Limits to non-state market regulation: A qualitative comparative analysis of the international sport footwear industry and the Fair Labor Association

Non-state market regulation has become a central focus and continues to receive scholarly attention. The present paper provides an assessment of the conditions under which multinational firms join a multi-stakeholder certification initiative. The cases of the Fair labor Association and 17 international sport footwear companies have been selected for this purpose. A Qualitative Comparative Analysis of the 17 cases is performed. The paper argues that the combination of sustained NGO pressure and public ownership of a firm is a necessary precondition for firms joining a multi-stakeholder certification initiative. The theoretical and policy implications of this result are discussed.