Tangible Resources and Export Performance of SMEs in the Nigerian Leather Industry: The Moderating Role of Firm Size

Despite the large amount of research that has been carried out to investigate the factors that affect export performance, very little research has been conducted for specific industries operating in developing countries like Nigeria. This present study therefore, is an investigation of the factors that affect export performance of SMEs in the Nigerian leather industry. Based on the resource-based view, this study posits that tangible resources (financial, operational, communication and human) are all strongly related to firm export performance. The study also hypothesizes that firm size moderates the relationship between tangible resources barriers and export performance.
Standard survey questionnaires were used to collect data from respondents and multiple regression analysis was used for hypotheses testing. Findings from the data analysis provided support for the hypothesized relationships thus suggesting support for the theoretical model of the study.