The contradictions of uneven development for states and firms: Capital and state rescaling in peripheral regions

Recent studies suggest that processes of capital and state rescaling are generating new socio-spatial inequalities within nation-states. I explore rescaling in the understudied context of a peripheral region through the case of a global apparel merchant, Lands’ End, and its decision to relocate its call and distribution centers to Dodgeville, Wisconsin. I argue that an empirical exploration of rescaling in peripheral regions demonstrates the need for two revisions to this literature: (1) an extension of the rescaling literature to capture the multi-scalar construction of socio-spatial inequalities and how the interactions between these different scales influence local outcomes; (2) an extension to firms the kind of analysis that scholars have applied to states—that is, we must consider both the rescaling strategies pursued by states and firms, as well as the contradictions both face as a result of new and existing socio-spatial inequalities.