It has long been observed that industries tend to be geographically ‘‘clustered.’’
Well known examples of clusters include the concentration of information technology
firms in Silicon Valley, California and their counterparts along Route 128
outside Boston, Massachusetts; film studios in Hollywood; wineries in Napa and
Sonoma valleys in California; finance and investment banking in Wall Street and
around Manhattan, New York City; fashion products in Northern Italy; computer
products in Taipei, etc.
In addition, certain corporate functions tend to be clustered. Examples include
biotechnology research and development centers in Cambridge, Massachusetts;
garments and shoes design in Milan; corporate innovation centers in Silicon
Valley; corporate planning and marketing in Zurich and Geneva, etc.