Strategic intent constellations in market expansion of a Chinese firm: the case of Dalian Wanda

This article examines the strategic intent behind foreign acquisitions made by the Chinese conglomerate Dalian Wanda (‘Wanda’) in the global film and cinema industry. It develops new theory on the existence and nature of strategic intent constellations using basic propositions on (1) business and financial intent, and (2) political intent during market expansion. A mixed methods approach encompassing qualitative and quantitative datasets is used to show the complexity and interrelatedness of business and financial, and political motivators for Wanda’s foreign acquisitions. A strategic intent constellation is inducted and defined as a complex system, order or host of an organization’s strategy, structures and shared value systems that interact with each other providing direction for the organization. The study provides empirical richness in a relevant marketing strategy setting related to global market expansion and helps develop novel theory about broader strategic intent constellations in corporate China that help understand differences in the notion of strategic intent across the globe.