Innovation impact on the growth of the business directly drives the company to move into a new market sector

(NESTA, 2009). Innovation shapes a new value curve in its industry. In order to illustrate this phenomenon, it is worth to take a look at Panasonic Corporation, Japanese electronics producer company which has developed beauty products for women (Than, 2012). The business has been established in 1918 when Konosuke Matsushita at age 23 launched Matsushita Electronic Housewares Manufacturing Works, which had become Panasonic, to produce sockets (Panasonic, nd). Nowadays, it is a worldwide electronics company, producing a variety of electronics devices, such as VIERA Television, LUMIX camera, and Blu-ray home theatre under the slogan Panasonic ideas for live (Panasonic, nd). This essay aims to describe the impact of innovation on the value curve by using Panasonic Corporate as an example to draw the picture. The theoretical concept of innovation implementation is primarily based on

the critique of the literature and will be used to apply with the situation of the company.
To make a clear point, a sound understanding of the underlying theoretical concepts is necessary. There are many empirical studies discussed about innovation in different perspectives (Bhaskaran, 2006). Price and Mayer (2006) states that ideas are commodities, but innovation is about finding and validating the business opportunity that both the leadership of the organization and its culture embrace and commit to, and that is connected to its business strategy. Today successful innovation is about both wants and needs, and satisfying them with new products and services (Price and Mayer, 2006). Joseph Schurmter states that there are five types of innovation (Rogers, 1998 cited OECD, 1997): they are 1) introducing new product or improving quality in the existing product, 2) new innovation in the process to industry, 3) entering into a new market, 4) developing new raw material resources and 5) changes in industrial organization. Rogers, 1998 cited OECD, 1997 defined innovation as a good or service or a process, which is new or essentially developed for using in the commerce. Innovation is the new ideas or practices, which are feasible to be adopted for the commercial. Innovation can be defined as new ideas related to product, process, or other business perspectives in order to create value within the organization (Greenhalgh and Rogers, 2006). Innovation investment in a macroeconomists term is

investment made in intangible assets namely investment in knowledge. It may also include investment made down the line to commercialise and profit from new ideas along with scientific research and developments (NESTA, 2009). According to Timmons model of the entrepreneurship process, entrepreneurship is exploitation of an opportunity through the enactment of new business models. (Appendix X page X). Stephen et al. (nd) also determines that innovation comes from awareness of an opportunity. The Timmons model states that the entrepreneurship process starts when the founder recognizes the problem and perceives the business opportunity along with the accesses to the essential resources. Regards to Spinelli et al. (nd), there are three components in the Timmons model: opportunity, entrepreneurial team, and resources. Capturing opportunity sits in the heart of entrepreneurial process. The quality opportunity must be attractive, durable, and timely which can create and add more value on product or service. It also can be indicated by need or acceptance of the market. To cope with the innovation, it is essential to access the customers information and understand the limitations of their perceived need. The valuable product or service gains market share. For resources, most people believe that money is the key to succeed in the business, but rationally money follows the capable opportunity. Having extensive resources does not necessarily reduce the risk of starting a new venture but having a quality entrepreneur who can come up with ingenious creative strategies may. Creative resource marshaling which can also be termed as bootstrapping is another way of resourcing. Leasing and not buying is another way to go about it. Venture success also depends on experience and networking because better the networking and more the experience the better the access to resources. The timing of acquisition of resources not necessarily ones own is also very important to the ventures success. An edge over other competitors may be gathering various resources in an orderly way, which ensures that the resources are valuable, unique and durable. The entrepreneurial team has been said to play an equally important part. As per (Spinelli et al, nd cited in Teach et al, 1998), one would be better off placing their bets on a highly experienced and skilled team with not such a great idea compared to a great idea and not so skilled team. It is said that there may be plenty of great ideas, great entrepreneurs, great venture capitals but the one thing we are short of is great teams. Rapid growth creates high pressure, which can be handled and overcome by a team of multi talented people. According to Sandstrom and Tingstrom (2008), Innovation can be broken down into major types namely: (a) Incremental Innovation and (b) Radical Innovation. Incremental innovation is innovation on an existing knowledge base or an existing product whereas radical innovation is a based on a new idea totally. With Panasonic venturing into beauty products, it used incremental innovation to come up with the product that we are discussing here. Abraham (2006) states that Blue Ocean Strategy is a strategy used by companies to enter into a market where there is uncontested market space and the competition is irrelevant. Blue Ocean strategy has been known to be used by strong brands. It measures value innovation and enters into a market, which is not currently being served. The firm tries to capture and create new demand thus making the competition irrelevant. Firms using Blue Ocean strategy have been known to have better financial results. Blue Ocean Strategy does not come without its cons. It has been known to have two basic types of risks accompanying it: (a) Formulation risk, which includes searching, planning and coming up with a new business plan and (b) Execution risk which is more to do with executing, organizing the business plan and overcoming changes.

