The purpose of the current study is to examine how market orientation mediates the impact of business ties and cultural embeddedness of products on product innovation among Vietnamese artisan businesses.
The institutional logics perspective was applied to provide theoretical framework for hypotheses development and analysis of results. A sample of 214 artisan business owners in Northern Vietnam was created.
The findings of the current study revealed partial mediation effects of market orientation on the impact of business ties and cultural embeddedness of products on product innovation. On the one hand, the research findings showed that business ties have a direct positive impact on product while cultural embeddedness of products has a direct negative impact on product innovation. On the other hand, market orientation mediates the impacts of both business ties and cultural embeddedness on product innovation.
This study did not consider the factors related to personal attributes (e.g. identity) as well as the broader context beyond the Northern Vietnam. Further, this study did not analyze how generational conflicts affect artisan innovation. That may limit the generalization of the research findings.
This paper offers recommendations for future research, government and managerial practices. Future studies can analyze how level of trust and the identity of business owners affect the extent to which firms innovate their products. Government can provide suitable support for the formation of business networks and culture-based groups to help artisan businesses address challenges facing their product innovation. Finally, artisan business owners can re-organize their business model to innovate product without encountering the resistance of cultural dimensions.
The application of the institutional logics helped further shed light on the impacts of business ties and cultural embeddedness on product innovation among artisan businesses. This field was often hidden in the existing literature under the cover of small businesses. The multilayered relationships between factors improved our understanding of organizational product innovation in a unique context of artisanship.
