In 2008, shoe manufacturers in the region of Nova Serrana, along with their input suppliers, articulated a sectoral intervention aimed at increasing the diversity of the supply chain, accelerating new product development, and reducing input costs. Despite the interest of the actors, the intervention did not produce the desired results. This article seeks to understand the reasons that blocked these objectives. We studied fifteen footwear manufacturers and fifteen suppliers. The research method was the multiple case studies. In focus group sessions with business owners, we built a framework of constructs and variables that revealed the relationship between the flexibility of supply and product development. The findings suggest that the demand for exclusivity of supplies imposed by the major footwear manufacturers, the possibility of conflict with the representatives of large and medium-sized suppliers, the fear of copy creation, the inattention to local demands and unsatisfactory performance in deliveries caused the failure of this intervention.
Supply Chain Management; Productive systems; Local productive networks; Logistics; Clusters
