Identifying the potential of Local Productive Arrangements

The advent of globalisation has required economic agents to take action in order to remain in the market. Companies are constantly impacted by these changes, requiring them to analyse their environment and develop strategies that make them more competitive. Agglomerations, clusters or simply local productive arrangements (LPAs) have presented themselves as an alternative for micro and small companies to become more competitive. This process allows companies to develop competitive advantages that they wouldn’t develop if they acted alone. It is essential to identify the potential of these arrangements and the existence of factors that make them relevant. The aim of this work is to identify the existence and potential of the APL in the clothing industry in the municipality of Muriaé-MG, by calculating a specialisation index (Locational Quotient - QL), developed from RAIS data, base year 2005. Finally, the importance of the industry for the municipality’s economy is analysed.