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Looking beyond the Buddenbrooks syndrome: the Salvadori Firm of Trento, 1660s - 1880s

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  • Cinzia Lorandini

Abstract

The Buddenbrooks syndrome is evoked by business historians to explain the inability of family firms to survive beyond the third generation. Although this argument highlights a major problem - that of ensuring smooth intergenerational succession - this article's contention is that a more complex interpretative framework is needed in order to explain the longevity of some family businesses. By drawing on evidence concerning a family firm which survived for more than two centuries, this article highlights three interrelated factors of longevity: the strategic response to internal drivers and environmental changes; the transmission of skills and values to the following generations; and the successful intergenerational transfer of family assets. All these factors were based on a flexible definition of both the 'family' and the 'business' which ensured the combination of continuity and change that was necessary for the family firm's long-term survival.

Suggested Citation

  • Cinzia Lorandini, 2015. "Looking beyond the Buddenbrooks syndrome: the Salvadori Firm of Trento, 1660s - 1880s," Business History, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 57(7), pages 1005-1019, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:taf:bushst:v:57:y:2015:i:7:p:1005-1019
    DOI: 10.1080/00076791.2014.993616
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    Cited by:

    1. Elisa Conz & Stefano Denicolai & Alfredo Massis, 2024. "Preserving the longevity of long-lasting family businesses: a multilevel model," Journal of Management & Governance, Springer;Accademia Italiana di Economia Aziendale (AIDEA), vol. 28(3), pages 707-744, September.
    2. Maltsev, Vladimir, 2022. "Economic effects of voluntary religious castration on the informal provision of cooperation: The case of the Russian Skoptsy sect," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 145(C).
    3. Christoph Stock & Laura Pütz & Sabrina Schell & Arndt Werner, 2024. "Corporate Social Responsibility in Family Firms: Status and Future Directions of a Research Field," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 190(1), pages 199-259, February.
    4. Jahmurataj, Veton & Ramadani, Veland & Bexheti, Abdylmenaf & Rexhepi, Gadaf & Abazi-Alili, Hyrije & Krasniqi, Besnik A., 2023. "Unveiling the determining factors of family business longevity: Evidence from Kosovo," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 159(C).

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