The primary means for gaining and sustaining competitive advantages for companies are shifting downstream

When a company has a competitive advantage, it means that they have been able to get ahead of their competitors in one or multiple ways. This can come as a price advantage, where company has the means of creating a product for a cheaper price therefore can price it lower than their competitor. Additionally, a company could develop a logistics advantage that would make it cheaper to export/import products or simply give them a lot more reach to other countries than their competitors might not be able to. By companies shifting their competitive advantage focus to downstream activities means that they are concentrating more on consumer behavior and actual markets, rather than concentrating on upstream activities which are related to production and logistics. These downstream activities can include a higher concentration on marketing to influence brand image and consumer wants, e-commerce can also play a huge advantage if a firm is able to develop a direct to consumer application to drive online sales and gain a competitive advantage. By being more readily available to clients, that’s how companies are able to gain a competitive advantage downstream.

In a circular economy, firms are looking to remove waste out of the system and continue with the continuous use of resources available. This concept aims to build and rebuild overall system health by minimizing the use of resource inputs and creating a closed system to reuse, share, recycle and remanufacture to name a few. With this concept in mind, the creation of competitive advantages would not be shifted downstream to consumers directly but rather stay upstream. Since it is a closed system, the advantages would be created in ability to reuse all sorts of waste and feed it to a different production process therefore lowering the cost and price of a product.

The blue ocean strategy is a market in which there is very little or no competition at all. Due to there not being a lot of competition firms don't have to worry about pricing pressure. "Blue ocean strategy is the simultaneous pursuit of differentiation and low cost to open up a new market space and create new demand. It is about creating and capturing uncontested market space, thereby making the competition irrelevant"(Blue Ocean, n.d.). An example of a blue ocean strategy is Apple's iTunes. Apple created iTunes a music downloading service in 2003, allowing consumers to download music legally at a low price. This allowed billions of people who were downloading music illegally to buy songs at a reasonable price and better quality. According to Investopedia, "Apple made iTunes a win-win-win for the music producers, music listeners, and Apple by creating a new stream of revenue from a new market while providing more convenient access to music". 

What is Blue Ocean Strategy? Definition of Blue Ocean Strategy, Blue Ocean Strategy Meaning. (n.d.). Retrieved October 02, 2020, from https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/definition/blue-ocean-strategy

What is Blue Ocean Strategy: About Blue Ocean Strategy. (n.d.). Retrieved October 02, 2020, from https://www.blueoceanstrategy.com/what-is-blue-ocean-strategy/

Young, J. (2019, August 15). Understanding the Calm Waters of Blue Ocean Market Opportunities. Retrieved October 02, 2020, from https://www.investopedia.com/terms/b/blue_ocean.asp