The Evolution Of The Textile Sector In Post-Unification Italy: Evidence From A MicroPerspective

Abstract Purpose: In order to better comprehend this context and the challenges of the Post-Unification Italy economy, the authors propose the adoption of a business perspective – i.e. the perspective of the businesses that were operating in that period – that may provide interesting insights to interpret macro and microeconomic data and, therefore, to participate to a still active debate in which historians provide different interpretations of facts and events. Methodology: A longitudinal case study of an Italian trade business is adopted and developed through the method that Toms (1997) called the “accounting” one. This implies the adoption of accounting records as the primary source of historical business research. The authors intend to analyse the case of the Rossi & Gagliardi Società Anonima (or S.A.): a textile trading business operating in Sicily in the Post-Unification period, between 1870-1915. Findings: From the results it emerged how the mix of suppliers drastically changed between 1870 and 1917. Another evidence produced is related to the decrease in the percentage of suppliers from Southern Italy which goes from 70% in 1872 to 6% in 1915. Looking at the data collected, we may notice that this is not related to a decrease in purchases from Southern Italy suppliers, but exclusively to an increase in the Northern ones. Research limitations: The main limit of the research is represented by the exam of a single case study. Originality: In the paper, accounting data is used from a perspective not so commonly adopted in literature.