Foreign market entry strategies are considered critical for organisations looking to expand their operations to other countries abroad, as these require significant commitments, financial and other, which are more often than not, irreversible in the short and medium term. It is not surprising, therefore, that the area of foreign market entry is receiving considerable and growing academic attention over the last twenty years. In fact, the subject of international market entry is the third most researched area in international management, following the related fields of foreign market investments and internationalization.\ud
The overall aim of this thesis is to explore, analyse, and understand the foreign market entry and exit process that the business unit of BP Lubricants in Europe and Africa is following and identify strengths and weaknesses.\ud
A systematic literature review showed that there is a plethora of empirical evidence on foreign market research that provide useful insights into this important strategic process, however, the findings are often conflicting which makes it difficult to draw conclusions that can be generalized. The review identified the main theories and constructs for foreign market entry and highlighted certain gaps in the theory that the research evidence from this study has aimed to bridge.\ud
Using case study methodology and exploring in depth two contrasting cases (the Libyan entry and the Cyprus exit), the foreign market entry and exit processes within BP Lubricants in Europe and Africa have been established. Collection of evidence was achieved through three different methods, questionnaire, focused interviews, and documentation review.\ud
The detailed analysis of the foreign market entry process that BP Lubricants in Europe and Africa follows, has led to the development of a model that describes the process. This model depicts the complex nature of the process and recognises that a number of variables play an important role in the decision making process