CHAPTER ONE
1.0 INTRODUCTION
The research work looks at the impact of product innovation on the growth of a firm. This means the yield that comes form innovating products. This impact ranged from high profitability, high sales volume increase, increase in market share and high competitive advantage.
This work is divided into five chapters one as the introduction, which reveals the overview of the Nigeria breweries plc background of the study. It also states the hypothesis tested.
Chapter two Contains the literature review like various definitions of innovation concepts of innovation, why companies innovation, innovative strategies and other points relevant to this study.
Chapter three contains the research methodology employed, which includes research design, population of the study, data sources and method of analysis of research questions meted out to consumers and management and staff of NBPLC.
1.0.1 OVERVIEW OF THE STUDY
This study explores relationship between innovative activity, profitability and firms growth in Nigeria breweries plc Ama, Enugu, innovation is the future of any business and without a continuous flow of new products, their marketing systems could probably die. This is because the business environment is fast changing and becoming high competitive so as consumers changes in fasts and needs.
In this study the researcher addressed a central issue in innovative studies namely the effect of innovative on a firms performance. Does it pay off to become involved in innovation activity? What forms do the benefits of innovation take? Does innovation enhance short run profitability or does it contribute to a firms growth or both or neither?
One important point about innovation is that it is not without cost, it requires the creation tangible and intangible assets which increases production cost. A second basic argument about innovation and firms performance is that the innovation of new or technically superior product creates temporary monopolies which improve the business performance of firms however, such temporary imperfect competition can cleariy be exploited in at least two ways. On the other hands, firms can raise prices on the basis of performance improvement in the product and this imperfect competition advantage will lead to improved returns on sales. Alternatively firms can hold prices down leading to more or less sharp.
Improvement in the price quality ratio of the product, resulting in increasing sales and profitability (however measured) may not improve innovation will improve the growth of the firm.
However, Nigeria breweries plc Ama Enugu does have higher rates of growth of sales (which means also that the absolute amount of profit grows faster than in non innovating firms) and impact of innovation is primarily on growth.