Commercial network formation and the failure of the international marketing of Catalan cotton textiles, 1850-1930

This note aims at analysing the marketing of products of the Catalan cotton industry, which constitutes one of its least studied aspects. The analysis of two factories’ accounts and correspondence shows that they had no marketing networks at the start of their operation, but became gradually involved in product marketing as the industry developed. The reason for that increasing involvement was the need to know the consumers’ preferences in different Spanish regions, as well as the need to obtain financial information about their clients, in order to avoid the largest risks. On the other hand, the paper indicates that the inability to built a similar network abroad was one of the main limits for the industry to enter foreign markets.