Introduction
In the rapidly changing business world, innovating is a key to achieving and maintaining sustainable success. Organizations, such as Toys “R” Us, RadioShack, and Borders, starkly demonstrate the consequences of ignoring technological progress, the focus on innovation, and changes in consumption patterns (Wu, 2019). Toys “R” Us, RadioShack, and Borders have missed opportunities for innovation, leading to their displacement from the market. It is important to discuss some potential strategies that could be used to prevent ceasing operations in each case.
Toys “R” Us
Toys “R” Us, once a central player in the toy market in the United States since the 1950s, could not adapt to the new age of online trading. The organization missed the opportunity to create a sustainable digital platform and attract new demographic groups. As a result, it ignored innovation and did not adapt to changes in toy preferences and retailing patterns (Phillips, 2021; Wu, 2019). In 2018, the company closed its stores. In modern reality, Toys “R” Us could restore its entrepreneurial culture by investing in developing unique toys, creating interaction with customers through augmented reality, and focusing on an efficient digital platform for consumers.
RadioShack
RadioShack was founded in 1921, and this company remained a popular electronics retailer for many decades, but it also failed to adapt to the digital age. The organization’s leaders reacted slowly to the growth of online sales and missed the opportunity to improve their e-commerce platform to compete with Amazon (Wu, 2019). RadioShack could introduce innovative technologies, such as the Internet of Things (IoT), to restore its entrepreneurial culture and offer solutions for smart homes (Phillips, 2021). Moreover, creating numerous virtual stores with the ability to do 3D modeling of products across the country could improve user experience and attract more consumers.
Borders
Borders, being a dominant bookstore chain since 1971, could not cope with the emergence of digital books and the practice of online sales. The company was comparably late in introducing e-books and failed to create a convenient online platform for selling printed and digital copies. The problem was that the rise of e-books and digital readers and the growth of online retailers like Amazon drastically changed the bookselling landscape (Phillips, 2021; Wu, 2019). To revive its entrepreneurial culture, Borders could invest in developing a device for reading e-books that would compete with Kindle. In addition, unique partnerships with authors for exclusive digital book releases could attract more readers, with a focus on social media and IT involvement.
Conclusion
To conclude, innovation is not just a choice for companies, as it is necessary for survival in the modern business world. Toys “R” Us, RadioShack, and Borders represent vivid examples of how missing opportunities for innovation can cost a company its market share and even its survival. However, even in the face of apparent failure, finding specific ways to recover through innovation and focusing on changes in operations and marketing is possible. Today, these companies could use different innovative strategies to restore their entrepreneurial culture and successfully return to the market or prevent bankruptcy and the cessation of their operations.
References
Phillips, K. E. (2021). Change and execute: How to transform and design your business for sustained success. CRC Press.
Wu, S. (2019). Strategy for executives: 2019 Edition. Strategy for Executives LLC.