Initial submarket positioning and firm survival: evidence from the British automobile industry, 1895–1970

Zhao Rong (), David Broadstock and Yuanyuan Peng ()
Additional contact information
Zhao Rong: Nanjing Audit University
Yuanyuan Peng: Argus Information & Advisory Services, LLC

Small Business Economics, 2018, vol. 51, issue 4, No 10, 965-993

Abstract: Abstract A firm’s initial choice of its submarket may have a long-lasting influence on its subsequent performance. By examining the duration of firm survival in the British automobile industry between 1895 and 1970, we find that a firm’s initial submarket positioning (defined by the quality level of its first-launched model) influenced its subsequent survival. Additionally, we find that the initial positioning also helped firms to survive a major shakeout, and argue that innovation and path-dependence were two possible channels through which the benefits of initial positioning were felt.

Keywords: Firm survival; Product quality; Submarket positioning; Automobile industry; UK (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: L1 L26 L60 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2018
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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DOI: 10.1007/s11187-017-9970-7

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