BARRIERS BEFORE INNOVATIONS IN FURNITURE COMPANIES.

The dynamics of the environment shows that the competitiveness at the company level is impossible without the presence of innovation activity. Innovation influences consumer opinion, they impose new needs, they refine materials, business processes, technologies and products. Innovation is crucial for the survival, development of Bulgarian industrial companies. Each company's innovation policy is specific, there are no uniform rules or clear instructions for it. It is the basis of creating competitive advantages and it depends on the survival of the company on the market (1). Unfortunately, innovation faces many different barriers. Some of them are of an external nature and are imposed by the environment in which the company operates. Another part is of an internal nature and reflects company culture, management views on development and risk taking, and so on. This paper outlines the state of Bulgarian reality under the conditions of a "timid innovator" and examines the major groups of barriers faced by companies. The work shows an empirical study related to the obstacles to the innovation activity of the Bulgarian managers in the furniture industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]