LA ROUMANIE, PEUT-ELLE ETRE UNE DESTINATION ATTRACTIVE POUR LES ENTREPRENEURS FRANCAIS? (Could Romania be an attractive destination for French entrepreneurs?)

Could Romania be an attractive destination for French entrepreneurs? Today, most companies struggle to identify new partners, new places and new markets for their current and future projects. Despite the extremely painful past during the communist era and over the prolonged transition years, Romania faces its future with optimism. Once the difficult period after the 2008 crisis had come to an end, Romania started ? new economic growth, with substantial foreign investment. This development was mainly due to the tertiary sector of the national economy and to the international support provided by institutions such as the European Commission (EC), the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF), combined with an ambitious adjustment program. Romania has understood that international relations play a crucial role in a country’s development. Consequently, the state’s goal has become that of developing and maintaining good political and economic relations with various states, all over the world. From a geographical point of view, the country is a gate to the East for the European Union (EU) and to the West for the Oriental states. R?m?ni? presents ? real untapped potential and ? great number of benefits, aimed at attracting new investors. The domestic market, the geographic position, the geopolitical stability or the youth, as an asset, combine with many opportunities in various economic sectors, providing investors with genuine reasons to take Romania into consideration, when thinking about new phases of internationalization. The attractiveness of the country as a destination for French investors and entrepreneurs is a widely recognized fact. Factors such as the labor cost, the fiscal policies, the cultural similarities or the sharing of Francophone values have already brought major French players (Dacia-Renault, Michelin, Gr?upe S?ciété Génér?l BRD, Lafarge, Cora, Carrefour or Accor) on the local market and many French investments. In this context, the present paper aims at identifying those elements that determine the attractiveness of this market for French entrepreneurs. An interview-based research has been conducted among the members of the CCIFER (Chambre Française de Commerce et d’Industrie en Roumanie).