Publications
Publications
- 2020
- HBS Working Paper Series
Category Kings or Commoners? Market-Shaping and its Consequences in Nascent Categories
By: Rory McDonald
Abstract
For a new market category to materialize, ventures must actively bring it into existence. Yet it remains a mystery how entrepreneurs, whose resources are stretched thin, can accomplish this task. Prior research emphasizes the importance of market-shaping but overlooks its impact on ventures. Through an inductive multiple-case study of a new financial-technology category, I develop theory centered on the conspicuous divergence in ventures’ cultural-resource use. My framework describes how the use of such resources co-evolves with the nascent market category, influencing the venture’s own trajectory. I also identify ways in which market-shaping can rebound back at a venture unexpectedly, contributing to strategic inflexibility and inertia. I pursue the contributions of the framework and discuss its implications for category creation, cultural entrepreneurship, and strategy in nascent markets.
Keywords
Nascent Markets; New Categories; Innovation; Qualitative Methods; Emerging Markets; Strategy; Cultural Entrepreneurship; Innovation and Invention
Citation
McDonald, Rory. "Category Kings or Commoners? Market-Shaping and its Consequences in Nascent Categories." Harvard Business School Working Paper, No. 16-095, February 2016. (Revised January 2020.)
About The Author
