The founding of specialist firms in a global fragmenting industry

The study examines what drives the founding of specialist firms. Two theoretical explanations are tested for the founding of specialists: density dependence and resource partitioning. The study finds that specialists’ foundings are dependent on the population’s density at the global level, but not at the United States level. The evidence from a fragmented industry does not support the resource partitioning hypothesis, either at the global level or the United States national level. The study shows how multi-level analyses can suggest if an industry is multi-domestic or globally integrated.