Locating local knowledge in global networks: Scouting in fashion and football

•How do market actors search for and source local knowledge as they enact global commercial networks?•This is a comparative study of scouting for fashion models and soccer players.•Scouts engage in 'relational work'; the bridging of physical distances across networks by building ties with potential exchange partners.•Scouts engage in 'recognition work'; they hone expertise to identify raw skill in remote locations.•Given the centrality of sourcing local knowledge, scouts will remain central in global commerce.

How do market actors search for and source local knowledge in global commercial networks? We investigate the origins of local knowledge by studying the work practices of scouts in two comparative global trades: fashion modelling and football. Based on ethnographic and interview data, we find that scouts depend upon local knowledge at both the periphery and the core of their trade networks. To source local knowledge, they engage in two key activities. The first is 'relational work', the bridging of physical distances across networks by building ties with potential exchange partners. Scouts also engage in 'recognition work' as they hone expertise to identify raw skill in remote locations and match it to shifting trends at the networks' core. This study finds that distinct forms of relational and recognition work are employed to identify and source local knowledge at the network's periphery and core. We conclude that given the centrality of sourcing local knowledge, scouts will remain central in global commerce.