بنگاه: شواهدی از آزمایش های هسته ای فرانسه

Academic studies of buyer reaction to unpopular political events in the country of origin of products have focused on consumer markets. This paper aims to extend Klein, Ettenson and Morris' [Klein, J., Ettenson, R., & Morris, M. (1998). The animosity model of foreign product purchase: An empirical test in the People's Republic of China. Journal of Marketing, 62(1), 89–101] concept of consumer animosity to industrial markets by comparing industrial and consumer buyer reaction to the nuclear tests conducted by France in the Pacific in the mid-1990s. It investigates whether firms in the B2B sector were affected more than those in B2C markets, whether entry mode was significant, and examines the way in which firms in the two market sectors responded. The results show that buyer animosity was less pronounced in industrial than in consumer markets. They also show that entry mode can influence the experience of animosity.

In June 1995, France announced that it would conduct a series of nuclear tests on Mururoa Atoll in the South Pacific. Governments, opposition parties, trade unions, industry and community groups in Australia and New Zealand condemned the French Government and warned that French interests in the region would be harmed. There were calls to boycott French products. Many French businesses complained they were suffering a loss of custom and disruptions in their relationships with employees, suppliers and customers. Even locally owned businesses with French associations, such as French restaurants, or those that had adopted a French ambience in their image, such as lingerie boutiques, complained that they were being unfairly held accountable for the French Government's policy. The academic literature dealing with how the market is likely to react to such situations has been enhanced recently by the work of Klein, Ettenson, and Morris (1998) who have developed the notion of ‘consumer animosity’, based initially on research into Chinese animosity towards Japanese products stemming from mistreatment during the Second World War. Following a review of media reports, Ettenson and Klein (1998) describe a similar response applying to French goods in Australia following France's nuclear tests. The objective of the current study is to examine this response in some detail, especially whether industrial buyers responded in the same way as consumers and whether market entry mode influenced the intensity of response. Specifically, the study contributes to our understanding of buyer animosity by extending it to industrial buyers, identifying the influence of entry mode on how it is manifested, and how firms, faced with animosity, seek to minimize the damage. Further, this research contributes to the animosity literature by examining the issue from the perspective of companies rather than consumers.

This study has found that French subsidiaries operating in Australia and New Zealand were affected negatively by the French nuclear testing in the south Pacific. The negative effects manifested soon after the announcement of the nuclear tests, in most cases within a month of the announcement. It is important to note that the negative effects were not enduring, as they appear to have dissipated in less than two years. This indicates that firms should not be too hasty in retreating from the market as they may lose their market share, which may ultimately take longer to recapture. The results of this research also indicate that B2B firms were less likely to experience boycotts and sales loss, and less likely to reduce their marketing expenditure and issue media statements denouncing the actions of their home country's government, compared to B2C firms. These findings support the notion that there are differences in the buying behavior of household and industrial buyers, and that the differences may be due to the unequal levels of trust in B2B and B2C relationships. Thus, it could be said that the firm's target market also influences the experience of animosity. This research found that entry mode can also influence the experience of animosity. Firms that chose importing as an entry mode were more prone to calls for boycotts, were more likely to experience sales loss, reduce their marketing expenditure, and to present an anti-nuclear position denouncing the actions of their home government, as compared to firms that had local production facilities. These findings contribute to our understanding of the nature of political risk and animosity in foreign markets, and how careful selection of entry mode may assist firms in managing risks in the target market.