The marketing academic field has received greater recognition throughout the world in the last 20 years. First, the International Journal of Research in Marketing (IJRM) has followed the growth of the profession in Europe as the official journal of the European Marketing Academy. From the start, the mission of IJRM has been to be recognized as an international scientific journal of excellent standing. This was done mainly by establishing stringent quality standards and a demanding reviewing process, comparable to those of the best American journals in our field. The multicultural European context has provided a normal outlet for international research in particular. Today, our readers, as well as the authors publishing in IJRM and the editorial board, are associated with universities from all over the world.

“…IJRM builds on the multicultural characteristics of its European roots, to become truly international.”

The increase in the citation rate of IJRM follows from the greater visibility of the journal. It is a relatively new journal and its diffusion depends not only on the quality of the review process and of its published articles but also of the interpersonal influence on the network of researchers. The geographic balance across Europe, the United States, and other parts of the world of leading scholars in the editorial board has been a key factor to ensure quality, and to let this quality be known in the international community. A scientific publication has a relatively narrow readership and the diffusion of such a journal is not immediate, but builds up over time.

The editorial policy of the journal has not really changed since the journal’s creation. I made it very clear, however, in my first editorial, that, as the sole journal of the European Marketing Academy, the vocation of IJRM is a broad one that covers all the subjects in the field of marketing, whether substantive theories or methodology, and that there is no prejudice against particular research paradigms. The only criteria are: 1) to provide new knowledge relevant to marketing and 2) that, as a scientific journal, the claims be validated by appropriate methodologies.

The success of IJRM is due, first of all, to the strong support of the European Academies and more specifically of the European Marketing Academy. Historically, the development of the journal benefited from the Europeanization and internationalization of marketing education, and from the growth in volume and quality of European research, which is also evidenced by its growing position in the best American journals. It is also the result of the commitment to the scientific quality of the journal as implemented in editorial decisions made by the prior editors.

IJRM’s editorial policy covers a broad range of topics; it is not subject to specific patterns of development in sub-areas of marketing.

The journal’s contributions in the broader field of Economics & Business concern the better understanding of markets and how management can develop these markets better for the benefit of consumers and of the firm. It also contributes to a better scientific understanding of buyer behavior, based on conceptual frameworks and methodological approaches from academic disciplines beyond economics, such as psychology, social psychology, etc.

There are two directions, I believe, in which the field must evolve. The first one concerns international marketing as concerned with multicultural markets, as well as with the globalization and trans-nationalization of economic activities of firms and markets. The second is the interface that marketing activities involve within the firm, whether for the strategic directions of the firm, or with other departments of the organization—for, as an example, new product development.

The role of IJRM is to provide a source of respected findings that can influence future research as well as the practices of marketing in the firm. In addition to continuing to publish manuscripts from established European and American colleagues, I hope the journal will appeal to non-native English writers from all over the world who can be sure to receive constructive feedback that will help them improve their papers to the level required for publication. Publishing in English is not trivial for many researchers who are not native English speakers, although it is a requirement in today’s world for having an impact in our international community of academics as well as business managers. In that sense, IJRM builds on the multicultural characteristics of its European roots, to become truly international.