Obstacles to innovation in textile SMEs in the Usaquen district of Bogota, Colombia

Abstract

The textile sector in Colombia is of great importance in the national economy because it generates a high number of jobs, especially in cities such as Medellin and Bogota, in addition to the contribution it makes to the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP). At the same time, this sector has a high percentage of SMEs that are part of it and, in some cases, due to the financial muscle they have, are forced to carry out strategies with scarce resources to sustain themselves in the market. For this reason, there is a high degree of relevance in analyzing the main obstacles to innovation perceived by SMEs in the textile sector in the city of Usaquén in Bogotá, Colombia. For this purpose, a quantitative methodology was used. A survey was carried out with structured questions on a Likert scale to 72 companies on their perception of the financial, knowledge, regulatory, and technological obstacles they face daily. The main results found that the challenges related to knowledge limitations were the most important, more important than the financial ones. This information allows the design of better improvement processes and public policies that contribute to achieving some of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), especially Goal 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth, Goal number 9: Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure, and Goal number 12: Responsible production and consumption of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). If the processes and/or public policies are not implemented, the sector could be adversely affected, given the high level of global competition with products made at lower costs and the level of smuggling in the region.