Who creates international marketing agility? Diasporic agility guiding new market entry processes in emerging contexts

Abstract International marketing agility is a crucial dynamic capability in international business. The purpose of this article is to examine who creates it and how exporters and partners leverage diasporic agility. We employ case study research on two diaspora entrepreneurs acting as ambidextrous strategic channel partners and playing a central role in guiding the exporter to new markets. In both cases, the role of the diaspora entrepreneurs as channel partners was decisive in providing multistage agility for the exporter while employing their specific market drive and understanding as a source of competitive advantage. While the exporters concentrated on their core business, the partners sensed, seized, and reconfigured resources to enable market entry and growth under culturally and politico‐economically demanding conditions. The diasporic understanding of the markets was a unique form of this agility and fundamental for the right strategies and an exporter's international marketing. Diaspora channel partners facilitated entry and lowered the cost of international marketing by providing advanced and more locally legitimate knowledge, fostering ambidexterity. We contribute to the conceptualization of the role of diaspora as an international marketing agility actor.