Innovating to survive

Switch on your TV news, or read your social media feeds, and you will see much talk about ‘Black Swan events’. These economic recessions and pandemics in the past have changed the course of history. These events also change the way business is done, and innovation tends to follow as a response. Back in 2002, when the SARS pandemic struck the world, anxiety around travel and human contact meant that consumers looked to shop differently and not in person. As a result, e-commerce company Ali Baba saw the opportunity to expand and fill the gap in the online retail market. This fuelled the company’s meteoric growth. A similar Black Swan event occurred with the financial crisis of 2008, which had a devastating impact on people’s jobs, incomes, and savings. As a result, disruptive ‘sharing’ businesses such as Airbnb and Uber saw an opportunity, and rapidly expanded to fill the need. In times of economic crisis, innovation is key to surviving in business. So Lionesses, how are you innovating and pivoting your business to make it through these challenging times? Share your experiences by posting to your Facebook, Twitter or Instagram using hashtag #LionessBusinessUnusual and you will be featured on our Community Wall.