Anabelle Brenes Flores

Annabelle Brenes Flores is a Fellow in International Business Strategy in the Department of Management.

Her research examines how place-based industrial policies shape regional economic development, investment, and firm location decisions in emerging economies; with a particular focus on Special Economic Zones (SEZs) in Latin America. Combining georeferenced zone boundaries, satellite-derived night time light data and modern causal inference methods, she measures whether zone designation generates additional economic activity inside these areas and whether it spills over into neighbouring locations. Her work spans through nine Latin American countries, covering both the zone regimes of Central America, Colombia and the Dominican Republic, as well as Mexico's Zona Libre de la Frontera Norte.

Her work speaks to debates at the intersection of international business, economic geography and regional development. It has been presented at the Academy of International Business and discussed directly with practitioners and policymakers, including the UN Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) and the Americas Free Zone Association.

Prior to joining LSE, she was a doctoral researcher and Teaching Assistant at Henley Business School, University of Reading, where she tuaght undergraduate and postgraduate courses in international business, management and strategy. She holds an MSc in International Business (Distinction) from Aston University, which she read as an FCO Chevening Scholar, and a BA in Business Administration (Summa Cum Laude) from Ave Maria University, Nicaragua, where she was class valedictorian.

Before pursuing an academic career, Annabelle spent more than eleven years in the banking, consulting and international development sectors. As Regional Branch Manager at Banpro Grupo Promerica, one of Central America's largest banking groups, she led multidisciplinary teams, mentored future managers, where oversaw strategic planning, business development, and operational performance across major branch operations. She also worked as a business consultant with Simworx Ltd in the UK, conducting international market and investment analyses, and as a Grant Writer for the American Nicaraguan Foundation, securing funding for projects promoting economic inclusion and gender equality. These professional experiences provide a practical perspective that informs both her research on investment and regional development and her teaching in international business and strategy.

Main research interests

• Special Economic Zones and place-based industrial policy
• Policy evaluation and causal inference in emerging and data-scarce economies
• Foreign direct investment, firm location choice and local economic development
• Spatial spillovers, agglomeration and the geography of policy effects
• Satellite and geospatial data (nighttime lights) as measures of economic activity
• International business and economic development in Latin America

Courses:

• MG464 CEMS International Business Strategy in the World Economy
• MG421 International Business Strategy in the World Economy
• MG303 International Business Strategy in the World Economy