Supplier Integration and Competitive Advantage of Food and Beverages Manufacturing Firms in Kenya

Abstract

The major aim of this study was to establish the relationship between supplier integration and competitive advantage of food and beverages manufacturing firms in Kenya. The study adopted a cross sectional survey. The target population was managers working along the supply chain from 270 food and beverage manufacturing firms in Kenya. Two-stage sampling design was employed. First stage, cluster random sampling was used to obtain 73 food & beverages manufacturing firms. Second stage, convenience sampling was used to select two participants from the 73 selected firms. Thus, a sample size of 146. Questionnaires were used to collect primary data using both the drop and pick and mailing methods. Secondary data was obtained through document analysis. Data was analyzed using SPSS version 28 to generate descriptive and inferential statistics. The study found that supplier integration had a positive significant linear relationship with competitive advantage. Additionally, the competitive advantage is anticipated to grow for every unit increase in supplier integration. Thus, the study concludes that the parameters of supplier integration are crucial in enhancing a company's competitive advantage in the food and beverage industry. Consequently, the study recommends that improvements in integrating with suppliers should be strategically implemented.