Strategic Thinking as a Catalyst for Entrepreneurial Resilience in Post Covid-19 Recovery: A case of LUKHU Fashion Digital Strategy

Abstract

Covid-19 has created new vulnerabilities alongside emerging opportunities for strategically thinking organizations. The pandemic has propelled value-chain partners, customers, and employees to increase use of technology, which has bridged barriers to digital disruption and paved the way for rapid technology-driven changes. Corporate recovery from the Covid-19 crisis demands a strong technology foundation with strategic thinkers who make bold investments in technology and capabilities to equip their businesses to outperform competitors and rivals in a rapidly evolving and dynamic industry landscape. Strategic thinking refers to the rational and intentional thought process that centers on the analysis of critical variables that may influence current and future success of a business. This paper assesses the potential of LUKHU Fashion Digital platform in the Kenyan Market. The research problem is centered on the fact that many business have been closing every time a pandemic like Covid 19 strikes. The digital platform, LUKHU, has been established to create an interconnected fashion community that supports creativity, sustainability, economic and social
empowerment in Africa, through technology. The platform makes it simple, convenient, and affordable to buy, sell and discover fashion online. This study is anchored on the Resource Based View (RBV). A survey tool was used with a landing page website to organically gather data from online users in Kenya. Descriptive analysis was undertaken to assess the viability and usability potential. Results show that the majority (70%) of buyer respondents were skewed around price points and ease of access as the
major determinant of purchase dynamics. The key deliverables from the survey on sellers’ operational ecosystem were: product sourcing and stocking based on a fragmented supply chain. This affects price points. The study recommends that enterprises in the line of fashion, should monitor customer cycle and tailor product offerings uniquely to target set of customers in an efficient and effective manner and that online platforms should be fully embraced to attain Covid-19 resilience.