This paper addresses the establishment processes of two Swedish companies in the automotive

industry in Mexico by applying an establishment process model. An exploratory case study is

applied as a research method. One of the main findings of the article is that in both bus and truck

segments (sectors), there are well developed and tightly structured networks which function more or

less in the same way as the networks and relationships in developed countries although Mexico is a

developing country. Another finding is that the level of trust with the Scania's customers differs in the

two segments. In the bus segment the relationship with customers is dominated by cooperation and

trust, whereas in the truck segment it does not as the market has more trust in other brands than in

Scania's products and services. A third finding is that Scania's competitive advantages rely on its

complete solution which includes trucks, parts and services and on its cooperation with some competitors

and strong relations with authorities. While Volvo's competitive advantages are based on its

strong dealers network strengthened through complete solution including training, new financing and

selling programs, i.e. offering integrated services and cooperation with some competitors & strong

relations with authorities. A fourth finding is that in the Mexican market, government relationships are

as important as customer relations and should be dealt with adequately if firms are going to succeed

in their establishment attempts.