Marketing Myopia

By looking at the growth and decline of industries, issues are not with the management as suggested by Levitt. The industry itself has a lifecycle of its own. The industry has followers, innovators and pioneers. The industry will initially grow slowly and then will show a sudden growth followed by a steady state and then a decline. Growth does not only signify in one direction, it can be a lateral growth with diversification as well. I would like to critique the thoughts used for defining growth itself. While determining what actually growth is, many industries might not seem to be in the shadow of decline. For example, Dry Cleaning industry which seems to be declining, but still has diversified into Laundromats with a steady growth. Similarly when looking at Hollywood, it seems to be declining, in fact it has grown much bigger with 3D IMAX movies and theaters. In the past, movies would not include animation, but now movies come in animated fashion as well. Another example can be taken with motorcycle industry. It seems to be in decline with fewer sales; on the other hand electric motorcycles have grown tremendously. This signifies industries change with the trend. The video rental industry is an excellent example of growth and diversification. Blockbuster has witnessed growth when video rental used was in demand, but with online services Netflix has taken over the industry. This does not mean video rental industry has declined, but actually it has grown with Netflix and the method of delivery has changed. Innovation and improvements in products only contribute toward the growth of the industry as suggested by Theodore Levitt. By agreeing partially with this as new innovations leads to new industry itself. Example of this is Peapod, who are in the food delivery business. Initially it was an innovation to the grocery stores to extend their services to their customers. Eventually this innovation leads to the creation of the food delivery industry. Theodore