Innovation is simply coming with a new idea that is different from the existing one, or coming up with an idea that has never been tested. However, in order to understand the history of innovations, one must remember how innovations have evolved rapidly for the past decade; it has been from simple linear models to very complex encompassing diverse stakeholders and processes at each sequential level. Nonetheless, each innovation can be distinguished by management styles, relationship to outsiders, its marketing strategies and their performance level, Rothwell (1994).
Business models keep on changing with the change in technology, innovations are affected too, and therefore there has been an increase in innovations but with strict conformity of the current technology and the ever changing dynamics worldwide, (Kline and Rosenburg, 1986). Coming up with a business idea is not the problem, the real issue is whether it is intended to fill the gap in the market or it’s already an explored idea. Rothwell (1994) argues that there is no model substitution at any stage, an innovation will stand out as long as it’s competitive and if it satisfies customer utility. Therefore it is not automatic that when a better idea comes up then the current one gets substituted.
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"Innovation of the Blaze Company".
Business startups can be operated and managed by the brains that developed the ideas or still one can sale the business idea to other large franchises. In most cases, entrepreneurs have had to struggle with their ideas before blooming up; many suffer from lack of capital which is the main challenge. Who could have thought of coming up with a simple idea like making and baking fast foods for travelers and those in cities? Who came up with the idea of MacDonald’s? Ray Kroc turned this small idea into a gold mine, today the company makes $26 billion annually, a capital of 4% which ranks it 13th on the market stock exchange, Cohan (2013). It’s from this perspective that we sort to interview one of the renowned entrepreneurs in the United Kingdom, Emily Brooke, the CEO and founder of “Blaze.”
Blaze is a London based startup which has provided a solution to most cyclists and motorists. Emily Brooke built a laser light that is fixed on a bike which glitters brightly to save cyclists from being hit by reckless motorists. This innovation is a solution to daily road accidents that occur during night and evening times, many people across the globe suffer from effects of shortsightedness and thus cause accidents out of ignorance. Blaze comes in to fill this gap by providing a solution to cyclist and the motorist fraternity, Verworn, and Herstatt (2013). Brooke who took an interview with us, said that the laser light boosts cyclist’s safety by glowing in a green image which is visible from five to six foot, therefore it’s projected so brightly to warn a driver or another motorist that there is a cyclist in front also using the road. The whole idea has been to improve visibility between the driver and a cyclist. However Brooke has been so instrumental to the society since she started winning major deals and contracts, for example the Santander which is a company dealing with bikes announced to fit the entire “Boris bike” with the Blaze laser lights. This deal was worthy one million pounds. Brooke announced the total amount she made during the December sales that year on her twitter account;
When asked to describe her value chain, she says that laser light making entails a focused mind; it has sensors which control the brightness depending on the closeness of a vehicle. It has red lights to signify danger and green for warning to other road users. However, the process begins with supply of raw materials, then they are assembled, connected and then send to final consumers, it can be the individual buyers or retailer. Blaze Company controls its market because it uses a demand model to produce the laser lights. This means that more productions are expected when demand rises and vice versa. However, the company produces on specific demand too according to customer specifications for example other customers like buying the laser lights accompanied with burners. And others prefer only the light signals.
The company makes waterproof gadgets which have built the company’s reputation since many people find them convenient. The lasers can be used in rainy seasons without blowing out. Secondly Blaze Company has become its own market place, this means that nobody dictates their prices; they set them at monopoly power. She says that the main motive for such a model is that it restricts unscrupulous middlemen who might hike the prices and thus make the whole idea of life saver useless. She said that she values human life and her idea should help reduce avoidable accidents, Tomaro (2016). However there has been emergence of competitors but they have not yet reached the level of Blaze, they come and fail on the way because the government has invested in Blaze, seems like Blaze has the monopoly. Today the devices are found globally in more than 100 cities of the world.
