Relational capital’s contribution to international success: Evidence from family-owned wineries and olive oil mills in Spain

Drawing on the resource-based view and socio-emotional wealth perspectives, this study examines the relevance of relational capital in family businesses, especially in the development of their internationalisation strategies. Relational capital also determines the impact of the level of the international success of family businesses by ensuring their family nature in the future. The mentioned impact would be determined by their degree of family involvement (e.g. ownership and management). The results of an empirical study conducted on a sample of 263 internationally operating businesses in Spain’s olive oil and wine sectors show that relational capital favours the international commitment of family businesses and that the company’s level of family involvement moderates this relationship. In companies with a higher level of family involvement, this relationship is stronger because of the greater family ownership and presence of family members in management positions. These aspects increase the likelihood of internationalisation being more successful in terms of generating a higher proportion of sales in foreign markets, use of entry modes into foreign markets that implies a greater commitment of resources, and greater geographical scope of the company. The presented findings not only contribute to the literature on family business internationalisation, but also offer implications enabling these companies to achieve sustainable competitive advantage. [Display omitted] •Family involvement contributes to achieving greater international commitment.•Family influence reinforces the relationship between relational capital and the achieved international commitment.•The business's reputation, relationships with different stakeholders and trust are part of relational capital.•Foreign market sales, modes of entry, and geographic dispersion serve to explain the business's international success.