The Role of Service Operations Management in New Retail Venture Survival

•The study is on survival of new retail ventures in Portugal.•The data is from 15,901 Portuguese retail ventures founded between 2006 and 2010.•Faster inventory turnover increases survival odds by 5.21%.•Higher staff expenses per employee increases survival odds by 13.93%.•Higher intangible assets lower survival odds by 0.05%

While the factors related to the survival of established retail firms are well researched, current understanding of drivers of new retail venture survival is limited. We assess the influence of retail operations characteristics on the survival of new retail ventures. Based on data from 15,901 Portuguese retail ventures that were founded between 2006 and 2010 and followed until 2014, the new retail ventures with faster inventory turnover or higher staff expenses per employee had a higher likelihood of survival while higher investment in intangible assets had a negative but negligible effect on survival. The implications of these findings for entrepreneurs of new retailing ventures are discussed.

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