The choice of entry mode in foreign markets is an important strategic decision with major consequenc
es for the succ
ess of international new ventur
es (INVs). It is generally accepted that th
ese firms choose relatively low-r
esource commitment entry mod
es to operate in foreign markets. Neverthel
ess, some r
esearchers have sugg
ested that higher r
esource commitment entry mod
es in foreign markets also seem to be competitive strategi
es for INVs. In this study, from a marketing/international entrepreneurship interface perspective and focusing on organizational issu
es, we center our attention on international market orientation as a neglected yet important factor in INVs鈥?choice of higher r
esource commitment entry mod
es in foreign markets. We sugg
est that an entrepreneurial orientation and the timing of international entry are important correlat
es to an international market orientation. We also sugg
est that the international learning effort of INVs through their international market orientation has a direct, positive impact on the r
esourc
es th
ese compani
es commit to their foreign markets through the use of higher r
esource commitment entry mod
es. Accordingly, the model propos
es a positive effect of entrepreneurial orientation and early international entry on international market orientation which, in turn, is positively related to higher r
esource commitment entry mod
es. The hypoth
eses were t
ested on country-level data from Spain, using a structural equation model to analyze relationships between the latent variabl
es.
This study extends previous international entrepreneurship research, including insights on antecedents of international new ventures鈥?choice of resource commitment entry modes in foreign markets. The paper also goes further than previous international entrepreneurship research, by addressing the strategic consequences of rapid entry into foreign markets. Additionally, the results of this work encourage international entrepreneurs to look beyond the explicit value of experiential market knowledge to realize the potential value of international market orientation as an antecedent to higher resource commitment entry modes.