Panasonic as a company was founded in the year 1918 and since then has become a renowned electronic product-manufacturing firm. This article aims to study its impact on the value curve by looking at its latest product in the beauty segment. The founder, Konosuke Matsushita, was working for Matsushita Electric Housewares Manufacturing at age 15 in 1910 and became the highest post a technician could dream of- an inspector at the Osaka Electric Light Company in 1917 (Panasonic, nd). However, he needs more challenge so he quitted his job. Later on at the age of 23, he went on to launch the company as a socket-producing firm. From there we have known the company to jump leap and bounds. Heated Eyelash Curler is one of the company newest venture into the beauty segment. It is an automatic 360degree rotating comb, which uses gentle heat and rotating action to curl eyelashes. It is an incremental innovation product considering there are many manual eyelash curlers in the market. However, an automatic eyelash curler is definitely the first of its kind. The manual eyelash curler usually ends up on breaking quite a few eyelashes when one tries to squeeze too hard while the automatic eyelash curler makes it really nice and curly. It makes the eyelash look natural without a hint of crimp ensuring that the all the hairs are lined up perfectly and point in the same direction. Panasonic using incremental innovation is now swimming in Blue Ocean Strategy. Its product is new in the lines of being automatic and using gentle heat. It has created a new demand and has no real competition in the market. This market space is uncontested and thus the company is enjoying Blue Ocean Strategy. From this innovation, the company generates a new value curve in the women beauty products industry. Thus can be explained by using and demonstrating how the four vital elements of value curve namely eliminate, reduce, raise and create are being used by the company. The automatic heated eyelash curler eliminates the breakage of eyelashes ensuring that there is no or minimum breakage of eyelashes. The manual eyelash curler hurts the eyelids whereas the automatic curler eliminates the pain of hurting eyelids. It also ensures that one does not get crimps while trying to curl their eyelashes. The automatic eyelash curler majorly reduces time used to curl eyelids. The manual eyelash curler takes up a whole lot of ones time if they want to curl their eyelash. This time factor has been reduced by the introduction of this product. It ensures that curling of eyelashes is now quick and less time consuming. This also reduces clumping of mascara making sure that there are no clumps of mascara in any particular corner. Moving to the positive side of the value curve, the automatic eyelash curler raises certain aspects of it. One of them being it gives more curls to ones eyelashes in a quicker and more efficient way. Not only does it make the eyelashes curlier but it also makes your eyes look bigger. So now obtaining both a curlier look and making your eyes look bigger has been made easy thanks to the new automatic heated eyelash curler. It also creates a more natural look. With the manual eye curler, it was very difficult to get a natural look and have your eyelashes pointing in the same direction. The automated eyelash curler has made both of it possible. It has not only created a more natural look but it also ensures that your eyelashes are pointing in the same direction at the same time. To conclude, one can say that Panasonic with its new product has made a huge impact in the beauty product segment as expressed in the terms of the value curve. By using incremental innovation, it was able to create new market space ensuring that the competition is irrelevant. It created and captured a new demand, hence creating a change in the industry curve.

References Abraham, S. (2006) Blue oceans, temporary monopolies, and lessons from practice, Strategy & Leadership Vol 34, No 5 pp52-57 Bhaskaran, S. (2006) Incremental Innovation and Business Performance: Small and Medium-sized Food Enterprises in a Concentrated Industry Environment, Journal of Small Business Management, Vol 44, No 1, pp64-80 NESTA (2009) The Innovation Index Measuring the UKs investment in innovation and its effects, London Rogers, M. (1998) The Definition and Measurement of Innovation, Melbourne, The university of Melbourne http://panasonic.net/about/

Price, C. and Meyers, A. D. (2006) The 12-Step Innovation Roadmap: How to Analyze and Prioritize New Business Ideas, The Physician Executive, Vol 32 No 2, pp52-55

Greenhalgh, C. A., and Rogers M. (2006) The value of innovation: the interaction of competition, R&D and IP. Research Policy 35:56280. Sandstrom, G. O. and Tingstrom J. (2008) Management of radical innovation and environmental challenges: Development of the DryQ capacitor at ABB, Enropean Journal of Innovation Management, Vol 11 No 2, pp182-198