Innovation in the periphery: Compensation and exploitation strategies

Recent research has challenged the urban bias in economic geography and innovation studies, showing that highly innovative and competitive firms are also located in peripheral regions. So far, however, analyses has focused on how firms innovate despite their unfavourable location and little has been...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Growth and change 2019-12, Vol.50 (4), p.1511-1531
Main Authors: Eder, Jakob, Trippl, Michaela
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Bias
Companies
Compensation
Economic geography
Economic theory
Exploitation
Innovations
Peripheral regions
Uptake
Urban areas
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Summary:Recent research has challenged the urban bias in economic geography and innovation studies, showing that highly innovative and competitive firms are also located in peripheral regions. So far, however, analyses has focused on how firms innovate despite their unfavourable location and little has been said about the innovation benefits of peripheral areas. Hence, this article identifies different compensation and exploitation strategies adopted by firms in order to overcome regional innovation constraints and to reap innovation benefits found in the periphery. Drawing on 20 in‐depth qualitative interviews with innovative firms situated in the Austrian periphery, our analysis reveals that innovation in peripheral regions is the outcome of a combination of compensation and exploitation practices. The uptake and composition of these strategies depend on the firm and regional characteristics, with firm size being the most influential factor.
ISSN:0017-4815
1468-2257
DOI:10.1111/grow.12328