“Logalization”: local–global processes and the Shiling leather industrial district in Guangzhou, China

Abstract

Much of the research on industrialization in less developed countries like China focus on top-down globalization processes associated with foreign direct investment from transnational corporations. This paper attempts to augment that literature with greater attention for bottom-up processes, which are also important in China. This case study of the Shiling leather industrial district was chosen because of the importance of bottom-up initiated local processes that began independently of global forces, yet evolved to become tied into larger processes of globalization: a process we term “logalization”. Our conceptual framework is illustrated using our general model of how this kind of industrial district links into the world market; it includes the importance of “regional structure” comprising not just the industrial district itself but also wholesale markets as well as trade fairs that connect industrial production into the global economy. We examine how the Shiling industrial district was initiated by local forces, and how this district and the other components of “regional structure” have evolved and acted as a bridge between the local and the global; the role of the local and provincial governments as part of “logalization” processes; and how the low-skill, low-quality, high-volume industrial production in Shiling, albeit among small companies, does not yet fit into a neo-Marshallian industrial district model.

Keywords:

• Shiling leather industrial district
• “logalization”
• Guangzhou
• China

Acknowledgments

We acknowledge support from China's Natural Science Foundation (41471136), China National Social Sciences Major Project (12AZD169), National Social Sciences Key Project (12AZD100), and Beijing Natural Science Foundation (9132002). We thank Weiping Wu for helpful comments and Liang Jidi and Huang Ru for research assistance.