Anmerkungen:
Nach Informationen von SSRN wurde die ursprüngliche Fassung des Dokuments February 24, 2023 erstellt
Beschreibung:
This paper studies customer loyalty during aggregate downturns. Exploiting a French reform that restricted trade credit supply as a liquidity shock, we show that liquidity-constrained firms export 4 to 7% less after the 2008-9 trade collapse. Consistent with liquidity-constrained firms investing less in customer capital, the effects are stronger for sales to new customers. We also find stronger effects for trade relationships that have been interrupted during the trade collapse, suggesting that trade disruptions erode customer loyalty and force firms to reinvest in their trade relationships to shield sales. Firms keep customers loyal by upgrading product quality