Producer service firms in globalising cities: the example of advertising firms in Stockholm

Abstract

Spaces of flows have become basic processes and elements in the development of space economies and cities. The objective in this study is to understand spaces of flows of advanced producer services. This article focuses on advertising firms in the geographical context of Sweden and Stockholm. The analysis considers advertising activities in the context of globalisation and post-modern economies. The empirical data for this article are derived from secondary sources, including statistics, firm directories, and business journals. The conclusions indicate multi-scalar relations of advertising agencies. Relationships with clients tend to be local or national. At the same time, there are international intra-organisational connections and flows. Advertising activities have consolidated under transnational organisations.

Keywords:

• spaces of flows
• globalising cities
• multi-scalar
• producer services
• advertising firms
• Sweden
• Stockholm

Acknowledgements

This article was presented in paper format at the RESER conference in Tampere 2007, and the discussion during this conference has contributed to the development of the text. The author expresses her appreciation of the well formulated and strong relevant comments from an anonymous referee, which contributed significantly to the final work on this article. Funding for this research was granted by the Swedish Research Council FORMAS.

Notes

The GaWC Study Group & Network is located in the Geography Department at Loughborough University in the UK. Professor Peter Taylor is the founder and co-director of GaWC, together with Jon Beaverstock. This study group maintains a web site where projects, publications, models, and data and partners are listed.

For a description of this classification, see for example UNCTAD: http://www.trademap.org/services.php.