Abstract:
Orientation: Climbing and by extension, climbing gyms are growing in South Africa, and with this growth comes the need for strategic management to that creates competitive advantages for the organisation. A need exists for management of climbing gyms to better understand the factors critical to a climbing gym and the resources that provide a competitive advantage.
Research purpose: The purpose of this study was to understand the factors that are critical to a climbing gym and thus derive the resources of the climbing gym industry that provide the climbing gyms with competitive advantages. The customer perceived value will need to be sought in order to determine which resources are valuable and thus provide a competitive advantage.
Research approach/design and method: A qualitative approach was utilised through the use of 12 interviews which were conducted with owners, managers, and industry experts in the South African climbing gym industry. During the interviews, the respondents provided insights into their perspectives of the factors critical to climbing gyms, the resources that they considered to create a competitive advantage and the value that customers derive from the climbing gym industry.
Main findings: The findings revealed that there are factors that need to be taken into account in the external environment that affect both the climbing gym and customers and the internal environment which can be influenced by management. The resources that produced the completive advantage were the employees, the routes, and management. By understanding this, managers are in a better position to build on the competitive advantage
