New ventures and the development of marketing capabilities: the role of business innovation ecosystems

Purpose - The paper aims at pointing out how new ventures develop the capabilities they need to compete. In particular the paper focuses on marketing capabilities that, although are usually overlooked in favour of technical capabilities, are important for the survival of the firm. Literature on new ventures has explained the characteristics and dynamics of firm birth, but additional knowledge can be developed in exploring how new ventures can cope with initial capability gaps and the drivers of gap filling, by considering the characteristics of the founders, the structure of the size and scope innovation networks.Design/methodology/approach - Based on this theoretical perspective, the paper empirically investigates initial capability gaps and focuses on the development of marketing capabilities by new ventures starting with an initial gap, looking for the impact of founding characteristics of new ventures and the structure, the size, and geographical scope of collaborations new ventures are involved in for innovation purposes. The quantitative analysis is based on an original dataset of more than 400 Italian new venture firms specializing in the mechanics and KIBS sectors.Originality/value - The value of the paper refers to both the theoretical and empirical analysis. From a theoretical point of view, it wants to contribute to the literature of new venture pointing out how firms develop capabilities in the start-up stage, focusing on the overlooked marketing capabilities. Moreover the paper discusses the role the business innovation ecosystem for developing capabilities in the case of new venture. From an empirical point of view, the analysis is focused on new ventures in advanced manufacturing and service industries.Practical implications - The paper offers an overview of the drivers supporting new venture firms in filling their marketing capability gaps and how the external sources of knowledge can support new ventures in improving their capabilities over time.