E Mba Student

Report for

NESTA December 2007

Innovation in the UK Retail Sector

Innovation in the UK Retail Sector

Preface

Oxford Institute of Retail Management (OXIRM) The Oxford Institute of Retail Management (OXIRM) is a leading centre of retail studies based at the Saïd Business School, University of Oxford. OXIRM was created in 1985 to relate sound scholarship to the practical needs of retailers, service companies and public sector agencies. It undertakes management development programmes for companies, conducts research with direct relevance to practitioners and acts as a centre for education and networking activity.

Authors Latchezar Hristov and Dr. Jonathan Reynolds Latchezar Hristov is a senior lecturer in marketing at Sheffield Hallam University and doctoral researcher in the area of management and innovation at Saïd Business School, University of Oxford. Dr. Jonathan Reynolds is a lecturer in management studies at the University of Oxford’s Saïd Business School, and Director of the Oxford Institute of Retail Management.

Page 2

Innovation in the UK Retail Sector

Innovation in the UK Retail Sector

Contents 0. 1. 2. Executive Summary Introduction The nature and contribution of retailing as a sector a. The size and growth of the retail sector b. Drivers of change What are the distinctive characteristics of retail innovation? a. How different is retail innovation? b. Selected characteristics of retail innovation i. Retailers as innovation hubs ii. The low appropriability of the retail environment iii. Predominance of non-technological innovation iv. Hybrid characteristics of retail innovation v. Retailers’ reverse innovation cycle How do retailers think about innovation? a. Strategic retail innovation b. Operational retail innovation c. The retail innovation pyramid What drives retail innovation? a. External to the retailer b. Internal to the retailer What are the barriers to retail innovation? What are the measures of retail innovation? a. The...