Abstract:

The epic economic and political transformation of Eastern Europe in 1989 has not been accompanied by sudden changes in underlying cultural values or managerial attitudes. As a result, the marketing concept in organizations is in a state of flux. This means that companies are wrestling with identifying their markets and with catering to their old and new customers. Thus, both marketing research and marketing strategy are in the process of evolution. Many studies of Eastern (or: Central) Europe focused on the region and on various macroeconomic forces. A few case studies have appeared discussing and dissecting individual companies. This paper takes a different direction: We look at four Hungarian enterprises in four distinct industrial sectors.