The Role of Market Knowledge in Sustaining Innovation. Evidence from the Fashion Industry

Literature on the relationship between a firm’s market orientation and innovation has so far primarily analyzed the content of market knowledge. This paper is instead focused on the organizational mechanisms and processes that are at the foreground of market knowledge absorption and diffusion within the organization. Through an in-depth qualitative analysis of three case studies, the paper contributes to the literature in three areas. First, companies differ in the way they manage market knowledge and in their way of being market oriented. Second, it highlights that organizational mechanisms differ according to the type of market orientation adopted within the company. Finally, it suggests that different ways of using market knowledge might drive different innovative performance. After discussing the core implications of the study, the limits of the analysis and directions of future research are presented.