This paper focuses on
understanding how an entry by a multinational enterprise (MNE) can act as a
catalyst for change in the host industry’s institutional landscape, in the
context of an emerging economy. We show that in addition to general market
transition influenced by state level policies, also individual companies’
strategies, actions and market behavior contributes significantly to the
development of a host industry’s institutional landscape at a regional or even
national level. More precisely, our case study on a Finnish MNE’s entry into
the Russian bakery market demonstrates how the entry of a single MNE into a
transition economy can significantly alter the institutional landscape of a
particular industry by creating institutional spillovers.