Design as Value Catalyst for SMEs in Emerging Contexts: The Case of Guadalajara, Mexico.

"The paper attempts to describe how can design act as a catalyzer of value for local SMEs in emerging countries, exploring how is it possible to valorize local characteristics and competences from a design point of view. This valorization operation will be illustrated through the documentation of case studies performed qualitatively through interviews and quantitatively through an electronic survey performed to SMEs (Small Medium Enterprises) that participated in an initiative for fostering design driven innovation in a territorial scale in the city of Guadalajara, Mexico